Note: This document may not always reflect the actual appropriations determined by Congress. Final budget allocations for USAID's programs are not determined until after passage of an appropriations bill and preparation of the Operating Year Budget (OYB).
AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
Introduction
FY 1997 FY 1998 FY 1999 Actual Estimate Request Child Survival and Disease.......... $56,649,741 $52,886,000 $41,460,000 Development Assistance.............. $53,835,988 $48,649,000 $50,570,000 Economic Support Funds............. $500,000 $ 15,000,000 $15,000,000 P.L. 480 Title II........................... $77,333,000 $35,245,000 $ 17,518,000
The Africa Regional Program provides Africa-specific technical expertise to support bilateral program development, addresses issues which are transnational (sub-regional or continent-wide), and supports the work of USAID central bureaus when a geographic focus is necessary. The program also involves work with host country government officials, African nongovernmental organizations, international organizations, and other donors. Program objectives have been developed within the context of current U.S. national interests in Africa, and contribute to all Agency goals. The United States has a strong interest in supporting transformations taking place in African economies, political systems, and human resource development. A healthy, prosperous, and free Africa will have a beneficial effect on the U.S. economy, will provide more effective partnerships to combat global environmental and health threats, will reduce U.S. requirements to provide humanitarian funds in response to crises, and will create greater political stability.
The Development Challenge
The Regional Program addresses a variety of sector-specific development challenges for accelerating sustainable and equitable economic growth in Africa through:
-- trade promotion;
-- providing health services in more sustainable, efficient, and productive ways;
-- improving agricultural and natural resource management techniques to increase income earning
opportunities, and making sure that development activities are environmentally sound;
-- improving sustainability, equity and quality of basic education and family planning services;
-- increasing the use of information technology; eradicating polio;
-- identifying cost-effective ways to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS; and
-- preventing and mitigating man-made and natural crises.
Within these areas, the program often includes common themes: developing the capacity of Africans to design and manage their own programs; maintaining a focus on sustainability; identifying and utilizing cross-sectoral linkages to increase program performance; and establishing partnerships - African, other international, and U.S. - both to maximize the use of USAID resources and to create a learning environment. In its support to USAID bilateral missions and African governmental and nongovernmental organizations, the Regional Program works with its partners to develop targeted policies, programs and strategies which are based on continent-wide experience and on identification of sector-specific issues important to African development. The program focusses on activity and strategy development (supporting both bilateral and regional work), dissemination of information, provision of technical assistance for strategy implementation, and African technical and institutional capacity building. The program also manages or helps to manage Africa-wide Agency initiatives, such as polio eradication, the child survival initiative, the trade and development initiative, and the Africa Food Security Initiative.
Other Donors
USAID continues to work with a number of international and bilateral donors. Notable among international donors are the World Bank, the European Union, the United Nations Children's Fund, and the World Health Organization's African Regional Office. Bilateral donors include Japan, Canada, Britain, Germany and the Scandinavians.
FY 1999 Program
USAID has developed a number of Africa regional activities to supplement bilateral programs for three reasons: (1) To provide assistance in a more cost-effective way by maximizing economies of scale and the information linkages among USAID development programs; (2) to support and strengthen pan-African and in some cases, sub-regional African institutions which can not be supported through our bilateral programs; and (3) to respond quickly and catalytically to new development challenges. The program itself comprises three kinds of activities in the sectors where it works: First, it provides policy-relevant information and helps African countries and their partners use this information to improve the policies, programs and strategies required for sustainable development. Second, it builds the capacity of Africa to manage its own development. Third, it assists African countries and institutions to build more effective regional interaction to increase economic and technical cooperation.
Economic growth and agricultural development: Central to USAID efforts will be managing the USAID portion of the President Clinton's Partnership for Economic Growth and Opportunity. The Regional Program will help design and develop activities to support increased trade and development by and in African countries. For example, it will strengthen ties between the West African Enterprise Network, the most dynamic group of entrepreneurs in Africa, and the American business community, thus increasing opportunities for joint ventures. The program also will strengthen agriculture in Africa, including activities related to the African Food Security Initiative. In agriculture, the program will focus on three areas: (1) technology development by expanding the existing sub-regional networks of scientists; (2) developing institutional solutions for existing market problems which limit farmer access to inputs; and (3) increasing the nutritional impact of agriculture and micronutrient activities. Finally, USAID will continue to expand the reach of the Leland Initiative, providing expanded internet connectivity to selected African countries.
Population and Health: USAID improves the effectiveness and sustainability of population and health programs in Africa. Working with regional institutions like the World Health Organization's Africa Regional Office (WHO/AFRO), the Regional Program is improving disease control throughout Africa, in particular malaria and immunization activities including polio eradication. It also works with WHO/AFRO and other multi-lateral organizations to strengthen national and regional technical and operational capacities, including surveillance networks for infectious diseases and infrastructures for early warning of and rapid response to infectious disease threats. Activities include: determining cost-effective mechanisms for HIV/AIDS prevention; developing new malaria treatment strategies; strengthening capacity to eradicate polio; developing cost-effective strategies for tuberculosis treatment; and strengthening women's legal rights to help combat HIV/AIDS and unwanted pregnancies.
Environment: USAID provides solutions to Africa's environmental challenges by supporting increased local control over community resources and the continued development of improved resource-conserving, cost-effective technologies. Strengthening African capacities in these areas is the centerpiece of the Regional Program. Global climate change and conservation of Africa's tropical rain forest are examples of subregional challenges that require a regional solutions. The Africa Bureau's Central African Regional Program for the Environment provides the information needed to protect one of the world's last major rain forests that will impact on climate change. Moreover, the program plans to increase USAID's understanding of two major environmental problems Africa will face in the next century -- managing a limited water resource and dealing with environmental problems associated with rapid urbanization.
Democracy and Governance: The dramatic transition toward democracy in Africa is both breath-taking and fragile. More than half of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa now have or are moving toward improved democratic governance. There are more free and fair elections, greater press freedoms, legislatures more independent from executive branches, and greater decentralization of governmental power. The Regional Program will focus on two important aspects of democracy and good governance -- decentralization and the development of civil society. By examining various country experiences, analyzing data and disseminating results, USAID will help strengthen existing and new programs in health, education, environment and other sectors through more effective decentralization, greater community participation and improved advocacy by civil society.
Human Capacity: The Regional Program supports the development of education reform programs in Africa, and through continuous monitoring and evaluation, along with other donors and African educators through the Association for the Development of Education in Africa, develops new techniques for strengthening field program performance. In FY 1999, the program will concentrate more on working with U.S. universities and foundations to strengthen the linkages between African institutions of higher learning and those of the United States. Through the Leland Initiative, distance learning techniques and greater use of the Internet for education will be promoted.
Humanitarian assistance: Over the past decade Africa has been beset by natural and man-made humanitarian crises. The Regional Program is designed to help avoid crises where possible, and to coordinate the Agency's crisis response in Africa when necessary. The Regional Program's Famine Early Warning System (FEWS) plays an important role in helping African countries and the donor community to plan responses to mitigate the consequences of erratic annual rainfall patterns. The program also is working with the World Health Organization and UNICEF to help west African governments put in place epidemic surveillance and response systems. Finally, in a new area, the program will work to prevent conflict by expanding the use of alternative dispute mechanisms and by expanding our understanding of the dynamics of development and political conflict.
AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
FY 1999 PROGRAM SUMMARY
(in Thousands of Dollars)
USAID Strategic & Special Objectives
Economic
Growth &
AgriculturePopulation
& Health
Environment
DemocracyHuman Capacity Development
Humanitarian
Assistance
TotalS.O.1. Strengthen Cross-Sectoral Synergies Between Democracy & Governance & Africa Bureau Programs in Key Areas
- DA
---
---
---
350
---
---
350
S.O.2. Adoption of Improved Strategies, Programs & Activities for Accelerated, Sustainable & Equitable Economic Growth
- DA
2,900
----
----
----
----
----
2,900
S.O.3. Adoption of Improved Agriculture Policies, Programs & Strategies
- DA
- CSD
3,700
---
---
1,000
1,800
---
---
---
---
---
---
---
5,500
1,000S.O.4. Develop & Implement Cheaper & More Effective Mechanisms for Producing, Sharing & Using Development Information
- DA
- CSD
470
---
---
790
770
---
---
---
---
470
---
---
1,240
1,260S.O.5. Progress Accelerated in the Spread of Strategically Viable & Environmentally Sound Environmental Management Systems
- DA
---
---
5,650
---
---
---
5,650
S.O.6. Adoption of Policies & Strategies for Increased Sustainability, Efficiency & Equity of Basic Education Services
- CSD
---
---
---
---
2,800
---
2,800
S.O.7. Adoption of Policies & Strategies for Increased Sustainability, Efficiency, Equity & Quality of Health Services
- CSD
---
16,100
---
---
---
---
16,100
S.O.8. Adoption of Policies & Strategies for Increased Sustainability & Quality of Family Planning Services
- DA
---
1,000
---
---
---
---
1,000
S.O.9. Adoption of Cost-Effective Strategies to Prevent the Spread of HIV/AIDS
- CSD
---
2,900
---
---
---
---
2,900
S.O.10. Improve Policies, Strategies & Programs for Preventing, Mitigating & Transiting Out of Crises
- DA
- CSD
---
---
---
2,000
8,500
---
150
---
---
---
---
---
8,650
2,000SSO 1. Tools, Methods & Approaches are Adopted & Effective in Improving Application of Environmental Procedures & Strategies in Missions' & Africans' Programs
- DA
---
---
500
---
---
---
500
SPO 1. Polio Eradicated in Selected Countries in a Manner that Builds Sustainable Immunization Programs
- CSD
---
4,600
---
---
---
---
4,600
S.O.30. Broad Based Support for Africa
- DA
- CSD
19,680
---
---
10,400
---
---
5,100
---
---
400
---
---
24,780
10,800Other
- ESF *
- P.L. 480 \ II **
15,000
---
---
---
---
---
---
---
---
---
---
17,518
15,000
17,518Totals
- DA
- CSD
- ESF
- P.L. 480 \ II
26,750
---
15,000
---
1,000
37,790
---
---
17,220
---
---
---
5,600
---
---
---
---
3,670
---
---
---
---
---
17,518
50,570
41,460
15,000
17,518* Economic Support Funds will be distributed to various countries in Africa during the year.
** P.L. 480 Title II includes food assistance for Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Gambia, and Mauritania.
Director, Office of Sustainable Development: Jerome Wolgin
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE/NUMBER: Strengthened Cross-Sectoral Synergies Between Democracy and Governance and Africa Bureau Programs in Key Areas: 698-SO01
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999: $350,000 DA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003
Purpose: Africa is going through a period of political transformation. Compared to ten years ago, many African countries now have more representative political systems, strengthened democratic institutions, and more active civil societies. Yet, serious challenges to the institutionalization of democracy in Africa remain. The Africa Regional Program will help consolidate these gains by emphasizing increased participation and improved local governance across all goal areas.
USAID Role and Achievement to Date: USAID's role is to increase the impact of USAID programs across all sectors by identifying and analyzing key cross-sectoral issues, developing innovative ways to address those issues, and assisting in the implementation of state of the art development interventions. This approach will ensure that Agency successes with integrated approaches become the standard for future programming. Because this is a new activity, initial achievements will be reported in the Congressional Presentation for FY 2000.
Description: This activity will incorporate participation and local governance principles across all sectors. Information on state of the art approaches in these areas will be synthesized, supplemented and systematically disseminated. Adoption of best practices by USAID will be facilitated through pilot programs with targeted African countries with the assistance of the USAID missions.
As an initial step, this activity is working with other USAID offices in the design and implementation of a global study on cross-sectoral linkages within USAID programs. The information from the joint study will improve decision-making for specific sectoral interventions. Seminars, workshops, newsletters, and internet list-services will be used for dissemination of this information. Potential areas of focus include the impact of increased local participation in heath interventions and the effects of improved local governance on the education sector.
USAID currently supports several programs which are achieving impressive results because of the integration of democratic principles into sectoral activities. One example that serves as a model for pilot activities is the environmental program that was concluded in Botswana that focused on community-based management of grazing lands and wildlife. Through this program, communities were empowered to decide for themselves on how to manage resources and share and invest revenues. The program also helped the Government of Botswana become aware of existing problems in the sector. As a result of the program, the government made radical policy shifts that led to even greater community development opportunities. In Botswana, USAID was able to mobilize a traditionally non-political constituency to advocate for reform for the environmental sector and has now laid the groundwork for the introduction of more and better democratic governance in other sectors in that country.
Another example of a successful, integrated program is in Benin, where parents' associations are being strengthened by instilling democratic processes (such as elections for board members) within those organizations, and providing assistance to improve these organizations' capacity to engage school
officials for meaningful reform. As a result of this activity, parents' associations now are organized at the regional and national levels, and a democratically-elected national federation of parents' associations has been established. These groups will play an increasingly important role at all levels in determining the future of education policy in Benin.
Another USAID activity that provides an excellent example of the opportunities to instill democratic principles through crisis prevention is one in South Africa, where USAID has played a major role in the initial development and subsequent successes of the African Center for Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD), a grass-roots conflict resolution organization. ACCORD's original focus was on the creation of community dispute resolution centers which encourage partnerships among local populations and with local power structures to enable them to work together to find peaceful solutions to conflicts. Due to its overwhelming success, ACCORD has grown and is now also involved in Africa-wide peace making and conflict resolution programs.
Examples such as those described above that have successfully integrated democratic principles into sectoral activities will be used as models for USAID as it analyzes successes and draws out lessons learned for duplication in other countries. Specific host countries where USAID missions are developing programs that present opportunities for integrated strategies will be selected to pilot state of the art approaches.
Host Country and Other Donors: While there is no single host country targeted for this activity the program results will have cross-cutting, regional applications. Other donors, including the World Bank, are also integrating democratic governance principles into their development programs through decentralization activities, capacity building of indigenous non-governmental organizations, and policy reform efforts. USAID will be coordinating its work with these donors to take advantage of ongoing cross-sectoral donor activities in USAID presence countries.
Beneficiaries: The Africa Regional Program typically does not implement activities at the field level in a way similar to USAID's field missions. Instead, it has direct impact on how programs are designed and the selection of implementation approaches, and on regional and international associations and institutions active on a variety of development issues important to Africa. As a result, the program's direct beneficiaries are policy makers, program managers, and technical staff who are all important to the design and implementation of development activities. This activity will benefit all recipients of USAID assistance where program effectiveness is improved in the areas of community-level participation and local governance.
Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: USDA, through its International Cooperation and Development office, will provide expertise to support this program in the areas of local governance and local participation. As the program develops, U.S. non-governmental organizations and private voluntary organizations also may be used.
Major Results Indicators: This is a new activity, and results indicators, along with targets, are now being developed. Proposed indicators include: percentage of target missions implementing state of the art integration strategies that achieve their targets; number of menus of indicators measuring cross-sectoral synergies developed (for each sector); and number of studies completed and disseminated. A system for monitoring and reporting on added impact of incorporating democratic governance principles into sectoral programs also is being developed.
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE AND NUMBER: Adoption of Improved Strategies, Programs and Activities for Accelerated, Sustainable and Equitable Economic Growth: 698-SO02
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999: $2,900,000 DA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003
Purpose: The scarcity of trained personnel working within African countries in key technical and management positions, and the relative weakness of African policy making units, have been major constraints to successful policy reform. However, reform that has taken place has contributed to modest rates of economic growth in the latter half of the 1990s. The purpose of this activity is to help deepen and accelerate the pace of economic reforms needed to sustain growth and reduce poverty.
USAID Role and Achievements to Date: Because of program restructuring, the title and number of this activity are new. However, the actual work is a combination of ongoing and new actions, and thus this data sheet includes commentary on achievements to date. Through this activity, USAID supports and encourages selected host countries in the region to modify their existing policies to accelerate sustainable and equitable economic growth. To do this, it has created a body of knowledge and best practices on policy reform and on the importance of undertaking structural reforms. Information collected through this activity has been used, for example, by USAID, the World Bank and the government of Malawi to help liberalize agricultural policy for the benefit of small farmers, and by the Vice President's Office in Tanzania to establish a poverty line and poverty alleviation strategy for the country. In addition, support to the West African Enterprise Network has increased its capacity for policy reform advocacy, including changes in Mali's tax regime regulations that provide incentives to increase agribusiness development. Establishing and strengthening African institutions for policy research and training is fundamental for long-term sustainable growth, and this activity has worked with nearly 30 policy and training institutions throughout Africa to develop a core of top-flight economic policy analysts and development managers.
Description: The USAID focus has been to provide African nations with knowledge to better manage an open, market-oriented economy; to strengthen African institutional capacity to develop, design and implement improved economic policies; and to support and collaborate with other development partners.
To strengthen institutional capacity, this program trains key technical and management host country staff in policy making units. At the same time the program links U.S. expertise with African expertise in a partnership. African institutions and researchers suggest a set of important activities that need further analysis, and through a series of grants and contracts, key expertise in the United States is linked with African expertise to develop solutions for the selected problems, at the same time creating greater capacity for Africans to work independently. Moreover, through the process of networking with a variety of partners and host country governments, a constituency is developed through information sharing and finally, African counterparts become champions for policy and strategy change.
Over the past five years, USAID, working with other donors to strengthen technical expertise to undertake reforms, has trained 28 participants to the doctoral level, over 500 to the masters level, and 16 to the post-graduate level. The number of women participants has increased steadily. In addition, USAID has strengthened teaching and research capacities in some 33 university departments in East, Southern, and West Africa.
The program also conducts policy analysis and facilitates implementation of economic strategies to promote trade and foreign investment, increase domestic resource mobilization, liberalize key markets, and strengthen the capacity of institutions and personnel to undertake reform. Much of the work on the trade environment will be implemented as part of USAID's Africa Trade and Investment Program which is described in a separate Activity Data Sheet.
Policy analysis is supported directly through major U.S. universities and private sector firms, and indirectly through a variety of African capacity building institutions and networks. This research activity addresses issues of policy reform in key areas of trade openness and related issues such as financial intermediation, tax reform, and increased labor demand and productivity.
Host Country and Other Donors: The program works with a rich array of partners including multilateral donors such as the World Bank, foundations such as Ford and Rockefeller, a range of bilateral donors including the French, the Scandinavians and the Canadians and a wide variety of U.S. non-profit organizations like the International Center for Economic Growth, the Corporate Council for Africa, and the Global Coalition for Africa. The African counterparts are institutions such as the African Economic Research Consortium, the African Business Roundtable, and the West Africa Enterprise Network.
Beneficiaries: Immediate beneficiaries of the program will include up to 1000 Africans who will complete masters and doctorate programs in university departments of economics, business, and finance in 39 countries of East, Southern and West Africa. Nearly twice as many Africans will benefit from related short courses, training sessions, specialized workshops, and policy seminars. As a result of strengthened teaching and research capability in these African universities, a broad range of undergraduate students is also expected to benefit. Beneficiaries will also include African business men and women in up to two dozen African countries who will participate in policy dialogue and business linkage networks, associations, and roundtables strengthened through the program. Collaborative research and policy analysis supported by the program will help build the capacity of a new generation of African professionals involved in policy design, policy implementation, training professionals in policy making institutions, and actual decision making. Beyond this, a very broad class of entrepreneurs, employees, and customers of existing and new enterprises will benefit from an improved policy environment and overall economic expansion.
Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: The activity works with American and African profit and non-profits, such as the Harvard Institute for International Development, Cornell University, Howard University, Associates for International Resources and Development, the African Economic Research Consortium, etc. USAID also works with other U.S. agencies such as the Department of Agriculture.
Major Results Indicators:
Indicator Baseline Target
- Number of countries adopting improved special 4 (1996) 18 (2003)
programs for Africa to accelerate sustainable
and equitable growth
- Number of strategic policy research agendas established 6 (1997) 36 (2003)
in collaboration with host country policy makers
- Number of Africans completing master's program 404 (1997) 1,384 (2003)
in economics
- Graduate economics department in African 33 (1997) 39 (2003)
universities strengthened
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
Program: Africa Regional Program
Title and Number: Adoption of Improved Agricultural Programs, Policies, and Strategies: 698-SO03
Status: New
Proposed Obligation and Funding Source: FY99: $5,500,000 DA; $1,000,000 CSD
Initial Obligation: FY1998 Estimated Completion Date: FY2003
Purpose: Agriculture must provide increasing food, income and exports in order for economic growth, trade, and investment in Africa to be equitable, improve nutrition and food security, and reduce poverty. African governments, businesses and their trade associations, farmer groups, and other donors have significant influence over, and provide major resources for, small farmer agriculture and productive agribusiness in Africa. Often these groups are unaware of the most appropriate technologies or most effective policy approaches to expand and sustain those changes that increase farm production and rural incomes. Better knowledge, more effective partnerships, and more rapid spread of high impact approaches are needed for there to be significant effect and success in the ways these groups assist poor people. The purpose for this activity is to increase food production and agricultural income.
USAID Role and Achievements to Date: Because of program restructuring, the title and number of this activity are new. However, the actual work is a combination of ongoing and new actions, and thus this data sheet includes commentary on achievements to date. The Africa Regional Program develops new approaches to making small farmer agriculture more productive for use both by a wide range of African and international groups and by USAID field missions. Program design and implementation is closely coordinated with the Africa Food Security Initiative (AFSI). Achievements to date include: improved agricultural research on farmer needs in Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, Mali, and southern Africa through work with a donor-African consortium; rapid provision of seeds in crisis situations such as Angola and Rwanda through support to groups of African scientists developing better food crop varieties; increased smallholder incomes from high value exports for U.S. herb tea production in Mali and South Africa as a result of the program's pairing of U.S. and African business partners with farmer groups; more effective and equitable corn markets, processing and availability in Eastern and Southern Africa resulting from program-funded dissemination of policy information; and strengthened African agribusiness associations (including the Southern African Agribusiness Federation and Herbs, Spices, and Essential Oils Federation) which can better promote joint ventures and government trade and investment reforms.
Description: This program increases the capacity of a broad range of African institutions to more effectively "grow" small farmer agricultural production, incomes, and business opportunities. The program also helps these institutions, as well as USAID Missions, identify key policy and program approaches to eliminate bottlenecks to faster growth in small farmer agriculture and in the businesses-serving farmers. This objective covers three closely related sets of activities:
1. Sustainable development and transfer of food and agricultural technologies that can increase incomes, expand food supply, and enhance environmental quality: USAID will build on past achievements in creating and sustaining regional technology successes through the activities listed below:
-- Making African and all donor technology work more responsive to farmers by helping African subregional organizations in West Africa, East Africa, and Southern Africa take on regional and donor coordination functions (supported under the Africa Food Security Initiative),
-- Leadership training on making research effectively help farmers for those young African scientists who have been thrust into management roles in technology institutes,
-- Helping technology institutes become self-sustaining by identifying client support and interest groups among farmers and agribusiness firms,
-- Supporting innovative business-public sector partnerships to more quickly move high impact technologies off research stations into smallholder fields and into small businesses, and
-- Training African researchers to identify the impact of their technology work on the jobs, incomes, and economies in their countries.
2. Agricultural marketing and support services to facilitate efficient and fair private sector fertilizer, seed, processing, and purchasing services to create incentives for agricultural growth:
-- Equipping African agribusinesses and business associations with the tools to enter into viable agricultural trade and investment partnerships and affect government policy,
-- Using senior U.S. and African expertise to expand the capacity of regional policy networks to analyze and formulate policy credibly with African governments,
-- Seminars in East and West Africa for government ministers on food and agriculture policy reform and about agriculture's role in job creation and economic growth,
-- Assisting African businesses, donors, and regional organizations with a new focus on the role of microenterprises as subcontractors, purchasers and farm suppliers, and
-- Identifying and promoting, with AFSI support, regional solutions to the persistent problems of farm input supply, farm and agribusiness financing, and regional commodity markets.
3. Better linkages between agriculture and the nutritional status of children (in conjunction with African Food Security Initiative activities):
-- support to African agricultural research institutes and firms to expand food fortification. and the production and distribution of micronutrient-rich foods and
-- seminars for policy makers to better target agricultural activities on reducing malnutrition.
Host Country and other donors: Host institutions include regional organizations and groups of African food crop researchers trying to improve and spread corn, bean, potato, rice, sorghum, root crop, tree crop, and natural resource management techniques and seed varieties to small farmers; associations of private firms and of farmers such as the Southern African Agribusiness Federation; the Special Program on African Agricultural Research with 10 donors and all African technology institutes; and donor-government policy and program groups trying to jointly plan and program resources, including all major European and multilateral donors.
Beneficiaries: The program's direct beneficiaries are policy makers, program managers, and technical staff who are all important to the design and implementation of development activities. Specifically this activity benefits African National Agricultural Research Systems in Ghana, Uganda and Kenya, subregional organizations like the Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa that coordinate agricultural research and policies, and the World Council of Credit Unions (WCCU). However, the ultimate beneficiaries are poor rural people whose incomes and nutritional status will increase.
Principal Contractors, Grantees, and Agencies: Southern African Coordinating Committee on Agricultural Research, Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa, the Special Program for African Agricultural Research, the East and West African crop improvement networks in beans, corn, rice, sorghum, root crops, potatoes, tree crops, and natural resource management; AMEX International, Abt Associates, the Herb Foundation, Africa Business Roundtable; Universities: Florida A and M, Michigan State, Purdue, North Carolina A and T, University of Maryland (Eastern Shore and College Park), Virginia Tech, Georgia, Nebraska; U.S. Dept. of Agriculture.
Major Results Indicators:
A revised set of indicators and targets for measuring achievements for this activity are under development, and are likely to include: the number of country technology programs which have adopted a reform and revitalization program; the number of USAID missions and countries that have improved agricultural input or output marketing programs, policies or strategies; and the number of USAID missions and other partner institutions incorporating nutrition into their agricultural programs.
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET PROGRAM: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE AND NUMBER: Adoption of Improved Information and Communication Practices by Development Policy Makers and Practitioners in Africa Increases: 698-SO04
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999 $1,240,000 DA; $1,260,000 CSD
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003
Purpose: African countries recently have shown movement toward more open economies and societies; even so, there remain formidable constraints on sustainable development. Access to information is a fundamental success factor in the development process, as donors have sought to expose developing country policy makers and practitioners to new or different approaches to solving problems, producing goods or educating their citizens. This activity will foster the adoption of improved information technology and communication practices by African policy makers and development practitioners.
USAID Role and Achievements to Date: Because of program restructuring, the title and number of this activity are new. However, the actual work is a combination of ongoing and new actions, and thus this data sheet includes commentary on achievements to date. New information and communication approaches - in which the United States is the world leader - make information more accessible, transferable and manageable. Through this Regional Program, USAID is helping its development partners to obtain and master these new technologies and approaches and fostering more rapid and sustainable development. To date, some of the achievements of this activity that includes the Leland Initiative consist of: reducing by 80% the wholesale Internet access prices in Mozambique, Benin and six other countries; establishing reliable, high-capacity national Internet gateways in Mali, Guinea and five other countries; opening up the monopoly telecommunication sectors of Guinea, Ivory Coast and five other countries to private sector providers, more than 30 in all; providing electronic connectivity to thousands of individual subscribers; and training more than five hundred USAID partner institutions in the use of the Internet as a development tool.
Description: This activity works with host country governments, African telephone companies, African entrepreneurs and development institutions and the U.S. private sector to introduce modern information and communication practices. USAID assists its key development partners in three broad, interdependent areas:
To promote access to and increased use of modern information and communication practices, U.S. policy experts will train African telephone companies in these areas: 1) cost-based tariff and business planning as a way of bringing wholesale Internet access prices down to an affordable level; 2) establishing open and transparent mechanisms for attracting private entrepreneurs to become Internet access providers; and 3) demonstrating approaches to encourage the free flow of information through the Internet. The impact at the host country level will be policies will be modified to enhance the use of modern communications.
USAID provides U.S. technical experts to identify reliable satellite circuitry, install the latest Internet and related technology, train national telephone company technicians to manage a "customer-focused" twenty-four hour a day national Internet gateway, and provide an electronic "Help Desk" for troubleshooting support. This activity will increase the supply of information and communication technologies in host countries.
To enhance the use of information and communication approaches to achieve sustainable development, USAID partner institutions will be assisted so that they can link up to the Internet. USAID partners will be trained to use the power of the Internet to achieve sustainable development; and, provide technical assistance to develop effective information and communication strategies.
For FY 1999, USAID along with host governments will modernize Internet pricing, private sector access and related policies in countries such as Ghana, Kenya, Malawi and five others, implementing the cost-based tariff models developed by leading U.S. technology firms. The activity will work in Senegal, Ghana and Mozambique to strengthen host country capacity to flexibly regulate - rather than strangle - telecommunications services. It will also establish national Internet gateways in Malawi and Eritrea; and extend Internet connectivity in secondary cities of current partner countries in Mali, Mozambique, Zambia and Guinea through emerging U.S. technology and expertise. Because many African countries lack traditional telephone infrastructure and systems, this activity will introduce and pilot new wireless technology to link neighborhoods and institutions not reached by the local phone companies to the Internet.
To build the capacity of Africans to fully utilize the potential of new communication systems, this activity will train approximately 1000 USAID partner institutions in Uganda, South Africa, Kenya and other countries on the uses of the Internet as a development tool. Success stories, and results of this activity's pilot projects will be disseminated throughout the continent to demonstrate the viable uses of the Internet in school-to-school partnerships programs, for strengthening business associations, and linking democracy advocates throughout Africa.
Host Country and Other Donors: USAID closely coordinates its efforts with the World Bank, U.N. Development Program (UNDP) and a host of bilateral donors in order to eliminate duplication and assure the consistent application of proven policy approaches. Stimulated by USAID activities, the UNDP is mounting a $10 million effort to extend Internet connectivity in several additional countries and the World Bank, foundations and bilateral donors are incorporating USAID practices in school-to-school Internet partnerships and Internet-based business linkages.
Beneficiaries: Examples of direct beneficiaries are the primary school students and faculty members in Ghana, businessmen and women in Mali, local government officials in Benin, communication ministries' personnel throughout sub-Saharan Africa, and private sector Internet Service Providers in eight selected Leland Initiative countries.
Principal Contractors, Grantees and Agencies: USAID works with the Department of State on policy issues, Science Applications International Corporation for hardware acquisition and training, and the Department of Agriculture for technical support. The Academy for Educational Development is the principal contractor for training on development applications.
Major Results Indicators:
Indicator Baseline Target
(1995) (2003)
- USAID partner countries in Africa with supportive policy 0 20
environments, national and secondary city Internet access
and a vigorous Internet Service Provider industry
- USAID partner institutions using the Internet to access 5 150
or deliver information critical to their success
(Average number of institutions per country)
- Information "partnerships" linking U.S. and African 0 1000
institutions
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE AND NUMBER: Progress Accelerated in the Development and Spread of Strategically-viable Natural Resource Management Systems: 698-SO05
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999: $5,650,000 DA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003
Purpose: African livelihoods depend on access to a great variety of biological resources for food, fuel, medicine, housing, and economic security. Access has been historically controlled by the national government. The equitable and environmentally sound devolution of legal authority to manage resources to lower levels of government and to communities, and increasing the role for the private sector, are challenges facing Africa. The purpose of this program is to build the capacity of African governments, private institutions and Africans at the community level to manage their natural resources in a way that increases productivity and overall economic welfare.
USAID Role and Achievement to Date: Because of program restructuring, the title and number of this activity are new. However, the actual work is a combination of ongoing and new actions, and thus this data sheet includes commentary on achievements to date. USAID allocates significant resources every year to the environment sector in Africa. Regional Program staff represent much of USAID's institutional knowledge, experience, and continuity in the sector, and they work with various partners to maximize impact of USAID resources. The program increases the use in Africa of the knowledge, tools, institutions and experience gained from the efforts of African institutions, U.S. and international private voluntary organizations, other donors, and USAID Missions in helping to manage Africa's natural resource base for the mutual long term benefit of Africans and the world. Examples of achievements to which the Regional Program has contributed significantly are: developing income earning opportunities through natural resource management in a variety of ways and countries promoting village-managed tourism enterprises in Namibia and veld product commercialization in Botswana, establishing revenue sharing plans with National Parks in Kenya, and developing tourism services in Madagascar; privatizing government-run hotels and services in Uganda; and promoting tree planting and agroforestry practices in Senegal. In addition, the program works closely with the World Bank to improve the effectiveness of individual host country National Environmental Action Plans.
Description: The Regional Program conducts and facilitates analyses to develop natural resources management (NRM) programs that contribute to broad-based and ecologically sustainable increases in rural productivity. The program will support work in: (1) tropical forest management and conservation of biodiversity (including the Central African Regional Program for the Environment - CARPE); (2) natural resource policy and energy, including promoting improvement to multi-donor planning, and integrating energy issues into USAID's Global Climate Change planning; (3) sustainable agriculture including agroforestry, integrated pest management, soil conservation and soil fertility improvement, and (4) environmental and social impact monitoring and Geographic Information Systems applications, including assisting Senegal, Malawi and Madagascar in the tracking of the impacts of USAID investments.
Africans have begun to manage their natural resource base in a manner which is economically and ecologically sustainable. Working in up to 10 countries over the next seven years, the program will continue to help make this happen by assisting to put into place essential enabling conditions such as improved tenure and human capacity, greater local empowerment, and better institutions - some of which are site or country-specific, and some of which are spatial, regional or continental in nature. USAID's approach includes drawing out lessons learned, transferring them to other countries, and assisting in developing improved planning and implementation methods.
The program also will conduct the following activities: support and expand field implementation of environmental programs, primarily with other USAID bilateral programs (Malawi, Tanzania, Madagascar,
Guinea, and Uganda) and also with other regional programs, in southern Africa and in the Greater Horn of Africa; continue to work in central Africa, with a planned extension to the new Democratic Republic of the Congo (former Zaire) and strengthening of the consortium of African and donor governments addressing development and environmental problem in the Congo river basin; improve the flow of electronic communication, including the internet, in order to increase use of environmental and NRM information; and strengthen the analytical capacity of partners in Africa, to assess and advise on environmental trends and management of the environment.
Host Country and Other Donors: The program works with a number of African governments, from the national to the village level, as well as international organizations and other donors. It has a rich array of partners active in protecting the environment in Africa. While regionally influential, USAID financial resources represent only a small amount compared to the total efforts of other donors, both bilateral and multilateral, African governments and the private sector. By working closely with development partners, the impact of USAID's development assistance is significantly increased.
Beneficiaries: The immediate beneficiaries of USAID's efforts are the African policy makers and analysts who will develop and support improved NRM policies and programs that will benefit everyone, particularly the poor. Examples of specific beneficiaries include the local communities who are empowered to manage their natural resources in Zimbabwe, Uganda, and Madagascar, women's groups in Senegal as they conserve their natural resources, and Namibian youth groups will be receive training in environmental protection.
Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: USAID works with American and African non-profit organizations, such as the African-led Network for the Environment and Sustainable Development in Africa, World Wildlife Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society, the World Resources Institute, and institutional contractors, such as the International Resources Group and Management Systems International, to help implement this program. USAID also works with U.S. agencies such as the Department of Agriculture, including the Forest Service, and the Peace Corps. USAID helps U.S.-based non-profit organizations to develop and strengthen African organizations directly.
Major Results Indicators:
Baseline Target
(1995) (2003)
- Number of countries in which key enabling conditions 12 16
are established
- Number of countries which have multiple donor support 21 40
for National Environmental Action Plans
- Number of countries with strengthened local institutional 4 10
and USAID capacities to support the development of
appropriate infrastructure for sustainable natural resource
management
- Number of countries with income-generating activities 4 10
established through the exploitation of natural resources
in a self sustaining and environmentally sound manner
- Number of countries with scaled-up community-based 6 14
resource use initiatives
- Number of countries where government policy change 6 12
resulted positive changes in local wildlife and other
natural resources management
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE AND NUMBER: Adoption of Policies and Strategies for Increased Sustainability, Quality, Efficiency and Equity of Basic Education Services: 698-SO06
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY1999, $2,800,000 CSD
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY2003
Purpose: Basic numeracy and literacy are fundamental building blocks for broad-based, sustainable development. Less than 50% of Africa's children ever enter primary school, and less than 50% of these complete primary school. To address this barrier to development, USAID is focusing approximately 70% of its basic education resources on Africa. Working with a variety of partners in the field, the Regional Program aims to increase sustainability, efficiency, and equity in the provision of basic education services, and to extend and strengthen an enabling environment which allows these improvements to flourish.
USAID Role and Achievements to Date: Although this activity is new, previous achievements in basic education were obtained. Since 1989, the Regional Program has played a central role in: the design and execution of eight new programs in Ethiopia, Uganda, Malawi, Namibia, Benin, Ghana, Guinea and Mali; the modification of an ongoing program in South Africa; and the successful graduation from USAID support of programs in Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland. Examples of specific achievements where the Regional Program has made substantial contributions are: increased attention in country budgets to education, with Malawi increasing its spending on basic education 46% between 1992 and 1995 and Uganda increasing primary teacher salaries eightfold; greater community level participation, with the number of regional parent associations in Benin increasing by 67% since 1991 and that of education-related non-governmental organizations by 92%; greater equity and access, with the number of girls successfully completing primary school in Benin increasing by 70%, and gross enrollment rates in Malawi increasing by 71%, all since 1991; and improved quality, with a 67% improvement in English and 20% improvement in math in Ghana since 1990 and a 33% increase in the number of Ugandan children completing six years of primary schooling. In addition, the Regional Program has supported the creation of the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA), an African non-governmental organization which fosters partnership between and among Africans and donors, and - through the ADEA - the creation of the Forum for African Women Educationalists, an African private voluntary organization that now has national chapters in thirty-one countries and supports USAID's bilateral programs.
Description: The Regional Program recently completed the Agency's "Strategic Framework for Basic Education in Africa," drafted with over a hundred partners in and beyond Africa and USAID, and will use this framework to guide new education sector assessments, possibly in Liberia, Angola, the Congo, and a new program in Zambia, as well as several follow-on program designs in countries such as Uganda and Benin. The program also will continue its work in the following areas:
- education reform support and policy formation;
- systems management;
- delivery of instructional services; and
- equity enhancing measures.
As bilateral programs succeed in strengthening host government ability to manage education reform, the Regional Program will concentrate increasingly on improving quality at the classroom level, with an emphasis on developing African capacity for the assessment of student learning, in order to see whether and how inputs such as teacher-training and textbooks are making a difference in the lives of primary school students. The program will also focus on enabling schools to help children deal with issues of health, the environment, and democracy by increasing synergy among and between schools, relevant government ministries, private voluntary organizations, and communities. To meet the growing demand
for access to primary education, the program will work through policy reform and private voluntary organizations to support cost-sharing partnerships between communities, schools, and governments.
To enhance the enabling environment, the program will continue its leadership role in the Association for Development of Education in Africa, with particular attention to introducing countries coming out of crisis, such as Liberia, to this resource, and with attention to new working groups created on distance education and community/school linkages.
Host Country and Other Donors: The program's host country connections are made primarily through African regional institutions, most notably the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA). Other donors with whom the program interacts include the World Bank, foundations such as Rockefeller, and bilateral development agencies including the Canadians, French and Scandinavians.
Beneficiaries: The Africa Regional Program typically does not implement activities at the field level in a way similar to one of USAID's field missions. Instead, it has direct impact on how programs are designed and the selection of implementation approaches, and on regional and international associations and institutions active on a variety of development issues important to Africa. As a result, the program's immediate beneficiaries are African policy-makers and analysts who help develop and make use of the policies strategies developed through program support. Ultimately, improved policies and programs will benefit a broad range of Africans, particularly the poor and children who are targeted by USAID's bilateral programs.
Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: Contracts with the Academy for Educational Development and American Institute for Research; an interagency agreement with the Department of Labor; and grants to U.S. institutions such as the National Council for Negro Women (NCNW), regional networks such as the ADEA, and African organizations such as the Forum for African Women Educationalists.
Major Results Indicators: (Note: The percentage figures given as indicators are based on the median values for the ten countries where USAID supports basic education: Ghana, Mali, Guinea, Benin, Ethiopia, Uganda, Malawi, Swaziland, South Africa and Namibia.)
Baseline Target
(1990) (2003)
Gross enrollment ratio-primary school 72.0% 80.0%
Girls as a % of enrollment 44.5% 48.0%
% of government recurrent budget to education1 20.0% 20.0%
% of education budget to primary education1 37.5% 37.5%
1 Note this indicator will measure the continuing support to education by governments in face of inflation and an increase needs for all basic services for a growing population.
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE/NUMBER: Adoption of Policies and Strategies for Increased Sustainability, Quality, Efficiency and Equity of Health Services: 698-SO07
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999, $16,100,000 CSD
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003
Purpose: The purpose of this strategic objective is to improve the sustainability, quality, efficiency and equity of health services in Africa including programs that control infectious diseases and support child survival interventions. Although there has been substantial progress in reducing child morbidity and mortality in Africa in the past decade, both child and maternal mortality still remain at globally unacceptable levels, far exceeding any other region. To further reduce these high rates, greater attention has to be paid to improving sustainability including increasing African capacity to manage and finance health services and to improving quality of care. In addition, there are a number of areas of "special importance" because of their overall contribution to African child and maternal mortality. These areas include malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies, malaria, vaccine-preventable disease and essential obstetric care. Because of the limited resources available in Africa, it is essential to promote approaches and innovative strategies that increase efficiencies and ensure equitable access to services.
USAID Role and Achievements to Date: USAID has been a lead donor in Africa in supporting child survival and other health interventions to address the major causes of child and maternal morbidity and mortality both through bilateral and regional initiatives. Although this is a new activity, USAID has obtained numerous successes in previous child survival and health programs. In the past ten years, infant mortality has decreased by 16%; immunization coverage has increased from an average of 30% in the 1980s to about 60% in the 1990s; use of oral rehydration to treat diarrheal diseases has increased from 5% in 1985 to 45% in the 1990s. The Africa Regional Program has contributed to these changes by supporting a major regional immunization program throughout Africa, working with key partners to develop a regional immunization strategy with a focus on sustainability and developing African expertise to better manage programs. In just the past three years, immunization coverage has increased 10 percentage points in the region and 15 out of 18 of countries supported by USAID grants have increased measles immunization coverage. In addition USAID has worked with the United Nations Childern's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) to promote a new integrated approach to managing childhood illness that improves the quality of patient diagnosis, treatment and counseling for the leading causes of child mortality, and this approach now is being implemented in over 10 countries across Africa.
Description: Through this strategic objective, USAID is a leader in ensuring that sustainability and quality of care issues are incorporated into strategies and approaches developed by ministries of health and other donors to addressing health problems in Africa. The Africa Regional Program also will ensure that appropriate approaches and strategies are developed and adopted to effectively address malnutrition, malaria, other infectious diseases, vaccine preventable disease and essential obstetric care--as the leading causes of child and maternal mortality on the continent. This activity involves a variety of separate approaches: 1) African capacity building -- the development of African expertise and strengthening African regional institutions to analyze constraints and develop appropriate African-relevant policies and strategies, improve program management, design, monitoring and evaluation; 2) development and implementation of regional programs aimed at improving nutrition and micronutrient adequacy, malaria, vaccine-preventable diseases, other infectious diseases, essential obstetric care; 3) development of innovative strategies focusing on improvements of quality of care and sustainability, equity and efficiencies of health services through demonstration projects, operations research, analysis; 4) dissemination of lessons learned and state-of-the-art information through regional forums, networks, and study tours; and 5) provision of technical and strategic assistance for design, monitoring and evaluation of innovative policies, strategies and programs.
Implementation includes:
- Development of national malaria control strategies in approximately 39 countries;
- Testing innovative approaches to control and treat malaria in Zambia, Malawi, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique;
- Development of sustainable approaches to immunization; in collaboration with UNICEF and the European Union, the program has increased capacity of 12 countries to purchase some of their own vaccines;
- Support to African nutrition networks and institutions to strengthen and expand training programs for nutrition program managers;
- Documenting lessons learned on resource mobilization, improving hospital efficiencies, and equity across the region;
- Development and dissemination of new approaches to improve home and community prevention and management of childhood illness;
- Testing strategies to protect the poor and promote equitable access to health services in five countries and dissemination of lessons learned throughout the region;
- Accelerating the integrated management of childhood illness (IMCI) approach in facilities throughout Africa to improve quality of care;
- Testing strategies to improve essential obstetric care in all subregions in Africa; and
- Evaluating the impact of immunization and malaria control and treatment strategies/programs in target countries.
These activities will complement and enhance USAID's bilateral programs and will be selected using the following criteria that they a) contribute to solve priority problems generic to many countries, b) complement regional strategies and initiatives and because of economies of scale they will improve efficient utilization of financial and human resources to solve problems, and c) will have applicable common experiences across countries and regions so that lessons learned can be disseminated to others for accelerated improved programming throughout Africa.
Host Country and Other Donors: USAID works closely with African regional institutions and other donors such as the WHO's Africa Regional Office, UNICEF, the World Bank and other bilateral donors to build consensus around priority problems and develop regional strategies that can be supported jointly by the different groups. USAID supports Africans to take the lead in developing African relevant approaches and to leverage other donors to work together with USAID to support these approaches.
Beneficiaries: The immediate beneficiaries are African decision makers and program managers. Improved policies will benefit everyone, particularly the poor, in countries where this program is implemented. The ultimate beneficiaries will include mothers and children in African nations.
Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: This activity will be implemented through African institutions, other donors with relevant technical and strategic strengths such as UNICEF and the World Health Organization Africa Regional Office, U.S. collaborating technical agencies and private volunteer organizations.
Major Results Indicators: Baseline Target
(1996) (2003)
Countries developing and implementing National Immunization Plans 8 46
following regional guidelines and promoting sustainability
Countries adopting IMCI strategies 3 24
Countries utilizing malaria control program monitoring and 4 20
evaluation indicators and procedures;
Number of child survival programs with effective nutrition 2 10
components and micronutrients
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE AND NUMBER: Adoption of Policies and Strategies for Increased Sustainability and Quality of Family Planning Services: 698-SO08
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999: $1,000,000 DA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003
Purpose : The race between population growth and economic development in sub-Saharan Africa is one of the great dramas of the modern world. Africa's 1997 population of about 614 million is now growing at roughly 2.7 percent per year and, if unchanged, the population would double in just 26 years or one generation. The success of African population programs over the next 10 years will have a direct effect on Africa's sustainable development for the next 50 years. The success of voluntary family planning by Africans will largely determine the outcome of this drama. USAID must work with Africans on the adoption of improved policies and strategies for sustainable and quality family planning services with collaborative approaches, vigor and resources.
USAID Role and Achievements to Date : Although this is a new activity, previous USAID Africa family planning programs have had substantial achievements. For the past 20 years, USAID has been the largest provider of technical assistance and technology transfer to African family planning programs. During that time, there have been dramatic changes in African government policies from opposition to vigorous support of family planning. In East and Southern Africa in particular, the tremendous increase in use of modern family planning practices has led to documented decreases in fertility rates and thus average family size. Because no overseas program can field the full spectrum of technical talent necessary to generate continuous improvements in program operations, the Africa Regional Program has taken a major responsibility for designing, funding and managing forward-looking operations research studies that test better approaches for service delivery of family planning practices. Dissemination and adoption of the results of these studies have led to increased attention to and resources for improving family planning services in several major African urban centers, adoption in several countries of tested approaches for promoting adolescent reproductive health, increased attention to and resources for promoting family planning among post-abortion patients, and adoption in several countries of policy guidelines and training materials for integrating family planning, child health, and sexually transmitted infections (STI) and HIV/AIDS services.
Description : The Africa Regional Program aims to increase the adoption of policies and strategies for increased sustainability and quality of family planning services through addressing under served populations such as adolescents and males, improving urban family planning services, and developing effective strategies for integrating family planning, maternal/child health and STI/HIV/AIDS prevention services.
Activities include supporting research on new approaches to lowering fertility rates and improving reproductive health through working with senior health officials and prominent journalists to improve data collection and reporting on population and health issues, identifying effective ways to provide post-abortion contraceptive services so that the incidence of repeat abortion will be reduced, experimenting with approaches for adolescents to protect them from unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS, supporting analytical work and pilot efforts to increase male participation in family planning and STI prevention, and working with regional research institutions to develop and implement advocacy strategies to better reach policy makers and move critical reproductive health issues forward on the agenda.
Specific ongoing activities include: a) urban family planning case studies in four large African cities leading to adoption of data collection and operational methodologies (such as projecting future demand) in four more cities b) case studies in six countries to determine the impact of integrating maternal and
child health programs and family planning programs with STI/HIV/AIDS prevention programs and identify best practices c) analysis of the cost-effectiveness of "dedicated" or vertically-organized delivery of family planning services vis-a-vis combined or integrated service delivery d) supporting a study examining the consequences of unsafe abortion in Africa and assisting USAID missions to assess how post-abortion contraceptive services can be integrated into ongoing population programs e) in collaboration with a regional research institution, mobilizing senior print and radio editors in francophone West Africa to produce high quality articles and broadcasts reflecting data-based information f) promoting the inclusion of male responsibility for family planning and STI/HIV/AIDS prevention on the agendas of regional organizations such as the Francophone Reproductive Health Network and mobilizing interest and funding from other donors and non-governmental organizations (NGO) for supporting conferences in anglophone and francophone Africa programs to increase male involvement in family planning.
New activities will include: a) disseminating study results and scaling up implementation of best practices identified from Africa Regional Program-funded operations research on adolescent reproductive health programs, urban services, and integration of family planning, maternal and child health, and STI/HIV/AIDS services b) continuing with a new initiative in six countries to upgrade and streamline logistics management of contraceptive commodities and essential drugs.
Host Country and Other Donors: Engaging host country resources and African institutions such as the Center for African Family Studies in Kenya and the Center for Research in Population and Development in Mali are central to USAID's work. Other donors include the U. N. Population Fund, the World Bank, and the European Union, and bilateral donors such as the United Kingdom and Canada and the Scandinavian countries. There is close donor collaboration on research and analytical findings through technical exchanges and donor coordination reviews and partners are encouraged to join USAID in supporting expansion of new program approaches.
Beneficiaries : Africans of reproductive age are the primary beneficiaries. More broadly, the host country economies benefit from lowered fertility in terms of reduced burdens upon schools, health services, and food availability.
Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: USAID contracts with John Snow, Inc., the Population Council, Management Sciences for Health, the Academy for Educational Development, CARE and the Western Consortium for Public Health. Tulane University, Johns Hopkins University, Morehouse School of Medicine and the Universities of North Carolina and Michigan to support this activity.
Major Results Indicators: Baseline Target
(1994) (1999)
1. Number of programs incorporating appropriate policies and strategies 0 8
for provision of reproductive health services to adolescents based on
operations research and best practices;
2. Number of Family Planning/Maternal and Child Health programs incorpor- 0 6
ating appropriate policies and strategies e.g., standard protocols, supplies,
and trained staff to assess, refer, and/or treat STIs;
3. Number of urban family planning programs that implement strategic plans 0 8
based on systematic service analyses and projected demand.
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE AND NUMBER: Adoption of Cost-effective Strategies to Prevent the Spread and to Mitigate the Impact of HIV/AIDS: 698-SO09
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999: $ 2,900,000 CSD
INITIAL OBLIGATIONS: FY 1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003
Purpose: It is now more than 15 years since the emergence of the HIV/AIDS pandemic was first recognized and today it poses an increasing threat to sustainable development in an environment of limited resources. There remains many uncertainties about specific intervention activities and methods of implementation that will be the most efficient and cost-effective for its prevention and mitigation. This activity will help USAID and its partners adopt cost-effective strategies to prevent the spread and to mitigate the impact of HIV/AIDS.
USAID Role and Achievement to Date: Although this is a new activity, previous USAID projects have had achievements by working with host country and international institutions for preventing and mitigating HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. The Africa Regional Program achievements include:
- Development of the Private Sector AIDS Policy Presentation which the Joint United Nations
Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has endorsed and plans to disseminate worldwide.
- Micro-economic assessment of the impact of AIDS in Tanzania upon which the World Bank
built its global statement regarding the importance of targeting prevention efforts.
- Development and dissemination of multi-sectoral AIDS briefs (in French, Spanish, and
Portuguese) which provide guidance to countries for sector-specific approaches
(e.g. Commercial and Subsistence Agriculture, Education, Health, Manufacturing,
Mining, Tourism, and Military) for HIV/AIDS prevention and mitigation. Working
with the European Commission (EC), the briefs have become effective tools in policy dialogue. - Increased civil and military cooperation fostered by the new non governmental organization,
the Civil-Military Alliance to Combat HIV and AIDS, and its network of 15 east and
southern African countries which together promote synergistic use of country resources.
- Improved understanding of the epidemiology and program implications of recent
perceived decreases in HIV seroprevalence rates among some young Ugandans.
- Increased understanding of the magnitude, impact, and programmatic options for addressing
the growing tuberculosis epidemic in Africa and the development of improved strategic approaches to cost-effective control of tuberculosis as it relates to HIV/AIDS.
- Increasing understanding of the effectiveness of integrating HIV prevention with
maternal/child health and family planning services leading to improved programs in
Botswana, Uganda, Kenya, and elsewhere.
Description: USAID is evaluating the cost-effectiveness of HIV/AIDS approaches to understand what interventions and strategies really work. The bulk of the research will occur in Africa. Using this new information, Africans will improve their programs for preventing HIV transmission and reducing the impact of HIV/AIDS. Intervention studies focusing on changing social and cultural norms - instead of on changing isolated risk sexual behaviors - may have a wider and more lasting impact on the spread of HIV/AIDS. The Africa Regional Program will continue, therefore, to investigate the prevention and mitigation of HIV/AIDS through several avenues. As a result, Africans will improve policies, strategies and programmatic capacity to design, manage, and evaluate HIV/AIDS programs, with an emphasis on improved surveillance and evaluation methods -- at both national and sub-national levels.
This HIV/AIDS activity will also increase the capacity of Africans to manage their programs and make decisions using local evidence. This capacity building involves training, mentoring, and feedback, and will be tailored to the capability of the individuals and institutions themselves to collect, manage, analyze,
and interpret data. Training in logistics management for drugs and commodities, essential for effective HIV/AIDS programs and improving quality assurance will be other foci for capacity building in Africa. USAID and its partners will build capacity of African social scientists, to conduct research and intervention studies which address identified social norms that affect HIV transmission. In summary, the Regional Program promotes a multi-sectoral approach, conducting cost-effectiveness research and analyses to determine the optimal use of resources; and will disseminate the results to improve African programs.
Ongoing activities include:
- Studying the cost-effectiveness of various treatment and prevention programs for tuberculosis
in the presence and absence of HIV/AIDS and disseminating results,
- facilitating civil and military cooperation, in collaboration with UNAIDS, to maximize each
sector's comparative advantage in the prevention and mitigation of HIV/AIDS, and
- Developing management tools based on computer models, which simulate the impact of
interventions on HIV/AIDS for informing advocacy and policy decisions.
New activities will :
- Improve HIV surveillance systems in several African countries, beginning with Kenya, South
Africa, and Madagascar, to be more useful in program management,
- Enhance the use of previously collected data (e.g., Demographic and Health Surveys) on HIV
risk factor distribution to improve African program effectiveness, to begin in Ghana, Ethiopia,
and Tanzania, and
- Develop methodologies to use African country epidemiologic and behavioral data to evaluate
HIV/AIDS program impact and develop more effective strategies, with an initial focus on
Uganda, Zambia, and Malawi.
Host Country and Other Donors: The USAID works directly with its development partners and regional institutions to improve their programs, strategies, and policies. Significant collaboration with UNAIDS, the European Commission, and the World Bank have been established and joint activities are being planned and implemented, to maximize effectiveness in the field. For example, within individual countries, where appropriate, USAID works with all relevant multilateral and bilateral organizations, development partners, and African institutions to the greatest extent possible.
Beneficiaries: There are three tiers of beneficiaries in this HIV/AIDS prevention and mitigation program: the decision-makers and program managers who will use the program products of this activity to determine resource allocation priorities and program approaches, the scientists, service providers, and planners who will apply what they learned to improve the effectiveness of their activities, and finally the ultimate beneficiaries the Africans themselves.
Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: The International Center on Migration and Health on Geneva, the University of Natal in South Africa, the Academy for Educational Development, World Bank, National Research Council, Civil-Military Alliance to Combat HIV and AIDS, The Network of AIDS Researchers in East and Southern Africa, Kenya, The Commonwealth Health Secretariate for East, Central, and Southern Africa, Tanzania, WHO/AFRO in the Congo and Zimbabwe, Johns Hopkins University, Tulane University, The Futures Group, and the Population Council.
Major Results Indicators: The first of several indicators are being developed that will use standardized indicators such as number of countries, sectors and sub-populations reached, research initiatives begun, and institutions affected by this activity.
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE AND NUMBER: Policies, Strategies, and Programs Improved for Preventing, Mitigating, and Transiting Out of Crisis: 698-SO10
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999: $8,650,000 DA; $2,000,000 CSD
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003
Purpose: In the past five years, 40% of all worldwide crises occurred in Africa. Natural disasters, epidemics and conflict-related crises have occurred more frequently and with greater negative consequences in Africa than in any other region of the world. USAID works with sub-Saharan host countries and regional institutions as well as non-governmental organizations to strengthen national and subregional capacity for preventing and mitigating the impact of natural disasters, epidemic disease, and man-made crisis and to support developmental linkages to move crisis countries toward sustainable development.
USAID Role and Achievement to Date: This activity supports USAID's objective for the prevention, preparedness, and mitigation of natural and man-made crises through detection and early warning of drought, disease and pest outbreak, and conflict in sub-Saharan Africa. Although this is a new activity, prior projects have had notable achievements as described below.
The first component of this activity is for drought early warning and the identification of vulnerable persons without access to food. This activity, using data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), United States Geological Survey (USGS), provided critical and timely information to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) so that they could alert ministers of state and the private sector of the likelihood of drought in the 1997/1998 growing season caused by El Nino. Based on this information, SADC called a meeting in June 1997 of all ministers of agriculture from southern Africa to alert them to the potential impact of the current El Nino and recommended that they plan for a potential drought. As a result, all the southern African countries have developed contingency plans for a potential drought in 1998. More importantly the southern African nations have developed their own subregional solution to the potential problem.
Resolution of conflict is the second component of this activity. USAID helped support development of radio and television programming revealing how Africans themselves confront the challenges and conflicts they face. The programming demonstrates new ideas and tools Africans have used for conflict resolution.
The third area of this activity concerns preparedness and response to locust, grasshopper, and other emergency pest outbreaks in sub-Saharan Africa. Fortunately crisis situations have been limited to Madagascar in 1997, and USAID working closely with its mission in Madagascar and through the U. N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), provided $250,000 for support for locust control.
The fourth and final component under this activity provides funding for epidemic preparedness and response through the Africa Regional Office of the World Health Organization (WHO/AFRO). Because of this effort, the response time to meningitis outbreaks in Burkina Faso and Ghana has decreased by two months. This has led to fewer cases of disease and shorter period of the epidemics through earlier vaccinations.
Description: At a glance the elements of this activity may appear disconnected, but solutions for crises really present three activity areas for USAID to be involved in: prevention, mitigation, and transition.
Prevention requires that host country and subregional ministries of health, agriculture, and planning have the capacity to conduct surveys, gather and analyze data, and formulate response recommendations for decision-makers. This activity works with African ministries or through the U.N. partners with the objective of helping host countries become aware of the potential for drought, plague, civil conflict, or epidemics in their regions. The aim is to have ministries prepare emergency action plans for plagues, contingency plans for drought, and national surveillance plans for disease. Under this activity, USAID also works with civil society for the creation of country profiles for potential conflict situations that will provide host county and donors early warning.
Mitigation and response to conflict, drought, plague and epidemics require a close collaboration among African nations, subregional institutions, U.N. agencies, and USAID's donor partners. The Africa Regional Program supports an African lead approach that means, in many countries, the need for strengthening of institutional capacity of ministries, civil society, and African regional organizations. USAID encourages its development partners to contribute financially and to support strong host country institutions that can mount effective responses. This has been exceptionally true in USAID's support for vaccination against meningitis in west Africa in 1996 and 1997, drought mitigation in southern Africa in 1995 and 1996, and locust control in Eriteria in 1996 and Madagascar in 1997.
Transition to support developmental linkages to move crisis countries toward sustainable development is perhaps the most elusive and difficult of the three elements. This is a new area for USAID and includes support for analyses, operational studies, policy dialogue and consultations with donor agencies, governmental and non-governmental organizations, and a wide range of African organizations to document and share knowledge on approaches for integrated relief and development planning. Lessons learned from countries coming out of crisis will be used to document what was important for their transition. This activity will develop tools and methods for assessing trends, intervention costs, and program impact in crisis and transition situations.
FY 1999 funding will be used to continue to support African nations and sub-regional institutions as the El Nino phenomena develops with flooding and drought in Africa, as new plagues of disease and locust appear, and as there are potentials to avoid and mitigate civil conflict. USAID will create an endowment for a non governmental organization to work throughout Africa on conflict prevention, early warning, and resolution and it will enhance the ability of Africans to respond systematically to crisis in a time sensitive manner.
Host Country and Other Donors: USAID will continue working directly with sub-Saharan host countries, subregional institutions (Organization of African Unity, SADC, Inter-governmental Authority on Development), U.N. Organizations, (FAO, WHO/AFRO, World Food Program), the European Community and other donors.
Beneficiaries: The program's immediate beneficiaries are policy makers, program managers, and technical staff who are all important to the design and implementation of activities for crisis prevention and response. However, the ultimate beneficiaries of this activity are the Africans living in countries prone to drought, plagues of insects and disease, and manmade conflict.
Principle Contractors, Grantees, and Agencies: WHO, FAO, United States Department of Agriculture, NOAA, NASA, USGS, Associates in Rural Development, the African Center for Constructive Resolution of Disputes, Search for Common Ground.
Major Results Indicators: Indicators for this activity are being developed and may include the number of countries where early warning of conflict is present, number of biological pesticides for locust used, increases in disease surveillance in west Africa, and a consensus strategy achieved within southern Africa and the international community on the potential for drought with a priority listing of nations and subregions at risk.
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE AND NUMBER: Tools, Methods, and Approaches are Adopted and Effective in Improving Application of Environmental Procedures and Strategies in Missions and Africans' Programs: 698-SS01
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATIONS AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999: $500,000 DA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003
Purpose: Consistent with the National Environmental Policy Act, USAID has the responsibility to ensure that its overseas programs avoid or minimize environmental harm. USAID's environmental procedures were established to ensure that the environmental consequences of USAID-financed activities are identified and considered before activities begin. The procedures assist developing countries and USAID's implementing partners in Africa strengthen their capability to evaluate the potential environmental impact of their development strategy or program, and to select, implement and manage effective program activities.
USAID Role and Achievements to Date : The Africa Regional Program through this activity carries out the legislatively mandated, statutory responsibilities to ensure compliance with Title 22 of the Code of Federal Regulation, Part 216. In addition, USAID provides training for capacity development of its field missions and their partners for conducting environmental reviews and ensures that lessons learned are shared with all partners, so the environmental soundness of USAID's programs are ensured. The ultimate goal is to have African countries and institutions adopt their own environmental regulations and review procedures to protect the environment.
Although this activity is new, previous related activities have produced many achievements, such as in 1996, 60 Initial Environmental Examinations (IEE), and nine environmental assessments (EA) were completed in 28 countries across sub-Saharan Africa. Major progress was made in launching an environmental capacity-building process with private voluntary organizations (PVO) carrying out the P.L. 480 food aid program. Environmental assessment courses for PVO and host country partners were conducted in 10 countries co-funded by USAID, PVOs and the African Development Bank. USAID developed environmental guidelines in English and French and a training system specifically adapted by locations to maximize its effectiveness. In addition an Environmental Documentation Manual and a training series for the PVO community was developed.
Description: This activity is designed to support missions, partners and other donors so that they will be better able to incorporate environmental quality considerations into all programs and activities. The activity enables USAID missions to adhere to legislative requirements and USAID environmental procedures. This activity supports the environmental quality of programs and activities conducted within the Africa region, in conjunction with the network of regional and mission environmental officers by developing tools, methods and capacities to conduct environmental assessment, so as to maximize the environmental effectiveness of programs carried out by USAID and its partners in Africa.
Training is custom designed and provided for all partners so that they will develop the capability necessary to design and implement environmentally sound programs. Environmental quality is improved by ensuring that lessons learned in the area of program design and implementation are shared with all partners. The following are the key elements of this support activity:
- Analysis of environmental soundness of humanitarian and development programs in areas of food aid assistance, environment, urbanization, agricultural inputs, microenterprise and environment, water resources management, and environmental monitoring. Recommendations are disseminated through training. This fosters better understanding for environmental compliance and better decision making.
- Institutional capacity building to improve environmental review, planning and management, leading to implementation of environmentally sound activities by USAID missions, Africans and othercollaborators and partners. This is conducted with the World Bank's Capacity in Environmental Assessment in sub-Saharan Africa activity, and the Network for Environment and Sustainable Development in Africa;
- Integration of USAID Environmental Procedures into results planning, achieving and monitoring and applied by mission strategic objective teams. This is promoted through developing and promoting guidelines and conducting training courses for Mission Environmental Officers, as well as by individual travel by staff to field missions;
- Environmental planning that leads to incorporation of monitoring, assessment and mitigation into host country and mission development programs. An example is the joint formulation of Environmental Monitoring, Evaluation and Mitigation programs with Missions and host country ministries for Trade and Investment Programs in Ghana.
Host Country and Other Donors: All sub-Saharan African countries where USAID has programs are included. Other donors are the World Bank and the African Development Bank, who often co-fund the activities. For example, the African Development Bank has sponsored trainers at environmental assessment training courses for PVO collaborators organized by USAID. Many other instances of collaboration arise, such as through the Multi-donor Secretariat for Environmental Action Planning, hosted by the World Bank and funded by several donors, including USAID.
Beneficiaries: The Africa Regional Program typically does not implement activities at the field level in a way similar to one of USAID's field missions. Instead, it has direct impact on how programs are designed and the selection of implementation approaches, and on regional and international associations and institutions active on a variety of development issues important to Africa. As a result, this activity's immediate beneficiaries are policy makers, program managers, and technical staff who are all important to the design and implementation of development activities. However, the ultimate beneficiaries are the urban and rural poor, who benefit by participatory process of improved environmental planning and management.
Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: U.S. and African private voluntary organization and non-government organizations, such as Africare, CARE, and World Resources Institute, U.S. institutional contractors, U.S. universities such as Cornell and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Federal agencies such as U.S. Department of Agriculture, and multilateral organizations include the World Bank and the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization.
Major Results Indicators: The baseline and targets for this activity are being developed for the following indicators of performance:
1. PVOs adopt environmental screening and review methodologies in their field practices;
2. Title II PVO proposals improved in terms of meeting environmental standards;
3. Initial Environmental Examinations and Environmental Assessments co-prepared, reviewed and approved;
4. Mission Environmental Officers trained and are actively engaging environmental review principles and procedures by FY 2000;
5. Environmental Guidelines distributed by FY 1999;
6. Five case studies show evidence of improved environmental quality of programming;
7. Environmental assessment processes adopted by host countries and applied to development, planning and management;
8. Environmental monitoring systems adopted by USAID missions and linked to the host country's line ministry's data collection needs, analysis and reporting; and
9. Environmental management and portfolio planning meets standards of improved consistency and quality across USAID Africa missions.
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE/NUMBER: Polio Eradicated in Selected Countries in a Manner That Builds Sustainable Immunization Programs: 698-SPO1
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999, $4,600,000 CSD
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1998; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003
Purpose: The World Health Assembly and the World Summit for Children adopted the goal of global poliovirus eradication by the year 2000. Polio eradication strategies include: sustaining high vaccination coverage with oral polio vaccine (OPV); mass immunization campaigns where all children under five years of age receive OPV to interrupt poliovirus transmission; and surveillance to detect cases and document eradication. Sub-Saharan Africa is the greatest challenge in the final push for polio eradication. This activity is to support the global goal, in particular, in countries where USAID is working, in a manner which will contribute to the development of sustainable health systems and in particular those needed for the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI).
USAID Role and Achievements To Date: In 1996, the USAID Administrator announced the Agency's expanded participation in the worldwide polio-eradication effort. A USAID technical working group developed a framework for U.S. support to the eradication of polio. This framework and the related indicators to measure progress and impact was presented and discussed with other donor partners and United Nation (UN) agencies. The framework has enabled USAID to provide consistent and complementary financial and technical support to African countries in their efforts to eradicate this disease. With USAID support, thirty African countries conducted National Immunization Days for polio during the 1996-1997 period. As a result approximately 100 million children below age five have received two supplemental doses of oral polio vaccine. Surveillance for Acute Flaccid Paralysis (AFP) and poliovirus began in approximately half of the African countries in 1996. In 1997, no poliovirus was isolated in East Africa, including Southern Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia, or throughout southern Africa.
Description: USAID support for eradicating polio in Africa is designed to complement ongoing efforts to develop sustainable immunization delivery systems. This activity will continue to support the development and implementation of prevention and control strategies for improvement of regional and country-level capacities to eradicate polio in a manner which strengthens and sustains routine immunization service for childhood vaccine preventable diseases. To accomplish this goal and to strengthen EPI technical and administrative capacities in the region, improved institutional capacity at the regional level is needed to provide and transfer the skills and knowledge to country programs. To achieve this, the Africa Regional Program will provide support in the following areas:
- Development of effective partnerships to support the implementation of polio eradication and immunization/disease-control programs; a key component of the eradication effort is the formation of regional and country-level interagency coordinating committees. These committees facilitate donor coordination and enable countries to identify funding gaps based on annual and five-year action plans;
- Strengthening of selected immunization support systems in the public and private sector to achieve polio eradication. Planning, training and management along with the cold chain and social mobilization constitute the critical components of immunization programs that need to be strengthened in sub-Saharan African countries in order to achieve polio eradication;
- Improved planning and implementation for supplemental polio immunization activities including National Immunization Days (NIDS). During NIDS, the enormous influx of vaccine and the speed with which it must be dispatched to appropriate vaccination posts presents a formidable challenge to logistics systems and requires careful advance planning. The Africa Regional Program will support the preparation of detailed plans for NIDS and related training for national and district managers. Monitoring and evaluation will be built into supplementary immunization activities;
- Implementation of surveillance activities for polio which are integrated with surveillance for other infectious diseases. Since the ultimate purpose of immunization is to prevent diseases, cases and deaths from the target diseases will be counted regularly. Polio eradication efforts require a laboratory-based surveillance system that can be expanded to cover other vaccine-preventable diseases. Critical to the success of any such system, however, are sufficient personnel and the infrastructure for transmitting information in a timely way; and
- Development and use of information for continuously improving the quality of polio eradication activities. While the ultimate measure of success will be the eradication of disease, NIDS are a multi-year activity. The more effective they are, the greater the likelihood of achieving polio eradication sooner. Therefore, the collection and continuous use of information to improve NID activities is essential in order to optimally implement polio-eradication strategies in different country situations. The Africa Bureau will support activities such as the development of appropriate process indicators, south-to-south technical cooperation in NID planning, surveillance and response, and the sharing of lessons learned at country and regional fora.
Host Country and Other Donors: Host countries are responsible for implementing these disease control activities and contribute funding for health workers, logistics, training health information systems, and other operational expenses. The major funding partners outside of national governments include, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International, the World Health Organization and the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). The CDC and the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International contributed in 1996/1997 approximately $30 million for polio activities. USAID has contributed approximately $ 24 million to this effort in Africa.
Beneficiaries: All Africans, but especially children under five are the beneficiaries of this activity.
Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: This activity will be implemented through African ministries of health, other donors with relevant technical and strategic strengths such as UNICEF and WHO/AFRO, U.S. technical contractors under USAID's BASICS project as well as USAID's mission staff.
Major Results Indicators: The confirmation of the eradication of polio in sub-Saharan Africa by 2003.
ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM: AFRICA REGIONAL PROGRAM
TITLE AND NUMBER: Broad Based Support for Africa, 698-S030
STATUS: Ongoing
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1999: $10,800,000 CSD; $24,780,000 DA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1997; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: Ongoing
Purpose: A tenet of the USAID Africa Bureau's management goal is that Agency resources are budgeted and implemented for specific country and regional programs to the maximum extent possible. However, there are some Africa-wide issues and management needs that transcend national and/or regional boundaries. Under this activity, USAID provides necessary program management support for Africa-wide issues or support for sub-regional programs.
USAID Role and Achievements to Date: Activities funded under this objective have the common focus of enhancing the way the Africa Bureau manages its development resources. Funds have been used to service certain regional needs or where it is premature to budget resources to a specific country or group of countries yet funds can be used to plan and prepare for specific interventions. Over the years, funds have been invested in developing new support mechanisms, strengthening Africa Bureau program management, enhancing U.S. policy interests by building indigenous support and for developing fundamental and far-reaching economic policy reform programs. By the very nature of activities supported, measurable achievements are limited as there is a constant need to continue to invest in new and better ways to play a catalytic role in the enhancement of program management.
Description: The Africa Bureau funds a number of support activities under this strategic objective including: a) Program Development and Support to design, support and/or evaluate program, projects or activities, including pilot activities, where such activities can not be appropriately charged to an individual project or activity and are not directly related or linked to existing programs in a particular country or USAID Mission. Recent examples include workshops for improving the self-help program and preparation of a situation report which helped focus future programs in the northern tier of the Greater Horn of Africa. b) Africa Special Self Help Program which enables USAID Missions and U.S. Ambassadors (in specifically identified non-USAID presence countries) to respond quickly and with minimal red tape to requests from indigenous communities for small (generally $2,000 or less), self-help activities which have an immediate impact and will advance U.S. interests. Examples include drilling small wells for potable water; providing a brick-making machine for communities which want to enhance their houses or community buildings; classrooms, books or equipment needed to enable school children to be educated in their communities. c) The Democracy and Human Rights Fund administered jointly with the Department of State to provide small grants to indigenous organizations for activities which promote democratic principles and/or promote human rights. Examples include the promotion of full and fair media through support to local radio stations; strengthened judiciary through publication of court decisions; and women's rights through funding of women's advocacy groups. d) Support for InterAction, a U.S. private voluntary organization (PVO) consortium which brings together U.S. and African Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) and PVOs on a regular basis to discus Africa-wide issues and lessons learned. A grant of a couple hundred thousand dollars annually provides a critical collaborative mechanism between the NGO community and USAID and among U.S. and African PVOs and NGOs. e) A small activity program administered by the Peace Corps.
For budgetary purpose, funding is also reserved for a number of activities which USAID will undertake but where the specific country in which funding will be applied is undetermined at the time the budget is prepared. Such activities include microenterprise initiatives, programs for displaced children and orphans of war, the War Victims Fund, and transfers to the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research.
Host Country and Other Donors: By the nature of supporting program management rather than implementing country programs, there is little measura