Bills
| 3.23.22

Should USAID Develop a Global, Interagency Initiative to Address the Causes of Violence? (H.R. 5273)

Do you support or oppose this bill?

What is H.R. 5273?

(Updated September 12, 2019)

This bill — the Global Fragility and Violence Reduction Act of 2018 — would require the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to establish and implement an interagency initiative to stabilize and prevent violence in conflict-prone areas of the world. USAID would coordinate efforts with the Depts. of State and Defense (DOD) to develop a global initiative to prevent the root causes of violence and instability in countries around the world.

The interagency group would develop 10-year plans to coordinate federal efforts under the initiative in 10 pilot countries jointly identified by USAID, the State Dept., and DOD. It would also consult with the U.S. Ambassador, USAID Mission Director, geographic Combatant Commands, relevant interagency country teams in each pilot country, representatives of local civil society and national and local governance entities, nonprofits, intergovernmental organizations, and private entities as appropriate to develop initiatives in each pilot country.

Pilot countries would be identified based on current levels of violence and an assessment of U.S. government activities’ potential to reduce and address the causes of violence, violent conflict, and fragility within their borders. “Current levels of violence” in each country shall be measured by considering:

  • Total levels of deaths due to violence and violence-related deaths per 100,000 population;

  • Total levels of violent injuries and violence exposures levels;

  • Violent injuries and violence exposure levels per 100,000 population;

  • Levels of persons forcibly displaced, whether internally or internationally, due to violence or violent conflicts;

  • Total levels of gender-based violence and violence against children and youth;

  • Prevalence of physical of sexual violence in the last 12 months;

  • Mortality levels due to armed group violence;

  • Levels of citizen support for armed groups;

  • The country’s ranking on select global fragility lists and select good governance indexes;

  • The country’s ranking on selected U.S. government conflict and atrocity early warning watch lists; and

  • The country’s vulnerability to current or future transnational threats.

Finally, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and administration would be required to provide regular briefings and reports on this initiative to Congress.

Argument in favor

Global violence has high human and economic costs, leading to the loss of lives and economic output. Addressing it requires interagency within the U.S. and cooperation with international partners in order to develop effective strategies — which this bill enables.

Argument opposed

USAID, the State Department, and DOD engage on very different issues in each country they’re present in, so interagency coordination of violence reduction efforts may not be fruitful. Rather than spending additional money to coordinate these agencies’ work, the government should simply fund them as needed to achieve anti-violence objectives globally.

Impact

Conflict-prone areas; international violence; USAID; State Department; DOD; GAO; International affairs; and Congress.

Cost of H.R. 5273

The CBO estimates that implementing this bill would cost $1 million a year, totalling $3 million over the 2019-2023 period.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY) introduced this bill to promote more effective development in fragile and unstable countries, addressing the conditions that create safe havens for terrorists, criminal networks, and war lords:

“The United States has been at war for 16 years and has spent decades more working to stabilize fragile countries. This bill would make us take a hard look at what’s working and what isn’t, and help relevant agencies work more closely to tackle this challenge. After all, when we help countries become stronger and more stable, we make it harder for terrorists, criminals, and other violent groups to put down roots. That makes the United States and our partners safer. I’m pleased to join with this group of lawmakers that spans the aisle to offer this measure and I hope the House acts on it soon.”

CARE, a major international humanitarian agency delivering emergency relief and long-term international development projects, supports this bill. Its Vice President for Policy and Advocacy, David Ray, argues this legislation is needed to better coordinate resources to reduce violence:

“In certain countries, nearly three-quarters of women report experiencing gender-based violence at some point in their lives – often impeding women’s social, political and economic participation, which is essential to the stability of communities. If the United States aims to build strong, inclusive communities, it must take coordinated steps toward a sustained and coherent policy that addresses the root causes of all types of violence. CARE supports the Global Fragility & Violence Reduction Act in order to better align resources and policies to reduce the violence that results in fragility and large-scale conflict.”

This bill passed the House Committee on Foreign Affairs by a unanimous vote with the support of 14 cosponsors, including eight Democrats and six Republicans. There is a companion bill in the Senate, introduced by Sens. Chris Coons (D-DE), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Todd Young (R-IN), and Lindsey Graham (R-SC). While nearly identical on major substantive points, the House and Senate bills differ in a few important ways: 1) the House bill proposes 10 pilot countries, whereas the Senate bill proposes six; 2) the Senate bill provides more funding flexibility than the House bill; and 3) the House bill puts the USAID Administrator in charge of this initiative, whereas the Senate bill gives the USAID administrator and Secretary of State co-equal status in constructing the initiative.

Many civil society organizations, including World Vision, Mercy Corps, World Relief, the Alliance for Peacebuilding, Jewish World Watch, and the Center for Civilians in Conflict, support this bill.


Of Note: Violence and violent conflict have become the leading causes of displacement worldwide, resulting in an unprecedented 66 million forcibly displaced people. Annually, preventable violence kills at least 1.4 million people. Containing violence costs the global economy $14.3 trillion a year (equivalent to 13.4 percent of global GDP), including $89.6 billion in losses due to terrorism.


Media:

Summary by Lorelei Yang

(Photo Credit: iStockphoto.com / guvendemir)