USAID partners with local banks to secure financing for underserved but credit-worthy borrowers, such as this Ethiopian farmer.

Photo Credit: Morgana Wingard

USAID works with in-country organizations to strengthen their capacity, build effective and long-term partnerships, and reduce the need for foreign aid over time.

We seek to work with a variety of in-country partners - including host country governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the for-profit private sector, cooperatives, associations and universities - to advance country ownership of development activities, which is critical to USAID's commitment to lasting development.

Through grants, contracts and other mechanisms, USAID is working to expand its network of in-country partners and encourage greater country ownership of local development projects. The annual USAID Civil Society Organization's Sustainability Index (CSOSI) reports on the strength and overall viability of the NGO sector in several regions.

We also leverage foreign investments, institutional linkages, and other efforts to benefit in-country partners, such as working with the private sector through public-private partnerships to mobilize private resources for development; providing Small Project Assistance grants to Peace Corps Volunteers and the communities where they work; and connecting academia to foster learning, innovation, and opportunity.

Our relationships with in-country partners are robust. Here are a few examples:

• In fiscal year 2012, 73 USAID missions awarded almost $745 million to local organizations, including non-profits, for-profits and academia to advance sustainable community and national development.
• USAID supports two local Guatemalan organizations to provide local leadership as part of Feed the Future, the U.S. Government's global hunger and food security initiative. This partnership benefits more than 32,000 households by expanding incomes and increasing access to food in rural communities.
• The USAID mission in Pakistan channels over half of its U.S. civilian-assistance programs through Pakistani government, civil society, and private sector entities to develop a stable, secure, and vibrant economy.
• The USAID NGO Legal Enabling Environment Program supports the laws and regulations that protect and promote civil society and civic participation. This program has provided technical and research assistance to support the reform of laws affecting civil society organizations in over 100 countries.
• We bring together individuals for conflict resolution and peace building via our People to People Reconciliation Fund, which has supported 135 peacebuilding projects in 35 countries and awarded over $115 million in grants.
• In Ukraine, we partnered with a local NGO to replace Soviet-era water pipes that were delivering polluted water to a village. Our support brought together the local government, a water company, businesses, a farmer's cooperative and a women's NGO, establishing a collaborative and locally owned project positioned to support long-term access to water and economic growth.
• Through USAID's Cooperative Development Program, a local organization in Central America developed a remittance program that has delivered more than $4 billion to credit union members in that region.

Please contact us for more information.