They would have done better to add 25 percent more funding and use that for local purchase.

The issue is, can the mandate change in some way to stop this sort of differentiation between global action and domestic action. We need to erase the line between the two so our resources can be used in a truly global way.

This administration has said there are three components to national security - diplomacy, defense and development. We see that diplomacy and defense are well taken care of, but development is the weakest tool in our kit. Yet that's where our long-term security lies.

As major stakeholders of U.S. foreign assistance, we are very concerned that the interests of the world's poorest remain paramount in the planning process.

When we moved from our village, I thought this must be the end of the world for us. I have never seen so much destruction in my lifetime and I pray that nobody else will witness something similar. When my family was given a tent in the camp immediately after we arrived, I was overjoyed that there is finally going to be a roof over our heads.

Now I am able to see some hope at the end of a dark tunnel.