Source: United States Senator for New Jersey Cory Booker
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and U.S. Representative Joaquin Castro (D-TX-20) urged the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to boost innovation through Development Innovation Ventures (DIV) and other similar programs in order to help address many of the world’s biggest challenges related to international development.
USAID’s DIV program provides grant funding to innovators and researchers to test new ideas and advance solutions for developing countries in various fields, including renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, and health technology, while increasing the return on investment of U.S. taxpayer dollars. By allocating resources to scale up effectual milestone-based projects supported by DIV, USAID has a unique opportunity to deploy innovations that can help solve dynamic global development challenges.
“With over 80 offices around the world and programs in over 100 countries, USAID is uniquely positioned to harness the very best of American innovation to source and scale effective programs that can better solve complex international development challenges,” wrote Senator Booker and Representative Castro in a letter to USAID Administrator Samantha Power. “We encourage USAID to allocate sufficient funding within sector-specific Agency budgets to scale relevant and successful DIV programs.”
“America has a storied history of promoting innovation, but if we are to solve some of the biggest challenges of our time, we must do more to catalyze research and development, foster new partnerships with accountable and innovative non-traditional partners, and improve evidence-based contracting,” continued Senator Booker and Representative Castro. “These kinds of investments are not only critical to improving outcomes for millions around the world, they also position the United States as a more effective partner vis-a-vis China for countries that want to make rapid progress towards achieving development goals.”
“The scale of our shared, global challenges is enormous. To tackle issues like climate change and a growing food crisis, we’re going to need far more innovation, which includes bringing new voices to the table and finding new ways to solve problems. Senator Booker and Congressman Castro remind us that America can show global leadership through innovation – and that agencies like USAID need to play a key role,” said Walter Kerr, Executive Director of Unlock Aid, a global coalition of change agents bridging the gap between innovation and global development.
The full text of the letter can be viewed here.