With USAID support, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the U.S. and throughout Asia are helping to advance the U.S. Government’s (USG) most critical priorities for the region. USAID’s Office of Technical Services within the Asia Bureau conducted a Strategic Review to examine the depth and breadth of USAID HE projects in Asia over the last five years (2016-2021).The purpose was to help inform future programming and provide recommendations for policy makers on how to enhance the potential of HEIs as development partners. The review found that USAID’s significant investments in HE in Asia have proven crucial to fostering innovation across sectors, supporting economic and social opportunities for individuals at national and local levels and creating systemic change. Across the region, there are numerous examples of U.S. and local HEIs aligning research priorities and resources around the most pressing development challenges — from countering malign influence and strengthening democratic systems, to conducting cutting-edge research to fight COVID-19 and other public health threats, to improving natural resource management and fostering resilience to climate change. In 2021, USAID partnered with 270 HEIs from across the Asia region and with more than 20 U.S. HEIs, and engaged thousands of individuals as well as the private sector.