The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) submits this report pursuant to House Report 117-401 (incorporated by Sec. 7019(e) of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2023, (Div. K, P.L. 117-328)). The House Report provides:
“Not later than 120 days after enactment of this Act, USAID shall submit a report to the Committees on Appropriations detailing programs awarded to local and national nongovernmental entities from funds made available under this heading. The report should include a description of how USAID is working to increase funding to capable local and national nongovernmental entities.”
This report complements the USAID Fiscal Year 2022 Localization Report to Congress, (available at: https://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/2023-07/USAID%20Localization%20Report%20to% 20Congress%20.pdf) which includes additional reporting pursuant to the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 Joint Explanatory Statement (incorporated by Sec. 7019(e) of Div. K, P.L. 117-328)
1. Background
Administrator Samantha Power has set ambitious goals for the Agency to recognize local and national actors as leaders, decision-makers, and drivers of change in their own countries and communities and elevate their leadership in our work. USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) leads the agency’s localization efforts within the humanitarian sector.
The Agency defines localization as the set of internal reforms, actions, and behavior changes that USAID is undertaking to ensure our work puts local actors in the lead, strengthens local systems, and is responsive to the needs of local communities. In the humanitarian sector, this means supporting humanitarian responses that are as local as possible, a goal that aligns with the Grand Bargain—a 2016 agreement signed by the U.S. government (USG) and other donors, and humanitarian aid organizations to streamline funding, remove systemic barriers to entry, and make resources of all kinds more accessible to local partners.
As part of USAID’s embrace of localization, BHA commits to placing local and national actors at the forefront of humanitarian efforts where possible and appropriate, building on previous successes, learning from past challenges, and expanding these efforts across responses to complex humanitarian crises. USAID also understands that its localization efforts must be measured and realistic, with the ultimate goal of facilitating the delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance more effectively, efficiently, and sustainably.
