What is the Foreign Assistance Dashboard?
The Foreign Assistance Dashboard provides a view of U.S. Government foreign assistance funds and enables users to examine, research, and track aid investments in a standard and easy-to-understand format.

Who developed the Foreign Assistance Dashboard?
The Foreign Assistance Dashboard was initiated by the Department of State and USAID under the policy guidance of the National Security Staff. Future iterations of the Foreign Assistance Dashboard will be developed in consultation with U.S. Government agencies receiving or implementing foreign assistance.

How can I contact the Foreign Assistance Dashboard with questions?
Please Contact Us to report incorrect data, broken links, or other technical or usability issues or to ask a question regarding foreign assistance data. Before contacting us, you may be able to find the answer to your question in the list of Frequently Asked Questions. For questions about the federal government not related to ForeignAssistance.gov, visit USA.gov or call 1(800)FED INFO (1-800-333-4636) (8am - 8 pm ET Monday - Friday).

What does U.S. Government foreign assistance mean?
The U.S. Government has a long history of providing foreign assistance to respond to global needs, assist people overseas struggling to build a better life, and make the world safer. It is this compassion and action that stands as a hallmark of the U.S. and reflects the true character of this nation.
According to Section 634(b) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended:

(b) For purposes of this section—

• (1) "foreign assistance" means any tangible or intangible item provided by the United States Government to a foreign country or international organization under this or any other Act, including but not limited to any training, service, or technical advice, any item of real, personal, or mixed property, any agricultural commodity, United States dollars, and any currencies of any foreign country which are owned by the United States Government; and
• (2) "provided by the United States Government" includes, but is not limited to, foreign assistance provided by means of gift, loan, sale, credit, or guaranty.

In simpler terms, official foreign assistance is the unilateral transfers of U.S. resources (funds, goods, and services) by the U.S. Government to or for the benefit of foreign entities (including international and regional organizations) without any reciprocal payment or transfer of resources from the foreign entities. Foreign assistance is not just confined to funds or commodities, it also includes the provision of technical assistance, capacity building, training, education, and other services, as well as the direct costs required to implement foreign assistance.

The designation of foreign assistance is based on whether foreign entities receive direct benefits from programs supported by U.S. Government resources without paying for them. U.S. transfers to international or regional organizations where the U.S. reaps direct benefits from the operation of the organization do not qualify as foreign assistance. While authorized primarily under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended, U.S. Government foreign assistance is also authorized by other legislation.

Why is foreign assistance transparency important?
With the mandates of the U.S. Government’s Open Government Initiative, Paris Declaration, and the Accra Agenda for Action, the U.S. Government is required to make information on foreign assistance programs more transparent. Together, these initiatives will:

• Contribute to greater understanding on the part of the tax-paying public of the depth and breadth of the U.S. Government’s work in international development;
• More actively engage stakeholders in the foreign assistance dialogue as both successes and failures are appropriately noted and analyzed;
• Make U.S. Government foreign assistance data available to implementing partners to inform their efforts as they work side by side with us to address development challenges;
• Help donor countries coordinate, simplify procedures and share information to avoid duplication;
• Assist host country governments so they are in a better position to manage their own country systems and aid flows; and,
• Put foreign assistance information in the hands of people who benefit from U.S. Government assistance – thus empowering them with information that could lead to viable solutions.

Why is some of the data on ForeignAssistance.gov different from USASpending.gov, Recovery.gov, and the Greenbook?
Each of these websites represents different funding timeframes and reporting parameters than what is contained in the Foreign Assistance Dashboard. For more information on the type of data represented in the Foreign Assistance Dashboard visit the About the Data page.

What is the source of the data?
The Foreign Assistance Dashboard currently includes Department of State and USAID foreign assistance budget planning data. These figures can be found in the annual Congressional Budget Justification submitted jointly by the Department of State and USAID and the annual appropriations bills.The Dashboard also includes budget planning, obligation, and expenditure data by project for the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).

Does the country view represent the totality of foreign assistance for that country?
No, the country pages are not a complete view of the foreign assistance benefitting a particular country. In the Congressional appropriation, some funds are not appropriated at the country level. These funds are appropriated to Washington based offices for subsequent allocation to field offices, regional offices, or worldwide programs. Some of these funds are programmed to benefit multiple countries or a regional or worldwide program and cannot be represented on the country page.

Can funds be traced through all the stages of the U.S. financial processes?
The Dashboard is not an accounting tool, but a way to help the U.S. Government be more transparent. Thus, it may not always be possible to trace funded amounts through the stages of the U.S. financial processes (appropriation, obligation, disbursement) on a dollar for dollar basis within the Dashboard data.

Which Agency's data are displayed on the Foreign Assistance Dashboard?
Data for the following agencies are currently displayed on the Foreign Assistance Dashboard:

• Department of State (budget planning data only)
• USAID (budget planning, obligation, and expenditure data)
• Millennium Challenge Corporation (budget planning, obligation, and expenditure data)

The Foreign Assistance Dashboard aims to eventually integrate all U.S. Government foreign assistance budget, financial, program, and performance data. Please continue to check back as the Dashboard is expanded to incorporate additional data sets.

When will updates to the Foreign Assistance Dashboard be made?
Updates will be made on a continuous basis as more data becomes available from additional U.S Government agencies and for additional fiscal years. Agencies update their own internal data sets on different schedules. Please continue to check back for additional data sets.

Is there more recent data than what is available on the Foreign Assistance Dashboard?
The Foreign Assistance Dashboard contains the most recent publicly available foreign assistance data for the contributing agencies.

I want to organize the information differently. How do I do that?
The Foreign Assistance Dashboard contains a large data set, which has been organized in a few standard charts and graphs. However, all of the raw data is available for users to query and sort in customizable ways. Use the "Data Query" tool to create a customized data set by selecting a set of variables or by exporting the entire data set to Excel or CSV.

Who is getting this money?
To implement Foreign Assistance programs, U.S. Government agencies typically partner with a wide variety of organizations, including private voluntary organizations (PVOs), local and regional nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), private sector companies, and public international organizations (PIOs).

What do the U.S.-based Offices do?
Offices based in the United States (primarily but not exclusively in Washington, D.C.) are organized around both regional and functional offices. These offices provide support to overseas offices, program globally-focused activities, and assist in providing overall policy guidance and program oversight. Funds initially allocated to these offices are subsequently allocated to overseas offices or to worldwide programs.

Why do negative numbers appear at the Operating Unit (OU) and sector levels?
There are instances when funds are de-obligated from a program or activity due to changes in scope of activities. A de-obligation is an agency’s cancellation or downward adjustment of previously incurred obligations. De-obligated funds may be re-obligated within the same time period. Negative disbursements appear for reconciliations and corrections in OECD codes.

Where can I get information on foreign assistance projects?
The Foreign Assistance Dashboard plans to include project level information in the future, which will include details on which contractors, non-governmental organizations, or grantees are receiving federal funds to conduct foreign assistance projects. Until the data is available, project information is available on U.S. Government agency websites such as USAID.gov and MCC.gov.

Where can I get historical foreign assistance data?
The Foreign Assistance Dashboard currently contains only data from 2005 to the present. Foreign Assistance data prior to this can be found on the U.S. Overseas Loans and Grants Database (also known as the “Greenbook”) (http://gbk.eads.usaidallnet.gov/). The Greenbook includes U.S. foreign assistance to the rest of the world by reporting all loans and grants authorized by the U.S. Government for each fiscal year. Please note that the Greenbook content differs from the current Foreign Assistance Dashboard data since they represent different points in time in the budget process and different reporting parameters.

Is an Operating Unit (OU) the beneficiary of the foreign assistance funds?
No. An Operating Unit (OU) is responsible for the management of foreign assistance funds allocated to its mission and objectives, whereas a beneficiary is the direct or indirect recipient of the assistance benefits. Operating Unit is a term of reference used to designate an entity responsible for planning and management of foreign assistance programs. Currently on the Dashboard, information identified with country-specific OUs may not capture all funds or activities originating from regional or functional OUs. Regional and functional OUs manage programs that benefit a number of countries, and may include flows to multilateral organizations as well as individual nations. Over time, the Dashboard will include the allocation of regional and functional OU programs to particular countries and organizations

Regional and functional OUs manage programs that benefit a number of countries, and may include flows to multinational organizations as well as individual nations.

What is the Department of State?
As the lead U.S. foreign affairs agency, the U.S. Department of State has over 265 diplomatic locations around the world, including embassies, consulates, and missions to international organizations. The Department also maintains diplomatic relations with most countries in the world, as well as with many international organizations.

The Secretary of State, the ranking member of the Cabinet and fourth in line of presidential succession, is the President's principal advisor on foreign policy and the person chiefly responsible for representing the United States abroad. The primary goal of the Secretary of State and the U.S. Department of State is to shape a freer, more secure, and more prosperous world through formulating and implementing the President's foreign policy, while supporting and protecting American interests abroad.

When was the Department of State created?
On September 15, 1789, Congress passed "An Act to provide for the safe keeping of the Acts, Records, and Seal of the United States, and for other purposes." This law changed the name of the Department of Foreign Affairs to the Department of State because certain domestic duties were assigned to the agency. These included:

• Receipt, publication, distribution, and preservation of the laws of the United States;
• Preparation, sealing, and recording of the commissions of Presidential appointees;
• Preparation and authentication of copies of records and authentication of copies under the Department's seal;
• Custody of the Great Seal of the United States;
• Custody of the records of the former Secretary of the Continental Congress, except for those of the Treasury and War Departments.

Other domestic duties that the Department was responsible for at various times included issuance of patents on inventions, publication of the census returns, management of the mint, control of copyrights, and regulation of immigration. Most domestic functions have been transferred to other agencies. Those that remain in the Department are: storage and use of the Great Seal, performance of protocol functions for the White House, drafting of certain Presidential proclamations, and replies to public inquiries.

Please visit the Department of State's Office of the Historian page for more information.

Why are the Department of State and USAID’s budget planning figures the same?
The Department of State and USAID’s foreign assistance budgets are requested and appropriated jointly. The funds for State and USAID are not disaggregated at the request stage of the funding process. Agency- specific data for State and USAID will be available at the Obligated and Spent phases of the funding process, and for USAID are available at Where Does USAID’s Money Go? and Foreign Assistance Fast Facts.

What is USAID?
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent federal government agency whose mission is to advance broad-based economic growth, democracy and human progress around the world.

Since its inception 1961, USAID has carried out U.S. foreign policy by promoting broad-scale human progress in the developing world, at the same time it expands stable, free societies, creates markets and trade partners for the United States, and fosters good will abroad.

For more information see This is USAID.

Why is USAID’s obligation and expenditure data separate from the Department of State’s?
The Department of State and USAID’s foreign assistance budgets are requested and appropriated jointly. The funds for State and USAID are then disaggregated at the obligation and disbursement stages of the funding process when the appropriated funds are allocated to Agency-specific programs and activities.

When was USAID created?
Following the success of the reconstruction of Europe after World War II through the Marshall Plan and the Truman Administration's Point Four Program -- the 1950 program to engage in technically-based international economic development -- President John F. Kennedy signed the Foreign Assistance Act into law in 1961 and USAID was created by executive order. Since that time, USAID has been the principal U.S. agency to extend assistance to countries recovering from disaster, trying to escape poverty, and engaging in democratic reforms.

Please visit USAID History for more information.

What is MCC?
The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) is an innovative and independent U.S. foreign aid agency that is helping lead the fight against global poverty.

When was MCC created?
Created by the U.S. Congress in January 2004 with strong bipartisan support, MCC is changing the conversation on how best to deliver smart U.S. foreign assistance by focusing on good policies, country ownership, and results.

What does MCC do?
MCC provides these well-performing countries with large-scale grants to fund country-led solutions for reducing poverty through sustainable economic growth. MCC grants complement other U.S. and international development programs. There are two primary types of MCC grants: compacts and threshold programs.

• Compacts are large, five-year grants for countries that pass MCC’s eligibility criteria.
• Threshold programs are smaller grants awarded to countries that come close to passing these criteria and are firmly committed to improving their policy performance.

How is MCC governed?
MCC is managed by a chief executive officer, who is part of the nine-member Board of Directors. The Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the U.S. Trade Representative, and the USAID Administrator serve on the board along with four private sector representatives.

What is distinctive about MCC?
MCC is a prime example of smart U.S. Government assistance in action, benefiting both developing countries and U.S. taxpayers through:

• Competitive selection: Before a country can become eligible to receive assistance, MCC’s Board examines its performance on 17 independent and transparent policy indicators and selects compact-eligible countries based on policy performance.
• Country-led solutions: MCC requires selected countries to identify their priorities for achieving sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction. Countries develop their MCC proposals in broad consultation within their society. MCC teams then work in close partnership to help countries refine a program.
• Country-led implementation: MCC administers the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA). When a country is awarded a compact, it sets up its own local MCA accountable entity to manage and oversee all aspects of implementation. Monitoring of funds is rigorous and transparent, often through independent fiscal agents.

What is MCC achieving?
MCC has approved over $7.4 billion in compact and threshold programs worldwide that support country-determined projects in such sectors as:

• agriculture and irrigation,
• transportation (roads, bridges, ports),
• water supply and sanitation,
• access to health,
• finance and enterprise development,
• anticorruption initiatives,
• land rights and access,
• access to education.

The aggressive implementation of compacts and threshold programs is promoting growth opportunities, opening markets, raising the standard of living, and creating a more prosperous future for some of the world’s poorest people:

• More than 87,000 farmers have been trained and more than 12,000 hectares of land are under production.
• More than 3,362 kilometers of roads are under design, and road construction is underway.
• Over $29 million disbursed in agricultural loans.

How does MCC plan for its fiscal year appropriations?
MCC’s planning process begins with determining whether a country is eligible to enter into a multi-year threshold or compact program (see glossary for definitions.) MCC’s selection process takes into consideration the number of countries meeting eligibility criteria and follows a four step process: identify candidate countries; publish criteria and methodology process; issue country scorecards; and select countries.