Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A. and USAID Launch $60 Million Partnership for Afghanistan’s Development

Signing of the Memorandum of Understanding at the U.S. State Department. Front row (left to right): Alex Thier, USAID Assistant to the Administrator for Afghanistan and Pakistan; Thomas Nides, Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources; and Dr. Mirza Jahani, CEO of Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A. Standing behind them are Ashraf Ramji, Vice Chairman of the AKF National Committee; Dr. Tom Kessinger, Deputy Chairman of Aga Khan Development Network; and Dr. Mahmood Eboo, of AKDN, with other government officials.

Signing of the Memorandum of Understanding at the U.S. State Department. Front row (left to right): Alex Thier, USAID Assistant to the Administrator for Afghanistan and Pakistan; Thomas Nides, Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources; and Dr. Mirza Jahani, CEO of Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A. Standing behind them are Ashraf Ramji, Vice Chairman of the AKF National Committee; Dr. Tom Kessinger, Deputy Chairman of Aga Khan Development Network; and Dr. Mahmood Eboo, of AKDN, with other government officials.

On February 8, 2013, the Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A. (AKF USA) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) agreed to work together, along with other agencies in the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), to build a new kind of mechanism for long-term, community-based social development in Afghanistan.

AKF USA takes a long-term approach to reducing poverty and has pioneered the concept of Multi-Input Area Development (MIAD) that weaves together multiple community-based inputs addressing basic education, health, governance, environmental and livelihood needs to lift up a whole area’s development and thereby improve people’s quality of life.

The new agreement takes this approach a step further: In addition to holistically developing one geographic area, the effort will pilot establishment of a hybrid economic and social development fund linked to private-sector investment. The fund, expected to be owned and managed by the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED, a sister agency in the AKDN), will undertake investments in Afghanistan and the region. A portion of the returns earned by the fund on those investments will support social development far into the future, while creating jobs and stimulating economic growth.

The Memorandum of Understanding signed today establishes a $60 million partnership for a Global Development Alliance (GDA) between USAID and AKF USA, and paves the way for a Collaboration Agreement to further their shared goals:

Improving quality of life for people in Afghanistan

Multiplying the value and extending the life of USAID-granted funds to support social development activities far into the future

AKDN and USAID each pledge $30 million to the partnership, in a combination of traditional funding for development programs over the next five years, and grants turned into equity.

Introduced in 2001, the Global Development Alliance (GDA) is a market-based model for partnerships between the public and private sectors to address jointly defined business and development objectives. This will be among the largest GDAs in the history of the model.

The GDA leverages U.S. taxpayer funds for developing a stable and prosperous Afghanistan. Likewise, the Foundation uses partnerships to multiply the impact of donations from its contributors through matching grants and other arrangements.

http://www.partnershipsinaction.org/content/aga-khan-foundation-usa-and-usaid-launch-60-million-partnership-afghanistan%E2%80%99s-development