On behalf of 14th Kashag of the Central Tibetan Administration under the leadership of Honorable Sikyong Dr.Lobsang Sangay, I would like to thank USAID, and Under Secretary Sarah Sewall for the new award of $3.2 million for the Tibetan Health System Strengthening Project of the Health Department,CTA.

In the past, the USAID India had also supported CTA’s Health Department with an award of $896,283.16 for its ongoing program of Tibetan Torture Survivors from October 01, 2002 to September 30, 2013.

It is because of His Holiness the Dalai Lama that we have been granted this precious award for which we are very grateful.

We also would like extend our deep gratitude to Honorable Sikyong Dr.Lobsang Sangay and Kashag for their effort to get this new award.

The goal of this project is to achieve universal health coverage for Tibetan communities in South Asia that helps contribute to USAID’s Global Health Mega Goals of ending preventable child and maternal deaths by 2035 and creating TB free communities by 2030.

The Tibetan Health System Strengthening Project will support many of the Department’s most urgent priorities, in particular its Tibetan Medicare System, Health workforce strengthening, Health Information System, Tuberculosis prevention and control ; and Mother and Child Health program.

We would like to thank and assure as well the Office of the Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues, USAID India Mission Director John Beed, and USAID India Health Director Nancy Godfrey, that this grant will make a tremendous difference in meeting our community’s health challenges and strengthening the Tibetan health system.

In conclusion, We also would like to thank the Representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in North America, to The Tibet Fund, particularly Bob Ankerson, and to our team of Health Department staff for their great cooperation and work in applying for this grant.