WASHINGTON, DC – Liz Schrayer, President and CEO of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (USGLC), released the following statement on trade and effective international assistance: 

America has seen again and again that smart investments in trade and aid are not competing priorities—they are complementary tools of American power. Some countries are ideal trading partners, and some countries are not quite there. Rather than choosing between trade and aid, America should be leveraging both of these tools to ensure we remain the number one economy in the world. 

Today, 13 of America’s top 15 export markets were once recipients of U.S. international assistance—from South Korea to Japan to European nations in the aftermath of World War II. When done right, U.S. investments in international assistance help build stable economies, pro-business policies, and the strong foundation that support millions of American jobs here at home and over a trillion dollars in exports annually. 

As one example, the African Growth and Opportunity Act is a powerful, bipartisan model of assistance and trade working together—expanding American trade and investment across a continent home to one-fifth of the world’s population and one-third of the world’s critical minerals, securing critical supply chains, growing U.S. exports, and creating American jobs. 

The Trump Administration is rightly leveraging U.S. international assistance to advance American interests. The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, launched in the President’s first term, carries a clear development mandate—mobilizing private capital across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, opening markets for American companies, and offering a transparent alternative to China’s often exploitative financing.  

Pulling back U.S. economic development programs cedes influence to our rivals—including China who has rapidly increased its development initiatives over the past 15 years, with 525 percent growth in Africa alone. 

The bottom line is that America should prioritize trade and aid to win in the world.  

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