The United States Agency for International Development is the lead U.S. Government agency working in foreign aid and development. Here are some of the most recent and significant USAID accomplishments:

EMERGENCY RESPONSE

• Provided food assistance to more than 53 million people in 47 countries in crisis in 2016.
• Responded to 52 crises in 52 countries and deployed a record-breaking 6 simultaneous Disaster Assistance Response Teams in 2016 providing life-saving assistance to tens of millions of people including those enduring the Ebola outbreak, an earthquake in Ecuador, and conflict in Syria.
• Reached more than five million survivors of gender-based violence with services including medical care, counseling, legal help, and other support since 2012.

ECONOMIC GROWTH

• Developed and signed 56 credit guarantees in 2016, leveraging $892 million of private capital to unlock financing for entrepreneurs. Eight of these new guarantees, totaling $158 million of private capital, target lending to women and women-owned businesses.
• Contributed to creating business environments for U.S. goods – 11 of America’s top 15 trading partners were once recipients of U.S. aid, and some of the fastest-growing markets are former aid recipients.

GLOBAL HEALTH

• Saved the lives of 4.6 million children and 200,000 women since 2009.
• Helped 9.5 million people attain life-saving AIDS treatments, in collaboration with inter-agency partners through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in 2015.
• Saved 6 million lives through the President’s Malaria Initiative since 2007.

FOOD SECURITY

• Led the Feed the Future initiative, which helped reduce poverty between 7 and 36 percent and child malnutrition between 6 and 40 percent within many of the targeted investment areas since 2010.
• Helped 10 million smallholder farmers, 35 percent of whom are women, use new technologies and management practices.

ACCESS TO ELECTRICITY

• Leveraged $7 billion USG investment into $94 billion in private and other commitments to provide electricity access to nearly 14 million people.

EDUCATION

• Helped 52 million children and youth learn by strengthening education programs and systems in 45 countries, provided teachers and students with nearly 150 million textbooks and other learning materials, and built or repaired 11,000 classrooms, from 2011 to 2015.

GOVERNANCE AND FRAGILE STATES

• Supported democratic transitions, including Burma’s November 2015 national elections, which resulted in the first civilian-led government since 1962.
• Assisted civil society organizations whose efforts give voice to citizens and increase their influence on the political process, such as in Ukraine where civil society was able to rally to support peaceful protests, push for reforms, and inform the public.
• Built resilience in communities around the world, such as in Ethiopia where local officials were able to respond quickly and early to mitigate the effects of the 2015-2016 El Niño drought, avoiding widespread food insecurity.

INNOVATION AND RIGOR

• Completed 1,425 evaluations since 2011, of which 71 percent were used to support or modify a project.
• Invested in 900 innovations in more than 60 countries to engage with new partners and test new tools and approaches. USAID co-founded the Better Than Cash Alliance to digitize institutional payments while reducing poverty and corruption.