What is the International

Affairs Budget and PFDA?

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Within the federal budget, we especially monitor what is called the 150 Account, or the International Affairs Budget, which is largely funded through the State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill. This is where the bulk of PFDA programs are also funded. They are then implemented through such agencies and programs as the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the Department of State, the Department of Agriculture, and other independent agencies.

Here are just a few examples of PFDA accounts and their implementing agencies/departments:
 

• U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
  • Development Assistance: Builds long‐term, sustainable capacity, such as improvements in agriculture, safe reliable water, and basic education and training.
  • Example: Supporting smallholder farmers through distributing high‐quality seeds and fertilizer, and connecting farmers to storage facilities and markets so they can more easily transport and sell their products, enabling them to receive higher prices for their crops.
  • Global Health Programs: Expands basic health services and strengthens national health systems to improve people's health, especially that of women, children, and vulnerable populations.
  • Example: Training community health workers on prevention and treatment of basic birth complications to drastically reduce the rate of mother and infant deaths during childbirth.

 

• U.S. Department of State
  • Migration and Refugee Assistance:  Responds to needs of refugees by protecting people from conflict, providing humanitarian relief, and promoting sustainable solutions through established organizations.
  • Example: Providing safe shelter, food, clean water, education, and job training to assist refugees of conflicts such as those in Syria, Central African Republic, and Afghanistan.

 

• U.S. Department of Agriculture
  • Food for Peace:  Provides food assistance during emergencies and disasters, and funds non‐emergency development‐orientated programs to address the underlying issues of food security.
  • Example:  Providing food assistance following the recent earthquakes in Nepal.