October 2008: Write a letter to your editor urging foreign aid reform
Both presidential candidates have expressed support for foreign assistance programs to improve the health, education, and livelihood of the poor, and both the Democratic and Republican Party platforms refer to the need to reform foreign aid. In a recent presidential debate focused on foreign policy and national security issues, Senators Barack Obama and John McCain addressed a number of daunting and complex international issues facing the United States. But despite a wide-ranging discussion of global issues, 20 percent of the world’s population was ignored — the 1.4 billion people living in extreme poverty on less than $1.25 per day. Neither candidate spoke about how foreign aid can help lift people out of poverty and make us more secure at home. The current economic outlook will force a new administration to make tough choices about which campaign pledges become priorities and which become unfulfilled promises. Now is not the time to abandon our opportunity to reform foreign aid and neglect to do our part to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).[1] Investing in the poorest and most vulnerable citizens on the planet is not a luxury expense to be excised in challenging times. It is a central and imperative component of our foreign policy that reflects the best American values of compassion and justice, and enhances our national security. Your candidates and your community need to hear from you — reform foreign aid to serve the poorest! Sample Letter to the Editor
Instructions: Follow the guidelines for letters to the editor provided by your local papers. Always include your address and phone number with your submission. Make your letter short (150–250 words) and to the point using the EPIC format. To write a letter through the RESULTS website, go to http://capwiz.com/results/dbq/media. Get published? Amplify the impact of your letter by sending a copy to your members of Congress and political challengers. Good Intentions Not Good Enough — We Need Results from Our InvestmentsWhen asked to prioritize U.S. foreign aid, Americans consistently rank promoting children’s health, providing education, and combating hunger near the top. And yet many of these core foreign assistance programs lack a clear focus on achieving measurable outcomes for the poorest. The result? Inefficiency, ineffectiveness, and missed opportunities. Child Survival and Health. Our effort to prevent and treat basic childhood illnesses could be the flagship of our foreign assistance programs. The need is great (there are 9.2 million annual deaths of children under five), the solutions are well-documented, and the U.S. has historically played a leadership role in global child health. But currently it is difficulty to say where, whether, and how child survival funding is having an impact. In a 2007 review, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that “due to USAID’s approach to tracking and accounting for such funds, it is not possible to determine how much was actually spent on [child survival and maternal health] activities.”[2] Remarkably, this disturbing finding is nearly identical to that of a 1996 GAO review, which concluded that “USAID is unable to determine with any degree of precision how much funding is actually being used for child survival activities.”[3] Food Aid. While the food crisis has been pushed from the headlines, the impact of rising food and fuel prices on poor families continues with devastating consequences. U.S. food aid — which is “tied,” or restricted to being spent on U.S. goods and services — is poorly equipped to mitigate the hunger crisis. U.S. law requires that most food aid be used to purchase goods domestically rather than abroad in local or regional markets so it could be delivered quickly, and commodities are shipped overseas on expensive U.S. carriers. This toxic mixture of special interests and humanitarian policy erodes the value of every food aid dollar. The GAO found that 65 cents of every food aid dollar is spent on “noncommodity expenses,” that is, not food, but rather shipping, processing, and other overhead costs.[4] Shipping U.S. commodities may also negatively affect local farmers in target countries. Basic Education. U.S. assistance for basic education has grown tremendously, and is now funded at nearly $700 million per year. Like child survival assistance and food aid, basic education programs are hindered by poor monitoring and evaluation, and requirements to source materials and services from U.S. providers. A new report from RESULTS Educational Fund also notes that aid is allocated to countries based on their perceived strategic importance to the U.S. rather than those with the greatest need.[5] Progress toward MDG 2 — universal primary education — will be unacceptably slow and uneven if the U.S. continues to subvert long term development needs to short term geopolitical interests. The Way ForwardReal reform will require bold leadership. Key members of Congress have already stepped up and declared their intention to work toward foreign aid reform next year. The new president will have match congressional leadership, and work across the aisle in a bipartisan effort. To reform foreign aid and elevate the priority of global development, the U.S. should: Focus on Poverty and the Millennium Development Goals. Before determining a structure to deliver foreign aid, decision makers should be clear that its purpose is first and foremost to fight poverty. We must ensure that our aid dollars are not wasted, and that resources are devoted to those who need them the most. Fund Globally, Act Locally. The U.S. should improve coordination among donor countries by supporting effective multilateral mechanisms like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Aid should reflect the needs of the nations and communities for which it is intended, and it should reduce costs and increase effectiveness by funding and strengthening local organizations. Measure, Report and Improve. Gear foreign aid to specific, measurable results for poor people, and report clearly and regularly on progress. Approaches that demonstrate success should be scaled up. Provide Our Fair Share. The U.S. spends just 0.16 percent of GNP on foreign aid, despite commitments by donor countries including the U.S. to provide at least 0.7 percent of national income to global development. [1] The Millennium Development goals are: 1. Eradicate extreme hunger and poverty; 2. Achieve universal primary education; 3. Promote gender equality and empower women; 4. Reduce child mortality; 5. Improve maternal health; 6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; 7. Ensure environmental sustainability; 8. Develop a global partnership for development. [2] GAO. Global Health: USAID Supported a Wide Range of Child and Maternal Health Activities, but Lacked Detailed Spending Data and a Proven Method for Sharing Best Practices. April 2007. http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d07486.pdf. [3] GAO. Foreign Assistance: Contributions to Child Survival Are Significant, but Challenges Remain. November 1996. http://www.gao.gov/archive/1997/ns97009.pdf [4] GAO. Various Challenges Impede the Efficiency and Effectiveness of U.S. Food Aid. April 2007. http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d07560.pdf [5] Middleton J. Redesigning the Basics: How to Improve the Impact of U.S. Foreign Assistance for Basic Education. RESULTS Educational Fund: September 2008. |