Development Assistance
Every year the US Congress decides how much money to spend on develpment assistance. That means that a U.S. citizen can influence the process at various points along the way by contacting their member of Congress and sharing their opinion.
In 2006, Bread for the World analyzed the U.S. Foreign Assistance Budget and looked at what accounts are most directly aimed at poverty alleviation. Poverty-focused development assistance includes the Development Assistance and Child Survival accounts, the Millennium Challenge Account, and initiatives to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. Read more about what we consider Poverty-Focused Development Assistance.
Bread for the World members remained engaged in the fight for more resources for hungry and poor people around the world. This year we urged an increase in funding for poverty-fighting development assistance, arguing that the U.S. should be increasing poverty-focused programs by $5 billion a year.
On December 19, Congress passed an omnibus appropriations bill – funding for the entire government except Defense (whose appropriation was passed and signed earlier this year.) Overall funding for poverty-focused development assistance was increased by $1.4 billion for fiscal year 2008. The allocation represents a 10 percent increase over last year. This additional funding will:
- open opportunities for many very poor people
- boost progress against HIV/AIDS and malaria
- expand education for children, especially girls
- help to maintain the rapid economic growth that much of Africa is experiencing.
Initially, the President requested an increase of $1.7 billion for poverty-focused development assistance in the FY 2008 State/Foreign Operations bill. The House approved $1.9 billion and the Senate, $1.3 billion.
The President also insisted that Congress stay within his limit for overall spending for non-security purposes and the State/Foreign Operations bill took a heavy hit in the final round of congressional cuts. But thanks in part to the efforts of Bread for the World this year, Congress protected poverty-focused programs. In total, increases to poverty-focused development assistance made up 80% of the entire increase in the State/Foreign Operations bill.
Bread for the World's 2008 Offering of Letters – our main campaign next year – will push for a $5 billion increase in poverty-focused development assistance for the 2009 fiscal year. We will also work to pass the Global Poverty Act (S. 2433,) which would:
- Commit the United States to helping to cut global poverty in half by 2015
- Require the incoming administration to develop a comprehensive plan for U.S. efforts to help reduce global poverty.
