Opening Up: Aid Information, Transparency and U.S. Foreign Assistance Reform

The Obama administration is seeking to reform U.S. foreign assistance to better support development outcomes. Transparent development programs and accessible, timely aid data can provide accountability to members of Congress, who hold the purse strings, and to American taxpayers, who foot the bill. Transparency can also help the United States set priorities, assess effectiveness and coordinate with other development partners – and help the citizens of developing countries strengthen their own institutions. What is the U.S. government doing to pursue transparency and what are the challenges? How does the U.S. compare to other donors and how can U.S. efforts align with and even shape emerging international standards for aid transparency?

On December 9, International Anti-Corruption Day, Global Economy and Development at Brookings and Publish What You Fund will host a discussion to address these questions. Karin Christiansen, director of Publish What You Fund, will present findings from a pioneering transparency assessment across 30 leading aid agencies. Ruth Levine of USAID’s Bureau of Policy, Planning and Learning will address U.S. government efforts to improve development assistance transparency. Nancy Birdsall, president of the Center for Global Development, Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan, Liberian finance minister, and Daniel Kaufmann, Brooking senior fellow, will serve as discussants. Brookings Fellow Noam Unger will provide introductory remarks and moderate the discussion.

After the program, panelists will take audience questions.