Americans, particularly at this time of year, open their wallets to all manner of good causes. But donating to Uncle Sam's foreign-aid efforts isn't very high on the list.
In September, officials at the U.S. Agency for International Development unveiled what they considered to be an inspired idea: augment the billions of taxpayer dollars already allocated for foreign aid by asking individual Americans to give money for development projects.
The first needy case put forth was Iraq. USAID unveiled the Iraq Partnership to allow Americans to "contribute directly to local development projects in Iraq" and "help put desks in classrooms; provide water pumps to farmers; and improve medical services throughout the country."
The general difficulty of doing business in Iraq has meant that “only” $13 billion of the $30 billion that Congress allocated for rebuilding the country and training its security forces has been spent.
As of this week, the Iraq Partnership had only raised $1,500. Which seems to send a signal to Uncle Sam.
[Excerpt of article by Yochi J. Dreazen, The Wall Street Journal]
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