USAID was the first U.S. agency to offer a long-term goal for foreign assistance programs to aid in the economic development of developing countries. In 1979 President Jimmy Carter established the International Development Cooperation Agency (IDCA) to oversee the USAID and help with decision making. The IDCA held this job until 1998 when the Foreign Affairs and Reconstructing Act of 1998 was passed. This act abolished the IDCA and made USAID a statutory agency under the power and answering to the Secretary of the State.
Foreign assistance programs have been an important issue to the U.S. in the past and are continuing to be in the future. In the early part of 2002, President George W. Bush announced the "New Compact for Development." President Bush's plan is to cut down on the devastating tragedy of poverty world wide. He announced a $5 billion annual increase in U.S. core development aid. These new funds will go to help developing nations improve their economies and standards of living.
Foreign Assistance 4.
Objectives.
This section explains where USAID is located and its goals in these areas. All of the information in this section was found on USAID's website. USAID's headquarters are in Washington D.C., but its real strength is located in field offices around the world. USAID provides assistance in four major regions of the world. These regions include Sub-Sahara Africa, Asia and the Near East, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Europe and Eurasia.
Sub-Sahara Africa.
USAID provides support in the Sub-Sahara African region. The United States main interest in this region include building regional stability, fighting against transnational security threats, improving their integration into the global economy through free and fair trade, strengthening democratic institutions, and preserving the environment. USAID has direct offices and missions in 22 nations in the Sub-Sahara African region. Along with direct offices, USAID also has three regional offices in this region which include: the Regional Center for Southern Africa (RCSA), the Regional Economic Development Service Offices East and South Africa (REDSO/ESA), and the West African Regional Program (WARP).