Nothing About Us Without Us

USAID’s inclusive programming in action

With 70 percent of Guyana’s population under age 35, young people make up much of the electorate and have vested interests in contributing to decision-making that shapes their lives. USAID works with youth across the country to improve their understanding of government, build skills and knowledge, provide opportunities to participate in problem-solving at the community level, and increase their participation in political life. / USAID

For years, USAID has worked to empower marginalized communities through inclusive development. Whether it’s expanding economic opportunities for people with disabilities, ensuring health care services are inclusive for LGBTQI+ people, or elevating youth as leaders to make a positive impact in their communities, we’ve shown that going the extra mile to include them benefits not just those in marginalized groups — it leads to better outcomes for all groups.

USAID Communications Specialist Rachael Marx sat down with Bama Athreya, Deputy Assistant Administrator for USAID’s Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Hub and the Inclusive Development Hub, to discuss the Agency’s inclusive development agenda.

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your role at USAID?

I have spent the majority of my career as an advocate for gender and social justice. It is something personal for me. My parents immigrated to the United States from India, and on trips there to visit family, I was struck by seeing children my age or even younger working all day in restaurants and in shops and in people’s homes as domestic servants. I learned they were often denied education or opportunity because they were the ‘wrong’ caste, or ethnicity, or religious group. Especially if they were girls. Later I realized these kinds of inequalities exist everywhere, including in our own country.

As a Deputy Assistant Administrator, I see my role as working for and with USAID colleagues across the Agency to ensure our programming everywhere promotes equity and inclusion of marginalized or underrepresented groups, advances gender equality, and improves the lives of persons in vulnerable situations.

As part of a USAID environment and sanitation campaign in Al-Adamiya, Baghdad, persons with disabilities went house to house encouraging citizens to take care of their surroundings and distributing educational pamphlets and trash bags. The campaign sent the message that all people, including those with disabilities, have a role to play in their community. / Baghdad Mayoralty SAG

What is inclusive development, why is it important, and what is the Agency doing to advance equity and inclusion?

The development community has learned the hard way how much implicit bias can persist in programming, and how hard it can be to identify and include marginalized individuals and communities — such as those with disabilities, with unmet mental health needs, or people subject to social stigma. We have a unique opportunity to tackle these issues head on and transform development, thanks to the Biden-Harris Administration’s elevation of equity and inclusion.

Administrator Power has emphasized the need to advance diverse, locally-led partnerships; diversity, equity, and inclusion in our own workforce; and equity and inclusion in our programming.

I think of the Agency’s equity and inclusion vision as a three-legged stool. One leg is ensuring our own workforce is as inclusive as possible by elevating USAID’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) Strategy. But just because someone is a woman, or a person with a disability, or from an ethnic minority doesn’t mean they automatically know how to ensure programming in the field is gender transformative and inclusive. So we need the second and third legs.

The second leg ensures our partnerships are more diverse and equitable, expanding our work with previously underrepresented groups that are closest to the people we seek to benefit — our Localization agenda.

And the third leg — inclusive development — is about how we design, implement, and learn from results of programming worldwide. Does programming take account of the social stratifications that exist in the countries where we work? Do we put in place the measures to reduce or remove the barriers that marginalized groups may face? Better yet, do we create the enabling environment to allow people of all identities and any social status to be active agents of development?

These things require more than just good intentions. Our technical hubs for Gender Equality and Inclusive Development provide resources, tools, training, and program support to carry out this challenging set of tasks.

A “Rainbow Rally” in Bangladesh, organized by the late Xulhaz Mannan, who was brutally murdered for his advocacy to promote a more inclusive society. Inspired by Xulhaz’s legacy, USAID helps LGBTQI+ people and other marginalized groups in Bangladesh better understand their legal rights. We are also raising awareness of the challenges LGBTQI+ people face with human rights activists, journalists, medical professionals, and religious leaders. After the Government of Bangladesh formally recognized its hijra population as a third gender, USAID helped to mobilize the National Human Rights Commission to include a third gender option in the 2021 National Census for the first time. / USAID

What are some of the ways the Agency is advancing its inclusive development agenda? What are your hopes for the future?

Looking forward, what I’m most excited about is our plan to elevate racial and ethnic equity as a priority, something we have never before intentionally done on an Agency-wide basis. And I hope we can do that by building on foundational work we’ve done through our Indigenous Peoples portfolio. I hope everyone reads our Policy on Promoting the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and recognizes just how pathbreaking it is.

And we already have leaders in the field; for instance, in Colombia, USAID has a longstanding partnership with Indigenous and Afro-Colombian communities. We are working closely with these ethnic communities to support their self-determined development by strengthening their representative organizations’ capacity and increasing their participation in peace implementation.

Importantly, this activity promotes respect for cultural heritage and diversity, and supports ethnic communities’ development of environmentally sustainable socio-economic opportunities. We intend to bring some of these principles into more programming with racial and ethnic minorities in countries where we work.

Now is our moment to build on our successes and ensure we apply a comprehensive approach to equity and inclusion everywhere we work.

Deputy Assistant Administrator Bama Athreya (second from the right) stands with USAID Environment Officer Karol Boudreaux; USAID Indigenous Peoples Specialist Sandra Lazarte; Dario Mejia, Representative of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Peoples; and Brian Keane, former USAID Adviser for Indigenous Peoples Issues. / Bama Athreya, USAID

About the Author

Rachael Marx is a Communications Specialist in USAID’s Bureau for Democracy, Development and Innovation.