USAID Administrator Samantha Power told U.S. lawmakers Wednesday that the agency will not meet the 25% local funding target she announced in 2021, and added that “bulk procurement” is an area where the localization agenda is falling short.
“Where we are lagging … is in bulk procurement. I think we have a long way to go there,” Power said, referring to the relatively large contracts that the agency often defaults to due to staffing constraints and the administrative burden that would come with breaking them up into smaller pieces.
She noted that the U.S. Agency for International Development is working with “more local partners than we ever have in our history,” while acknowledging that it only amounts to about 10% of the agency’s funding.
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About the author
Michael Igoe@AlterIgoe
Michael Igoe is a Senior Reporter with Devex, based in Washington, D.C. He covers U.S. foreign aid, global health, climate change, and development finance. Prior to joining Devex, Michael researched water management and climate change adaptation in post-Soviet Central Asia, where he also wrote for EurasiaNet. Michael earned his bachelor's degree from Bowdoin College, where he majored in Russian, and his master’s degree from the University of Montana, where he studied international conservation and development.
