Washington, DC –
U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations International Development and Foreign Assistance Subcommittee, released the following statement after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved the nomination of Dr. Rajiv Shah to be the next Administrator of United States Agency for International Development (USAID).  President Obama’s nominee will now be considered by the full Senate.

During his confirmation hearing, I was impressed by Dr. Shah’s evident passion and intellect. His experience working with all types of stakeholders and outcome-driven results will serve him well. The challenges he will face fulfilling the basic mission of USAID across the globe, while restoring the primacy of USAID as the lead development agency across the U.S. government, will be considerable.  His skills and input will be particularly important as the review process on our current development policy, including the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review and the Presidential Study Directive, are ongoing. 

“Hopefully, today’s unanimous vote indicates Dr. Shah will be approved by the full Senate quickly, so he can begin immediately to marshal the staff and resources necessary to rebuild development as a pillar of our foreign policy, alongside diplomacy and defense. A strong USAID is critical to reducing global poverty, strengthening our national security and fulfilling a moral obligation to assist those in need.  I look forward to working with him in his new position.”