From the U.S. Government Accountability Office, www.gao.gov

Transcript for: Food for Peace Implementation and Support Costs 

Description: GAO reviews recent changes to funding provided to USAID for
the Food for Peace program; the 2014 Farm Bill increased the amount that
USAID can spend on costs to implement and support projects, such as
providing food storage or sanitation activities.

Related GAO Works: GAO-17-224: International Food Assistance: USAID Has
Controls for Implementation and Support Costs but Should Strengthen
Financial Oversight

Released: April 2017


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[ Narrator: ] The U.S. Agency for International Development-or
USAID-provided about $1.5 billion in 2016 under the U.S. Farm Bill for
international food assistance through the Food for Peace program. 

[ Images of food and equipment ] Funding provided by the U.S. Farm Bill
for this program primarily buys food in the United States and transports
it to millions of needy people around the world, a process called
in-kind assistance. 

[ Images of people, warehouses, trucks and equipment ] In addition to
buying food, USAID can spend a portion of these funds on costs to
implement and support projects-such as storing food in warehouses,
obtaining vehicles to transport food, and providing staff salaries and
office equipment for organizations that implement projects. 

[ Images of fields and facilities ] These costs can also include
agriculture or water and sanitation activities that could help with food
security. 

[ Video of cattle entering dip tank ] For example, community members in
Zimbabwe received support for a cattle dip tank to give their livestock
insecticidal treatments, to help improve livestock health and resilience
to drought. 

[ Images of equipment, and people in markets and distribution locations
] The 2014 Farm Bill increased the amount of money USAID can spend on
these costs. It also provided additional flexibilities for the use of
these funds, which the agency has used to provide food assistance
through direct cash transfers and food vouchers, in addition to in-kind
donations, and to buy food from local sources. 

Due to these changes, GAO reviewed USAID's oversight of funding to
implement Food for Peace projects. We found that the agency could
enhance its financial oversight. 

[ Video of Tom Melito ] [ Tom Melito: ] I'm Tom Melito, the director in
GAO's International Affairs and Trade team who led this work. To find
out more about our review of Food for Peace Implementation Costs, check
out GAO-17-224 on our website, GAO.gov.

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