Perspective: Marvie Javed on Climate Change and the Flooding in Pakistan

In this “Perspective” post, Marvie Javed, a senior specialist in Environment and Natural Resources at Chemonics who is based in Lahore, Pakistan, reflects on the recent flooding in the country and considers the following question: What are some immediate actions that climate experts and development practitioners can take to help protect vulnerable communities and to…

Why Conflict Analysis Matters for Economic Development

Economic development does not happen in a vacuum. Each country has unique attributes and challenges that can affect program outcomes – from local identity politics to tensions over resources – and attitudes towards minorities. Promoting economic growth in fragile and conflict-affected areas adds an additional layer of complexity as programs run the risk of exacerbating…

Final Report: Libya Transition Initiative 3

From May 2017 to February 2022, LTI 3 sought to prevent further deterioration in political and security conditions in Libya while preserving as much space as possible for eventual political compromise, unified civilian leadership, reconciliation, and positive political transition. The program worked in strategic communities where stability is most fragile while seizing windows of opportunity…

Latin America and the Caribbean and Disaster Assistance

Founded in 1975, Chemonics is one of the world’s leading partners in international development across various sectors, working in more than 76 countries today. Present in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) since 1979, Chemonics has managed a portfolio of more than 300 projects across various sectors. Our current LAC portfolio contains 20 projects spanning…

Bilal Al Ayoubi

Bilal Al Ayoubi is the Task Order 2 director of USAID’s Lebanon Community Support Program (CSP). He previously served as the senior program development specialist on the Chemonics-implemented Lebanon Civic Support Initiative and as senior transition advisor for the Yemen Stabilization Initiative with Development Transformations, both projects funded by USAID’s Office of Transition Initiatives between…

3 Questions with Victoria Cooper: Ebola, COVID-19, and Global Development

As chief of party for the USAID Digital Liberia and e-Government project, Vicki Cooper led efforts to strengthen Liberia’s health, education, and economic growth sectors through enhanced information, communication, and technology capabilities in the aftermath of the Ebola epidemic. 1. How can the global development community use lessons learned from the Ebola crisis in Liberia…

What the Global Fragility Act Could Mean for Development Investments

This post originally appeared on Devex. The Global Fragility Act requires the U.S. government, in collaboration with civil society, to develop a 10-year strategy to enhance stability and to reduce violence and fragility globally. The GFA — recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives and up for a full vote by the Senate —…

Increasing Resiliency in the Face of Disaster: Four Best Practices

As Category 4 Hurricane Florence barreled toward the Southeast of the United States last week, preliminary damage estimates indicated 758,000 homes across three states could be impacted. Reconstruction costs were estimated at $170.2 billion. Despite the dire forecast and its associated challenges, however, the United States is one of the countries most prepared to respond…

Kirk Ramer

Kirk Ramer has over 25 years of experience managing projects to promote agricultural and small-and medium-sized enterprise development in southeastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. He is currently the chief of party of the Agribusiness Development Activity (ADA) in Uzbekistan. Kirk has worked to promote trade and investment and improve business education, microfinance, and…