In June, The Modernizing Foreign Assistance Network (M-FAN), a group of U.S. think tanks, academics and non-profits, launched a proposal calling for a sweeping overhaul of how the U.S. approaches foreign assistance.  The International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) and Women Thrive Worldwide (Women Thrive) support their recommendations and are calling on the U.S. government to commit to reforming our foreign assistance. Putting women's needs at the center of this reform will not only make U.S. assistance more effective, but also will  transform the lives of millions of families.

Over a billion people worldwide live on a dollar a day or less — and women are most likely to be among the world’s poorest citizens. When women are poor, families and communities cannot be strong. Women’s poverty means that they are not free to earn an income, feed their children, or escape violence.

Investing in women is the best way to end poverty: they are the backbone of their families, working long hours every day to ensure that their children are healthy, that there is water to drink in their homes, and that their families have enough food to eat. Where women thrive, entire families, communities and nations flourish. 

The United States, as a major power and donor, can make a big difference in the lives of women worldwide, and in the fight against extreme poverty. But the reality is that women are often the last to benefit from assistance programs, because of the barriers they face, and because programs are frequently not designed with them in mind.

On July 17, 2008 Women Thrive Worldwide and the International Center for Research on Women released a joint report on what we need to do to fix our foreign assistance so that women benefit as much as men. 

"Value Added: Women and U.S. Foreign Assistance for the 21st Century" gives solutions for making our foreign assistance live up to its potential and transform the lives of millions of women and families.

Read the Report Here