Leadership on global poverty is again up to Congress

White House budget request tries to put health, nutrition, education on chopping block

Washington, DC, February 10, 2020 – For the fourth year in a row, the White House has proposed slashing funding for the fight against global poverty, suggesting a 22% overall cut to foreign assistance in the President’s Fiscal Year 2021 Budget. This mirrors previous Trump Administration budget requests, all of which have been roundly condemned and rejected by Congress in a bipartisan way.

“These draconian cuts would jeopardize the health, education, and futures of millions of people around the world,” said Dr. Joanne Carter, Executive Director of RESULTS. “Once again, it falls to bipartisan leaders in Congress to reject this harmful proposal.”

The budget proposal goes directly against the will of Congress on a number of bipartisan global poverty priorities, including trying to cut funding for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. At the end of 2019, both the House and Senate passed bipartisan resolutions supporting $4.68 billion for the Global Fund over three years, and reaffirmed that level of funding in their spending bills for the current fiscal year.

In a laudable exception, the Administration included a multi-year commitment to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, in its budget request. This pledge echoes prior bipartisan congressional leadership and language in the final appropriations bill passed in December, with $290 million as part of a four-year pledge of $1.16 billion for Gavi’s next replenishment cycle. This funding will support Gavi’s plan to support countries to immunize 300 million more children, saving up to 8 million lives.

“Bipartisan congressional support for child health helped set the stage for today’s pledge to Gavi. RESULTS advocates will now work with their members of Congress to fund the fight against poverty, fulfill the commitment to Gavi, and reject the other harmful cuts in today’s budget” said Carter.

Media Contact:

Colin Puzo Smith
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About RESULTS and RESULTS Educational Fund:

RESULTS supports a movement of passionate, committed everyday people using their voices to influence political decisions that will bring an end to poverty. Volunteers and staff multiply their impact through the enormous power of advocacy.

Our movement of volunteers is backed by a staff of researchers, policy analysts, and legislative and media experts. Our shared goal is the end of poverty. We have affiliates and partners across five continents, and a network of volunteers in all 50 states and worldwide. We’re a non-partisan advocacy group comprised of RESULTS Educational Fund, a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization, and RESULTS, a nonprofit 501(c)4 grassroots lobbying organization.