(task) MFAN launches Reform for Results series in partnership with Devex; Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hold hearing on food aid reform, April 15

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humanitarian assistance

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> Subject: Fwd: MFAN launches Reform for Results series in partnership with Devex; Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hold hearing on food aid reform, April 15
> From: Albert Gomez <albert@icassemblies.com>
> Date: April 9, 2015 at 9:59:41 PM EDT
> Cc: Kathy MPHISE <gilbojer@aol.com>
> To: Michael Mcdonald <michael.d.mcdonald@mac.com>
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> Sent from my iPhone
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>> From: "MFAN News" <noreply@modernizeforeignassistance.org <mailto:noreply@modernizeforeignassistance.org>>
>> Date: April 9, 2015 at 4:29:12 PM EDT
>> To: "albert@icassemblies.com <mailto:albert@icassemblies.com>" <albert@icassemblies.com <mailto:albert@icassemblies.com>>
>> Subject: MFAN launches Reform for Results series in partnership with Devex; Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hold hearing on food aid reform, April 15
>> Reply-To: noreply@modernizeforeignassistance.org <mailto:noreply@modernizeforeignassistance.org>
>>
>>
>>
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>> Latest News:
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>> MFAN launches Reform for Results series in partnership with Devex
>> Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hold hearing on food aid reform, April 15
>> USAID Acting Administrator Lenhardt testifies before House Committees
>> Global Food Security Act (H.R. 1567) introduced in the House
>> InterAction publishes to International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI)
>> Oxfam releases new report To Fight Corruption, Localize Aid
>> Save the Children publishes Tracking USAID’s Efforts on the Local Solutions Initiative report
>> Fortune magazine names MFAN Co-Chair Carolyn Miles one of world’s greatest leaders
>> MFAN adds new Senior Government Relations Manager, Stephanie Cappa
>> News Clips
>> Job Openings
>> MFAN launches Reform for Results series in partnership with Devex
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>> MFAN and Devex recently launched a new series on U.S. foreign assistance reform, Reform for Results. The series reflects on progress to date in MFAN’s focus areas of accountability through transparency, evaluation, and learning; and country ownership of the priorities and resources for, and implementation of, development. It also looks ahead to emerging opportunities for continued progress in 2015. In the coming weeks we will be publishing additional pieces as well as video interviews.
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>> We will also be hosting a Twitter chat on aid reform to encourage the broader community to join the conversation. Follow the series as it unfolds and please help us spread the word on Twitter <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-j/>using #Reform4Results.
>>
>> The first piece from MFAN Co-Chairs George Ingram, Carolyn Miles, and Connie Veillette, can be found here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-t/>, and a country ownership piece from MFAN Executive Committee member and President and CEO of Plan International USA, Tessie San Martin can be found here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-i/>.
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>> Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hold hearing on food aid reform, April 15
>>
>> On Wednesday, April 15th at 9:30AM, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Bob Corker (R-TN), will be holding a hearing, American Food Aid: Why Reform. The witnesses set to testify are Dina Esposito, Director of USAID's Food for Peace program; David Ray, Vice President of Policy and Advocacy for CARE USA and MFAN Executive Committee member; Vincent Smith, Professor of Economics at Montana State University; and Stephanie Mercier, Senior Policy Advisor for the Farm Journal Foundation.
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>> This hearing is the first ever standalone hearing dedicated to food aid reform, and follows the recent introduction of the bipartisan Food for Peace Reform Act (S. 525) by Senators Bob Corker and Chris Coons (D-DE).
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>> Watch a live-stream of the hearing here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-d/>, and read the full text of the reform bill here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-h/>.
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>> USAID Acting Administrator Lenhardt testifies before House Committees
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>> USAID Acting Administrator Alfonso Lenhardt recently testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations as well as the House Foreign Affairs Committee, where he was joined by MCC CEO Dana Hyde. The HFAC hearing covered the importance of continuing to push for effective, efficient development programs, food aid reform, and transparency.
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>> Ambassador Lenhardt also highlighted the importance of evaluation, pointing out that of the 243 evaluations USAID conducted last year, at least half led to mid-course corrections in programs. Dana Hyde testified that MCC would continue to lead on data and transparency, as the agency is currently working to improve its geospatial, gender and governance data. She also spoke of the importance of working with partner countries on how data is used and shared, citing initiatives like MCC’s new partnership with PEPFAR on local data hubs.
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>> Read Ambassador Lenhardt’s testimony here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-k/>, and Dana Hyde’s here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-u/>.
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>> Global Food Security Act (H.R. 1567) introduced in the House
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>> On March 24th, Reps. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Betty McCollum (D-MN) reintroduced the Global Food Security Act of 2015. The bill includes several reform elements related to accountability and country ownership. The bill calls for transparency of results and spending information, monitoring and evaluation, and that lessons learned from regular program reviews be shared widely. On country ownership, the bill requires alignment with country strategies on agriculture, nutrition and food security.
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>> Read the full bill text here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-o/>, and MFAN’s statement here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-b/>.
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>> InterAction publishes to International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI)
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>> During Sunshine Week (March 16-20), a celebration of open and transparent government, InterAction announced that they have published their data according to the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) standard. Along with their announcement, they also provided lessons learned. Their tips include: adopting an open information policy as a first step; cultivating internal champions of transparency; and incorporating IATI publication into every-day business practices.
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>> InterAction joins more than 300 other organizations that have fulfilled a commitment to publish to IATI, including MFAN member Plan International USA.
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>> Explore InterAction’s data on the IATI Registry <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-n/>, and read a blog post here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-p/>.
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>> Oxfam releases new report To Fight Corruption, Localize Aid
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>> Oxfam’s recently released report, To Fight Corruption, Localize Aid, discusses how U.S. foreign assistance can help support a locally driven fight against corruption. The report recommends the U.S. government invest more directly in accountable local systems, create more flexibility in procurement and more freedom from earmarks, and fulfill USAID’s commitment to increase the proportion of funds going directly to local institutions to 30 percent. The report also calls for an accelerated effort to fully comply with the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) standard, more investment in partner countries’ capacity to collect and manage their own data, and development of qualitative indicators for USAID’s Local Solutions Initiative.
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>> Read the full report here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-x/>. An op-ed from MFAN Country Ownership Working Group Co-Chair Greg Adams can be found here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-m/>. Blogs from the Oxfam Aid Effectiveness team can be found here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-c/>and here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-q/>.
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>> Save the Children publishes Tracking USAID’s Efforts on the Local Solutions Initiative report
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>> Save the Children’s report, Tracking USAID’s Efforts on the Local Solutions Initiative, evaluates USAID’s Local Solutions initiative by examining procurements in six countries. The research finds that country ownership principles have been adequately integrated, and includes recommendations for continued progress. The report calls for USAID to: conduct a more comprehensive review of the initiative in order to identify and scale up promising practices; adopt additional standardized indicators to track its efforts to promote and implement country ownership; and pay more attention to local institutions working on agency-funded activities as sub-grantees and sub-contractors.
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>> In the coming weeks, Save the Children will publish the second part of this study, which will present the findings of field research conducted in the Philippines.
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>> Read the full report here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-a/>.
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>> Fortune magazine names MFAN Co-Chair Carolyn Miles one of world’s greatest leaders
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>> Fortune magazine recently named MFAN Co-Chair and Save the Children President and CEO Carolyn Miles as one of the world’s fifty greatest leaders. The article cites that since taking the helm of Save the Children, Carolyn has doubled the number of children the organization reaches both domestically and internationally. Carolyn is listed among other notable leaders including Pope Francis, Bill and Melinda Gates, and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.
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>> Read the full list here <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-f/>.
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>> MFAN adds new Senior Government Relations Manager, Stephanie Cappa
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>> Stephanie Cappa recently joined MFAN as Senior Government Relations Manager. Stephanie comes to MFAN from Freedman Consulting, LLC, where she conducted policy and strategic planning, research, and strategic communications for firm clients. Previously, she led international development policy and advocacy at InterAction, specializing in global food security and expanding access to safe water and sanitation. Stephanie also served as policy advisor to Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), focusing on global poverty reduction and environmental sustainability. A Truman Security Fellow, she graduated from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government with a Masters in Public Policy and from the College of William and Mary with a Bachelor of Arts in both Environmental Science and Policy and Public Policy.
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>> News Clips
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>> For more sustainable development, commit to locally led solutions <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-z/> (Devex – Tessie San Martin, April 9)
>> Right Things. Right Places. Right Now. <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-v/>(Huffington Post – Amb. Deborah L. Birx, April 6)
>> Debate on the future of aid ‘makes me worry’ <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-e/>(Devex – Marta Foresti, April 2)
>> What will be Obama’s development legacy? <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-s/>(The Hill – Diana Ohlbaum, March 23)
>> Advancing US foreign aid reform for better development results <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-g/> (Devex – George Ingram, Carolyn Miles & Connie Veillette, March 18)
>> The other ‘humanitarian’ crisis in Syria <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-w/> (Devex – Jenny Lei Ravelo, March 13)
>> Cooking Up Food Aid Reform <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-yd/> (Roll Call – Tom Colicchio, March 9)
>> USAID and PEPFAR: Institutionalizing Local Ownership for Sustainability <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-yh/> (Plan International USA – Justin Fugle, March 9)
>> What We Learned: Looking Back at “Do More With Data” <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-yk/>(MFAN – George Ingram, Lori Rowley & Diana Ohlbaum, March 6)
>> Fighting Ebola requires a culture change in the west, as well as west Africa <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-yu/> (The Guardian – David Miliband & Peter Piot, March 3)
>> Moving Africa toward health self-sufficiency <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-jl/>(Washington Post – Michael Gerson, March 2)
>> A Missing Piece In Local Ownership: Evaluation <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-jr/>(InterAction – Laia Grino, February 19)
>> Job Openings
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>> Millennium Challenge Corporation – Managing Director (Development Policy) <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-jy/>
>> Millennium Challenge Corporation – Senior Policy Advisor <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-jj/>
>> U.S. Global Leadership Coalition – Director of Government Relations <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-jt/>
>> Save the Children – Associate Director, International Humanitarian Policy and Advocacy (Temporary) <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-ji/>
>> Save the Children – Director, Aid Effectiveness <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-jd/>
>> Center for Global Development – Research Assistant, Policy <http://www.mail-advocate.net/t/r-l-qkhjrz-jktlihhyuy-jh/>
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