I. SUMMARY:
The purpose of this document is to give field missions, regional, and
central bureaus an operational definition of activities that fall within
the parameters of the Title II/Food for Peace (FFP) resources put forward
under the President’s LIFE Initiative (Leadership and Investment in Fighting
an Epidemic) for "Children Affected by HIV/AIDS" and guidance on the use
of these resources. These guidelines are a follow up to State 001755 "FY
2000 Increase in Funding for HIV/AIDS."
The LIFE Initiative includes $55 million in DA funds and $10 million in
Title II resources in support of the following elements: (1) primary prevention,
which includes mother-to-child transmission, prevention, and voluntary counseling
and testing; (2) improving home and community based care and treatment; (3)
caring for children affected by HIV/AIDS; and (4) capacity and infrastructure
development (including surveillance systems). The DA funding will cover
elements 1, 2, and 4, while the Title II resources will cover element 3.
The following countries are included in the LIFE Initiative: Ethiopia,
India, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa,
Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe as well as the regional programs for
West and Southern/Eastern Africa. Food for Peace activities are targeted
on a subset of these countries where existing Title II agreements are in
place. These countries are as follows: Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Malawi,
Mozambique, Rwanda, and Uganda. This document provides definitions and guidance
on allowable uses of the Title II/Food for Peace resources for the LIFE Initiative.
In general, resources provided under the LIFE Initiative are for direct
distribution through PVOs.
II. DEFINITIONS:
Child: A child is defined as being between the ages of birth through adolescence.
Vulnerable child: A vulnerable child is defined as a child in a
household with a chronically ill parent/caregiver or a child living in a
high-risk setting due to either a high HIV prevalence or proximity to high-risk
behaviors (i.e. households on or near truck routes, etc.).
Orphan: An orphan is defined as a child who has lost one or both parents.
(Note: See also the draft child survival and disease fund guidance
which was distributed for the supplemental child survival funds).
III. PROGRAMS TO BE SUPPORTED:
Allowable Title II activities fall within the following two categories:
1) programs to increase household food security for highly vulnerable children,
including orphans; and 2) programs to improve community based management
of sick children in high HIV/AIDS prevalence areas. Activities should fit
within existing Title II agreements and fall under the rubric of general
relief (General relief is broadly defined as those activities where commodities
are directly distributed to "target" beneficiaries. The beneficiaries to
be targeted in these programs are usually defined by the program but tend
to be broader than those in MCH or food-for-education programs. In general
relief programs, monetization proceeds can be used only to facilitate the
movement, distribution, or monitoring of commodities).
To the degree practicable, USAID operating units should seek to integrate
resources from Food for Peace with DA funds in order to provide a more complete
package of services. Title II activities supported by the LIFE Initiative
should not serve as "stand alone" activities.
The Title II resources for the LIFE Initiative can be used for one or more of the following purposes:
Increasing Household Food Security for Highly Vulnerable Children, Including Orphans:
The following are illustrative examples of the types of activities that could be integrated within existing programs.
- Community-based approaches to strengthen the capacities of families and
communities to care for vulnerable children and orphans – including safety
net activities utilizing direct distribution commodities to assist in keeping
families together during their greatest time of need.
- Activities that incorporate both child-focused care and support with
ongoing prevention efforts for older children and adolescents.
- Inter-sectoral approaches, by which the needs of vulnerable children
and orphans are integrated into current community mobilization efforts to
address related issues such as child nutrition, education, or activities
that address the needs of child-headed and other vulnerable households.
Food for Peace commodities can be used for the support of hospices, orphanages,
and other institutions that provide care and support for children. Care
should be taken, however, in order to avoid weakening established community
and family support networks, and in creating incentives to abandon children.
As with any Food for Peace activity, the focus should be on supporting those
activities with the greatest potential for long term sustainability.
Improving Community Based Management of Sick Children in High HIV/AIDS Prevalence Areas:
The following are illustrative examples of the types of activities that could be integrated within existing programs.
- Commodities may be used to for general relief programs targeting sick
children. General relief activities will need to clearly define beneficiaries
with a focus on avoiding possible stigma from "labeling" children or households
as "AIDS Infected" or similar. Care should also be taken in choosing the
ration size and composition to create a ration which will be nutritionally
beneficial to sick children.
- Commodities may also be used to increase the size/scope of existing activities
within general relief programs, including supplementary feeding for malnourished
children in areas with high HIV prevalence – either through home based, community
based, or formal medical structures. In some cases it will not be possible
or beneficial to directly identify households with HIV infected persons (either
adults or children) due to issues of stigma, however in some countries, communities
have been able to identify households for home based care activities and
others have been able to identify households in general need of assistance
(through other community based activities). Where these organizations are
in place, activities may benefit from utilizing their structures to identify
beneficiaries and implement programs. The focus should remain on how food
can be used to benefit those affected by HIV/AIDS.
IV. MONITORING AND EVALUATION:
Like any other USAID funded activity, programs supported with LIFE
Initiative resources require monitoring and evaluation plans. Existing DAP
monitoring and evaluation guidelines should be followed. Monitoring and
evaluation (M&E) plans should be amended appropriately to account for
additional activities. If the PVO does not have sufficient funds in their
budget to monitor these activities, monetization will be allowed to cover
the monitoring and evaluation of these activities.
Missions undertaking activities under the LIFE initiative with Title II
commodities will need to report on the following indicators:
- Percent of households in high HIV prevalence communities with increased access to food.
- Percent of households in high prevalence communities receiving assistance from community based organizations.
- Number of HIV/AIDS infected children receiving food aid.
All other guidelines surrounding the use of Title II resources remain in affect.
V. MONETIZATION:
Consultations with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office
of National AIDS Policy (ONAP) surrounding the use of the Title II commodities
under the LIFE Initiative resulted in an understanding that these commodities
would be used for direct distribution to the maximum level possible. This
was based on the understanding that the most useful input of these commodities
would be as food for children affected by HIV/AIDS. Ideally, food would
be considered as an input into a wider HIV/AIDS activity resourced with both
dollars (DA) and Title II commodities. With this in mind, agreements with
PVOs under the LIFE Initiative will be for the provision of commodities for
direct distribution. Limited additional commodities for monetization will
be authorized only if/where necessary to facilitate the movement, distribution,
and monitoring of the commodities. Exceptions to this policy may be considered
where monetization proceeds are to be used for items that complement the
food and are for the direct care of the beneficiaries. However, no large
scale monetization activities will be authorized.
VI. AMENDMENTS TO AGREEMENTS:
Missions and Cooperating Sponsors are encouraged to refer to the FY00
DAP/PAA guidelines issued by Food for Peace for the parameters required for
a DAP Amendment. For FY00 a DAP Amendment will be required if a Cooperating
Sponsor wishes to make significant changes. Significant change is defined
as: a) a change in the purpose and/or outcome of the project (CS program
or sub-program); b) a change requiring restructuring of implementation arrangements;
and c) changes of 20 percent or more in anticipated total funding for the
fiscal year. For FY01 a significant change is defined as: a) a change in
the strategic objectives of the project (CS Title II program or sub-program);
b) an increase in the total Life of Activity Resource Request (LOA) using
the estimated total dollar value of commodity, freight, and Section 202(e)
as the indicator for requests; or c) a cumulative increase of 10% or more
in any line-item of the comprehensive LOA budget for that particular line
item. FFP views these activities as multi-year commitments and therefore
expects that any additions or amendments would cover the remaining DAP period
and will be integrated with other food security activities.
VII. TIMELINE FOR ACTIVITIES
FFP does not believe that it is within USAID’s interest to initiate new
program activities for only one year. Therefore, any approved activity would
cover the remaining DAP period of the Cooperating Sponsor. In an effort
to initiate activities in an expeditious manner, FFP will allow the transfer
of commodities towards LIFE Initiative activities once the DAP Amendments
are in effect.
- CONTACT POINTS
Operation units requiring further information on the Food for Peace activities
under the LIFE Initiative, should contact René Berger (rberger@usaid.gov) at (202) 712-0485 or Rich Newberg (rinewberg@usaid.gov)
at (202) 712-1828. Additional LIFE Initiative contacts are as follows: AFR
– Alex Ross; ANE – Kai Spratt; G/PHN – Paul De Lay.
