USAID Administrator Raj Shah and MCC CEO Daniel Yohannes are set to testify together before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee tomorrow. This follows joint testimony before House authorizers last month, which was dominated by partisan spats rather than serious debate about how to get a bigger bang for the U.S. development dollar. I’m hopeful the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will take a closer look at the overall U.S. development approach and reform process, the distinct roles of USAID and the MCC, and how the U.S. should prioritize development investments in a shrinking budget. And my fingers are crossed that this time, Shah and Yohannes will have the opportunity to answer these questions and emerge with constructive support and advice from the senators.
