The ceaseless dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development has curtailed the agency’s ability to vet humanitarian awards for terrorist links — along with its capacity to monitor aid distributions in high-risk areas.
That’s according to an advisory notice published Monday by USAID’s Office of Inspector General, a federal agency that monitors USAID’s programs to deter waste, fraud, and abuse.
“Recent widespread staffing reductions across the Agency, particularly within [the Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance], coupled with uncertainty about the scope of foreign assistance waivers and permissible communications with implementers, has degraded USAID’s ability to distribute and safeguard taxpayer-funded humanitarian assistance,” the OIG found.
About the author
Elissa Miolene
Elissa Miolene reports on USAID and the U.S. government at Devex. She previously covered education at The San Jose Mercury News, and has written for outlets like The Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, Washingtonian magazine, among others. Before shifting to journalism, Elissa led communications for humanitarian agencies in the United States, East Africa, and South Asia.
