Congressman Kolbe, chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations, has warned that unless the growth in spending on domestic entitlement programs is checked it could squeeze out foreign aid. He urged supporters of global development to see entitlement reform as central to their work.
"It's wrong to think that foreign assistance is only a question of political will; it's wrong to think it's just a question of having the right intentions," Kolbe (R-AZ) told a Center for Global Development audience last week. "There's probably more support in Congress for foreign assistance than ever, but that will mean precious little to us if we can't curb the growth of entitlement spending," he said.
Kolbe said that continued growth in spending for the three largest entitlement programs--Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security--was displacing all forms of discretionary spending, including foreign assistance. The impending retirement of the baby boomers meant that "all bets are off" when it comes to large future increases in other spending, he said.
Kolbe delivered his remarks as the recipient of the 2006 Commitment to Development Award presented to him on behalf of the Center for Global Development and Foreign Policy magazine in recognition of his contribution to changing attitudes and policies towards the developing world. Academics, development policymakers, NGOs, foreign diplomats, and representatives of U.S. and multilateral development agencies gathered for the award presentation. CGD president Nancy Birdsall praised the congressman as "a rare and effective voice of reason on foreign aid" as well as "a soft-spoken congressman who brought thoughtfulness and intelligence to his job." (Read the transcript or watch the video.)
She praised Kolbe for helping to make the case for the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA), the Bush administration's innovative flagship aid program, and for being an early proponent of the need for the U.S. to incorporate prevention of state collapse into its strategy for dealing with the world's more than 50 weak and failing states. Foreign Policy editor Moisés Naím praised the congressman's personal interest in development programs, saying he understood both the big picture, “macro approach” and the details of specific programs.
Kolbe, an eleven-term congressman from southern Arizona who recently announced his retirement from the House of Representatives, said that when he graduated from college, discretionary spending made up two-thirds of the federal budget. When he entered Congress, that share was down to less than fifty percent. He said that figure has now shrunk to less than forty percent and will be less than a third ten years from now. "If you believe that America has an obligation to support global development," Kolbe said, "an obligation based on compassion" and "an obligation based on our nation's self interest" then "it is irresponsible not to have a point of view on such things as entitlement reform."
Kolbe encouraged those who work on development to start addressing the hard choices that entitlement spending is forcing Congress to make. Insisting on entitlement reform, Kolbe argued, does not relieve the development community of examining how development assistance can be reformed and made more effective. He praised CGD and other organizations for focusing not only on how much money is allocated but more importantly how it is used.
Kolbe acknowledged that the U.S. faces challenges in demonstrating success of long-term poverty eradication programs, but he also noted that many U.S. foreign assistance programs don't get the credit they deserve. Citing vaccination and child health programs, he said, "they've been much more effective and done a lot more good in the world than a lot of people give them credit for."
Kolbe then responded to audience questions on a variety of topics related to the future of foreign aid including reform of the United Nations, congressional earmarks, food aid, and basic education programs. When asked for his thoughts on how to make U.S. foreign aid institutions more effective, he said rewriting the 1961 Foreign Assistance Act might not be a bad idea, but that it probably wouldn't happen anytime in the near future. Short of rewriting the Foreign Assistance Act, Kolbe suggested that USAID should convince Congress of the need to dramatically increase the number of professional staff and continue improvements in procurement and management systems.
*Watch Congressman Kolbe's remarks (If you are having problems streaming the video it is also available for download. (47 MB) )
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