Power imbalances and language barriers. A lack of trust and an aversion to risk.
The U.S. Agency for International Development has just one year to meet its lofty target of providing a quarter of eligible funding to local organizations. But according to a report released by the agency earlier this month, these challenges — and a myriad of others — are still standing in the way.
At an event last June, USAID asked 300 local partners, international organizations, agency staff, and local groups not working with USAID to dig into the barriers of localization and find ways to combat them. In January, a report on that event was released, entitled “Partners in Localization: Designing for Change,” containing a slew of recommendations for how things could change.
About the author
Elissa Miolene
Elissa Miolene reports on USAID and the U.S. government at Devex. She previously covered education at The San Jose Mercury News, and has written for outlets like The Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, Washingtonian magazine, among others. Before shifting to journalism, Elissa led communications for humanitarian agencies in the United States, East Africa, and South Asia.
