As many know, I lived in Africa from 1985 until 1995, and like many, I thought that USAID was US Aid, not United States Agency for International Development.

A few things I saw made me question the US ambassador, who told me it’s all the USAID’s good work (sarcasm) – it’s when I understood the US aid 🙂

Elections monitors “helped” by USAID.

For each election, the UN sent people to monitor the integrity of the polls, thus protecting democracy. I liked the idea, but I got antsy when 15 brand-new Land Rover Defenders arrived fully modified for African safaris – these would show up for each election!!!

These cars without the modification were priced around $10,000 (about $30,000 in today’s value). The total was about $2,850,000 in today’s dollars, which includes modifications, transport, and tariffs (about 100% of the value and shipping).

USAID car

I was unhappy as we couldn’t get a penny to assist local farmers by providing tools such as small tractors.

The election monitors would fly first class and stay in an all-inclusive luxury hotel. Of the 15, only 8 or 9 would show up, but USAID would buy airfare and pre-paid hotel reservations for 15.

Good question, Joe… what happened to the cars when the elections ended a few months later? They were given to local officials who would sell them immediately for a low amount but paid in cash only.

I bought one for $12,000 (1985 value), and it was dark green and came with less than 50km – about 30 miles… The market value was above $65,000, including import taxes and modifications. Yes, in today’s dollars, I bought a $190,000 brand-new Land Rover for $35,000… Thank you, America!

Another USAID generous gift

We had one individual from UNICEF to help with humanitarian response planning. That individual would be assigned for 2 years, and a new one would show up every 2 years. What did these great people receive?

  • A fully remodeled large house on the beach, I should say a mansion, swimming pool included, fully furnished with imported furniture, linen, even a 10ft satellite dish for TV, etc.
  • A brand new car, as previously described, a Land Rover Defender modified for the African life…
  • The house was fully staffed: maids, a cook, gardeners, guards… etc.
  • …

What happened to the USAID-funded mansion when the individuals finished their “duties”? The property was given to a local official who sold it immediately for an undisclosed sum in cash to the oil company, which assigned it rent-free to a senior manager – I lived 10 years in a beach mansion.

I got lucky. The mansion wasn’t weirdly decorated. It was Art Deco-style with a minimalist theme. The furniture was all hand-crafted in Florida ($$$$$), and the dishes and silverware were from Limoge, France (another $$$$$). But who cares? It was all paid for by USAID for a good cause, right?

One UNICEF individual I knew spent most of his 2 years traveling abroad in private jets to international conferences, all paid for by America. I bet he didn’t spend more than a few months in his brand-new mansion!

Now, let’s look at the USAID recurring payments. When I got the beach house assigned, I was told the house employees came with it… Two maids, a cook, a gardener/pool technician, 3 guards working 3×8. That was 7 people.

I asked how much per month to be told it was “managed” by a third party whose family name was similar to the city mayor’s. The cost at the time was $1,000 per worker (almost $3000 in today’s value) – Well, I couldn’t afford that! So, I talked to them to explain that I couldn’t afford their service but one.

They laughed at me… They didn’t get that money. They were paid between $80 and $100 each, aka between $230 and $290 in today’s dollars… meaning that the son of the mayor was cashing $7,000 per month from USAID and paid the employees around $630 per month, thus a monthly net profit of $6,370 or annually $76,440 aka $230,000 in today’s value!

I hired all of them and gave them a nice pay increase.

USAID

There are a few recurring words: Local Officials and Cash… Looking back, USAID was overpaying for cars, mansions, and services that profited local officials. One now has a “real” mansion on the French Riveria worth over $25 million.

I do not feel there were kickbacks to anyone in the US, but it may have helped African officials support the USA in international discussions. Yet, was it / is it fair to the American people? Certainly not.