Peace Corps to Accept Fewer Volunteers

In an effort to trim costs, the Peace Corps is planning to reduce the number of its new volunteers and consolidate its recruiting offices, reports The Washington Post.

Officials of the program, which has a $330.8-million budget, say they anticipate losses of about $18-million this fiscal year and next and attribute the shortfall to the declining value of the dollar overseas and the rising cost of energy and other commodities. The pinch has resulted in inflated expenses for overseas leases, volunteer-related costs, and salaries for staff members working abroad.

Such factors “have materially reduced our available resources and spending power,” wrote Peace Corps director Ronald A. Tschetter in a letter to Rep. Betty McCollum. “Tough budgetary decisions must be made now in order to ensure a financially healthy agency next fiscal year,” he added.

(Free registration is required to view this article.)