A Message from the Administrator
Henrietta H. Fore
USAID Administrator and
Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance
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The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) was formally created in 1961 by executive order after President John F. Kennedy signed the Foreign Assistance Act into law. The Agency’s origins, however, date back to the Marshall Plan and its reconstruction of Europe after World War II. Since that time, USAID has managed foreign assistance resources in some of the world’s most challenging environments.
USAID serves as the U.S. government’s primary instrument in promoting security and reducing poverty in the developing world. We do this by catalyzing the full range of America’s public and private capabilities and resources, and linking those resources effectively with the governments and people we serve, through world-class, on-the-ground presence. Our efforts are aligned with the activities carried out by the Department of State, as presented in the joint State-USAID Strategic Plan for fiscal years 2007-2012.
For the fifth consecutive year, USAID has earned unqualified opinions on its financial statements, a representation that these statements fairly present the financial condition of the Agency. For the first time, no material weaknesses were identified under the Government Management Reform Act (GMRA) audit. It is also significant to note that USAID scored green in both status and progress under the Financial Performance initiative on the President’s Management Agenda (PMA) scorecard, which is a major milestone for the Agency.
The men and women of USAID continued their fine performance during this reporting period at headquarters in Washington, D.C. and at over 80 missions around the world. Some of this year’s major management accomplishments are outlined below:
- Realigned the workforce structure with the new foreign assistance framework.
- Developed and used a workforce planning model to project staffing needs for the FY 2009 budget process.
- Implemented a Manage-to-Budget initiative to help control costs, reduce overhead, and reduce the use of program funds for administrative purposes.
- Reduced the number of facilities that did not meet physical security standards.
- Piloted a new Web-based procurement tool, Global Acquisition System (GLAS).
- Piloted the electronic travel system (E2 solutions) to reduce travel expenses and provide paperless processing.
- Established an Upward Mobility program to provide career development opportunities for employees in positions at the GS-9 level and below.
- Expanded diversity awareness training for new employees, managers, and supervisors.
Overall, the Agency is seeing improvements in its PMA initiatives scores (http://www.results.gov). Four years ago, all of USAID’s PMA initiatives had “red” status. But as of September 30, 2007, Financial Performance and Faith-based and Community initiatives scored “green”; Human Capital, E-Government, Real Property, and Performance Improvement initiatives scored “yellow”; and Competitive Sourcing remained “red.” For progress, USAID achieved “green” for Competitive Sourcing, Financial Performance, Real Property, and Performance Improvement initiatives; and “yellow” for Human Capital, E-Government, and Faith-based and Community initiatives. USAID is demonstrating continued progress on all of these initiatives.
This Administration, with the support of Congress, has made an enormous commitment to development through appropriated funding that has more than doubled since 2001. These increased resources have come with new responsibilities: intensified efforts to combat HIV/AIDS and malaria; rebuilding following conflict in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Lebanon and parts of Africa; education initiatives and advancing democracy. USAID also continues to be the world’s lead agency in responding to natural disasters. In doing so, it carries out a humanitarian mission that reflects the generosity of the American people and helps the lives of millions worldwide.
During the past year, USAID continued to implement, in close collaboration with the Department of State’s Office of the Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s reforms for government-wide foreign assistance programs. To further these reforms and to meet the challenge of working within the evolving network I like to call the Global Development Commons, we at USAID will lead new ways of doing business in the international community.
This year, the Agency has elected to prepare this alternative Agency Financial Report (AFR) that includes a high level discussion of performance information. More comprehensive performance information, including major performance accomplishments, will be reported in the FY 2009 Congressional Budget Justification (CBJ) and the joint State-USAID Highlights document that will be available February 2008. I hereby certify that the financial and performance data in the FY 2007 AFR are reliable and complete.
The Independent Auditor’s Report, including the reports on internal control and compliance with laws and regulations, is located in the Financial Section. Issues on internal control, identified by management and the auditors, including planned corrective actions and timeframes, are discussed in the Management’s Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) section of this report.
Henrietta H. Fore
USAID Administrator and
Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance
November 15, 2007
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