On June 26, USAID and the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA), in Niamey held a ceremony/press conference at the American Cultural Center for signing a Memorandum of Understanding in which DANIDA will co-fund an extension of USAID’s “ Increasing Transparency and Accountability in the Management of Natural Resources in Niger” project. The Senegal-based Regional USAID Director Susan Fine signed the agreement on behalf of the USG, while the Danish Chargé d’ Affaires Winnie Petersen signed on behalf of DANIDA. The DANIDA contribution to the project will be over $ 2 million, and will extend the project by over a year, until December 2015. The project addresses extraction industry transparency in Niger, specifically the i) the ability of parliament to oversee the industry, ii) the incorporation of human rights in industry activity, and iii) gender mainstreaming in the industry. The ceremony was attended by Chargé Richard Bell.
