DIALOGUE
In this section:
First Person
Mission of the Month: Macedonia
Notes from Schieck
First Person
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Yaroslav Dzhumalo, director of Svitlovodsk glass factory
SKLO, displaying a new American furnishing company catalogue
containing some SKLO products.
Development Alternatives, Inc. |
“We are very grateful to BIZPRO for our successes
and we think it’s a good lesson for the entire industry…
With BIZPRO assistance we were able to demonstrate the quality
of our products and the production capabilities of [our] factory…
In April 2005 we got our first orders and we have confidence
that we can now build a long-term relationship with our new
American partners.”
First Person is a continuing FrontLines feature that provides
views from beneficiaries of USAID programs.
Eastern Europe has long been recognized for the high level
of craftsmanship of its glass and crystal. But products from
countries like Ukraine have little or no exposure to global
markets due mainly to a lack of contact with and knowledge
of foreign markets. The USAID-funded BIZPRO project has been
changing that. It has helped glass producers develop designs
more appealing to Western audiences, and assisted in improving
their production capacity and efficiency.
At the biannual International Home Furnishings Market, held
in April 2005 in North Carolina, glass products—vases,
wine glasses, and other china-type wares—from three Ukrainian
producers were displayed for the first time by American companies
such as Phillips Collection and Wildwood Lamps. In August,
the Ukrainian glassmakers exhibited their work at Europe’s
biggest home furnishings exhibition, Tendence Lifestyle, held
in Frankfurt.
Sales are starting to increase.
Aside from the home furnishing industry, BIZPRO works with
industries relating to furniture, textiles and apparel, tourism,
processed fruits and vegetables, and information and communication
technology.
Mission of the Month: Macedonia
Challenge
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Macedonian students from opposite ends of the country
chat using a USAID-supported computer lab and high speed
wireless internet connectivity.
Teresa Albor, USAID |
Macedonia, a small mountainous Balkan country of 2 million
people that was once a part of Yugoslavia, began a transition
toward a market economy when it gained independence in 1991.
But serious setbacks to its development were presented when
an ethnic conflict became the country’s main concern
in the late 1990s and into the new century.
One setback to economic development was the country’s
lack of access to high-speed internet. Only four years ago,
internet access cost as much as $150 a month. The state telecommunications
agency was the sole access provider, and less than one-fifth
of Macedonians were online.
USAID faced the challenge of updating old and dated infrastructure,
rebuilding telecommunication policies that make the internet
more accessible, and teaching Macedonians about the value
of logging on to the web.
USAID Response
In 2001, USAID/Macedonia embarked on an “e” mission.
Helping Macedonia take advantage of the digital revolution
is now part of almost every project. Among the mission’s
efforts are that it has
• created a conducive policy environment
• set up infrastructure
• created and provided hardware and software
• trained IT technicians
• trained users
The mission has also worked on promoting industries that
take advantage of digital technology, such as digital animation
and entertainment. The effort also encourages existing industries
to take advantage of the efficiencies of digital technology
and helps fledgling industries that support new technologies
get started.
“Development today is about leapfrog technology,”
said Dick Goldman, USAID/Macedonia mission director. “A
country like Macedonia has few legacy systems getting in the
way of adoption of the latest technology. And making information
available and accessible—one of the strengths of this
technology—is enormously useful when one of your goals
is to increase transparency.”
Results
USAID/Macedonia’s success in bringing high-speed wireless
internet access to 95 percent of Macedonians was one of the
main topics of discussion among delegates at the Tunis World
Summit on Information Society in November 2005. During the
summit, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) also aired
a documentary following the story of how Macedonia has become
hooked to the worldwide web.
After all of USAID’s extensive efforts to make Macedonia
wireless, nearly all of the country’s 2 million residents
have become computer savvy.
A wireless network blankets every corner of the country—including
remote locations without basic telephone service—providing
the opportunity for students and entrepreneurs to connect
to the outside world. With equipment contributed through a
Global Development Alliance project, USAID is providing broadband
wireless internet connectivity to the offices of 50 new municipal
governments and 30 NGOs.
The network provides needed competition to the monopoly
telecommunications provider, and has already led to lower
prices for broadband connectivity and long-distance phone
calls. The private company, competitively selected to build
the wireless network, offers high-speed internet for $20 a
month.
Web-based systems for filing taxes, applying for jobs, and
government procurement will all be available in 2006. Computer
labs and internet connections have been installed in all 460
schools in the country. Over 7,000 primary and secondary school
teachers received training in improved teaching methods and
IT applications. Companies within the growing digital entertainment
and IT support industries are signing contracts with U.S.
and European companies.
“Wireless internet is definitely the must-have accessory
these days for U.S. cities, and now apparently whole countries,”
writes Elena Malykhina of InformationWeek. “While it’s
not likely to cure all the economic development, public safety,
and education woes planners face, the Macedonian example will
have one clear benefit for the rest of us. Given the scale
of the deployment and the difficult terrain it’s trying
to cover, it will be a good test of wireless mesh network
technology.”
Notes from Schieck
Changes to Foreign Aid Process Will Strengthen Agency
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Frederick Schieck
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On Jan. 19, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announced
major changes in U.S. foreign assistance management and implementation
designed to improve the coherence and effectiveness of this
nation’s foreign assistance programs. Referencing her
new “transformational diplomacy strategy,” the secretary
said that the changes will help better align the foreign assistance
programs of USAID, the Department of State, and the rest of
the U.S. government.
In this regard, she announced that the USAID administrator
would be designated as the director of foreign assistance
(DFA), with oversight for all USAID and Department of State
foreign assistance planning and spending. The administrator/DFA
will hold the rank of deputy secretary and will report directly
to the secretary. These changes are being executed under the
existing authority of the secretary, and dramatically increase
the role and stature of the USAID administrator within the
Department of State and the U.S. government.
To fill this new role, the secretary stated that the president
intends to nominate Randall Tobias, currently the global AIDS
coordinator at the Department of State. Ambassador Tobias
came to his role as global AIDS coordinator as one of America’s
most talented and respected executives. He served as vice
chairman and then chairman of AT&T International, guiding
the firm through immense organizational challenges. He then
went on to head Eli Lilly and Company, one of our nation’s
largest and most innovative pharmaceutical companies.
Former Administrator Andrew S. Natsios praised the choice
when he said at his last senior staff meeting that the Agency
could not be in better hands.
Contrary to rumors, Rice said that a “State takeover”
of the Agency was never in the cards. She recognized the vital
role that USAID plays on the frontlines of our foreign policy
in responding to humanitarian crises and advancing development.
Her intentions in proposing the changes are to strengthen
and streamline USAID, align it better with State to more effectively
meet this nation’s foreign policy challenges, and make
it a better steward of Americans’ tax dollars.
The Agency’s leadership strongly endorses these changes,
and we look forward to the active engagement of USAID personnel
in making them successful.
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