Global Development Lab Act of 2017

This bill establishes in the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) the United States Global Development Lab, the duties of which shall include:

• increasing the application of science, technology, innovation and partnerships to develop new solutions to end extreme poverty;
• discovering and testing development innovations to increase cost effectiveness and support U.S. foreign policy and development goals;
• leveraging the expertise, resources, and investment of businesses, nongovernmental organizations, science and research organizations, and universities to increase program impact and sustainability;
• utilizing innovation-driven competitions to expand the number and diversity of solutions to development challenges; and
• supporting USAID missions and bureaus in applying science, technology, innovation, and partnership approaches to decision making, procurement, and program design.

The lab is authorized to provide innovation incentive awards on a competitive basis that: (1) encourages and rewards the development of solutions for a particular, well-defined problem relating to the alleviation of poverty; or (2) helps identify and promote a broad range of ideas and practices, facilitating further development of an idea or practice by third parties.