If you think things around the world are bad now, just wait until America’s global aid stops. Despite a Congressional mandate to fund the U.S. Agency for International Development, the current administration is strongly considering shutting down the entire department. Despite costing taxpayers far less than 1% of the federal budget, USAID is the single largest provider of global assistance in history, and its positive impacts on the world cannot be overstated. This is not money going to governments who hate America. America’s international development aid isn’t just a charitable gift to make us feel good about ourselves, this aid is essential to America’s national security. USAID makes America safer, wealthier, healthier, and stronger. Here’s why we need USAID.
USAID Makes America Safe
Problems abroad become problems at home. USAID provides food and shelter for millions of people who are at risk for extreme poverty and starvation. When this support stops, terrorist organizations are happy to step in and provide the same services to use as a tool for recruitment and legitimacy. Extreme poverty and starvation very often lead directly to violence, conflict, and war. By providing basic services to people abroad, we help prevent the spread of chaos and instability to our own shores.
USAID Makes America Wealthy
The services that USAID provides are not charity, they are an investment. These programs directly support nearly 100 international NGOs in Minnesota alone, creating thousands of jobs in the process. Direct assistance like food aid is often purchased from American companies and service providers, meaning that closing USAID hurts the bottom line of people right here in America’s heartland. Other programs designed to support small businesses and develop infrastructure abroad create a direct return on investment. These programs create fertile ground for American companies to do business in more locations around the world.
USAID Makes America Healthy
What’s the value of saving 26,000,000 people from contracting AIDS in over 50 countries? USAID programs like PEPFAR have helped stop the spread of deadly pandemics including AIDS, Ebola, measles, polio, tuberculosis, and so many more. The COVID pandemic showed us just how quickly a plague can spread from one corner of the world right to our doorstep. USAID’s health programs aren’t giving out condoms to people in Gaza, they are providing essential vaccines to vulnerable populations so we don’t have to fight diseases that were eradicated from our shores. Without these programs, America will become sicker and will spend far more money on treatment instead of prevention.
USAID Makes America Strong
America’s international development aid is a cornerstone of U.S. diplomacy and national security. Our assistance creates allies around the world and is one of our best tools for working with difficult governments that would otherwise support America’s adversaries. In many cases, the connections USAID fosters with vulnerable communities are the only intelligence link we have to understand what’s happening around the world. The U.S. military benefits directly from the connections and goodwill that USAID programs provide. After all, people are less likely to shoot at our servicemen and women if they are sending rations instead of bullets. If we don’t provide this assistance, countries like China will step in to exploit that gap and steer world events to their benefit, not to ours.
We Need USAID
None of this is to say that USAID is perfect. We should always seek to ensure our taxpayer dollars are spent effectively and efficiently to the benefit of the American people. We also shouldn’t ignore the very real problems happening here at home that require our attention. But USAID spending is domestic spending. For a tiny fraction of the federal budget, it creates direct benefits at home while promoting stability abroad. If you think things at home are bad now, just wait until America’s global aid stops.