House Foreign Affairs Committee advances bipartisan bill to prevent violent conflicts in fragile countries

WASHINGTON — The ONE Campaign welcomed the House Foreign Affairs Committee markup of the Global Fragility Act of 2019 (H.R.2116) which would create a comprehensive strategy to reduce poverty, conflict, violence and corruption in fragile states.

Tom Hart, North America executive director at The ONE Campaign:

“It’s impossible to tackle extreme poverty without focusing on fragile states where 80% of the world’s poor will live by 2030. That’s why it’s so important for the United States to have a modernized strategy for reducing poverty and preventing crises before they happen, which will save both lives and money.

“ONE thanks Chairman Eliot Engel and Ranking Member Michael McCaul for their leadership in spearheading this bill and for holding a swift markup of this smart, bipartisan legislation. We urge the full House to follow suit and pass this bill into law.”

About the Global Fragility Act of 2019

The number of people living in extreme poverty is increasingly concentrated in countries struggling with violence and instability. The Global Fragility Act would direct USAID, the State Department, and the Department of Defense to work together to develop 10-year strategies for reducing fragility and violence in several fragile and conflict-affected countries by addressing their root causes. The bill calls for the selection of priority countries in a minimum of three geographic regions, and for strategies to include local and civil society participation, and to have strong monitoring and evaluation systems. This legislation would give the United States government the tools it needs to do development in more difficult settings and more effectively reach some of the world’s most vulnerable populations.

For more information, or to speak with an expert about the legislation, contact Sean Simons at [email protected].

The ONE Campaign is a non-partisan policy and advocacy organization of more than 9 million people around the world taking action to end extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa.