The United States Agency for International Development grant spending increased from $10.75 billion in 2015 to $11.08 billion in 2016. This $300 million increase occurred as 2016 USAID contract spending decreased by $200 million. As in previous years, the U.S. aid agency’s grant spending outstripped its contract spending by a significant margin.
USAID continues to channel a large share of its grants to multilateral organizations, such as the World Bank and United Nations’ World Food Programme. In 2016, total grant funding for these two organizations reached $3.46 billion, or 31.21 percent of USAID’s entire obligated grant funding for the year. Meanwhile, grants for other U.N.-affiliated agencies combine for an additional $1.41 billion, with UNICEF ($363 million), Gavi Alliance ($235 million), International Organization for Migration ($211 million), World Health Organization ($153 million) and United Nations Development Programme ($136 million) among the organizations which received the most money.
About the author
Ezekiel Carlo Orlina
Ezekiel is a senior development analyst and team leader at Devex. His primary role is monitoring and reporting on project opportunities and trends of leading multilateral and bilateral donor agencies. A graduate of Ateneo de Manila University with a degree in Political Science, Ezekiel has extensive global development research experience having also worked at the World Youth Alliance, Asia and the Pacific (WYAAP).
