We have the newest localization numbers from USAID, along with an exclusive opinion piece from Administrator Samantha Power on what those numbers mean to her.
Also in today’s edition: Real-life examples of localization in action.
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A step back
The difference between 10.2% and 9.6% may not seem like a lot, but it’s a disappointing slide backward in USAID’s high-profile push to localize its work.
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That 9.6% represents the proportion of eligible agency dollars that were channeled toward local groups last year, down from 10.2% the year prior, according to new USAID data unveiled today.
If you remember, Power made a bold pledge in 2021 to direct a quarter of the agency’s funds to local organizations by 2025. The latest numbers show USAID remains far off from its target, which, my colleague Elissa Miolene points out, was always going to be hard to hit.
For decades, local organizations have struggled to secure USAID funds in the face of byzantine application processes, burdensome compliance requirements, and stiff competition from the goliaths of development contractors. Indeed, the biggest grants are typically won by the biggest players, and last year, those based in the United States took home 76% of USAID’s grant dollars.
None of this is any secret, and USAID has been trying for years to loosen up its bureaucracy to make it easier for local organizations to work with it.
And there were some green shoots in the report: Both the number of new awards to local partners and the number of local partners with whom USAID works have increased annually over the last three years and reached new highs in fiscal year 2023.
Still, 2025 is not that far away, which means the 25% marker may not be reached in time. While that would be a huge letdown, some observers give the agency credit for at least sticking its neck out, laying down localization metrics that other governments have shied away from.
“We understand that this is a really ambitious job. And USAID, more than any bilateral that we know of, has set a very ambitious target,” Sally Paxton of Publish What You Fund tells Elissa. “But it really needs the voice of local people to come in and change the way that this assistance is delivered — and that’s a big shift to turn around.”
Read: USAID going backward on localization funding, agency report shows (Pro)
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Having her say
“We know that local organizations often find it difficult to partner with us — which is why we continue to seek new and innovative ways to address the barriers they face.”
— Samantha Power, administrator, USAIDAmong the ways Power’s agency is trying to knock down those barriers is WorkwithUSAID.gov, “a digital front door to USAID” that’s been translated into Arabic, French, and Spanish, Power writes in an opinion piece for Devex.
Local partners and USAID teams also work together to determine “reasonable” milestones and benchmarks. “USAID then delivers funding based on completion of those milestones, without requiring the submission of detailed financial reports. This way, local organizations have more flexibility around how they spend USAID funds, without added compliance burdens,” she writes.
Power also cites success stories, like the mission in Morocco, which has more than doubled the percentage of funding going to local organizations — from 16% in 2021 to almost 40% in 2023 — and brought in local voices to shape its programming.
Power does admit that the percentage of total USAID funding going to local partners is “still a far cry from our goal of 25%.”
“We all need to do more to directly tap into the deep knowledge, experience, and connections these local organizations bring,” she writes. “And we must take the opportunity to elevate, empower, and support the changemakers who will keep driving progress in their communities long after funding from outside has been spent.”
Opinion: How USAID is working to hit its localization targets
Number crunching
As we all know, statistics can be massaged or cherry-picked — and some are questioning whether USAID’s latest localization stats are what they appear to be.
Instead of the 9.6% figure cited by the agency, the nonprofit Publish What You Fund says the true figure may actually be closer to 5.2%.
Why the discrepancy?
It boils down to two factors, according to Gary Forster, chief executive of PWYF. First, there’s the definition of local: The way USAID counts a local organization is looser than some would like, often encompassing local affiliates of multinational organizations.
Second, USAID doesn’t count all its spending when setting a target for local funding. Rather, it includes only “eligible funding” — which excludes cash that goes to the United Nations, staff, and embassy costs, among other things. PWYF says some of that excluded money should be considered eligible.
“Setting a target and making the data publicly available is great, and sets an example,” Forster says. “But the devil’s in the details, and things like the definition [of local] and the denominator really matter if you want to drive change and be credible.”
So how did PWYF come up with its own figures and definitions? Check out Elissa’s report to find out.
Read: Are USAID localization results even worse than reported? (Pro)
ICYMI: Is USAID excluding too much funding from its definition of 'local'? (Pro)
Fertile ground
While localization has, by any measure, proved to be a long, tough slog, it’s nevertheless happening on the ground — and it’s important to recognize those efforts.
We did just that by traveling to the fertile landscapes of Neno and Zomba districts in southern Malawi, where local organizations are leading the charge in building climate-resilient communities.
Those organizations — Beyond Our Hearts Foundation and Youth for Development and Productivity — have enhanced their ability to respond to natural disasters and provide humanitarian relief thanks to support from Save the Children. An infusion of nearly $1 million has allowed the two districts to better prepare for and respond to emergencies, writes Madalitso Wills Kateta for Devex.
Beyond that, Malawi as a whole is taking the reins on localization, with the government planning to introduce new regulations that demand INGOs distribute 30% of their funding to local nongovernmental organizations.
Read: Building Malawi's disaster response capacity through localization
+ The article is part of Roots of Change, our partnership series focused on elevating the voices of local leaders and taking the drive for locally led development from rhetoric to reality. Explore the series.
Pooling together
Localization means many things to different people, but an integral piece of the puzzle is self-sufficiency and not having to rely on outside players — who wield outsize power.
When the global south was forced to rely on pharmaceutical giants and wealthy nations during the race for COVID-19 vaccines, it got the shaft.
To make sure history doesn’t repeat itself, lower-income nations are on a mission to ramp up pharmaceutical manufacturing on their own terms. But not every country in Africa needs a vaccine factory — not every country has the capacity, and some would fail because there wouldn’t be enough purchasers for their products.
Instead, a regional strategy can ensure local manufacturers have a steady market, which pooled procurement can provide. But getting different regions on the same page is no easy feat, writes my colleague Sara Jerving.
Enter the World Economic Forum’s Regionalized Vaccine Manufacturing Collaborative, or RVMC, hatched in 2022 to help tackle these issues and bolstered by CEPI — the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations.
The focus is on regions hit hardest by the pandemic, including Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia. Africa has already made strides in manufacturing with strong backing from the African Union. Meanwhile, the Pan American Health Organization is upping the vaccine manufacturing game in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Read: CEPI-hosted collaborative to bridge regional vaccine manufacturing (Pro)
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In other news
EU Crisis Management Commissioner Janez Lenarčič announced plans to provide nearly €99 million in humanitarian aid this year for the Democratic Republic of Congo. [ECHO]
The World Food Programme provided food and nutrition aid to over 50,000 people in violence-hit South Darfur, Sudan, in collaboration with World Vision, but aid groups say more critical assistance is urgently needed. [AP News]
A global survey revealed an overwhelming consensus: Four in every five people across nations are urging their governments to bolster commitments to tackle climate change. [France 24]
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About the author
Anna Gawel
Anna Gawel is the Managing Editor of Devex. She previously worked as the managing editor of The Washington Diplomat, the flagship publication of D.C.’s diplomatic community. She’s had hundreds of articles published on world affairs, U.S. foreign policy, politics, security, trade, travel and the arts on topics ranging from the impact of State Department budget cuts to Caribbean efforts to fight climate change. She was also a broadcast producer and digital editor at WTOP News and host of the Global 360 podcast. She holds a journalism degree from the University of Maryland in College Park.
