Agency for International Development's Housing Investment Guaranty Program

Under the Agency for International Development's (AID's) Housing Investment Guaranty Program (HIG), U.S. private lenders provide long-term financing at commercial interest rates for housing projects undertaken by developing countries with AID assistance. The U.S. Government provides a "full faith and credit" guaranty of repayment of principal and interest. Since its inception in 1976, the HIG program has made more than $1 billion available to finance housing activities in 37 countries. AID has sought to introduce new, low-cost approaches to providing shelter and to finance the construction of housing affordable to groups at or below the median income of the recipient country.