Last week, Representatives Gary Ackerman (D-NY), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) circulated a “Dear Colleague” letter to the entire House of Representatives calling for the naming of an United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator immediately. Thus far, several Representatives, including Donald Payne (D-NJ), Mike McMahon (D-NY), Gene Green (D-TX), and Gerry Connolly (D-VA) of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, have endorsed the letter. In the excerpt below, Representatives Ackerman and Blumenauer argue that USAID needs to be restored as the premiere development agency and that an USAID Administrator is a vital voice that needs to be included in all foreign policy discussions given the important role development plays in national security today:
“USAID should be the primary development agency of the United States and serve as the principal advisor to the President and U.S. national security organizations on the capacity and strategy of U.S. development assistance. To accomplish this, USAID needs a strong leader capable of aggressively managing U.S. foreign assistance in order to achieve our nation’s political, developmental and humanitarian assistance goals.”
Read the full text of the letter below.
Elevate Development alongside Diplomacy and Defense
Urge Nomination of a Qualified USAID Administrator
Dear Colleague:
Please join us in a letter calling upon President Barack Obama to nominate an administrator for the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Nine months into the current administration, USAID leadership has yet to be named, much less confirmed. There has seldom been a time when the need for a strong and well represented relief and development agency has been so clear. Our efforts in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and around the world, in addition to our renewed commitment to clean water, food security, and global health, require strong leadership to succeed.
Sincerely,
GARY ACKERMAN EARL BLUMENAUER
Member of Congress Member of Congress
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Mr. President:
We are writing to express our disappointment with the continued absence of a nominee for Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development. It has been nine months since USAID has had a chief executive officer.
USAID plays a crucial role in our national efforts in two theatres of war and in formulating policy in Washington. The absence of a confirmed Administrator to chart the agency’s course is significantly impeding vital national security efforts around the world, but especially in the Middle East and South Asia.
USAID should be the primary development agency of the United States and serve as the principal advisor to the President and U.S. national security organizations on the capacity and strategy of U.S. development assistance. To accomplish this, USAID needs a strong leader capable of aggressively managing U.S. foreign assistance in order to achieve our nation’s political, developmental and humanitarian assistance goals. A new Administrator should understand and be able to articulate the importance of American assistance programs, not only in the context of the good we do for others, but the essential national interests that justify these expenditures.
We understand that filling this position is a high priority for you and Secretary Clinton, and we appreciate your own deep commitment to strengthen the role of foreign assistance to advance U.S. national security. We urge you to empower USAID with an Administrator during this time of challenge and crisis.