• News
    • Latest news
    • News search
    • Health
    • Finance
    • Food
    • Career news
    • Content series
    • Try Devex Pro
  • Jobs
    • Job search
    • Post a job
    • Employer search
    • CV Writing
    • Upcoming career events
    • Try Career Account
  • Funding
    • Funding search
    • Funding news
  • Talent
    • Candidate search
    • Devex Talent Solutions
  • Events
    • Upcoming and past events
    • Partner on an event
  • Post a job
  • About
      • About us
      • Membership
      • Newsletters
      • Advertising partnerships
      • Devex Talent Solutions
      • Contact us
Join DevexSign in
Join DevexSign in

News

  • Latest news
  • News search
  • Health
  • Finance
  • Food
  • Career news
  • Content series
  • Try Devex Pro

Jobs

  • Job search
  • Post a job
  • Employer search
  • CV Writing
  • Upcoming career events
  • Try Career Account

Funding

  • Funding search
  • Funding news

Talent

  • Candidate search
  • Devex Talent Solutions

Events

  • Upcoming and past events
  • Partner on an event
Post a job

About

  • About us
  • Membership
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising partnerships
  • Devex Talent Solutions
  • Contact us
  • My Devex
  • Update my profile % complete
  • Account & privacy settings
  • My saved jobs
  • Manage newsletters
  • Support
  • Sign out
Latest newsNews searchHealthFinanceFoodCareer newsContent seriesTry Devex Pro
    • News
    • The future of US aid

    DevExplains: What is the Global Fragility Act?

    The GFA is a recognition that years of U.S. policy in places such as Iraq and Afghanistan failed, and a new approach to conflict prevention is needed.

    By Teresa Welsh // 07 December 2022
    Taliban soldiers during a security check at a checkpoint in Afghanistan. Photo by: Benjamin Guillot-Moueix / Hans Lucas via Reuters Connect

    The Global Fragility Act was passed in 2019, clinching bipartisan support in both chambers of the U.S. Congress and signed into law by then-President Donald Trump. The law came after years of advocacy from peacebuilding groups pushing for a new way to implement conflict prevention and peacebuilding programs in places considered “fragile.” Such nations have little capacity to provide basic services for their citizens, so the population is vulnerable to a wide range of shocks.

    Since then, the Trump and now Joe Biden administrations have slowly worked to implement the law’s provisions as Congress wrote them, with several substantial delays (more on that below). So, why is its passage and implementation significant? Let’s dig in:

    What’s different about the Global Fragility Act?

    The GFA is — at long last — recognition that decades of U.S. policy in places like Iraq and Afghanistan after 9/11 did not bring stability even after billions of dollars were spent. It also highlights the clunky way that different branches of government worked without communicating their objectives. It mandates participation from all relevant departments — with the State Department playing the lead implementing role — in close coordination with the U.S. Agency for International Development and Defense Department.

    The act puts conflict prevention front and center, prioritizing programs and activities that aim to head off violence before it breaks out and destabilizes an entire country. The law intends to move the U.S. government away from a band-aid response to conflict.

    What does the act require the US administration to do?

    The act requires the government to produce a 10-year plan, known as the Global Fragility Strategy, outlining a new approach for fragile and conflict-affected states. That strategy details four goals and objectives: prevention, stabilization, partnership, and management. It also spells out the roles and responsibilities of relevant agencies, how decisions should be made, staffing and resource requirements, how the strategy will be integrated into existing U.S. development, diplomatic, and defense tools, and how success is measured.

    The administration must select five priority countries or regions to pilot the new approach. The pilot locations are subject to change over the 10-year life span and the U.S. administration can include new places if needed. The strategy will employ a new model of “compact-style partnerships” that prompt mutual accountability with local governments and other national partners.

    Which countries were selected?

    In April 2022, the Biden administration revealed four pilot countries — Haiti, Libya, Mozambique, and Papua New Guinea — along with one region: coastal West Africa, which includes Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, and Togo. This means GFA principals will be integrated into U.S. foreign assistance programs in those locations, with U.S. officials working alongside local partners — governments and civil society — to develop conflict-prevention programs.

    Where are we in implementation?

    Since its passage, successive administrations have consistently missed GFA deadlines — something they didn’t appreciate me reminding them of. The Global Fragility Strategy, including country and regional selections, was due to Congress by September 2020, but was not submitted until December 2020. By then, the administration should have submitted individual strategies for the five priority countries and region. Instead, selections were not made for more than a year after the deadline.

    Individual 10-year pilot strategies were due in December 2020, but have yet to be released. USAID Assistant to the Administrator for Conflict Prevention and Stabilization, Robert Jenkins, told Devex they should be completed by the end of this year, and administration officials insist there is still momentum behind the law despite bureaucratic delays.

    How will we know if it’s working?

    This is one of the trickiest parts of the GFA, because it’s often hard to prove how bad a conflict could have been if it’s been effectively prevented. A key principal of the GFA is agility, and the ability to pivot and change programs if they aren’t working.

    Jenkins often says that failure is inevitable, but that the 10-year time horizon will allow USAID and its partners to adapt if a strategy isn’t yielding the intended results in preventing conflict.

    More reading:

    ► UNDP wants to coordinate with USAID on Global Fragility Act (Pro)

    ► US announces Global Fragility Act countries and region — finally

    ► Congress questions GFA delays and DoD engagement

    • Democracy, Human Rights & Governance
    • Humanitarian Aid
    • Trade & Policy
    • Institutional Development
    • USAID
    Printing articles to share with others is a breach of our terms and conditions and copyright policy. Please use the sharing options on the left side of the article. Devex Pro members may share up to 10 articles per month using the Pro share tool ( ).

    About the author

    • Teresa Welsh

      Teresa Welshtmawelsh

      Teresa Welsh is a Senior Reporter at Devex. She has reported from more than 10 countries and is currently based in Washington, D.C. Her coverage focuses on Latin America; U.S. foreign assistance policy; fragile states; food systems and nutrition; and refugees and migration. Prior to joining Devex, Teresa worked at McClatchy's Washington Bureau and covered foreign affairs for U.S. News and World Report. She was a reporter in Colombia, where she previously lived teaching English. Teresa earned bachelor of arts degrees in journalism and Latin American studies from the University of Wisconsin.

    Search for articles

    Related Jobs

    • Individual Consultant: Legal Specialist in Right-of-Way Acquisition
      El Salvador | Latin America and Caribbean
    • Individual Consultant: Analysis of the Regulatory and Political Framework for Marketing in Agri-Food Systems in Burkina Faso
      Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)
      Burkina Faso | West Africa
    • Individual Consultant: Governance and Institutional Development Expert
      Bhutan | South Asia
    • See more

    Most Read

    • 1
      Opinion: Mobile credit, savings, and insurance can drive financial health
    • 2
      FCDO's top development contractors in 2024/25
    • 3
      Strengthening health systems by measuring what really matters
    • 4
      Opinion: India’s bold leadership in turning the tide for TB
    • 5
      Reigniting momentum for maternal, newborn, and child health

    Trending

    Financing for Development Conference

    The Trump Effect

    Newsletters

    Related Stories

    The Trump EffectHow Donald Trump signed the Global Fragility Act — and then kneecapped it

    How Donald Trump signed the Global Fragility Act — and then kneecapped it

    Devex NewswireDevex Newswire: Can Humpty Dumpty be put back together?

    Devex Newswire: Can Humpty Dumpty be put back together?

    The future of US AidMemo lays out plan to replace USAID with new humanitarian agency 

    Memo lays out plan to replace USAID with new humanitarian agency 

    The future of US aidWhat will the presidential transition mean for US aid implementers?

    What will the presidential transition mean for US aid implementers?

    • News
    • Jobs
    • Funding
    • Talent
    • Events

    Devex is the media platform for the global development community.

    A social enterprise, we connect and inform over 1.3 million development, health, humanitarian, and sustainability professionals through news, business intelligence, and funding & career opportunities so you can do more good for more people. We invite you to join us.

    • About us
    • Membership
    • Newsletters
    • Advertising partnerships
    • Devex Talent Solutions
    • Post a job
    • Careers at Devex
    • Contact us
    © Copyright 2000 - 2025 Devex|User Agreement|Privacy Statement
    We use cookies to help improve your user experience. By using our site, you agree to the terms of our Privacy Policy.