Summary: As Heritage Foundation analysts noted in a recent research report, there is bipartisan dissatisfaction with the U.S. foreign assistance programs and calls for them to be overhauled. Unfortunately, these efforts often fall victim to politics wherein various interests stall reforms to protect their preferred priorities, programs, or allocations. For example, recent efforts to eliminate or reduce shipping and purchase requirements on food assistance that would allow the same funds to feed millions more hungry people around the world ran into Congressional resistance. Meanwhile, as the number of countries measuring up to its demanding good governance criteria dwindles, the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation has begun to emphasize regional programming. Join us for a robust discussion with our panelists as they share their perspectives on what is wrong with U.S. assistance programs, what should be done to improve them, and where the most promising opportunities are to achieve that objective.
