ITF signed 2009 grant agreement with United States Department of State

United States of America has again supported activities of the International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victim Assistance (ITF) with 12.376.238 US$ emarked for ITF activities in 2009. The 2009 grant agreement was signed on 8th May 2009 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Slovenia, by the US Department of State Contracting and Grants Officer Mr. Harold Leo Powell and ITF Director Mr. Goran Ga?nik.
Director-General Ambassador Andrej Benedej?i? on this occasion briefly presented the activities of ITF from the establishment in 1998 and plans for the future. He expressed the hope that the cooperation between the ITF and the United States Department of State in the future would also be to such a high level.
ITF Director, Mr Goran Ga?nik stressed that United States of America is the most important partner of ITF since its establishment. The ceremony is also important because it reinforces the image of Slovenia, who actively participates in international efforts to mine action in countries where it is most needed.
Representative of the US Embassy in Ljubljana, Grace Shelton, emphasized that the United States of America has until now devoted 126.203.368 US$ for ITF mine action activities. With the signing of the 2009 agreement United States of America remains the largest donor to ITF in 2009.