organizationInternational Humanitarian Assistance / Foreign AidUnited States

USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance

The lead U.S. federal bureau for international humanitarian assistance, responding to disasters and crises worldwide.

USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance – Official USAID Page

The USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) is the primary U.S. government office responsible for providing life-saving humanitarian aid — including food, water, shelter, emergency healthcare, sanitation, hygiene, and nutrition services — to the world's most vulnerable populations. It serves as the lead federal coordinator for international disaster assistance, working on behalf of the American people to save lives, alleviate suffering, and reduce the impact of humanitarian crises globally.

BHA was established on October 4, 2020, through the consolidation of USAID's former Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) and the Office of Food for Peace (FFP), streamlining U.S. humanitarian response under one bureau. It takes a holistic approach to aid, covering readiness, response, relief, and recovery across the full spectrum of humanitarian needs.

In terms of scale, BHA responds to an average of 75 disasters in more than 70 countries per year. In Fiscal Year 2023, it responded to 76 crises in more than 64 countries and supported 11 active Disaster Assistance Response Teams (DARTs) — the highest number in more than 20 years. Overall, USAID provides vital aid to tens of millions of people annually.

BHA's technical capabilities span meteorology, earthquake response, nutrition, shelter, and multilateral engagement, making it directly relevant to innovations in humanitarian logistics, crisis response technology, food security, and emergency services delivery.

Ideas that could help USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance

Common-Factors Lay Counselor Training Kit
A structured, open-access curriculum and certification system that trains community health workers with no clinical degree to deliver Frank's core therapeutic principles—therapeutic alliance, hope instillation, shared healing narrative—in low-resource or disaster-affected settings.
Why it helps: USAID funds large-scale community health worker programs in low-income countries and has explicit mental health objectives; a validated, portable curriculum fits directly into their grant-making criteria.