USAID development and humanitarian policies and strategies are developed in close partnership among Washington bureaus and independent offices, international Missions, and other partners. They articulate the Agency's positions in key areas, based on evidence and analysis; identify priority directions and actions; and provide guidance to staff and implementing partners overseas. All current development and humanitarian policy documents are listed in the USAID Policy Registry.

U.S. Development Policy in Context

The USAID development and humanitarian policy supports the objectives of the National Security Strategy and other strategic documents, such as the Department of State-USAID Joint Strategic Plan, that aim to strengthen our diplomatic and development capabilities to better meet our foreign policy goals. U.S. development cooperation—inclusive of humanitarian and other crisis-response efforts—is a pillar of our national security, international strength, and principled engagement abroad. USAID policies and strategies expand upon our development and humanitarian assistance priorities and further support our efforts to achieve the Agency's mission.

Policies and Strategies

The scope, intent and composition of USAID policies and strategies vary according to subject matter and issue area. They are intended to convey the thinking of the Agency’s leadership,  guide decisions and actions to achieve evidence-based development and humanitarian outcomes, and improve the effectiveness of USAID’s development programs. Policies and strategies are developed according to a common set of procedures (ADS 200) that ensure they are grounded in the best available evidence, reflect good development practice and clearly articulate the agency's collective vision. They illustrate USAID's understanding of the nature of challenges within a certain theme and the best approaches for accomplishing Agency goals in this area. Where necessary, USAID provides more operational guidance on implementing specific policies or strategies through internal regulations.

USAID Policy Framework

The USAID Policy Framework: Driving Progress Beyond Programs lays out a collective vision for international development, translates U.S. national security and foreign policy goals into Agency priorities, and promotes coherence among our development, humanitarian, and crisis-response policies. The Policy Framework establishes three overarching priorities to drive progress beyond programs: first, to confront the greatest challenges of our time; second, to achieve lasting development progress; and third, to invest in USAID’s enduring effectiveness. These priorities are connected: achieving our long-term mission depends on confronting the greatest impediments to development today; marshaling action to address them demands more inclusive partnerships and harmonized efforts that drive lasting change; and realizing this commitment takes investment in our people and the streamlining of our processes.

Policy Registry

USAID is required to maintain a list of development policies, strategies and vision statements in a Policy Registry per ADS 200. The documents listed in this Registry guide USAID’s programming; ensuring it is responsive to current priorities and reflective of global good practice in providing development and humanitarian assistance. The Policy Registry aligns with the five global challenges in USAID’s Policy Framework: Driving Progress Beyond Programs.

Challenge: Respond to complex emergencies, build peace and resilience, and invest in lasting food security.

Conflict, Fragility, and Resilience

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CVE Policy Icon

Policy for Countering Violent Extremism Through Development Assistance

USAID is an international leader in violence prevention and countering violent extremism (CVE). As the U.S. Government’s lead implementer of CVE programming, USAID contributes to U.S. national security by limiting the reach and impact of violent extremist organizations (VEOs) to threaten U.S. interests and strengthening the resilience of our local partners.

USAID Resilience Policy

Resilience Policy

While we cannot stop shocks from happening, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) can – and must – do more to help people withstand them. USAID has been in the vanguard of international momentum to support country and regional plans and build resilience to recurrent crisis.

 

Interagency Policies and Strategies related to this policy priority include:

Challenge: Help countries withstand the effects of a changing climate and secure a net-zero future

Climate

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An antelope crosses the Kenyan savanna at dusk.

USAID Climate Strategy 2022–2030

USAID’s 2022–2030 Climate Strategy guides our whole-of-Agency approach to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions, help partner countries build resilience to climate change, and improve our operations.

Biodiversity

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USAID's Biodiversity Policy

USAID aims to shape a future in which both people and nature thrive. The Agency’s Biodiversity Policy builds on a long history of conserving biodiversity and reflects the critical role of natural systems in achieving development goals.
 

This policy is currently being revised.

Interagency Policies and Strategies related to this policy priority include:

President’s Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience (PREPARE)

Challenge: Stem the tide of authoritarianism, counter corruption, fight digital repression and disinformation, and spur democratic renewal

Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance

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Anti Corruption Policy

Anti-Corruption Policy

To keep pace with the changing nature of corruption, and ensure anti-corruption is an enduring Agency priority, USAID has released its first-ever Anti-Corruption Policy. In line with the U.S. Strategy on Countering Corruption, the Policy signals our commitment to countering corruption and outlines our plan for institutionalizing anti-corruption efforts across our work.

Assistance for Civilian Policing Policy

Assistance for Civilian Policing

This policy guidance relates to legislation that has expanded USAID’s mandate to work with civilian policing authorities. Section 564(a) of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2005, expands “community-based police assistance” authority on a worldwide basis.

Counter-Trafficking in Persons Policy

Countering Trafficking in Persons (C-TIP)

Human trafficking affects an estimated 25 million people around the world, including adults and children subjected to sexual exploitation and forced labor in domestic servitude and sectors such as fishing, construction, and agriculture. Since 2001, USAID has prioritized the investment of more than $340 million in 83 countries and regions to fight human trafficking. USAID-funded C-TIP programs are tailored to address the needs of vulnerable and marginalized local populations and build local capacity in governments, civil society, and the private sector.

Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance Policy

Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance Policy

Advancing democracy, human rights, and governance (DRG) globally is an expression of deeply held U.S. values founded on the belief that all people have an inherent right to be free from repression, tyranny, and the indignity of corruption and to shape their own destinies.

Rule of Law Policy

Rule of Law Policy

Building upon USAID's decades-long effort to promote the rule of law and ensure justice, rights, and security for all, the Rule of Law Policy re-elevates the rule of law within our development mission, equips and empowers staff who promote it, and leverages our comparative advantages to sustain it.

Interagency Policies and Strategies related to this policy priority include: 

Challenge: Bolster health security, improve primary care, and reverse the decline in global life expectancy

Global Health

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Health Systems Strengthening Policy

USAID Vision for Health System Strengthening 2030

USAID’s ten-year vision is rooted in health system strengthening (HSS) approaches that are based on whole-of-society engagement, locally-driven solutions, and social and behavior change.

USAID Tuberculosis Strategy (2023-2030)

USAID invites external partners, stakeholders, and other interested parties around the world to provide feedback on the development of its new TB Strategy.

Nutrition Strategy

USAID Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Strategy 2014-2025

Optimal nutrition is fundamental to achieving USAID’s wider mission to end extreme poverty and to promote resilient, democratic societies while advancing our national security and prosperity. USAID’S 2014-2025 Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Strategy is the first of its kind at USAID.

Digital Health Position Paper cover

Digital Health Position Paper (2024-2029)

USAID envisions a world in which all people have equitable access to safe, secure, and reliable h

Interagency Policies and Strategies related to this policy priority include: 

Challenge: Address economic headwinds by promoting inclusive economic growth

Economic Growth and Trade

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Policy for Trade Capacity Building

Trade Capacity Building Policy

USAID’s Trade Capacity Building Policy outlines the Agency’s approach to trade capacity building.
 

This policy is currently being revised.

Economic Growth Policy

Economic Growth Policy

Our new Economic Growth Policy advances the commitment of USAID and the broader U.S. Government to promoting inclusive, sustained, and resilient economic growth in developing countries.

 

This policy is currently being revised.

Education

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Education Policy

Education Policy

The USAID Education Policy provides an Agency-wide vision and direction for supporting partner countries in strengthening their capacity to deliver quality learning opportunities for children and youth.

Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment

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2023 Gender Policy

2023 Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment Policy

USAID affirms that gender equality and women’s and girls’ empowerment are fundamental for the realization of human rights and key to effective and sustainable development outcomes. For societies to thrive, women and girls, men and boys, and gender-diverse individuals must have the agency, social support, and structures to make their own choices and live free from violence and abuse. They must have equal rights and opportunities, as well as equal and safe access to and control over resources. Achieving gender equality in society will improve the overall quality of life for all people throughout their lives.

Interagency Policies and Strategies related to this policy priority include: 

Private Sector Engagement

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Private Sector Engagement Policy

Private Sector Engagement Policy

This policy is a call to action for staff from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and our partners to embrace market-based approaches as a more-sustainable way to support communities in achieving development and humanitarian outcomes at scale.

Inclusive Development

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Youth in Development Policy

Youth in Development Policy

Youth engagement and partnership offer leaders a chance to fully understand what it is like to grow up in today’s rapidly changing world. Instead of viewing youth as passive recipients, young people should be viewed as agents of their own development.

USAID Mental Health Position Paper

USAID Mental Health Position Paper

Positive mental health allows people to more readily cope with stressors and adapt to change.

Disability Policy

USAID Disability Policy Paper

USAID is committed to the inclusion of people who have physical and cognitive disabilities and those who advocate and offer services on behalf of persons with disabilities. This commitment extends from the design and implementation of USAID programming to advocacy for and outreach to persons with disabilities.

 

This policy is currently being revised.

Policy on Promoting the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Policy on Promoting the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (PRO-IP)

USAID’s PRO-IP provides a way for development practitioners to strengthen the design and management of programs that affect Indigenous Peoples. By considering the ways that project design and activities may impact cultures, territories, resources, and/or livelihoods, the policy promotes thoughtful and direct engagement of Indigenous Peoples in the design, implementation and monitoring of projects to ensure communities benefit, and that those benefits are in line with the community’s self-determined development objectives. These efforts should contribute to deepening the impact of activities and creating more sustainable outcomes by effectively and appropriately partnering with Indigenous Peoples and addressing their challenges throughout the program cycle.

Building Bridges in Development: USAID’s Strategic Religious Engagement Policy

Building Bridges in Development: USAID’s Strategic Religious Engagement Policy

Since its founding, USAID has partnered with and alongside faith-based and community organizations to advance shared development and humanitarian objectives. Building Bridges in Development: USAID’s Strategic Religious Engagement Policy will increase the impact and sustainability of development and humanitarian assistance programs through improved engagement with religious communities and faith-based organizations as strategic development partners.

USAID LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Policy - August 2023

2023 LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Policy

Through the USAID LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development Policy (LGBTQI+ Policy), USAID recommits to its staff, local partners, the international community, other development agencies, and program participants around the world that LGBTQI+ individuals are a vital force in the work we do and that, by embracing an inclusive development approach, we will help our work serve all segments of society. As an update to the 2014 LGBT Vision for Action, this policy reiterates, guides, and reinforces USAID’s commitment to championing LGBTQI+ inclusive development and the human rights of LGBTQI+ people as part of a coordinated, whole-of-U.S. government effort with our partners on the ground.

Interagency Policies and Strategies related to this policy priority include: 

Locally Led Development

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Local Capacity Strengthening Policy cover

Local Capacity Strengthening Policy

The Local Capacity Strengthening Policy guides USAID decisions about why and how to invest in the capacity of local partners to better achieve inclusive and locally led development.

Local Systems Position Paper

Local Systems Position Paper

The Local Systems Position Paper reiterates USAID’s commitment to systems thinking and systems practice as key components of locally led development and humanitarian assistance. The position paper presents six approaches that help USAID better understand and engage systems in order to unlock sustainable progress.

USAID Policy on Locally Led Humanitarian Assistance

USAID Policy on Locally Led Assistance

The Locally Led Humanitarian Assistance Policy outlines USAID’s vision and goals for advancing locally led emergency response, early recovery, resilience, and disaster risk reduction.

Additional Resources related to this policy priority include:

Development Practice

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an icon representing Digital Policy

USAID's Digital Policy

The USAID Digital Policy provides the vision for the Agency to work towards a future where digital technology promotes inclusive growth, fosters resilient and democratic societies, advances human rights, and empowers all, including the most vulnerable.

Geospatial Strategy

USAID Geospatial Strategy 2024 - 2028

USAID’s first-ever Geospatial Strategy seeks to institutionalize the use of geospatial data and technology to achieve greater efficiency in programs, operations, and development outcomes.

Scientific Research Policy

Scientific Research Policy

Research allows USAID to develop, test, refine and evaluate the acceptability and cost-effectiveness of new and improved products, tools, approaches and interventions that focus on the key concerns of developing countries. Research also helps inform policy, strategic direction of programs, and overcome barriers to implementation in developing country settings.

This policy is currently being revised.

Scientific Integrity Policy

Scientific Integrity Policy

Recognizing the importance of the science underpinning US Government policies and programs, in March 2009 President Obama directed all Federal agencies to develop policies to safeguard the integrity of scientific activities. This policy provides an initial foundation for upholding the integrity of USAID’s scientific information and scholarly activities.
 

This policy is currently being revised.

Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA)

Protection From Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) Policy

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) will promote a world in which all individuals are able to live and work free from sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA).

KMOL Policy

Knowledge Management and Organizational Learning (KMOL) Policy

The Policy elaborates on USAID’s commitment to strengthening knowledge management and organizational learning in order to achieve the Agency’s mission more effectively and efficiently, and it guides KMOL approaches across Agency operations and programming.

Evaluation Policy

Evaluation Policy

Built on our Agency's rich tradition of evaluation, this policy sets out an ambitious recommitment to learn as we do, updating our standards and practices to address contemporary needs. In an increasingly complex operating environment, the discipline of development demands a strong practice and use of evaluation as a crucial tool to inform our global development efforts, and to enable us to make hard choices based on the best available evidence.

Font Page of USAID Direct Monetary Transfers Position Paper

Direct Monetary Transfers Position Paper

This Position Paper summarizes principles and best practices for how and why USAID can include direct monetary transfers—a form of market-based assistance—to individuals, households, and microenterprises as a core element of its development toolkit. By allowing recipients to decide for themselves how to invest, spend, and save, direct transfers respect the dignity of recipients and enhance their freedom by empowering them to address their unique, local needs and priorities.

Photo by Riaz Jahanpour for USAID

Digital Strategy 2020 - 2024

USAID has released its first-ever Digital Strategy, charting an Agency-wide vision for development and humanitarian assistance in the world’s rapidly evolving digital landscape. It sets a path to equip staff, empower partners, and shape effective programming that supports partners to become self-reliant and capable of leading their own development journeys.

 

Cost Effectiveness Position Paper Cover Image

Cost-Effectiveness Position Paper

This Position Paper articulates USAID’s commitment to achieving the greatest possible impact per dollar of taxpayer resources spent, through the use and generation of cost-effectiveness evidence. The paper outlines principles and best practices to help the Agency and its partners increase their impact per dollar, by leveraging cost-effectiveness evidence when appropriate and also investing in new evidence generation to fill key gaps.

Acquisition and Assistance Strategy

Acquisition and Assistance Strategy-Implementation Plan

Critical to the success of our Transformation and advancing countries on their Journey to Self-Reliance is rethinking how we engage with both our existing and potential partners, and finding new ways to embrace entrepreneurship and creativity throughout the Program Cycle — from design, through procurement and implementation, to evaluation. 

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