2024 went out with a bang for CIDC, with 200+ in attendance at our December 10 annual Development Conference. You can find all the wrap-up photos, thought leadership, slides, etc. on our recap page. Thanks again to all the speakers, sponsors, and participants.

Unfortunately, 2025 started on a different note, with a three-part series on the PBS NewsHour program examining U.S. foreign assistance and localization efforts that contained false assertions and disingenuous allegations from a particular U.S.-based advocacy organization that were so egregious that USAID issued a statement for the final segment, calling the reporting “incorrect and misleading” and stating that it “grossly misstates USAID’s work.” You can read the full statement below.

 

This year also marks the start of a new administration, and President Trump has promised to issue a plethora of Executive Orders – some say as high as 100. Whatever the number, we at PSC will be examining them one by one. Join PSC President & CEO David Berteau at our monthly CIDC meeting – on Thursday, January 30th – to hear what we have discerned up to that point, including a discussion on the FY25 budget and recent nominations. (And if you can’t wait till the 30th, you can also catch him speaking on a panel titled The First 100 Days: How Trump Could Change US Aid, hosted by our good friends at Devex on January 22nd.) Please log in to your PSC account to register for our event, and while you’re there be sure to check out PSC’s Post-Election Resource Center – a members-only portal with vital information related to the incoming administration.

 

Speaking of nominations, it seems certain that Senator Marco Rubio will shortly be confirmed as the next Secretary of State. The two Deputy Secretary of State positions have been named – Christopher Landau for Policy and Michael Rigas for Management & Resources, but their nomination hearing dates have not been announced. Regarding USAID, as we were going to print, no nominee has been announced for Administrator, nor has an Acting Administrator been appointed.

 

January’s From the Field entries showcase the work of DT Global and their efforts in Somalia to promote economic growth reaching over 1,000 micro-enterprises. TetraTech, through its project in Tanzania, works with USAID’s Feed the Future to engage with youth agricultural workers to provide business support services and access to finance for thousands. (Please contact PSC if you would like us to spotlight one of your projects.) Their work, along with other important programs run by our CIDC members, highlights the fact that American development contractors work overseas fulfilling US government foreign assistance priorities through effective, transparent, and accountable programs with measurable results.

 

Finally, lots of happenings are listed in our Member News section, so be sure to check out the latest developments below.

 

Paul Foldi
Vice President, International Development Affairs

Next Up:

Who:            PSC President/CEO, David Berteau 

When:          Noon, Thursday, January 30

Where:         PSC Office/Hybrid

Thanks to our meeting sponsor:

From the Field

Breaking Down Barriers for Businesswomen in Somalia

USAID’s Inclusive Resilience in Somalia (IRiS) Program, implemented by DT Global, is jointly funded by USAID and the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. IRiS has invested $5.2 million, plus generated $3.3 million in additional private sector co-financing to build resilient business operations that generate employment opportunities and build market systems in Somalia.

Unlocking Market Access and Fostering Economic Growth for Tanzania’s Youth Agripreneurs

The Feed the Future Tanzania Private Sector Strengthening Project, funded by USAID, is the U.S. Government’s flagship Tanzanian private sector engagement project. Tetra Tech -- in partnership with, working with private sector associations, youth groups, and the government -- is helping more than 6,000 youth-led agribusinesses grow their income and promote economic growth by providing business support services and access to finance.

PSC Matters

FAR Council Withdraws Proposed Rules:

Early January saw news of two big regulatory wins for member companies, as the outgoing administration withdrew two pending FAR rules that PSC had expressed concerns with:

 

Proposed Rule on Pay Equity and Transparency

On January 8, 2025, the FAR Council withdrew a proposed rule that would have

• prohibited federal contractors (and subs) from requesting or using compensation history in hiring and compensation processes and
• required them to disclose compensation ranges in job postings

The FAR Council cited the lack of time remaining in the Biden Administration. In April 2024, PSC urged rescission of this rule (see PSC’s comments here).

 

Proposed Rule on Greenhouse Gas Emissions

On January 13, 2025, the FAR Council withdrew a proposed rule on requiring federal contractors to disclose greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related financial risk not only for their company but for their government agency customers.  PSC in our February 2023 comments (found here) supported the goal of reducing such emissions but focused on the challenges contractors would face in implementing such a rule. We argued that compliance with these requirements would not be possible. In addition, PSC secured a limited statutory ban on part of the rule. The FAR Council cited the lack of time remaining in the Biden Administration.

USAID Matters

M/OAA recently released “2024 A&A Strategy Implementation Plan Update.”

While not the easiest of reads, and while focusing primarily on the agency’s efforts to increase and retain CO/AO staff, it does update a very useful figure that A/Power had quoted at earlier Congressional hearings regarding the workload of AID CO/AO (on p. 5):

“In FY23, CO/AOs obligated on average $106.2 M, while a CO at DOD obligated $16.9M – six times the amount on average as their DOD counterparts.”

 

USAID’s localization progress report issued

The report, Growing Momentum: USAID Localization Progress Report FY 2024, was released this week and provides new data on USAID’s efforts to (1) direct a quarter of the Agency’s funding directly to local partners by 2025 and (2) ensure local leadership over at least half of USAID’s programs by 2030. The report also details a range of steps and actions that USAID has taken over the past year that have contributed to the progress we’ve achieved—and that will help support future progress. 

 

USAID’s Full Statement posted on the PBS NewsHour Series

On the third and final segment of their report, the following statement by USAID was displayed during the telecast:

 

“It is incorrect and misleading to state that only 10% of USAID’s total foreign assistance funding is reaching local communities. We appreciate you correcting this false claim.  The statement conflates how USAID money reaches local communities with a much more specific statistic on the percentage of funding going directly to local partners through acquisition and assistance.  The later data point was around 10% in FY23. But the nationality of the prime partner is not the same as how USAID funding reaches local communities and grossly misstates USAID’s work, which reaches hundreds of millions of people around the globe every year.”

Member News

After a lifetime of work in international development, including 30 years with DAI, Jean Gilson has retired.

Deloitte released an analysis of Ukraine’s healthcare system: Supporting Reform and Recovery.