REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SERVICES OFFICE
FOR EAST AND SOUTHERN AFRICA (REDSO/ESA) AND
GREATER HORN OF AFRICA INITIATIVE (GHAI)

	FY 1998 Actual	FY 1999 Estimate	FY 2000 Request
Development Assistance	$16,686,000	$18,022,000	---
Development Fund for Africa	---	---	$ 19,950,000
Child Survival and Disease	$4,925,000	$4,602,000	$5,800,000
P.L. 480 Title II	$86,430,000	$48,832,000	---

Introduction.

USAID’s Regional Economic Development Services Office for East and Southern Africa (REDSO/ESA) supports U.S. national security goals of fostering regional stability, preventing conflict and promoting free and open markets. REDSO/ESA is the regional implementing platform for President Clinton’s $15 million/year Greater Horn of Africa Initiative (GHAI), strengthening African capacity to improve food security and establish systems of conflict prevention and mitigation. REDSO/ESA promotes sustainable economic growth and enhances regional trade, cooperation and integration. REDSO/ESA is expanding the use of information technology to advance democracy and mitigate conflict, disseminate agricultural research, improve health networks and provide information to African decision-makers.

REDSO/ESA’s oversight of nearly $160 million in humanitarian assistance and transition activities in Sudan, Somalia and Burundi has averted starvation and provided humanitarian aid to over 2.9 million people. In addition to GHAI and humanitarian assistance, REDSO/ESA’s staff of development experts provides technical, legal, contracting and financial services to USAID bilateral missions and host governments in 23 countries in east, central and southern Africa. In the face and aftermath of the August 1998 Nairobi bombing, REDSO/ESA continued to deliver services, implement programs and provide support to sister U.S. Government agencies, while dealing with severe internal trauma, office displacements, and ongoing security threats.

The Development Challenge.

Instability caused by civil strife, ethnic conflict and border clashes has undermined food security and has led to complex humanitarian emergencies in Somalia, Sudan and the Great Lakes region. Agricultural production in the region has also been disrupted, resulting in a 15% decline in per capita food production over the last decade. The rapid spread of HIV/AIDS and infectious diseases, coupled with malnutrition, high infant mortality and the falling but still high 3% population growth rate in the region, present daunting transnational health problems.

USAID's DA-funded Sudan Transitional Assistance for Rehabilitation (STAR) program seeks to reduce conflict and enhance capacities for peace by strengthening the independent Sudanese civil society that has begun to arise in some of the more stable opposition-controlled areas of Sudan. Somalia remains a failed state. With the elimination in DA funds to Somalia in FY 2000, USAID efforts will focus exclusively on humanitarian assistance.

To respond to African desires for more cooperation and regional integration, REDSO/ESA strengthens African institutions to deal with regional and cross-border issues. USAID support to the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) in Djibouti has led to a strengthened regional internet communications system among IGAD’s seven member states. A new grant program for African non-governmental organizations (NGOs) will strengthen their capacity to conduct regional food security and conflict mitigation activities. REDSO/ESA-supported agricultural research networks increase regional collaboration, bring new technologies to small agricultural producers and enhance food security, resulting in new high-yield and disease-resistant food crop varieties that are being widely adopted by farmers. REDSO/ESA has also developed successful regional health networks to improve the quality of rural and urban health care and facilitate sharing and adoption of low-cost, best health practices and technologies across borders.

Other Donors.

REDSO/ESA is a leader in regional donor coordination and works closely with the State Department to develop joint policy and approaches for GHAI activities. REDSO/ESA co-founded the Joint IGAD Partners Forum (JIPF) to coordinate host government and donor efforts within the Greater Horn and chairs the new, USAID-initiated multi-donor Technical Implementation Committee. USAID and the European Union are the leading donors in providing direct support to regional institutions such as IGAD, COMESA and the Association for Support of Agricultural Research in East and Central Africa (ASARECA). In Sudan and Somalia, REDSO/ESA works with the European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO), UN agencies, the World Food Program, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Italy, Sweden, and Norway. Other key donors include the World Bank, Canada, the African Development Bank, Germany, and the World Health Organization.

FY 2000 Program.

Funding includes $15 million for GHAI and $10.75 million for REDSO/ESA to provide support services to USAID bilateral missions and implement programs in East and Southern Africa.

Humanitarian: In responding to crises in Sudan, Somalia and Burundi, REDSO/ESA will continue to address the root causes of food insecurity and will seek to decrease dependency on relief assistance by strengthening local and regional institutions to be responsive to the needs of vulnerable groups.

Economic Growth and Agriculture: REDSO/ESA will support regional agricultural research networks and programs, primarily through ASARECA, to enhance African capacity in agricultural production and food security. USAID in conjunction with U.S business partnerships will support the Common Market for East and Southern Africa to harmonize trade policies and increase intra-regional and external trade.

Population and Health: REDSO/ESA will expand networks and mechanisms to share cross-border "best practices" in HIV/AIDS prevention, health-care financing, maternal-child health, family planning and nutrition. REDSO/ESA will further strengthen regional African institutions through agreements with the Commonwealth Regional Health Community Secretariat and the Center for African Family Studies.

Democracy and Conflict: REDSO/ESA will support IGAD, COMESA and the African Dialogue Center to bring host government and civil society groups together to prevent, mitigate and/or resolve internal and cross-border conflicts. Key regional tools in this area are the Conflict Quick-Response Fund and the Conflict Pilot Activities Fund.

Environment and Natural Resources: REDSO/ESA will focus on critical transnational environmental problems through improved regional cooperation. For example, GHAI will support creation of a tripartite Kenya-Uganda-Tanzania policy on control of water hyacinths in Lake Victoria.

Information Technology: Cutting across sectors, REDSO/ESA’s Global Information Infrastructure activities accelerate information technology use and information diffusion. To date, USAID has funded internet connectivity and training for 36 government ministries in the GHAI region giving decision-makers and policy-makers access to data on food security, health, agriculture and conflict prevention. REDSO/ESA will assist COMESA and IGAD to harmonize telecommunication policies and will help Kenya with regulatory aspects of its telecom privatization.

REDSO/ESA/GHAI

FY 2000 PROGRAM SUMMARY (in thousands of dollars)

USAID Mission Director, Donald R. Mackenzie

USAID Strategic & Special Objectives	Economic Growth & Agriculture	Population & Health	Environment	Democracy	Human Capacity Developmnt	Humanitarian Assistance	TOTALS
S.S.O 1. Effective Program and Technical Support to All ESA Missions. - DFA - CS	1,540 ---	300 1200	540 ---	270 ---	--- ---	--- ---	2,650 1,200
S.O. 2. Increase Utilization of Critical Information by USAID and Other Decision-Makers in the Region. - DFA - CS	1,800 ---	300 2,800	400 ---	--- ---	--- ---	--- ---	2,500 2,800
S.O. 3. Establish a Strong Basis for Implementation of the GHAI - DFA - CS	7,890 ---	--- 1,800	1,060 ---	2,630 ---	--- ---	--- ---	11,580 1,800
S.S.O. 4. Effective Delivery of USAID'S Humanitarian Assistance. - DFA - CS	1,370 ---	--- ---	--- ---	1,850 --	--- ---	--- ---	3,220 ---
Totals: - DFA - CS	12,600 ---	600 5,800	2,000 --	4,750 ---	--- ---	--- ---	19,950 5,800

---

ACTIVITY DATA SHEET

PROGRAM: REDSO/ESA
TITLE AND NUMBER: Effective Program and Technical Support to all ESA Missions, 623-SS01
STATUS: Continuing
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 2000: $2,650,000 DFA; $1,200,000 CS
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1995 ESTIMATED COMPLETION: FY 2000

Summary: For over 26 years REDSO/ESA has been a service-oriented organization staffed by experienced USAID officers and technical experts to assist client USAID bilateral missions. REDSO/ESA also manages non-presence USAID programs in the East and Southern Africa (ESA) to ensure judicious use of development resources. The purpose of Strategic Support Objective No. 1 (SSO01) is to provide effective program and technical support to all ESA bilateral missions. The primary direct beneficiaries include the following 23 programs: Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, southern Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. These programs benefit from REDSO/ESA technical services in agriculture, democracy/governance, child survival, conflict management, economic growth, environment, food security, and population/health. Special attention is also given to cross-cutting themes such as gender concerns, monitoring and evaluation, and impact assessment. REDSO/ESA also provides core support services in procurement, financial management, food for peace and legal advice. These specialized technical and core services are a cost-effective means for ESA client missions to obtain key expertise to achieve results and impact. Other beneficiaries include host country governments; inter-governmental organizations; donors; and partners, at national and regional levels.

Key Results: Achievement of this SSO is measured by client mission demand met. Also, REDSO/ESA is evaluated on the blend and quality of skills provided versus the technical and program skills required. This emphasis on maintaining a high level of staff skills ensures that client missions obtain the type of assistance needed for enhanced program impact. Striving for improved staff knowledge of reengineering and other Agency priorities means REDSO/ESA service providers are current on operational procedures and U.S. Government interests.

Performance and Prospects: REDSO/ESA staff continued to perform above target measures despite the challenge of restructuring to integrate responsibility for implementing/managing the Greater Horn of Africa Initiative (GHAI). REDSO/ESA’s established measure for management of services is "service days performed." The result for FY 1998 was an 88% performance level (4,301 service days performed versus 4,860 service days requested). Client USAID missions surveyed indicated a close match of the skills they requested with those received, and that service providers had a high knowledge level of USAID operations and priorities.

Specific examples of REDSO/ESA performance include:

• Procurement: 225 award actions; over $80 million obligated; a total procurement portfolio of approximately $500 million.
• Regional Financial Management Center: serves as the accounting station for 14 USAID client missions. Resident staff dedicated to these missions is not included in the total "services days performed"; 5,500 vouchers for payment certified; 35,000 disbursement/advance transactions processed, and 387 FY 1998 obligations made totaling $99 million dollars.
• REDSO/ESA facilitated two three-day sessions on the FY 2000 Results Report and Resource Request (R4) process. Over 20 missions were represented. Missions indicated the unique training was invaluable for understanding the USAID/Washington R4 process and sharing performance monitoring and reporting techniques.
• REDSO/ESA continued to enhance its role in environmental assessment training with eight regional courses designed by REDSO/ESA and the Africa Bureau; a Title II P.L. 480 Environmental Documentation Manual was prepared and used in three accompanying courses - over 500 PVO/NGO partners representing 200 institutions were trained.
• REDSO/ESA's continued emphasis on women's empowerment was demonstrated by its support to women's organizations to establish implementing mechanisms for the Beijing and the African Platforms for Action. REDSO/ESA provided initial support, and partnerships with other regional donors (United Nations Economic Commission for Africa [ECA] and United Nations Development Program [UNDP]) have now been formed to develop mechanisms to measure the region's progress on the Platforms for Action.

Problems encountered during FY 1998 included high demands on REDSO/ESA staff time to fully integrate the GHAI into REDSO/ESA's regional program while continuing to provide client mission services. With the U.S. Embassy bombing of August 7, services were curtailed to focus on recovery efforts; and support for U.S. Embassy operations took precedence over REDSO/ESA objectives. The disrupted operations forced REDSO/ESA's annual services scheduling conference to be replaced by less effective teleconferencing. With the U.S. Embassy co-located in the USAID building, working conditions will continue to be difficult during FY 1999. Post-bomb recruiting for key REDSO/ESA staff has also been problematic and will continue to be so. A continuing FY 1999 challenge is to maintain a lean staff that matches ESA client mission needs with those of REDSO/ESA's substantially increased regional and GHAI program responsibilities.

In FY 1998, USAID/Washington development of essential Y2K compliant software for tracking and managing service days was halted when contractors left the Agency. Stop-gap, alternative software had to be used and new software still needs to be developed.

Possible Adjustments to Plans: FY 1999 will be focused on repositioning. REDSO/ESA has begun a major effort to revise its strategy to better reflect the integration of the GHAI into its ESA regional program while continuing to provide ESA client missions with critical technical and programmatic services. With the increasing constraints on staff numbers, REDSO/ESA will continue to identify the highest priorities against which to program resources.

Other Donor Programs: USAID staff regularly work with governmental and donor agency staff at the bilateral and regional level to ensure effective donor coordination and programming of scarce development resources.

Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: In addition to a cadre of foreign service officers and personal services contractors, a variety of fellows and institutional contractors implement SSO01. These in-house skills have been supplemented with local short-term contracts in specific fields. Contractors include Price Waterhouse Coopers, Deloitte and Touche, Peat Marwick, and Ernst and Young.

Selected Performance Measures:

	Baseline	Target
- Percent of REDSO/ESA "service days performed" to those requested	70% (1995)	80% (2000)
- Percent of requested skills available at REDSO/ESA	100% (1995)	100% (2000)
- Percent of REDSO/ESA staff trained in basic reengineering concepts	100% (1995)	100% (2000)

---

ACTIVITY DATA SHEET

PROGRAM: REDSO/ESA
TITLE AND NUMBER: Increased Utilization of Critical Information by USAID and Other Decision-Makers in the ESA Region, 623-SO02
STATUS: Continuing
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 2000: $2,500,000 DFA; $2,800,000 CS
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1995 ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2000

Summary: The purpose of this Strategic Objective (SO) is to support the attainment of the Agency’s strategic goals and objectives through increased availability and use of critical information on priority development issues of regional and global significance. Regional cooperation and collaboration remain at a nascent stage in the East and Southern Africa (ESA) region. Fundamental to the development of regional approaches and solutions is the wide availability, sharing and utilization of information to successfully deal with the region's problems. REDSO/ESA has a unique capacity to facilitate the long-term development of regional capacity for improved information generation and accessibility. REDSO/ESA can also foster greater collaboration among partners in the region leading to more effective problem-solving by decision-makers. Direct beneficiaries are the governments, institutions and organizations strengthened by REDSO/ESA-supported efforts. Benefits will ultimately accrue to the people within the ESA region.

Key Results: Intermediate results in selected Agency goal areas targeted by this SO include:

Regional Trade Analytical Agenda: Reduction in transportation costs associated with trade and elimination of tariff and non-tariff barriers. Private Sector Support: Stronger and more effective regional and U.S. business partnerships; improved access to trade policy and economic information; the removal of procedural and administrative constraints to a more liberal market economy in the ESA region; and the active promotion of gender equity through the involvement of women in economic policy-making. Population, Health and Nutrition: Strengthened health networks to efficiently promote the sharing of better practices; promotion of better practices within institutions; improved technical capacity of African institutions; and an improved policy environment for sustained adoption of better practices. Environment and Natural Resources Management: Improved availability of regional information on coastal zone management, rangelands harmonization, transnational animal movements (i.e., Serengeti-Mara ecosystem in Kenya and Tanzania), and a management plan for control of Lake Victoria water hyacinth.

Performance and Prospects: REDSO/ESA’s SO02 performance has exceeded expectations since the start of the strategy in FY 1995.

Private Sector Support: To implement the Greater Horn of Africa Initiative (GHAI), REDSO/ESA has built promising collaborative relationships with the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the East African Cooperation, the Eastern and Southern Africa Business Organization (ESABO), the All-Africa Businesswomen Association (AABA), and the Common Market for East and Southern Africa (C0MESA). The creation of the Business Council for the East African Cooperation, a policy group of private and public sector representatives, is a noteworthy success of regional partners and REDSO/ESA cooperation. Another important success was the mission’s support for expanding the geographic scope of a COMESA proposal in response to the President's Trade and Investment Initiative. This effort, which brings the ESA region into compliance with the World Trade Organization agreements, was expanded to include the entire sub-Saharan Africa and has the potential to significantly improve trade and investment in Africa. A third important result is the ongoing effort to expand the Global Trade Network to the region in partnership with ESABO. This has the potential for generating significant trade between U.S. and African businesses.

Regional Trade Analytical Agenda: REDSO/ESA has been supporting efforts to reduce transportation costs and trade barriers in the GHA region. In east Africa, it has assisted in establishing and supporting the East African Transportation Initiative (EATI), a group of public and private sector representatives which lobby for transportation sector reforms. Through a process of analysis, dialogue and cooperation, a number of reforms have been identified and implemented to improve ports, roads, and railways. EATI is advocating improvements in productivity through institutional reform and management efficiency, reduced administrative barriers, standardization of transportation procedures in the region, cooperation in financing regional road networks, support for policy reforms to rationalize road network management and increased cooperation among the region's railways. Results include the Tanzania Harbour Authority reforms to reduce container dwell time and multi-donor efforts to increase compliance with COMESA road regulations on axle load limits.

Population, Health and Nutrition: Health networks have proven to be a successful and innovative approach to promoting and facilitating important health reforms in the region. By documenting and disseminating better practices, study tours, south-to-south consultancies, and regional workshops, REDSO/ESA has expanded the adoption of better practices in health care financing, reproductive health, programs supporting children, youth, and maternal health, HIV prevention and sexually transmitted infection treatment and logistical support for improved supplies of essential drugs. Under the GHAI, REDSO/ESA has initiated linking of food security and nutrition to improve health outcomes.

Environment and Natural Resources Management: Over 70 stakeholders and partners from non-government organizations and government institutions participated in a stakeholders' workshop on food security and environmental linkages in the GHA region. Workshop recommendations are guiding REDSO/ESA's environmental and natural resources activities, to be launched this year. In FY 1999, REDSO will also continue technical support to USAID's efforts to assist the East African Cooperation and other partners in the development of an integrated, regional water hyacinth control plan.

REDSO/ESA has learned that capacity building involves long-term commitment and increased technical inputs which, initially, requires greater staff time. Current staffing levels may be inadequate to meet the challenge of capacity building. Increased staff would yield more sustainable programs and more viable and more effective African institutions in the future.

Possible Adjustment to Plans: REDSO/ESA is repositioning its regional program to enhance the implementation of the GHAI strategy and other USAID initiatives in the ESA region. Many of the activities included in this SO directly support the GHAI food security strategic objective and will continue under the revised REDSO/ESA strategy. Performance indicators, representative of the successful results being achieved, will be established.

Other Donor Programs: REDSO/ESA’s mix of highly successful activities in this SO are attracting support from the European Union, the African Development Bank, the World Bank, several European donors, the IMF, the East Africa Cooperation, several UN agencies, Sweden, Canada, IPPF, the International Development Research Center and the Rockefeller Foundation.

Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: AABA, Basis Project, Bureau of the Census, Center for African Family Studies, COMESA, Commonwealth Regional Health Community Secretariat, ESABO, Family Health International, Family Planning Logistics Management Project, IGAD, Johns Hopkins University, Linkages Project, Pathfinder International, Project for Heath Reform, TechnoServe, Quality Assurance Project, Rational Pharmaceutical Management Project and University of Rhode Island.

Selected Performance Measures:

	Baseline	Target
- Percent of ESA missions participating or investing in the regional trade activities	45% (1995)	85% (2000)
- Number of environmental decision-makers/stakeholders participating in intra-regional events	4 (1996)	70 (2000)
- Number of appropriate Health data bases in priority development areas	6 (1996)	35 (2000)

---

ACTIVITY DATA SHEET

PROGRAM: REDSO/ESA
TITLE AND NUMBER: Establish a Strong Basis for Implementation of the GHAI, SO03
STATUS: Continuing
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 2000: $11,580,000 DFA; $1,800,000 CS
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1995 ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2000

Summary: The Greater Horn of Africa Initiative (GHAI) was launched in 1994 in response to continuing political and humanitarian crises and instability in the 10-country Greater Horn of Africa (GHA) region. The goal of the GHAI is a food secure, just and peaceful region. The purpose of this Strategic Objective (SO) is to establish within REDSO/ESA the management and programmatic elements needed to implement the GHAI. The direct beneficiaries of this objective will be governments in the GHA, U.S. Private Voluntary Organizations (PVOs), and African non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The benefits of the GHAI will ultimately accrue to populations at the grassroots level through activities that increase African capacity to improve food security, reduce conflict and share developmentally strategic information.

Key Results: Four key intermediate results are necessary to achieve this objective: (1) pilot activities in conflict mitigation tested to establish best practices; (2) regional information on food security and conflict accessible to African implementors and policy-makers and applied rapidly to events on the ground; (3) African NGOs strengthened in the areas of food security and conflict management; and (4) regional food security enhanced, African agricultural research and technology transfer demand-driven and accessible by farmers.

Performance and Prospects: This Strategic Objective (SO) was achieved over the past year and REDSO/ESA is now transitioning to full implementation of the GHAI. REDSO/ESA is establishing strategic objective teams which will have the authority and resources to carry out activities to achieve GHAI results. REDSO/ESA faces a number of challenges as it begins the programmatic implementation of the GHAI. Legal prohibitions on development assistance and travel restrictions to several GHAI countries have excluded them from programmatic attention. Strategic coordination and working in partnership with African institutions necessitates a slower, more deliberate process of partnership that can clash with the pressures to show results in the short-to-medium term.

Through a number of innovative mechanisms, REDSO/ESA has begun testing pilot activities on conflict. Under its Horn of Africa Support Project (HASP), the USAID supports the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), a member-state organization of seven GHA states including Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Kenya, Uganda, Sudan, and Somalia. USAID has assisted IGAD's initiatives in peace and transition efforts, including collaboration with the Organization of African Unity on resolving the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea. With USAID and other donor assistance, IGAD has also established a Peace Fund to allow IGAD and envoys from its member states to intervene quickly when opportunities arise to resolve or prevent conflicts in the region. The HASP also has a new Institutional Strengthening and Grantmaking (ISGM) program for African NGOs working in conflict management. In collaboration with the Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA) and USAID bilateral missions in the region, REDSO/ESA has established two innovative conflict funds, one available for quick response to existing or emerging conflicts and another for pilot activities seeking to mitigate longer-term conflicts. In FY 1999, pilot activities are expected to begin or continue in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Somalia.

Through both IGAD and appropriate ministries in non-IGAD countries, USAID is supporting the development of a regional integrated information system which provides key policymakers in the GHA region with critical information on food security and conflict prevention. With USAID support, decision-makers in 36 GHA government ministries (including 110 users) are now actively using internet technology to communicate and share information among themselves and with international counterparts world wide. These users are now able to access centrally located databases to assist them in making informed decisions.

Through the HASP/ISGM, USAID has launched a program for African NGOs in the GHA. This activity, managed by the U.S. PVO PACT, will provide a demand-driven set of institutional strengthening and activity management grants to NGOs that are undertaking innovative, regional work in food security and conflict prevention, mitigation and response. The first set of activities should be underway by the middle of FY 1999.

In close collaboration with USAID Global and Africa Bureaus, REDSO/ESA is increasing collaborative research among countries of the region, and with U.S. and international institutions to develop technologies that further increase food production and farmer income. REDSO/ESA funds the Association for the Support of Agricultural Research in East and Central Africa (ASARECA) and three International Agricultural Research Centers (IARCs) to support Commodity Research Networks working in research on cassava, beans, potatoes and sweet potatoes. USAID’s support is yielding significant pay-offs, creating a process that assures transferable research is done; new bean varieties with twice the yield are now widely grown in Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania; throughout the region, mosaic resistant cassava varieties have been developed to combat the viruses that were rapidly devastating production; and the region's farmers now use higher yielding, disease-resistant varieties of potatoes and sweet potatoes.

Possible Adjustments to Plans: REDSO/ESA, the GHA bilateral missions and the GHAI unit in Washington have begun to work with the relevant entities within USAID and the Congress to seek prudent, but needed relief from restrictions that severely hamper USAID's ability to strengthen regional capacity in food security and conflict prevention, mitigation and response. REDSO/ESA is interested in cooperatively developing solutions that do not undermine larger foreign policy goals but do allow the achievement of the objectives of this Presidential Initiative.

Other Donor Programs: In partnership with IGAD and other donors, USAID has developed the Joint IGAD Partners Forum (JIPF), a donor coordination structure for joint regional work in the GHA between African governments and the international donor community. In addition to IGAD and the U.S. Government, JIPF members include the European Union, Norway, Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, and Canada. The JIPF provides a model for donor coordination on other activities undertaken by GHAI. To date, 11 regional development projects have received funding from the international community and six additional projects are under discussion.

Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: ASARECA, COMESA, IARCS, IGAD, and PACT.

Selected Performance Measures:

	Baseline	Target
- Number of conflict pilot activities implemented with best practices identified	0 (1998)	5 (2000)
- Government ministries connected to the internet	0 (1996)	72 (2000)
- African entities strengthened in areas of food security and conflict management	6 (1996)	18 (2000)
- Number of new seed varieties developed and used by African farmers	4 (1998)	6 (2000)

---

ACTIVITY DATA SHEET

PROGRAM: REDSO/ESA
TITLE AND NUMBER: Effective Delivery of USAID's Humanitarian and Transition Assistance,SS04
STATUS: Continuing
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 2000: $3,220,000 DFA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1998 ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2000

Summary: REDSO/ESA provides crucial support for USAID's humanitarian and transition assistance programs in the East and Southern Africa (ESA) region. It directly manages Development Assistance (DA) resources while providing management oversight for humanitarian assistance activities that are funded by other entities within USAID. REDSO/ESA oversees the administration of emergency food and non-food aid programs in the region; manages development assistance programs or activities in the non-presence countries of southern Sudan, Somalia, and Burundi and works to strengthen the capacity of local and regional actors to meet a greater share of the needs of vulnerable groups with African resources. The direct beneficiaries of this Strategic Objective (SO) are the Africans whose lives are saved or suffering reduced through the timely and effective delivery of humanitarian and transition assistance.

Key Results: Three key intermediate results are necessary to support this objective: (1) improved preparedness for and more effective response to crises; (2) strengthened capacity of civil society actors in southern Sudan; and (3) a less vulnerable and more self-sufficient population in Somalia.

Performance and Prospects: Performance over the past year has met expectations. However, many significant constraints in the region -- over which USAID has no control -- continue to hamper its ability to provide effective and timely humanitarian and transition responses. These include: (1) serious security constraints that often limit or prevent access to crisis areas; (2) deterioration of regional transport systems; and (3) numerous political obstacles beyond USAID's control that need to be addressed to resolve ongoing complex emergencies and political crises.

One of the most challenging crises to which USAID was asked to respond in FY 1998 was the drought- and war-induced famine in southern Sudan. USAID provided an estimated $110 million in humanitarian assistance, reaching more than 2.6 million vulnerable Sudanese. Our timely assistance in addressing the 1998 famine in southern Sudan was mainly with increased emergency food aid, funding for aircraft and expansion of nutritional feeding programs. While the situation dramatically improved towards the end of FY1998, continued large inputs of external assistance will be required through at least the October 1999 harvest.

The main impact of our FY 1998 humanitarian assistance programs in Sudan include: (1) tens of thousands of lives saved due to timely inputs of emergency food aid, nutritional programs and increased funding for aircraft transport costs; (2) revived livelihoods of some 80,000 people through the generation of agricultural surpluses in stable areas of southern Sudan; and (3) rehabilitated roads which reduced the heavy reliance on airlifts and revitalization of some local markets.

This SO's premise is that improved preparedness is central to the effective delivery of humanitarian and transition assistance. As an example of making a timely response to new vulnerable groups, USAID established contingency reserves for emergency food programs in southern Sudan. In lieu of total reliance on external food aid and emergency food programs, USAID initiated a pilot regional monetization program in northern Uganda/southern Sudan so that local or regional sources could be used to meet a greater share of the food needs of at-risk populations.

USAID has recently begun implementing the DA-funded Sudan Transitional Assistance for Rehabilitation (STAR). The purpose of STAR is to increase participatory democracy and good governance practices in opposition-held areas of Sudan while reducing reliance on relief. STAR will contribute to reducing conflict and enhancing capacities for peace by strengthening the independent Sudanese civil society that has begun to arise in some of the more stable opposition-controlled areas of southern and eastern Sudan. These actors are often strong on motivation, but weak on organizational skills. Through an umbrella grant to the U.S. private voluntary organization (PVO) Catholic Relief Services (CRS), private local organizations will receive small grants to enhance their capacity to solve local problems, work towards rehabilitation and hold civil authorities accountable.

USAID's assistance to Somalia seeks to ensure that continuing instability does not spread to other countries in the Horn of Africa. Although Somalia remains a failed state, USAID has made progress in recent years in developing local administrative structures which attempt to solve problems, ranging from infrastructure weaknesses to clan disputes. Wherever possible, indigenous non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are used to undertake the administrative strengthening. With the elimination in FY 2000 of DA funds in the Somalia portfolio, however, USAID efforts will focus exclusively on humanitarian assistance.

Possible Adjustments to Plans: In FY 1999, SSO04 will be incorporated into USAID's revised strategic plan. The strategy will continue to focus on the effective and timely delivery of humanitarian and transition assistance with an emphasis on enhancing African capacity to respond to crises.

REDSO/ESA will continue to identify and remove constraints to making humanitarian assistance more effective. It will cultivate even more collaborative relationships with other USAID entities to better integrate relief and development assistance. This will include working closely with the newly established Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance's Africa Regional Office, based in Nairobi.

Other Donor Programs: USAID regularly consults with donors on a wide range of humanitarian and transitional issues, as strategic coordination is critical for timely and effective responses. Other donors involved in supporting humanitarian and transitional interventions include the European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO), United Kingdom (UK), Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Norway and Italy. In many cases REDSO/ESA has taken the lead on a proactive strategy and other donors have followed. For example, funds were provided to the World Food Program (WFP) to procure surpluses in some of the more stable areas of southern Sudan and other donors followed suit.

USAID has established and led a unique, potent and voluntary donor coalition, the Somalia Aid Coordination Body (SACB). The SACB is comprised of over 150 organizations including donors, United Nations agencies, and international NGOs. The SACB has established sectoral committees to address specific issues such as health and food security in order to ensure efficient, low cost programs for meeting the most basic human needs of Somalis in the absence of civil governance.

Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: REDSO/ESA directly manages grants to CARE, Catholic Relief Services, the United Nations Children's Fund and the United Nations Development Program. It also oversees grants made by other USAID units to World Vision International, Adventist Development and Relief Agency, International Medical Corps, International Rescue Committee, the American Red Cross, Save the Children Federation/UK, Médecins sans Frontières (MSF)/Belgium, MSF/Holland, Norwegian People's Aid, Concern, and World Food Program.

Selected Performance Measures:

	Baseline	Target
- Number of southern Sudanese civil society organizations strengthened	0 (1998)	45 (2000)

FOIA Requests : Privacy Policy : Email This Page Plug-ins : FAQs : Help Desk : Contact Us : Site Map : En Español