GAO recommends USAID improve fund tracking, response planning

Though efforts by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) have helped many countries hit by the Zika virus since its emergence in 2015, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) determined that its efforts could do with improvement, particularly when tracking funds and planning responses.

The virus, which causes severe birth defects, has spread to numerous countries since its initial appearance. In that time, the U.S. government has designated $390 million for its international response, utilizing $264 million by September 2018. That money went into mosquito control, public awareness and research, among others.

Unfortunately, those funds proceeded without appropriate supervision in some cases, as USAID failed to track Zika funding by country. GAO officials noted that this would be helpful in the future as it would allow them to provide more information to those in government in charge of their future budget.

Beyond this, GAO also wants to see USAID move to better its infectious disease response planning. In its research, GAO found that USAID faced numerous challenges in pursuing its Zika response, due to one-time funding and short time frames imposed on their efforts. Though they worked with governments to implement responses, those 22 countries lacking bilateral USAID health programs faltered under the challenge. This led to delays in deployment GAO would rather see eliminated.

USAID has agreed with GAO’s recommendations on the matter.