There is good news for children in Cambodia and Nicaragua. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has awarded two Child Survival Grants worth $3.6 million to the Adventist Development and Relief Agency International (ADRA) for implementation in Cambodia and Nicaragua. ADRA supporters have already provided the matching funds stipulated by USAID.

“ADRA’s child survival programs mean the difference between life and death for thousands of hurting children,” states Ralph S. Watts Jr., president of ADRA International. “ADRA’s donors have consistently provided the support needed to continue to meet USAID’s rigorous requirements.”

The projects will benefit more than 114,000 women and children affected by extreme poverty. Malnutrition, diarrhea, and vaccine-preventable diseases contribute to high death rates for children in these two areas.

Program goals focus on improving nutritional status of infants, children under five, and pregnant and lactating women; increasing household food security through home gardening; and reduction of maternal and neonatal deaths through appropriate pre- and post-natal care and delivery practices.

Implementation sites will be in the Baray-Santuk Operational District (BSOD) of Kampong Thom Province, Kingdom of Cambodia, and the Department of Madriz, which is located in a mountainous area along Nicaragua’s northern border with Honduras.

Additional information about ADRA can be found on its Web site at www.adra.org.