Global: Axe descends on US overseas aid

With US President Barack Obama’s release of his Fiscal Year (FY) 2012 foreign affairs budget and a proposal currently in the US House of Representatives for massive cuts in 2011 international spending, the fight to sustain US aid abroad is intensifying. Development and foreign policy analysts largely praised the administration’s funding appeal for reflecting conscientious adjustments in this constrained economic environment and for maximising returns by focusing spending on strategic areas such as global health, food security and climate change.