U.S. Foreign Assistance Delivers Hope And Human Security: SUCCESS IS HISTORIC.

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In everything, do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets. U.S. foreign assistance is some of the most compassionate work we do. It may also be some of the most misunderstood.

Faith communities and faith-based organizations work hand-in-hand with critical U.S. government leadership, funds and influence, helping make foreign assistance a life-saving, unprecedented success. Consider:

Now every year, millions of children thrive beyond their 5th birthdays when just 25 years ago, they would have died. In 2015 alone, 6.8 million more children under age 5 survived than would have in 1990. There's so much more...

• 9.5 million HIV-positive people are alive thanks to PEPFAR, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief
• 10 million people are walking who would otherwise be crippled by polio, which is now nearly eradicated
• 6.2 million deaths from Malaria have been averted
• Tens of millions of people have clean water and are growing nutritious food
• Extreme poverty has been cut in half around the world

Each of these massive statistics is also a face, heart and soul; a mother or father, sister or brother. Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me. [Matthew 25:40]

No doubt today's headlines are disturbing, but we must not lose sight of this important FACT:  Children, families, communities and whole countries are thriving as never before. Whether better nutrition and food security, improved farming techniques and agricultural productivity, access to safe water and sanitation, fighting sexual exploitation and slavery, girls attending school, maternal and child health, good governance and more – human security is not possible without US…United States-led foreign assistance.

And our national security is not possible without human security.

Photo: Ari Jalal/Reuters

Photo: USAID for Feed the Future

Despite success, clearly the world is still in need. Dynamic global challenges and unprecedented demand mean the need for farsighted, U.S. foreign policy leadership is at an all-time high. More than 65 million people are displaced around the world — the highest number ever; multiple severe and large-scale global emergencies threaten security; pandemics know no borders; and we don't know where the next natural disaster may strike.

The new U.S. administration will need all foreign policy tools at its disposal to keep America safe and strong. That includes robust foreign assistance.

At a cost of less than 1% of the federal budget, foreign assistance compassionately and cost-effectively safeguards our health by keeping diseases beyond our borders; exerts peacemaking and stabilizing influence especially during unstable times; creates future trade partners; and counters terrorist rhetoric and recruitment.

US. foreign assistance success is results-driven, grounded in data, and evidence-based. Results are life-saving and long-term, benefiting millions of people, including Americans. Click on any state in this interactive map to learn how U.S. foreign policy makes an impact on jobs, education and partnerships where you live.

WITH PROPHETIC URGENCY, REPRESENTATIVES OF THE AMERICAN FAITH COMMUNITY OFFER 4 PRIORITIES FOR THE NEW ADMINISTRATION:

1. BASE POLICY AND FUNDING DECISIONS ON FACTS, NOT MYTHS
2. PARTNER WITH FAITH-BASED ORGANIZATIONS
3. ADDRESS KEY FUNDING INSECURITIES
4. PRIORITIZE BUILDING IN-COUNTRY CAPACITY AND LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY
   

Let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. [1 John 3:18]

1. WE CALL UPON LEADERS TO BASE POLICY AND FUNDING DECISIONS ON THE FACTS OF FOREIGN ASSISTANCE, AND NOT RELY ON TIME-WORN MYTHS

As the new Administration and 115th Congress discern priorities and budget concerns, America can remain a leader among nations only by living into our American and faith values that honor human dignity regardless of race, creed, gender or religion. U.S. foreign assistance does that compassionately, efficiently and cost-effectively.

We must protect unprecedented gains so we can continue to usher in safer and more secure days for all. Here are the Top 10 FACTS everyone should understand about foreign assistance.

Photo: Friends Committee on National Legislation

2. PROMOTE STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS WITH FAITH-BASED ORGANIZATIONS [FBOs], HERE'S WHY:

• Experienced implementers: On the front lines and trusted by local communities, FBOs are long-standing USG implementing partners...PEPFAR, the President's Malaria Initiative (PMI), Development Assistance, disaster relief and more, benefits from collaboration with FBOs.
• Fiscal partners: 71 of the largest American faith-based organizations invest $6.2 billion annually in this work: 87% is privately raised; 13% comes from the U.S. government. 
• Significant cost-sharing: FBOs leverage and complement public spending. The 27 FBOs that receive public funding raise nearly $5 for every public $1. 
• Local Partnerships: Keeping with trends towards localization of aid, partnerships with local faith networks are influential and effective in delivering effective outcomes. 
• We’re in all 50 states: Millions of faith voices open hearts, minds and wallets to advance hope and dignity for the neediest, not only the nearest. Congress and the Administration have the active support of millions of Americans – Republican, Democrat and Independent -- who seek a life-affirming world that places human security at its core.
  

3. ADDRESS KEY FUNDING INSECURITIES THAT CAN UNDERCUT AND ROLLBACK SUCCESS

Foreign assistance’s core budget has decreased 22% since 2011. Now more than 50% of humanitarian projects and programs are funded with money designated for emergencies, called the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) account.

Erosion of the core budget puts important programs in jeopardy. Stabilizing funding for programs is vital to accurately budget for planning and efficiency, for continuity of success, and to support for U.S. global interests. Overall, the White House and Congress need to agree on a broad budget deal that allows for sufficient foreign assistance resources that do not resort to emergency mechanisms that are not sustainable long term.

4. PRIORITIZE BUILDING IN-COUNTRY CAPACITY AND LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY BY FUNDING GLOBAL HEALTH,  DEVELOPMENT  AND HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE AT CURRENT OR HIGHER LEVELS

Global Health: USAID and Department of State Global Health Programs work together toward key goals like ending preventable child and maternal deaths, creating an AIDS-free generation, protecting communities from infectious diseases. Prevention is the key. This year, almost 6 million children and 300,000 women will die primarily from preventable causes.

• Consider the Data: Cutting child mortality in half since 1990, in just one day, 18,000 more children and 650 more mothers will now survive than on any day in 1990. In partnership with the U.S.’s largest faith-based organizations, USAID’s child survival and maternal health programs have helped save 4.6 million children and almost 200,000 mothers since 2008. 
• Bipartisan Legislation: The Water for the World of Act. The Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act passed with bipartisan support and signed by President George W. Bush. The 2015 Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act again had bipartisan support and was signed by President Obama. The new law targets aid to where it’s needed most; improves coordination across agencies and partners; increases transparency in reporting; and recognizes the need to include water security in everything from child survival to food security programs, pandemics to poverty, gender equality to peace. 
• Faith in Partnership: Lutheran World Relief and USAID. 1,000 women in Bihar, India, now make 5X the income of the average smallholder farmer. With new and innovative farming practices, they've diversified from growing just rice to growing vegetables which greatly improve health and nutrition, particularly for women and children who are the most vulnerable. Surpluses of these high-value crops allow women to earn extra income at local markets.

Photo: USAID Afghan Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation (SWSS)

Photo: Jake Lyell for Lutheran Relief Services

Photo: Food for the Hungry

Development Assistance: Broad-scale human security and economic progress fosters and strengthens economic growth and democratic governance that lifts millions out of extreme poverty, hunger and malnutrition for the long term. With increased focus on beneficiary engagement and local commitment, development assistance increases stability, turns aid to trade, and make countries more open, peaceful and flourishing partners with the U.S. The inverse is also true: the lack of basics for life, like food and water, decreases human security and productivity and increases dependence.

• Consider the Data: In just a few short years, priority countries for U.S. food security programs have seen poverty levels drop by as much as 36% and child stunting decline by as much as 40%.
• Bipartisan Legislation: The Global Food Security Act. Passed by the last Congress, the GFSA helps align international disaster and food security assistance with U.S. national security and economic interests. More monitoring and reporting requirements help build resilience so regions are better able to withstand and come back from disaster.  
• Faith in Partnership: Food for the Hungry and USAID. The Nyalugana Land Reclamation Project in the Democratic Republic of Congo rehabilitated swampland with 92 miles of canals, drains and ditches, to provide over 13,000 families with farmland.

Humanitarian Aid: The U.S. government plays a key coordinating and leadership role when it comes to effective response during disasters, both natural and manmade. Humanitarian aid also contributes to conflict prevention and stabilizing emerging democratic processes at times of critical transition in fragile states, by quickly responding to urgent and unanticipated events. Humanitarian aid is crucial intervention where desperation resides.

• Consider the Data: In 2015, USAID provided life-saving support to 109 million victims of humanitarian emergencies around the world, more than 3X the number projected at the beginning of the year. USAID presently has six response teams in the field, working with allies to assess multiple emergencies, the most ever in the history of the Agency. 
• Bipartisan Legislation: Food for Peace Reform Act. Co-sponsored by Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) and Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) and introduced in the 114th Congress, this legislation reforms how the U.S. delivers humanitarian relief, allowing U.S. aid workers to feed an additional 12 million emergency victims faster and at lower costs.
• Faith in Partnership: Catholic Relief Services and USAID. Emergencies like Ethiopia’s current drought, the worst in 50 years, can set back an entire generation. Building resilience is key. A CRS-led consortium funded by USAID provided emergency food for 2.8 million people through the Joint Emergency Operation Program so families don't fall into poverty due to immediate food needs. CRS also engages local partners and government who scale up access to water for people, livestock and agriculture; facilitate seed fairs and seed trading to enhance crops and livestock and monitor crop performance; teach communities how to prevent erosion, deforestation, and other smart agriculture practices like prioritizing drought-resistant crops.
  

Photo: Food for the Hungry

Photo: Catholic Relief Services

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Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.  [Matthew 25:40]

We have a moral call, and a life-affirming opportunity, to make sure every child has a full belly, to offer safe water to the thirsty, and free every man, woman and child from the cloak of exploitation, so that all may have the opportunity to thrive in God's kingdom on our shared earth.

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