Foreign aid is an investment in America

Considering recent events, there have been many conversations on both sides of the political spectrum about the priorities of the federal budget. One point of some contention is the foreign aid budget, which some argue is over-inflated and does nothing to help the United States.

I’m here to convince you that it’s the exact opposite! Foreign aid is not only one of the greatest humanitarian efforts we can make in our lifetime, but is also an important investment for our future.

Right now, although the average American is reported to believe that the foreign affairs budget is about 25% of the federal budget (and support lowering it to 10%), it’s actually less than 1%. While the cost for one aircraft carrier is $6 billion, the budget for the largest humanitarian aid organization in the world (World Food Program) is only $4 billion.

Moreover, aid to developing countries is an investment for the United States. All but 5% of the world’s consumers live outside the United States, with hundreds of millions of potential consumers residing in those developing nations. By investing in their welfare now and improving their economic conditions, we create hundreds of millions of future consumers of American goods, bringing jobs and opportunities to the future United States that would far outstrip what we would pay in foreign aid right now.

Cutting foreign aid is both a waste of potential investment and counterproductive to all our efforts to create a better America.

Emily Brown

Spokane Valley