Why Congress Should Care About the International Aid Transparency Initiative

By: Staff Person
April 18, 2013

Congress needs to understand that the dashboard and IATI are the tools it has been searching for. Members continuously complain about the opaqueness of foreign assistance – how much assistance is the U.S. providing, to what countries, for what purposes, in cooperation with whom, to what effect? Where is the information to explain to constituents how their tax dollars are being spent? Together the dashboard and IATI will provide this information.

MFAN Co-Chair Defends Foreign Aid Reform in Testimony

By: Staff Person
March 19, 2013

“I want to commend USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah for his efforts to provide more assistance directly to governmental institutions and local NGOs and businesses in the recipient countries. I also want to commend Congressman Ted Poe for sponsoring the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act. “

Beckmann Testifies Before Congress, Asks for Increased Funding for Nutrition

By: Staff Person
March 19, 2013

Beckmann’s testimony comes at a time when both a shrinking international affairs budget and the series of across-the-board cuts known as sequestration threaten funding for poverty-focused development assistance (PFDA). Many important international nutrition, food security, development, and humanitarian programs fall under the umbrella of PFDA.

MFAN Statement: Food Aid Reform Necessary; Administration Urged to Release Proposal

By: Staff Person
February 19, 2013

The current approach to delivering food aid is outdated and in need of reform. In an era of decreasing budgets, policymakers simply can’t afford not to consider any credible proposal to maximize the impact of taxpayer dollars. We urge the Administration to make its proposal public and include it in the Fiscal Year 2014 budget request, and we urge Congress to give it careful and complete consideration.

MFAN Statement: Senate Does Disservice to Americans, Allies & Foreign Assistance Recipients by Killing Transparency Legislation

By: Staff Person
January 4, 2013

Because the bill came so close to becoming law, we are optimistic about its prospects in the 113th Congress and we plan to redouble our efforts to support its passage. We remain grateful for Texas Rep. Ted Poe’s leadership in introducing the bill, and for the support of original co-sponsor Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA) and 55 other Members of the House who endorsed the legislation.

Community Supports Introduction of the Global Partnerships Act of 2012

By: Staff Person
December 13, 2012

Moreover, the GPA is essential to codifying the foreign assistance reforms already underway within the U.S. government and seeks to ensure a continued effort in making foreign assistance more effective. The bill mandates: transparency and evaluation to learn from mistakes and inform future programs; better coordination within our own government, with the private sector, and with other donors to make programs more efficient; and long term-strategic planning to focus resources where they are most needed.

MFAN Statement: MFAN Applauds Congressman Howard Berman’s Introduction of Global Partnerships Act to Modernize U.S. Foreign Assistance

By: Staff Person
December 12, 2012

The introduction of the Global Partnerships Act provides an opportunity for Members of Congress, including new Members, to work together in a bipartisan fashion to strengthen accountability and effectiveness in U.S. development programs. As the 113th Congress approaches, we encourage policymakers to consider this comprehensive, long-overdue proposal that would bring our foreign assistance into the 21st century and allow us to more effectively address new and pending global challenges.

MFAN Statement: President Obama Can Use Second Term to Solidify Gains, Drive Additional Progress on Foreign Assistance Reform

By: Staff Person
November 13, 2012

We are particularly optimistic of success because of what we heard on the 2012 campaign trail. Both President Obama and Governor Romney spoke publicly about the importance of U.S. efforts to alleviate poverty, drive economic growth, and eradicate disease in developing countries. We hope that policymakers in both parties will agree that our ability to maintain our leadership and leverage on a changing world stage, and turn the unprecedented development gains of the past decade into lasting change, will rest heavily on how well we use non-military tools of foreign policy like development and diplomacy.