Why America’s overseas aid agency needs reform

ON SEPTEMBER 14th, Rex Tillerson, the secretary of state, presented the outline of a reform plan for the State Department and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to the Office of Management and Budget. Alongside a plan to cut up to $10bn from the State Department’s budget over five years, the proposals included a closer alignment of the department and USAID—potentially involving a full takeover of the semi-independent aid agency. That would require Congressional support, which may not be forthcoming: the Senate has already pushed back against the administration’s proposed cuts to the USAID budget, suggesting the agency enjoys some bipartisan support on Capitol Hill. But reform of America’s overseas assistance programmes is long overdue, and should involve a lot more than revamped organisation charts.

Every presidential administration since the 1970s has initiated efforts to reorganize foreign aid. But calls for more significant reform are growing, with good reason. While America’s aid programme is the...Continue reading

Source: United States http://ift.tt/2hdWeoT

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