The World : U.S. Aid Dispersal Faulted

Weak controls over U.S. aid have allowed foreign governments to spend billions of dollars without proper accounting and to divert funds to officials’ families and pet projects, newly released documents show. Federal investigators disclosed in interviews last week that they had recently uncovered misuse of U.S. economic aid in Egypt, Thailand, Kenya and Costa Rica. Egypt, the second biggest recipient of U.S. aid, has in recent years deposited $1.5 billion of assistance in accounts containing other budget funds--making it impossible to trace how the money was used, an audit by the Agency for International Development found.