USAID Forward Progress Report Out Tomorrow
3/19/13
USAID administrator Rajiv Shah is set to release a progress report on the agency’s reform agenda at an event tomorrow.
Tag: Rethinking U.S. Foreign Assistance
Will the United States Be Able to Go Big on the African Development Fund This Year?
3/19/13
Will donors be able to “go big” on the African Development Fund (AfDF) this year, even if they want to? Here in the United States, budget austerity and restrictive funding rules stack the deck against any bold moves when it comes to multilateral contributions. But I think boldness in support of smart multilateral investments like AfDF may still be possible, and the United Kingdom’s multilateral aid review just might offer some clues on how to get there.
MCC Board Meeting Tomorrow: A Threshold Program for Honduras?
3/13/13
MCC’s board of directors is scheduled to meet tomorrow. On the agenda: a discussion of MCC’s Suspension and Termination Policy and a decision whether to approve a threshold program for Honduras. If approved, the Honduras program will be the first of a new generation of thres
How USAID Could Score a Double-Win for Learning and Transparency
3/12/13
USAID has made sweeping new commitments to two important elements of foreign assistance reform: improving learning and increasing transparency. A commitment to publish datasets associated with USAID-funded evaluations would be a further win for both.
Sequester, CRs, and Development—Oh My!
3/8/13
As Senator Paul's filiblizzard, if not the snowquester, hit DC, the House passed a new continuing resolution for the remainder of FY13, which would fund the government at $982 billion, rather than the current $1.047 trillion to account for sequestration. The White House doesn't love it but won’t veto it, and we can expect to see amendments in the Senate giving some
White House Proposal Could Revolutionize Food Aid
3/5/13
Washington is abuzz with rumors that the White House budget will include a far-reaching reform of US food aid that moves away from in-kind food aid transported on American ships. Even though no details are available, the plan faces considerable resistance from agricultural and maritime interests that profit from the current system. But current practices are inefficient, costly, and slow and most development advocates support the administration’s desire to shake things up.
Foreign Aid Reform Already Paying Sequestration Price
3/1/13
I’m guessing I’m not the only one still in a state of denial that sequestration will actually happen. The across-the-board cuts—if and when they happen tonight—will hit my own household (I’m married to my favorite bureaucrat) and the US foreign aid programs I monitor here.
In Defense of Aid to the Afghan Government
2/27/13
When US troops leave Afghanistan, will US aid dollars be withdrawn as well? The Obama administration says no. But House Republicans are beginning to push back, bolstered by damning testimony from the Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction (SIGAR), the watchdog tasked with overseeing US aid to Afghanistan, arguing that American aid is being wasted on a corrupt regime.
Does the MCC Effect Exist?
2/20/13
“Conditionality” in foreign aid often gets a bad rap, but are there circumstances in which it works? The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) provides large-scale development assistance to selected poor but well-governed countries, chosen primarily based on their performance on a set of publicly available policy indicators (a type of ex ante conditionality). MCC’s selection system is touted as an incentive for countries to pursue policy reform in order to gain MCC eligibility, a phenomenon nicknamed: the “MCC Effect”. However, there is limited
Kerry’s Confirmation Hearing: Short on Development, Long on Promise
1/29/13
Senator John Kerry aced his confirmation hearing to be Secretary of State and all but guaranteed that he would win a speedy confirmation from the Senate – possibly as soon as this week.