Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and ranking member, Senator Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), on Tuesday "introduced a bill to overhaul the U.S. system for providing global development aid," the Boston Globe reports (Smith, 7/29). The legislation was also introduced by Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), according to a release from Menendez's office (7/28).
The bill proposes "numerous changes in the way aid is allocated" and would strengthen USAID, "which has withered in recent years as aid programs were shifted to other departments, including the Pentagon," according to the Boston Globe. "The bill would require increased coordination and transparency in U.S. aid programs, reestablish a bureau for strategic planning within USAID, and give more authority to USAID staffers in the field," writes the newspaper (7/29).
According to the press release, the Foreign Assistance Revitalization and Accountability Act of 2009, S.1524, would also establish "an independent council in the executive branch - the Council on Research and Evaluation of Foreign Assistance (CORE) - to objectively evaluate the impact and results of all development and foreign aid programs undertaken by the U.S. Government" (7/28).
The Boston Globe reports that "[m]any development groups have pushed the Obama administration to address the fragmented foreign-aid process." Raymond Offenheiser, Oxfam America's president, said that "[a]long with rebuilding USAID, the U.S. must shift its focus from development projects that meet short-term political and security goals back to long-term development goals that not only help more people escape poverty, but in the long run, create greater stability and good will for the U.S." (7/29).