The International Rescue Committee (IRC), to date, has not undertaken analyses on the cost-efficiency of the procurement process undertaken by Global Supply Chain. Understanding the cost- efficiency of procurement will aid IRC in efforts to remain good stewards of funding and to improve the organization’s value for money in the humanitarian response sector. The study was also implemented to improve cost-efficiency across the organization as part of IRC’s Strategy100. The outcomes IRC achieves per dollar spent is affected by a range of factors, including contextual and country-level constraints within the procurement process.

The Biden-Harris Administration has taken important and crucial steps to provide relief to the most vulnerable populations abroad, such as through the American Rescue Plan’s supplemental funding for the international response; contributions to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance; and commitments to provide 500 million vaccine doses and donate another 80 million excess doses to low- and middle-income countries. But vaccine donations alone are insufficient; they must be complemented by clear plans for and investments in the efficient and rapid delivery of doses, with careful attention to areas not reached by national governments. 

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) implemented BILLY in Nairobi, Kenya from 2019-2021. BILLY was a micro-entrepreneurship program which provided business grants and services intended to increase employment status, consumption levels, and business investments. The program focused on youth in Nairobi, particularly refugees and vulnerable populations. As part of a research study, three treatment models of BILLY were implemented, which included various combinations of direct program services, business grants, and compensatory cash grants.

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Salt Lake City has dedicated the past two years to helping over 600 Afghan evacuees resettle to Utah after fleeing upheaval in Afghanistan at the end of 2021. The Hilal family is one among the many families who graduated from the IRC programs. Ayazudin and his wife came to the United States with their six kids. They remember packing their life into just four bags and escaping to the U.S. with $100 total in their pockets.

From 2019-2022, the Every Adolescent Girl Empowered and Resilient (EAGER) project was implemented in Sierra Leone with the aim of empowering out-of-school (OOS) girls ages 13-19 through a learning program that integrated functional literacy, numeracy, financial literacy, and life skills. The International Rescue Committee’s (IRC) Best Use of Resources (BUR) team developed a scenario model to understand the cost structure of EAGER and maximize efficiency as the program scales to reach more girls in more communities.

The United States has begun relocating a group of Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applicants. The International Rescue Committee is providing services for these individuals and families, including resettling them to new communities across the US, including Arizona!

The Global Compact on Refugees, an international agreement adopted by the UN General Assembly in December 2018, aimed to make the responsibility for helping refugees worldwide more equitable and predictable. Three years on, and ahead of the first mid-term review of progress at a high-level meeting in December 2021, the International Rescue Committee in collaboration with Danish Refugee Council and Norwegian Refugee Council, have commissioned a report to assess progress on the Compact’s objectives and commitments.

The IRC (International Rescue Committee) in Phoenix received an increased number of Afghan refugees beginning in August of 2021, after the Taliban regained control of the region. In response to that, we were one of eight RAI (Resettlement, Asylum & Integration) offices who were granted funding to launch a new wellness program, Salamati Rohi, to support our Afghan clients.