For the first time, the Federal Executive Secretariat Council held its meeting at USAID headquarters Sept. 1. Chair Mary Jeffers (l) of the Federal Aviation Administration and Vice Chair Ann Brewer of the National Institutes of Health joined 30 other Council members from Cabinet and other federal offices and agencies. USAID’s Executive Secretariat staff presented an overview of USAID and the Agency Correspondence Tracking System, which involves all correspondence—including letters, memoranda, basic check lists, and talking points—from and to the administrator, deputy administrator, and counselor, both within and outside the Agency.

Indonesians search the rubble of a collapsed shop for victims of a 7.6-magnitude earthquake in Padang, West Sumatra, Oct. 1. USAID provided $300,000 in immediate aid following the Sept. 30 quake and set aside an additional $3 million pending an assessment of the island’s needs. The Agency also deployed a Disaster Assistance Response Team to Sumatra to lead the U.S. government disaster response effort.