Dear Mr. President:
I am deeply gratified by today's
signature of an agreement through which our two countries, under the Alliance
for Progress, will work together in a program of development in the Northeast
of Brazil.
We approach this program with
the same sense of urgency and in the same determined spirit that your government
has demonstrated in its planning for this region. We share with you the
conviction that the twenty million people in the Northeast must be afforded
an opportunity to participate in the future growth of Brazil, and that
we must make a bold attack on the economic and social problems of the region.
We work together under this
program to give full meaning to the Alliance for Progress, confident that
this undertaking will move us forward toward the goals set forth last August
at Punta del Este. What makes it an Alliance program in the true sense
is that the initiative came from Brazil; that the plan was conceived in
your country; and that it will be administered by Brazilians.
Our joint program will consist
of a two-pronged attack on the problems of the Northeast.
First, we will act to meet specific
urgent needs of highest priority to bring pure water to areas that lack
water, to create sources of electric power, to provide education that will
enhance workers skills, and to establish emergency health units throughout
the area.
Second, we will pledge ninety-eight
million dollars to the first two years of your five year long-range program
of development - a program designed to bring about a steady increase in
living standards, rising opportunities, and the integration of the Northeast
into the national economy of Brazil.
At the end of the two years
we will conduct a joint review of the program and decide together how we
can most effectively work toward our goals in the succeeding years.
We are aware that the problems
we face are complex and deep-rooted, that they will not yield to slogans
or superficial action. Only hard work, patience and persistence in carrying
project after project to completion will achieve what we seek: to change
the face of Northeast Brazil and provide a better life for its people.
I am most grateful, Mr. President,
for this opportunity to join with you in what we hope will be a major contribution
to a better life in our hemisphere.
Sincerely,