Leading NGO alliance InterAction welcomes an announcement by President Barack Obama on Friday that the Group of Eight  nations will commit to a new food security alliance during talks in Camp David this weekend and  urges G8 nations to follow through on previous promises.

InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based international NGOs, expressed grave concern over the deep 9 percent cut in the discretionary spending allocations for FY2013 foreign affairs programs passed today by the House Appropriations Committee. 

Today's edition of the Weekly Update includes a write-up on Rep.

This week's Weekly Update includes analysis of the House budget resolution, a notification of a Sudan resolution, a list of upcoming hearings, a list of articles of interest, and summaries of hearings on U.S. policy in Iraq, the USAID FY2013 budget request and U.S. contributions to the UN budget.

This week's update includes:

• An analysis of the Sudan Peace, Security, and Accountability Act of 2012 in the House;
• A list of upcoming hearings;
• Summaries of Senate hearings on Sudan and South Sudan, and on the USAID FY2013 budget request; and
• A list of recommended articles from this week.

InterAction mourns the loss of Rep. Donald Payne, who died of colon cancer. He was 77 years old. Rep. Payne was awarded the InterAction Congressional Service Award in 2008.

InterAction sent this letter to General David Petraeus, Director of the CIA on February 21, 2012.   

President and CEO of InterAction, Sam Worthington states that NGOs unfairly get the brunt of the blame for slow progress in Haiti, NGOs cannot be the only face of recovery.

Identified as a key principle of effective development, country ownership has become an ever-present part of the foreign assistance reform debate. While the Obama administration has embraced country ownership in the Presidential Policy Directive on Global Development (PPD) and other executive initiatives, it remains unclear how to put this principle into practice on the ground.

When we went to press Friday afternoon, the House had passed H.R. 2055, the “megabus” conference agreement on the nine remaining appropriations bills including State, Foreign Operations. The vote was 296-121.

Written by Tawana Jacobs, InterAction's Associate Director of Public Relations.

“Country ownership” has become an often used term in international development. The purpose of this paper is to provide some clarification by presenting InterAction’s definition along with an outline of its core elements and recommendations for ensuring meaningful stakeholder participation in U.S. government development processes.

This week House and Senate appropriators inched closer toward a nine-bill omnibus spending package to complete the FY2012 appropriations process by Dec. 16, which is the date when the continuing resolution currently funding the government is set to expire. Please see the Washington Update section for more details on the end game for FY2012 appropriations.

InterAction news release:

International leaders meeting in Bonn on Monday to discuss the future of Afghanistan should expand their focus from short-term stabilization efforts  to longer term development work that will have a lasting impact on the country.

InterAction News Release:

The outcome of the G20 summit in Cannes was mixed, with progress on tax havens but not enough concrete action to ease the burden of the financial crisis on the world’s poor, said InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based NGOs.

InterAction News Release: G20 leaders meeting in Cannes tomorrow must not solve the sovereign debt crisis on the backs of the world’s poor and should take the lead on fulfilling previous commitments, particularly on food and agricultural assistance, said the largest alliance of U.S.-based international NGOs.

The FY2012 appropriations continued on a contorted path this week as House Appropriations Committee Chair Harold Rogers (R-KY) outlined his path toward completing the process and details emerged that the next Senate mini-bus will likely include the State, Foreign Operations bill, along with Financial Services and Energy—Water.

NGO alliance InterAction applauds the recent introduction of the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2012 by Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX), member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs (HCFA).

Did you know…
… that together, InterAction members and U.S. corporations manage an estimated $19.4 billion in international development program funds? Together, we represent more than half of the total U.S. private investment in developing countries.*

A recent survey of InterAction member CEOs, presidents and executive directors revealed:

This week, the House of Representatives cleared a short-term continuing resolution (HR 2068) that will keep the government running through November 18.

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations finally released their FY2012 report, available here.

This week the full Senate Appropriations Committee approved its FY2012 State, Foreign Operations bill by a 28-2 vote. The bill provided $44.6 billion in discretionary spending, with an additional $8.7 billion for Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO).

InterAction News Release: NGO alliance InterAction supports the level of 2012 funding for international affairs approved Wednesday by the Senate Appropriations Committee in a bipartisan 28-2 vote.

InterAction and 129 NGOs placed an ad in Roll Call magazine this week.  The ad was an open letter to Congress, asking them to oppose the severe cuts to foreign aid proposed in the current budget.  

After a nearly month-long recess, Congress—and thus, InterAction’s Weekly Update—rolled back into town this week.

Mark A. Lotwis has been appointed Senior Director of Public Policy at InterAction, a Washington, D.C.-based alliance of U.S.

Recent developments in the aid strategy of the United States — such as reversing a previous reduction in technical experts, and promoting more country-driven, outcome-oriented systems — have been endorsed by the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic

This week, the House State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee unveiled its draft bill for FY2012, which contained substantial cuts for humanitarian and poverty-focused development assistance.

InterAction Statement: House Republican appropriators today continued their assault on U.S. international efforts to reduce poverty, address climate change, and respond to famine and other disasters. This comes a week after the House Foreign Affairs Committee also sought to gut core development accounts.

Calling it "debilitating to my efforts to carry out a considered foreign policy and diplomacy," Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is warning members of the House of Representatives that she "will recommend personally" that President Barack Obama veto a bill pending in the House that would severely restrict State Department operation

InterAction condemns the alleged staging of an immunization campaign in Pakistan by the U.S. government in order to gather information for counterterrorism purposes

Desperate to win hearts and minds in Pakistan, the U.S. has begun pushing aid organizations working in the country's most dangerous region along the Afghan border to advertise that they receive American assistance.

The United Nations is expected to officially declare famine in parts of southern Somalia tomorrow (Wednesday, July 20), marking a new phase in a crisis that has affected the East Africa region.

InterAction News Release: Members of InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based international nongovernmental organizations working abroad, are responding to the massive humanitarian crisis occurring in the Horn of Africa. The UN is estimating that as many as 10 million people are struggling with food and water shortages, acute malnutrition and mass displacement.

Prospective 2012 U.S. presidential candidates who want to limit our engagement abroad and  those lawmakers who propose  cuts to the 2012 foreign affairs budget have forgotten a basic budgeting rule.

InterAction News Release: At a critical juncture in the deficit reduction talks a diverse coalition of over 40 prominent international and domestic NGOs have joined the leaders of dozens of national faith organizations in calling on the Obama administration and congressional leadership to protect programs benefitting poor and hungry people both here and abroad from budget cuts.

InterAction watched with interest this week President Obama’s speech on troop levels in Afghanistan. With much of the attention centered on the aspects of the security transition, the face of long-term development in Afghanistan remains to be seen. In testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday Secretary of State Hillary Clinton noted that the U.S.

Robust foreign assistance helps governments in developing countries build more stable, prosperous societies, and can be a catalyst in pulling a country out of poverty.

This week, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee was busy with several nominations hearings, including one for former U.S. ambassador to both Pakistan and Iraq, Ryan Crocker, who this time is up for the position in Afghanistan. Furthermore, Dr. Ariel Pablos Mendez testified on Tuesday to be the next USAID Assistant Administrator for Global Health.

When critics suggest that the Obama administration is hard on the corporate sector, they may be missing specific elements of the Obama agenda that have lots of corporate sector promotions built into government programs. Take the volunteerism program of the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Members of the U.S.-based NGO alliance InterAction released the following quotes on the outcome of the G8 summit in Deauville, which ends on Friday.

FOR REPORTERS COVERING THE G8

The following quotes on the Arab Spring and Libya conflict have been released by InterAction, the biggest alliance of U.S.-based international NGOs doing relief and humanitarian work abroad:

InterAction News Release: The selection of the next leader of the International Monetary Fund should be done in a transparent and inclusive manner, said the U.S-based NGO alliance, InterAction, whose work focuses on the world’s most poor and vulnerable populations.

InterAction News Release: The official G8 “Deauville Accountability Report” released today underscores the need for the world’s richest nations to be fully accountable and follow through on previous public promises to deliver aid in key areas like food security and global health.

This week, House Appropriations Chair Hal Rogers (R-KY) announced a disappointing FY2012 subcommittee allocation for State, Foreign Operations that continues the radically downward trend in spending for international affairs begun in FY2011.

Led by the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) (http://www.gainhealth.org).and InterAction (http://www.interaction.org), 1,000 Days informs key partners about the economic consequences of and cost-effective interventions for undernutrition to make this a priority in donor and country governments’ development strategie

In the federal budget debate, Rep. Paul Ryan proposes cutting back U.S. foreign aid significantly. Here, U.S. Reps. Adam Smith and Jim McDermott as well as Global Washington founder Bill Clapp argue that such aid helps U.S. security and trade.

InterAction's analysis of the FY2011 federal budget for the last half of the year, to be signed by President Obama today. The analysis covers several humanitarian and development related accounts that InterAction tracks for members.

Note: Last updated April 20, 2011.

InterAction Statement: U.S. NGO alliance InterAction calls on Congress to pass the 2011 spending agreement today and work with the Obama administration to agree on a 2012 budget that invests in building a more stable and prosperous world.

Negotiations over FY2011 spending between Senate Democrats and House Republicans remain at an impasse this afternoon. A government shutdown looms if an agreement is not reached by midnight tonight. Please check out InterAction’s extended coverage of the FY 2011 appropriations process in the Washington Update section below.

NGO alliance InterAction welcomes World Bank President Robert Zoellick’s speech today in which he described the importance of civil society's role in development economics.

Last week, General David Petraeus and Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Michéle Flournoy testified before the Armed Services Committee in both chambers about recent developments in Afghanistan. Find a summary of these hearings below, as well as information about legislation on Haiti recently introduced by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) and a list of upcoming hearings and articles of interest.

Policy brief from InterAction partner MFAN that makes the case for foreign assistance reform in this challenging budget environment.

Earlier this afternoon, the Senate Appropriations Committee released detailed text of its Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011.

The American public appears to be clamoring for a discussion about the size and scope of the federal government. But how can Washington have a serious debate when most Americans are ignorant of what is in the budget?

InterAction statement on crisis in Libya, March 1, 2011

Transcript of a press briefing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave after a meeting with House Speaker John Boehner on the FY2011 federal budget and planned cuts to all "non-security" spending.

Article in New Republic on how the U.K. has proved that during tough fiscal times, increasing foreign assistance is better than decreasing it.

Editorial from The Washington Post on why the sweeping cuts to the FY2011 federal budget, including foreign assistance, are a mistake.

Commentary in McClatchy on why the cuts to the federal budget in foreign assistance funds is dangerous.

In past years, the State Department and foreign operations appropriation bill has passed with strong bipartisan support, often by an overwhelming margin. Members of both parties have understood how important diplomacy and development are—not only to U.S.

On the House floor,  Congressman Berman condemned House Republicans for their irresponsible slash-and-burn tactics to cut spending in a way that seriously jeopardizes our national security and hampers our country’s economic growth.

InterAction member CARE's statement on the FY2011 Continuing Resolution.

Statement by U.S. House of Representatives Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi on the FY2011 Continuing Resolution.

A line-by-line look at how InterAction is crunching the numbers in the House of Representative's 2011 "Continuing Resolution Extension" bill.

Note: Last updated June 27, 2011.

“In a tough fiscal environment, the Obama administration has presented a responsible and sensible FY 2012 international assistance budget; one that will help save lives, create economic prosperity here and abroad, and reduce future deficits by preventing bigger security outlays in the future.

 As the United States seeks to get its fiscal house in order, Congress must realize that cuts to foreign assistance now will only cost our country more later. Such a strategy would-–in the most basic terms-–be penny-wise and pound foolish.

The term “budget process,” when applied to the federal government, actually refers to a number of processes that have evolved separately and that occur with varying degrees of coordination.

Asked to estimate how much of the federal budget goes to foreign aid the median estimate is 25 percent. Asked how much they thought would be an "appropriate" percentage the median response is 10 percent.  In fact just 1 percent of the federal budget goes to foreign aid.

The unrelated crises roiling Egypt and the federal budget have at least one thing in common: They both have brought calls to eliminate foreign aid.

As the ranking Democrat on the Appropriations subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs for 10 years, and chairwoman for the past four, I know we can come together because we have. And our cooperation must continue — even as major foreign assistance has been put on the chopping block — because our national security demands it.

Article in the Huffington Post on Feb. 3, 2011, on the fight to protect the U.S. foreign assistance budget from cuts in FY2011. InterAction's president and CEO, Samuel A. Worthington, is interviewed.

“When I took office a year ago, the development community made clear if the United States was to play a leading role in international development, USAID would have to be strengthened and empowered with certain authorities that have been stripped from the agency over the course of decades. We heard you.”

U.S. government fact sheet on moving from humanitarian relief to reconstruction in Haiti since the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

Transcript of a U.S. Department of State Special Briefing on the one-year anniversary of the earthquake in Haiti, from January 7, 2011.

Transcript of a U.S. Department of State Special Briefing on Health Concerns in Haiti on January 10, 2011.

InterAction member EDC's one year progress report after the January 12, 2010, earthquake in Haiti.

InterAction responds to the Obama administration’s recent Afghanistan and Pakistan strategy review by welcoming the long-term commitment to the development needs of the two countries but also highlighting several concerns with the overall assistance strategies in the countries.  

The capacity to respond to the urgent needs of vulnerable people in emergencies around the world is a central pillar of the U.S. government's foreign assistance portfolio. It should exemplify the impartial outpouring of humanitarian response in the wake of unthinkable tragedy.

“For the first time, there’s been an attempt to rationalize the role of U.S. diplomats and development officers around the world and how diplomacy and development advance U.S.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton released the long-awaited Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR) on Wednesday, December 15, 2010, the result of a 17-month review of U.S. development and diplomacy policies. Called “Leading Through Civilian Power”, if offers a blueprint to better coordinate diplomacy and development in order that U.S.

The Obama administration is releasing the most comprehensive review of U.S. development and diplomacy efforts in half a century. The system which now delivers U.S. foreign assistance is based on legislation that was signed into law by President John F. Kennedy in 1961.  

Blog by Katie Gresham on the Development Assistance Task Force of the U.S. Summit for Global Citizen Diplomacy, November 16-19, 2010.

After a brief hiatus due to the mid-term elections, the weekly update is back!

Originally developed as part of InterAction's Africa Liaison Program Inititiative (ALPI) to foster relationships between the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and nongovernmental organizations in the U.S.

Thank you Corinne for that wonderful introduction and thank you Karen Mulhauser, and to your entire team at the UN Association of the National Capital Area for hosting this important event. 

Andy Rice leaves all of us an important legacy. His commitment to the role youth play in development and efforts to shape the U.S. development community remain with us today.  

Washington, D.C. (October 6, 2010) — InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), has chosen Joel R.

 InterAction suggests that the Administration consider the MDGs as a key issue to the U.S. foreign policy and urges President Obama to take the lead in supporting the MDGs.

InterAction participates in DC MDG rally on Friday, Sept. 17, 2010.

Pakistan is seeing the worst flooding the country has experienced in 80 years, yet it appears the world has yet to turn its full attention to the need there.

ONE Campaign publishes InterAction's blog post

Senior Fellows Jim Kolbe and Jim Kunder along with Sam Worthington, CEO of InterAction, discuss the current state of U.S. foreign assistance and GMF's Aid & Development Program's latest policy paper, The Roadmap for a Grand Bargain.

Listen to the podcast

On the six-month anniversary of Haiti's deadly earthquake, President Barack Obama said a rapid international response saved lives but the recovery effort must continue.

A former Haitian resident travels back to the country six months after the earthquake to provide aid.  Though shocked by the continued struggle of the people, he says, "the good thing is that I saw a lot of help from different aid organizations."

InterAction has published, Achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): The Road Forward for the U.S., a policy paper that outlines key recommendations from U.S.-based international NGOs on each of the eight MDGs.

The impacts of the global economic crisis are not happening within a vacuum. As the developing world struggles to protect any economic progress that has been made, it also continues to cope with health, hunger, and climate change issues.

This is a PowerPoint presentation of UNISDR's 2010-2011 World Disaster Reduction Campaign.

The Columbus Dispatch (OH)
 
Smaller charities sometimes ill-prepared for relief work
Wednesday,  March 10, 2010 2:49 AM
By Elizabeth Gibson
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Notwithstanding a number of strengths in U.S. development and foreign assistance policy, a number of systemic inconsistencies, inefficiencies, and disconnects have also developed as the USG’s humanitarian architecture has evolved over the years. This paper highlights priority areas where reform is needed.

Discussion paper on rewriting the U.S. Foreign Assistance Act (FAA) for the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

See also: InterAction's Response to HFAC Discussion Paper #1

An InterAction Viewpoint on President Obama's announced strategy for Afghanistan.

Press Release from the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the Committee's approval of the Foreign Assistance Revitalization and Accountability Act of 2009.

Statement from InterAction President & CEO Samuel A. Worthington on the nomination of Dr. Rajiv Shah to head the U.S. Agency for International Development.

A progress report on [short version of title] since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report on West Bank and Gaza since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report on U.S. development assistance funding trends for FY 2010 since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report on U.S. development assistance funding trends since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report about Sudan and the need to ensure access to those who require assistance since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report on Sudan and engaging international partners in the Darfur conflict since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report about the naming of a special U.S. envoy in Sudan since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report on the MDGs and U.S. national strategy on development since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report on Nominating an MCC CEO since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

The introduction of the progress report since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report on Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment: Creation of office for global women's issues since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report on the Obama administration's foreign assistance efforts since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

Proposed and appropriated funding levels for poverty-focused international development and humanitarian assistance accounts, as well as various other international accounts of interest to the InterAction community.

During an audio press conference today, members of the InterAction alliance called on G-20 leaders to rapidly implement their previous pledge of $50 billion for the world’s poorest countries at next week’s Pittsburgh Summit.

In April 2009, more than 90 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) co-signed a letter calling on President Obama to nominate a qualified USAID Administrator.

Meeting request from InterAction President & CEO Samuel Worthington to Obama transition team members Aaron Williams and Gayle Smith  to discuss the Obama administration’s plans for engaging with the NGO community in connection with USAID’s proposed Partner Vetting System.

This policy brief is part of a larger series in InterAction’s 2009 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

This policy brief is part of a larger series in InterAction’s 2009 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

This policy brief is part of a larger series in InterAction’s 2009 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

This policy brief is part of a larger series in InterAction’s 2009 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

This policy brief is part of a larger series in InterAction’s 2009 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

This policy brief is part of a larger series in InterAction’s 2009 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

Critical Problems, Recommendations, and actions for the Obama Administration and the 111th Congress