U.S. President Barack Obama has asked Congress for $4 trillion in fiscal year 2016. Just over 1 percent of that hefty sum would go to international affairs and development programs. But buried further within that small slice are a number of new stories and signals about what the president has planned when it comes to “smart power” in the waning years of his administration.
Obama’s budget request to the 113th Congress argues that funding to Central America should be doubled and refugee assistance cut. It also moves toward phasing out funding for Overseas Contingency Operations — an account that has been synonymous with the “global war on terror” — over the next four years.
If the president’s request were to come to fruition, an outcome that seems unlikely in the face of a Republican-dominated Congress, overall funding for international affairs would increase by roughly $1.4 billion — or 2.4 percent — in the next fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, 2015. That increase jumps to almost 8 percent if 2015 emergency funding for Ebola is taken out of the picture.
About the authors
Molly Andersmollyanders_dev
Molly Anders is a former U.K. correspondent for Devex. Based in London, she reports on development finance trends with a focus on British and European institutions. She is especially interested in evidence-based development and women’s economic empowerment, as well as innovative financing for the protection of migrants and refugees. Molly is a former Fulbright Scholar and studied Arabic in Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Morocco.
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.
Rolf RosenkranzRolfRosenkranz
Rolf Rosenkranz has worked as a Global Editor for Devex. Previously, Rolf was managing editor at Inside Health Policy, a subscription-based news service in Washington. He has reported from Africa for the Johannesburg-based Star and its publisher, Independent News & Media, as well as the Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, a German daily.
