Student Scholarship

Document Type

Research Paper

Abstract

This research project, submitted in 1967 by Ann Stukenbroeker, examines the operational mechanics of the Agency for International Development with a specific focus on the Free Labor Development Grant to Latin America. The author explores how broad national aspirations and foreign policy objectives are distilled into actionable goals through the use of technical cooperation grants. Central to this study is the American Institute for Free Labor Development, a tripartite organization involving labor, business, and government designed to strengthen democratic trade unionism as a bulwark against extremist ideologies. 

The document details the evolution of United States foreign assistance from the Marshall Plan to the establishment of the Agency for International Development in 1961 under the Department of State. It outlines the rigid administrative procedures required for grant implementation, including the use of project implementation orders and the necessity of continuous evaluation through progress reports and history analysis. A significant portion of the paper is dedicated to the Alliance for Progress, highlighting how labor programs aim to improve the living standards of the working class and the campesinos through education and social projects. 

Using Brazil as a primary case study, the author evaluates the successes of worker education programs in combating communist influence within strategic unions. Despite these accomplishments, the study identifies several bureaucratic challenges, including tensions between Agency for International Development technicians and Department of State officials, as well as lapses in financial accounting and reporting. The author concludes by suggesting administrative reforms, such as the separation of technical and political bureaus, to enhance the efficiency of future foreign assistance initiatives and better fulfill the aspirations of the American public.

Research Highlights

  • The Problem: The researcher addresses the perceived lack of accountability and oversight in the Agency for International Development (AID) regarding foreign assistance funds and the "Ugly American" misconception. 

  • The Method: The study uses a case study of the Free Labor Development Grant to Latin America, administered by the American Institute for Free Labor Development (AIFLD), focusing on worker education programs in Brazil in 1966. 

  • Quantitative Finding: More than 80% of every AID dollar is spent on American goods and services; the 1962 regional grant to AIFLD totaled $600,000; the U.S. Government provides 80% of the AIFLD budget, while the labor movement provides 15% and business 5%; the AIFLD worker education program has reached 40,000 individuals. 

  • Qualitative Finding: Administrative friction exists between Department of State and AID personnel regarding technical versus political labor oversight; AIFLD's "pyramid structure" of education (local seminars, regional schools, and Washington-based training) effectively develops democratic union leadership; the reporting and evaluation system for technical cooperation grants is often bypassed or poorly enforced by field missions. 

  • Finding: The successful resistance to the 1964 general strike in Brazil by AIFLD-trained communication workers demonstrated the political impact of labor programs on national stability.

Publication Date

1-1967

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

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