Académique Documents
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DEVELOPMENTS
The Latest Issues and Trends in International Development and Humanitarian Assistance
IT A R Y
Contr
M I L
actors
NGO
SPACE
O V E R N M E N T
G November 2007
Vol. 25, No. 11
InterAction
MILITARY |GOVERNMENT |CONTRACTORS |USAID |AFRICOM
FEATURES
03 In this Issue: An Overview
04 New USAID Partner Vetting System Raises Red
Flags for NGOs
05 NGOs as Partners Not Problems: New U.S. Vetting
Regulation Would Undermine NGO Work
Renew your subscription today!
Visit www.interaction.org/monday 06 USAID’s Partner Vetting System: Is it Another
Unnecessary Regulatory Burden on the NGO
WE’RE LOOKING FOR BOOK REVIEWERS Community?
Love to read? Want to write a review? Contact Nasserie Carew at
ncarew@interaction.org 07 A Solution in Search of a Problem
08 NGO Space: Government Vetting – A Deeply
Flawed Initiative Formulated Without Adequate
Public Consultation
MONDAY DEVELOPMENTS 10 U.S. Military in Africa: AFRICOM Update
A
s nonprofits, we are continually forced to modify the way we work in order
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and current challenges is the protection of the “NGO Space.” Win a free InterAction Forum
The NGO Space defines the scope of work we engage in surrounded by multiple 2008 registration!
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Space.
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We have received overwhelming feedback in advance of this edition and hope that are familiar with our services.
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affecting our community.
-Josh, Julie and the communications team
Sam Worthington
President and CEO, InterAction
O
n July 17, 2007, USAID pub- ist organizations. Moreover, USAID has the PVS is implemented – we will be ced-
lished a notice in the Fed- failed to demonstrate that any USAID ing the streets of the world to the kinds
eral Register describing the funds have reached terrorists through of violent extremists that this policy aims
agency’s intent to create a American NGOs. USAID’s Inspector to target.”
new Partner Vetting System (PVS) to General monitors the agency’s programs
support the vetting of individuals and in West Bank/Gaza, where the threat of Following the July 17 Federal Register
officers from non-governmental organi- diversion is believed to be high. To date, notice, and two other notices on July 20
zations (NGOs) that apply for USAID neither the Inspector General nor any and 23, InterAction members, including
contracts, grants and cooperative agree- other competent authority has reported those that do not receive any USAID
ments to “ensure that neither USAID the diversion of USAID funds in West funding, responded overwhelmingly in
funds nor USAID-funded activities in- Bank/Gaza or anywhere else. Even if at opposition to the proposed vetting sys-
advertently or otherwise provide sup- some future date USAID funds in Gaza tem. Our members recognize the Partner
port to entities or individuals associated are found to have inadvertently provided Vetting System for the encroachment on
with terrorism.” The proposed PVS will humanitarian assistance to individuals as- NGO space that it is, and you can read
affect every nonprofit organization that sociated with Hamas, the circumstances some of their comments in the follow-
applies for USAID funding to implement would not justify a global Partner Vetting ing articles and on our website. For more
life saving humanitarian and develop- System that affects all U.S. NGOs. information on InterAction’s response
ment programs. Thousands of NGO to the PVS, please visit our website at
employees and board members – a list of The proposed system, which was effec- http://interaction.org/media/PVS.
people that includes religious leaders and tively put forth with no consultation with html.
members of Congress – will be forced to the NGO community dangerously blurs
turn over private personal information the lines between USAID and the vari- The uproar within the implementer com-
because USAID has apparently deemed ous security agencies of the U.S. govern- munity about the PVS was so great that
them to be potential threats to U.S. na- ment. Moreover, USAID has seemingly USAID has slowed down its implemen-
tional security. While sub-recipients are failed to recognize that implementation tation somewhat and announced that the
not specifically mentioned in the Federal of the PVS will jeopardize the safety of policy is “effective, but not operational.”
Register notice, we have every reason to NGO workers around the world. If the The agency intends to roll out the vet-
believe that USAID intends to include employees of American NGOs working ting system as a pilot program in West
them in the future. For example, the abroad are deemed to be working in con- Bank/Gaza and then slowly deploy it
Partner Information Form, which NGOs cert with U.S. intelligence agencies, the to other “hot spots” around the world.
would have to fill out to adhere to the threat of terrorist acts against them can That said, USAID has taken no action
requirements of the PVS, clearly focuses only increase. As InterAction CEO Sam that would indicate that it has altered its
on sub-recipients. Worthington has repeatedly pointed out, plans to roll out the PVS on a global scale
“Nonprofit relief and development orga- in the future.
Furthermore, in proposing the new nizations are often the only non-security
PVS, the agency has ignored the fact face of the American people in some of In addition, USAID has agreed to accept
that American NGOs already have pro- the most dangerous places in the world. additional comments on the PVS. If
cedures in place to certify that funds If NGOs are forced to restrict their oper- you are interested in submitting your
are not diverted to terrorists or terror- ations in these places – which they will if thoughts, please visit the URL listed
above and note that the deadline is
December 3, 2007.
I
n December 2005, U.S. Secretary millions of displaced persons. Through- doing it well is maintaining the trust of
of State Condoleezza Rice was ap- out the world we work with populations local communities and governments. In
plauded for strongly criticizing a new battling HIV/AIDS, malaria and chronic trying to compel American NGOs to take
Russian law that would restrict the poverty. Millions of Americans give us actions that would be considered viola-
activities of Russian and foreign nongov- financial support to make these positive tions of that trust, the administration is
ernmental organizations (NGOs). changes in the human condition. unraveling decades of goodwill achieved
by NGOs on behalf of the American
“We would certainly hope that the im- No American NGO has been charged people. This is more likely to encourage
portance of nongovernmental organiza- with diverting USAID funds to ter- terrorism than stem it.
tions to a stable, democratic environment rorists. In fact, InterAction requires its
would be understood by the Russian members to obey the laws of jurisdictions America’s image in the world cannot
government,” she said. in which they work, including the United be legislated. The world sees America
States. Members who receive funds from through local lenses. As humanitarian
Secretary Rice was right to uphold the USAID voluntarily certify in writing that and development workers in every devel-
value of civil liberties and oppose a law they will take all reasonable steps, to en- oping country in the world, we encoun-
that gave the Russian government the sure that they do not provide material ter suspicion towards Americans. We also
right to monitor and control the actions support or resources to those who com- know the steps one needs to take to turn
of NGOs. However, this past summer mit, advocate, facilitate or participate in that suspicion into hope, and ultimately
the United States Agency for Interna- terrorist acts. acceptance. In many areas we are the
tional Development (USAID) proposed ONLY face of America that people see
a new regulation that would require U.S. – a real face that defies the stereotypes
NGOs that receive U.S. foreign aid mon- The proposed Partner Vetting used to incite extremism. We are proud
ey to provide detailed personal informa- System creates not only an representatives of a culture that values
tion about their personnel and people the right to basic health care, education
who voluntarily serve on their boards, as
impediment to work with foreign
and adequate living conditions for all.
well as their partners abroad, to USAID partners abroad while putting Thanks to the direct generosity of the
– information which would be shared our lives at additional risk, it American public, our work tackles one of
with federal law enforcement and intel- also raises civil liberty issues the conditions that breed radical thought
ligence agencies. for individuals and agencies around the world – abject poverty.
Requesting local partners to submit per- that could lose jobs based on We need to be a trusted partner with the
sonal details to U.S. authorities would information to which they would U.S. government. Through reasonable,
drastically impact our ability to deliver be denied access. realistic regulations, NGOs can continue
life-saving aid. It would also affect the to work side by side with our govern-
places in which we can work. This regu- ment to help shape the world’s view of
lation plays directly into the hands of We are cooperating with the administra- America. We need to show the world,
authoritarian governments around the tion’s existing, successful efforts to pre- rather than tell the world, the true na-
world that are often looking for a pretext vent U.S. foreign aid from funding ter- ture of democracy, civil liberties and our
to restrict the activities of local NGOs rorist activities. But the proposed Partner compassion for the world’s neediest.
defending human rights and otherwise Vetting System creates not only an im-
fostering the development of democratic pediment to work with foreign partners “The work of democracy is a daily pro-
societies. Men and women in our organi- abroad while putting our lives at addi- cess to build the institutions of democra-
zations, many of whom live and work in tional risk, it also raises civil liberty issues cy,” Secretary Rice stated in a December
Afghanistan, Iraq, Darfur and other crisis for individuals and agencies that could 11, 2005 op-ed in the Washington Post.
zones, are putting their lives on the line lose jobs based on information to which “We can and must create opportunities
daily. If implementing the new rule leads they would be denied access. for individuals to assume ownership of
to their being perceived as extensions of their own lives and nations.” I whole-
the U.S. intelligence community, terror- When we criticize other nations for not heartedly agree.
ist attacks against them will increase. recognizing the critical role of NGOs, we
must be careful that U.S. laws and rules
Our ability to deliver programs is based do not inappropriately hamper the effec-
upon community partnerships, the trust tiveness of American NGOs. The princi-
of the local population and the will of in- pal prerequisite to doing what we do and
dividual citizens. In Darfur we care for
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n July 17, 2007, the U.S. those engaged in or associated with ter- ment-maintained record and the oppor-
Agency for International De- rorism is an obligation USAID and the tunity to correct any inaccurate informa-
velopment (USAID) published NGO community share, USAID does tion in that record. Providing citizens
notice of a proposed system of not provide any basis to suggest that the with the opportunity to correct their in-
records (“Partner Vetting System”) in NGO community is not already meet- formation is one of the critical functions
which it would collect and maintain per- ing this obligation without the PVS and of the Privacy Act. For example, a citizen
sonal information about individuals and the Proposed Rule. Federal tax laws and may obtain a copy of his passport file to
a broad range of “covered” employees of regulations prohibit tax-exempt organi- review and make corrections if needed.
organizations that apply for or register zations from disbursing funds for non- This enhances an individual’s right to
to receive USAID funding. The notice exempt purposes. These laws, regulations ensure that any negative decision may
stated USAID would collect the name, and the supporting Internal Revenue be redressed if based on faulty informa-
mailing address, date and place of birth, Service rulings have been in effect for tion. These protections are exempted for
government ID numbers, email address- decades; and organizations that enjoy the the purpose of criminal investigations by
es, phone and fax numbers, country of privilege of tax-exempt status must have agencies with a principle purpose of law
origin or nationality, citizenship, gender financial controls in place to meet these enforcement (for example the FBI or the
and profession or employment data. On IRS requirements. U.S.-based charitable Attorney General’s Office) and in na-
July 20th, USAID published a proposed organizations will lose their tax-exempt tional defense situations (such guarding
rule to implement the Partner Vetting status if tax-deductible donations and against arms proliferation). USAID can-
System (PVS) by exempting the records funds are diverted to a non-exempt pur- not independently assume the mantle of
of these individuals and employees from pose (including, by definition, supporting law-enforcement when its principal pur-
the protections and system of redress of- terrorism). USAID provided no facts to pose is to implement U.S. government
fered under the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 illustrate that the NGO community is im- foreign assistance.
U.S.C. § 552a, Proposed Rule). plicated in the diversion of funds to those
engaged in or associated with terrorism Given the significance of the Privacy Act
The U.S.-based and internationally-based (or otherwise diverting funds for non-ex- protections and the lack of credible, fac-
NGO community responded with a num- empt purposes). In order to properly as- tual information provided by USAID, it
ber of objections and requests for with- sess USAID’s need for the PVS, it is criti- is unclear how USAID self-selected out
drawal of the PVS and Proposed Rule. cal for the NGO community and the U.S. of OMB and Congressional review. These
The NGO community objected to sup- tax-payers to understand why USAID be- review processes are in place to ensure the
plying personal information for an am- lieves the NGO community is not meet- integrity and legitimacy of U.S. agency
biguously defined category of employees, ing its obligations not to fund terrorists. rule-making and to assure that the rule-
the unwarranted intrusion on their em- Without some credible evidence to the making process is accessible and open to
ployees’ privacy protections, the absence contrary, there is no reason to require the the public.
of facts justifying USAID’s proposal for NGO community to use donor funds (or
implementing the PVS globally and the for the employees to give up privacy pro- No discussion of the PVS is complete
Proposed Rule. (USAID has engaged in a tections) to comply with otherwise dupli- without addressing the most distressing
form of pre-award vetting of select recipi- cative regulatory requirements. possible result of its implementation: mak-
ent and sub-recipient organizations in the ing the beneficiaries and employees of the
West Bank and Gaza region since 2003 Another legal concern is that USAID NGO community targets of local aggres-
when Congress first required a specific self-determined that the Proposed Rule sion around the world. The PVS requires
due diligence standard for the Depart- (claiming exemption from the Privacy the collection of personal information
ment of State.) Act) did not require OMB or Congres- from a broad range of NGO employees
sional review as mandated by USAID’s and the employees of subrecipient/ben-
Two specific legal concerns are that own regulations (see 22 C.F.R. §§ 226, eficiary organizations. USAID stated it
USAID has not provided credible evi- et seq.), administrative directives (see Ex- intends to share these personal records
dence that: (1) the NGO community ecutive Order No. 12,866, as amended with other U.S. governmental agencies,
needs to be subject to additional U.S. by Executive Orders Nos. 13,258 and including law enforcement agencies. If
government regulation on the use of 13,422) and Congressional legislation the PVS is implemented, USAID has es-
funds; and (2) USAID should be granted (see the Congressional Review Act of sentially designated the NGO community
exemption from the Privacy Act without 1996, 5 U.S.C. § 801, et seq.). USAID as an arm of U.S. law enforcement. This
review by the Office of Management and does not have the authority to unilaterally will be poorly received in those commu-
Budget (OMB) or Congress as required determine that the Proposed Rule is not nities where USAID asks NGOs to serve
by law. subject to review. and will subject staff and beneficiaries to
significant personal risk.
USAID stated that it developed the PVS The Privacy Act was enacted to protect
and Proposed Rule in order to prevent individuals from misuse of their personal The absence of factual justification, the
U.S. government funds from purposeful information by U.S. government agen- flawed process and the potentially dire
or inadvertent support of those engaged cies. These protections include the indi- consequences have led the NGO com-
in or associated with terrorism. While vidual’s right to know when other U.S. munity to call for reconsideration of the
preventing the diversion of funds to government agencies access his govern- PVS and withdrawal of the Proposed
Rule.
C
omposition teachers warn government. Yet Congress
against use of clichés, but some- had neither mandated
times a cliché captures the es- those agencies to construct
sence of a situation better than review procedures of this
a newly coined phrase. That is the case type nor had those units
with the proposal of the U.S. Agency for sought to develop them
International Development (USAID) on their own. When
to implement an agency-wide “Part- media attention to the
ner Vetting System” that would require USAID proposal and the
the submission of personal information NGO comments surfaced
about employees of organizations seek- in August, the agency
ing USAID assistance and acquisition backtracked on the timing
awards. The proposal is truly “a solution of implementation but not
in search of a problem.” on the idea itself.
USAID’s decision to pursue the so-called Of greatest concern is the effect of the lections are necessary for performance of
“PVS” would expand an activity that PVS on development assistance itself. agency functions, that duplication of ef-
was mandated by Congress in the gov- The PVS requires a review of sensitive in- fort is avoided, and that burden has been
ernment’s Foreign Operations Appro- formation by intelligence organizations accurately identified and minimized.
priations Act for its 2006 fiscal year for in Washington, DC that breeds suspicion USAID’s failure to properly adhere to
awards in the West Bank and Gaza to all and distrust with our local partners and those requirements with a July 23, 2007
of its activities worldwide. Congress had beneficiaries, and brands NGO staff as Federal Register notice forced it to reis-
been made aware that a small amount of extensions of the U.S. government’s in- sue the notice on October 2, 2007 and
USAID funding was alleged to have made telligence arm. It jeopardizes the accep- seek additional comments from affected
its way to an organization with ties to the tance of NGOs in the communities with organizations, due December 3.
terrorist group Hamas. With a surgical which we work and will prevent many
precision that is not always present in organizations from partnering with us. The initial response of the NGO
the legislative process, Congress required Single-handedly, the PVS could do more community to the USAID proposal
USAID’s West Bank and Gaza Mission to destroy the good will built up by the buttresses the record that active
to pursue anti-terrorism screening pro- U.S. humanitarian and foreign assistance involvement in the policy process
cedures that included identification and community over the many years of its ex- can yield results that are beneficial to
screening of grantee and contractor em- istence than any other initiative of recent their programmatic and administrative
ployees. Despite the fact that USAID’s memory. prerogatives. For example, in 2005, joint
own inspector general concluded early in efforts by InterAction and the Association
2007 that there were no additional iden- NGO comments demonstrated how ill- of Private Voluntary Financial Managers
tified instances of agency funds going conceived the proposal is by pointing out (APVOFM) were instrumental in
to terrorist organizations, USAID now that USAID overlooked key procedural causing OIRA to mandate significant and
seeks to expand such screening activity to steps required to pursue it, woefully realistic changes in USAID’s proposal to
all of its assistance and acquisition awards underestimating the burden estimates require “marking” of USAID assisted
and to sub-awards. of complying with such a system, and commodities and activities overseas.
USAID’s inability to process the informa- Similar efforts by APVOFM caused
Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) tion that it currently collects. They cited OMB to abandon its proposal to restrict
that do business with USAID have been USAID’s failure to meet the requirement certain types of costs in its Circular A-
rightly outraged by the proposal. In of its own assistance regulation (22 CFR 122, Cost Principles for Non-profit
response to a Federal Register notice 226.4) to obtain Office of Management Organizations, which organizations with
published July 17 announcing the move, and Budget (OMB) approval for imposi- overseas operations deemed critical. And,
many pointed to the clear absence of tion of more stringent requirements on a even earlier, APVOFM and many of its
both programmatic justification and class of recipients. And they pointed out members were successful in convincing
legal authority for USAID to pursue that the extensive information collection OMB that exempting non-U.S.
an activity that would both indict the sought under the PVS requires clearance organizations from the audit requirements
employment practices of USAID’s non- by OMB’s Office of Information and of Circular A-133 was a cost-beneficial
federal “partners” and impose substantial Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) under the move. Those positive results suggest that
burden on them. Members pointed out Paperwork Reduction Act and its regula- when NGOs and the organizations that
that, if there were a significant problem tions (5 CFR 1320). While those poli- represent them choose to do so, they can
with federal funds going to support cies are often the objects of wry humor be a constructive force in assuring the
terrorism, it could just as easily surface in as to whether they actually exist, they are federal policies affecting their operations
grants and contracts awarded by the other important and powerful tools for assur- are warranted and realistic. It is time to
departments and agencies of the U.S. ing that federal agency information col- show that capacity again.
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he mandatory government vet-
ting of aid implementers such as “The fight against terrorism is a need that nobody can put into
private voluntary organizations question. But we consider it unacceptable to forgo, in the name
(PVOs) and nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs) and their direc- of this fight, the fundamental principles of a democratic society.”
tors, officers, personnel, employees, con- –Attributed to a legal panel of the Council of Europe in connection with the “Provisional Draft Report on UN
tractors, sub-recipients and participants Security Council and European Union Blacklists,” The Washington Post, November 13, 2007.
(PVS) is the most ill-considered and po-
tentially harmful policy initiative since I
began my career in foreign assistance in for screening contains numerous errors. late new policy initiatives is “informal
the late 1970s. No one seriously disputes Some of these errors might be able to rulemaking” under the Administrative
the very real threat posed by terrorism. be corrected, but the secrecy of the list, Procedure Act (“APA”). Under this pro-
However, if implemented as proposed, coupled with the expressed intention to cedure, the first step is to issue a compre-
this intrusive and onerous mechanism supplement it with information from hensive Notice of Proposed Rulemaking,
would violate Constitutional rights, un- questionable sources (such as anony- including all proposed changes to regu-
dermine federal assistance law and set a mous informants and foreign intelligence lations and contractual formats, in the
terrible precedent for future government agencies), is of grave concern. The pro- Federal Register. Public comment is then
micro-management of PVO/NGOs. In cedures described in the original notices invited between 30 and 90 days, longer
my opinion, the entire PVO/NGO com- – decisions taken behind closed doors if merited by the circumstances. Depend-
munity, along with higher education in- and without explanation or a chance to ing on the comments received, either a
stitutions and other USAID implement- appeal – deny basic due process and sub- Revised Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
ers, has reason to be concerned about ject everyone vetted to a high risk of ar- (if fundamental revisions are needed) or
the impact of the initiative and should bitrary sanction and deprivation of rights a Notice of Final Rulemaking (if few revi-
take all reasonable and practicable steps without effective notice or recourse. sions are needed) is published. Yet in this
to oppose or limit it. A few of the many Such procedures trample on the rights case, USAID has not issued any com-
undesirable aspects of the PVS are briefly of all Americans under the Constitution, prehensive rulemaking for the PVS, only
noted below. and, as applied to foreign nationals, fail fragmentary Privacy and Paperwork Re-
to comport with our traditional notions duction Acts notices. These notices leave
Rationale. The PVS seeks to fix some- of fairness. many basic questions unanswered and
thing that does not appear to be broken. do not provide a suitable basis for pub-
Its publicly stated purpose is to prevent Legality. The entire exercise lacks any lic input on the PVS. Such a hasty and
federal funds from being diverted to ter- express legal basis. The only support incomplete process is bad practice. It is
rorists by those suspected of supporting identified by USAID is a statute which, also inconsistent with the promises made
terrorists. However, few significant diver- by its terms, is expressly limited to the by the incoming USAID Administrator
sions have been alleged, and fewer, if any, West Bank and Gaza. The West Bank/ during her confirmation hearings to con-
have been proven. The Justice Depart- Gaza program’s unique challenges with sult fully with the public. While the APA
ment claims on this score have frequently regard to terrorism are obvious and well- excepts “public property, loans, grants,
been based on a stretched definition of known. Such conditions exist in very and contracts,” Congress encouraged
who is a “terrorist,” and such claims have few other USAID-assisted countries. It agencies to use informal rulemaking even
generally been rejected in court. More- is legally indefensible for USAID to at- when an exception applies, and many if
over, in some of the cases cited by USAID tempt to justify global application of the not most agencies do so with respect to
to illustrate the problem, the transactions PVS based on a country-specific restric- basic assistance law policies like the PVS.
were specifically approved by USAID be- tion. Furthermore, the degree of control The NGO community must work either
forehand. Even if diversion is a real prob- sought by the government is not consis- to get the exception for grants repealed
lem, though, the PVS would not solve it. tent with the nature of federal grants and or to secure a formal undertaking from
USAID-funded implementers, including cooperative agreements, and constitutes USAID (as some other agencies have
PVO/NGOs, already review all federal an inappropriate form of substantial in- done) to engage in APA informal rule-
award expenditures. The PVS will actu- volvement (federal agency interference making before implementing new assis-
ally cause far more problems than it will with a fund recipient’s implementation tance initiatives.
solve. of its program) not authorized by cur-
rent Office of Management and Budget Micro-Management. There is no
Procedures. The PVS procedures policy. precedent for the degree of control that
described by USAID to date are unac- USAID now seeks to exert over the em-
ceptable. It is well established that the Public Consultation. The traditional ployment, contracting and other affairs
government-compiled list to be used method for the government to formu- of its “partners.” If the PVS is finalized,
the inevitable result will be disrupted
programs, lawsuits and harm to the ca- Is your corporate partner making a difference in your program or the
reers and reputations of individuals due communities in which you work?
to disputes over vetting status. The in-
dependence of civil society – the fos- Nominate them to InterAction’s Top Ten Corporations in Global
tering of which used to be one of the Development List!
USAID’s fundamental objectives – will
also be sapped. It is also likely that the The application is available online at www.interaction.org.
government will seek to extend its inter- Nominations will be accepted through December 31, 2007.
ventions, formally or informally, beyond
terrorism to other foreign policy matters
and perhaps ultimately domestic policy
issues as well. The scope of government
regulation of funding recipients’ speech,
expression and behavior, well advanced
in recent years, will continue to widen to
the diminution of the freedoms hereto-
fore enjoyed by the PVO/NGO commu-
nity and the citizenry as a whole.
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here has been a significant amount of a separate unified command for Africa AFRICOM on September 28, 2007. He
of press coverage recently about to be known as Africa Command, or AF- has two deputies, one military and one
the new regional combatant com- RICOM. This command is currently a civilian. Vice Admiral Robert Moeller is
mand for Africa, or AFRICOM. sub-unified command (subordinate to the Deputy to the Commander for Mili-
The command is still in its infancy and EUCOM) and began initial operations tary Operations and is responsible for
will not become a fully-fledged combat- in October 2007. The expectation is that AFRICOM operational implementation
ant command until October 2008. How- AFRICOM will detach from EUCOM and execution. Vice Admiral Moeller will
ever, the announcement of the intention and be officially stood up as a separate exercise command authority in the AF-
to form AFRICOM was accompanied unified command by October 2008. Ac- RICOM commander’s absence. Ambas-
by problematic language describing the cording to DoD: sador Mary Carlin Yates is the Deputy
Department of Defense’s new approach to the Commander for Civil-Military
to Africa being a two-pronged one fo- “The goal of U.S. Africa Command is Activities and will direct the command’s
cusing on counterterrorism on the one civil-military planning and programs,
to help build the capacity of African
hand and humanitarian assistance on the with emphasis on aligning AFRICOM
nations and African organizations
other. The reaction in many humanitar- activity with that of other U.S. govern-
ian circles was predictably negative, as like the African Standby Force to ment departments and agencies carry-
any perceived links between humanitar- promote peace and security and ing out U.S. foreign policy. Ambassador
ian assistance and counterterrorism activ- respond to crises on the continent. Yates has significant experience in Africa,
ity could put humanitarian field workers At the same time, the command including recent ambassadorships in Bu-
at risk of being targeted. Over the past will coordinate DOD support to rundi and Ghana.
few months, the Department of Defense other U.S. Government programs
(DoD) has refined its mission statement for Africa in the areas of diplomacy Although AFRICOM’s primary mission
and in its messaging now places emphasis is to help build security capacity on the
and development to help make those
on building the security capacity of Af- African continent, the earliest communi-
efforts more effective.”
rican nations and regional organizations. cations from DoD emphasized a humani-
For many, however, there remains the tarian assistance/disaster response com-
question: “Why AFRICOM, and why AFRICOM will be a unified command ponent to AFRICOM’s activities. There
now?” encompassing all countries on the Afri- was strong reaction to this from the hu-
can continent except for Egypt (though manitarian community, which reflected
For the last 24 years, oversight of U.S. the exclusion of Egypt is still under de- recent experiences with the Combined
military activity on the African continent bate). The command will likely organize Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa (CJTF-
has been divided among three different itself along the same regional structure HoA) based in Djibouti. CJTF-HoA is
combatant commands: Central Com- currently used by the African Union (see tasked with counterterrorism activities
mand (CENTCOM) for the Horn of box). Though the original intent was to in the Horn and its personnel have been
Africa, Pacific Command (PACOM) for locate the AFRICOM headquarters on
Madagascar, Mauritius, the Comoros Is- the African continent, this plan seems
lands and the Seychelles, and European to be on hold, and AFRICOM will re-
Command (EUCOM) for the rest of the main based in Stuttgart, Germany for AU regions of Africa:
African continent. There was little coor- the foreseeable future. However, smaller Blue = North
dination among the three commands on sub-offices may be located on the Afri-
activities being carried out in their Af- can continent within the various regional Green = West
rican areas of operation and hence little groupings. Yellow = Central
coherence across programs. In addition,
because each command had a separate AFRICOM will be a unique combat- Red = South
primary focus outside of Africa, none of ant command in that the intent of the
Orange = East
the commands placed much emphasis on U.S. government is to have a significant
its African portfolio. portion of the unified command’s staff For more information, visit United States
provided from U.S. government civilian Africa Command: http://www.africom.mil
In February 2007, President Bush au- agencies. General William “Kip” Ward
thorized and directed the establishment was confirmed as the Commander of
2. Unclassified information sharing with the NGHO liaison C. Procedures for NGHO liaison relationships with combatant
officer on security conditions, operational sites, location of commands that are engaged in planning for military operations
mines and unexploded ordnance, humanitarian activities, and in hostile or potentially hostile environments. NGHO liaison
population movements, insofar as such unclassified informa- personnel are provided by the NGHO community.
tion sharing is for the purpose of facilitating humanitarian
operations and the security of staff and local personnel en- 1. The NGHO liaison officer should not be physically located
gaged in these operations. within the military headquarters, but if feasible, should be in
close proximity to it in order to allow for daily contact.
3. Liaison arrangements with military commands prior to and
during military operations to deconflict military and relief ac- 2. The NGHO liaison officer should have appropriate access to
tivities, including for the purpose of protection of humanitar- senior-level officers within the combatant commands, and be
ian installations and personnel and to inform military person- permitted to meet with them as necessary and feasible.
nel of humanitarian relief objectives, modalities of operation, 3. There should be a two-way information flow. The NGHO
and the extent of prospective or ongoing civilian humanitar- liaison officer should provide details on NGHO capabilities,
ian relief efforts. infrastructure, if any, plans, concerns, etc. The military should
4. Military provision of assistance to NGHOs for humanitarian provide appropriate details regarding minefields, unexploded
relief activities in extremis when civilian providers are unavail- ordnance, other hazards to NGHOs, access to medical facili-
able or unable to do so. Such assistance generally will be pro- ties, evacuation plans, etc.
vided on a reimbursable basis in accordance with applicable 4. The NGHO liaison officer should have the opportunity to
U.S. law. Such assistance will not be provided if it interferes brief military commanders on NGHO objectives, the Code
with higher priority military activities. of Conduct of the International Federation of Red Cross and
Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and NGOs Engaged in Disas-
2. Recommended Processes ter Relief, the United Nations Inter-Agency Standing Com-
mittee (IASC) Guidelines, and country-specific guidelines
A. Procedures for NGHO/Military dialogue during contingency based on the IASC Guidelines, and, if desired, The Sphere
planning for DOD relief operations in a hostile or potentially Project Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in
hostile environment. Disaster Response. U.S. Armed Forces personnel should
1. NGHOs engaged in humanitarian relief send a small number have the opportunity to brief NGHOs, to the extent appro-
of liaison officers to the relevant combatant command for priate, on U.S. Government and coalition goals and policies,
discussions with the contingency planners responsible for de- monitoring principles, applicable laws and rules of engage-
signing relief operations. ment, etc.
2. NGHOs engaged in humanitarian relief assign a small num- 5. The NGHO liaison officer could continue as a liaison at high-
ber of liaison officers to the relevant combatant command er headquarters even after a Civil-Military Operations Cen-
(e.g., one liaison was stationed at U.S. CENTCOM for 6 of ter (CMOC) or similar mechanism is established in-country.
the first 12 months of the war in Afghanistan and one was in Once this occurs, liaison officers of individual NGHOs could
Kuwait City before U.S. forces entered Iraq in 2003). begin coordination in country through the CMOC for civil-
military liaison.
3. The relevant military planners, including but not limited to
the Civil Affairs representatives of the relevant commander, D. Possible organizations that could serve as a bridge between
meet with humanitarian relief NGHO liaison officers at a mu- NGHOs and U.S. Armed Forces in the field, e.g., U.S. Agency
tually agreed location.
for International Development’s (USAID’s) Office of Military
B. Procedures for NGHOs and the military to access assess- Affairs, State Department’s Office of the Coordinator for Re-
ments of humanitarian needs. U.S. military and NGHO repre- construction and Stabilization (S/CRS), and the UN’s Humani-
sentatives should explore the following: tarian Coordinator.
1. Access to NGHO and military assessments directly from a 1. If USAID or S/CRS agree to serve a liaison function,
DOD or other U.S. Government web site. they should be prepared to work with the broader NGHO
community in addition to U.S. Government implementing
2. Access to NGHO and military assessments through an NGO partners.
serving in a coordination role and identifying a common web
site. 2. The UN’s Humanitarian Coordinator or his/her representa-
tive could be a strong candidate to serve as liaison because
3. Access to NGHO and military assessments through a U.S. he/she normally would be responsible for working with all
Government or United Nations (UN) web site. NGHOs and maintaining contact with host government or a
successor regime.
A
lawsuit involving a challenge condoning prostitution even if that pro- way, it would definitely eliminate proven
to a U.S. government regula- gramming is highly effective at combat- effective strategies in the fight against
tion requiring NGOs to take ing HIV/AIDS and is funded without HIV/AIDS.
an anti-prostitution pledge has any support from the U.S. government.
been working its way through the federal In their lawsuit against USAID, AOSI
courts. The government lost the case at USAID and HHS initially granted an ex- and Pathfinder International asserted
the trial level in New York when a judge emption to programs conducted directly that requiring the adoption of a policy
from the U.S. District Court for the by U.S.-based NGOs, applying the pledge opposing prostitution is:
Southern District of New York ruled on requirement only to programs conducted
1. Unconstitutionally vague;
May 9, 2006 that the prostitution pledge by their local partners. However, in the
required by the U.S. Agency for Inter- spring of 2005, USAID and HHS also 2. Imposes a specific ideology on non-
national Development (USAID) and began applying the pledge requirement profit organizations; and
the Department of Health and Human to programs conducted directly by U.S.- 3. Improperly imposes a ban on grant-
Services (HHS) is unconstitutional. The based organizations. InterAction mem- ees using funds from sources other
government appealed the trial court’s ber Pathfinder International and the Al- than the U.S. government to engage
decision to the U.S. District Court for liance for Open Society Institute (AOSI) in speech activities protected under
the Second Circuit. While that appeal sued USAID in U.S. District Court for the First Amendment.
was pending, the government also issued the Southern District of New York asking
guidance that changed the way the pledge the court to declare the pledge require- The Initial Ruling
works: permitting their implementing ment unconstitutional.
partners to establish or work with sepa- In District Court, Judge Victor Marrero
rate affiliates that would not be required InterAction submitted an amicus curiae held that enforcing this requirement vio-
to adopt the prostitution pledge. On No- (“friend of the court”) brief emphasizing lates the First Amendment rights of the
vember 8, 2007 the Appeals Court issued the importance of protecting the auton- plaintiffs. Citing the unique role of non-
a summary order sending the case back omy and independence of the nonprofit profits, the judge stated in his decision:
to the District Court for further proceed- sector. The brief stressed that freedom
of association for advocacy purposes is a “The far-reaching role of NGOs in pre-
ings. The Appeals Court noted that the
core principle of the First Amendment. senting ideas of concern to government
new guidelines mean that “the case that
officials, as well as contributing to public
was before the District Court is substan-
What is the Pledge debate on contested social issues, in in-
tially different than the case as it stands
fluencing the course of public policy as
today and that new fact-finding may be Requirement? well as in enhancing core public values
required to re-resolve the dispute.”
USAID and HHS require organizations and safeguarding them from government
receiving HIV/AIDS funding to certify abuse, has always been critical to our de-
Background to the Case that they have an internal policy explicitly mocracy.”
In 2003, Congress enacted the Global opposing prostitution. Organizations are
AIDS Act, which authorizes the appro- also required to refrain from any speech In support of the need to protect the
priation of $15 billion over a five-year or conduct that is “inconsistent” with First Amendment rights in issue in the
period for research, prevention, care and the required pledge (opposition to pros- case, the judge stated that the govern-
treatment of HIV/AIDS worldwide. titution) regardless of the funding source ment “should assume a stance of neutral-
These funds are used by many U.S.-based for that activity. ity as regards what people believe, and
nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) not discriminate among privately held
directly and passed to local partners to fi- Although neither USAID nor HHS has viewpoints, nor compel its own message
nance their programs. The Act prohibits issued guidelines explaining what types in a manner that unduly enhances one
activities that “promote or advocate the of speech and conduct would be “incon- person and burdens another.”
legalization or the practice of prostitu- sistent with opposition to prostitution,”
the Act also bars any activity advocating The ruling held that:
tion and sex trafficking.” In practice, the
U.S. government has interpreted this to for the elimination of criminal penalties 1. The pledge requirement’s blanket
mean that the Act requires that in order against sex workers or legalizing prosti- ban on any speech, including pri-
to receive these funds, recipient organi- tution. vately funded activities by U.S.-based
zations must adopt a policy of opposi- NGOs was not sufficiently “narrowly
tion to prostitution that covers the or- The Court Case tailored” and the government has
ganization’s work with U.S. government If USAID interprets the pledge require- less restrictive ways to meet its goal
funds and funds from all other sources. ment broadly to ban advocating for of conveying its message that eradica-
In other words, in order to be eligible to changes in the legal treatment of sex tion of prostitution is part of its anti-
receive U.S. government funds under the workers, promoting community organiz- AIDS effort.
Act, the organization must forego con- ing among sex workers or communicat-
ducting any activity that could be seen as ing with sex workers in a non-judgmental
W
hen nonprofits contract with local governments, the The competition between nonprofit and for-profit or-
nonprofits may experience challenges, but they may ganizations for government-funded work in interna-
also gain prestige and funding for programs. Since
tional relief and development has been a subject of
nonprofits may find that they are distracted from
their mission by management challenges and the demands of significant interest to InterAction members for many
regulation and oversight, they should carefully weigh both the years. In reflecting on the growing amount of work
benefits and the costs of being government contractors. awarded to for-profits, we often look to ideological
and historical reasons to support the position that it
These are the conclusions of researchers Richard C. Feiock and is important to maintain a strong role for NGOs in this
HeeSoun Jang in their recent report, “The Role of Nonprofit area.
Contractors in the Delivery of Local Services,” funded by the
Nonprofit Sector Research Fund. Through a groundbreaking The following article considers a different set of rela-
survey of nonprofits in twelve metropolitan areas, the researchers tionships that may provide additional useful food for
examine the types of nonprofit organizations that engage in con-
thought as we look to strengthen our understanding
tracts and describe the costs and challenges they encounter when
they produce services for governments. They also studied exist- of and ability to articulate why NGOs are important
ing surveys of local governments in order to learn more about players in government-funded work in international
how governments choose the contractors they do business with, relief and development. Looking at when and why
and the challenges they face in terms of the cost of managing nonprofits serve as contractors for U.S. local govern-
these external contracts. ments, the authors offer insights into in what areas
and for what reasons such relations are more likely
Are such relationships worth the work? The researchers believe
to occur and be useful to both sides.
that they are. “Service collaborations have the potential to benefit
communities and improve service delivery. They are worth deal- The Aspen Institute originally published this article
ing with the challenges of collaborating between two sectors,”
in March 2007 edition of Snapshots. The referenced
said Feiock in a recent interview.
report (The Role of Nonprofit Contractors in the De-
Increased Contracting with Nonprofits for Social livery of Local Services) is available from the Aspen
Institute Publications office at (410) 820-5338 or by
Services e-mailing publications@aspeninstitute.org.
Local governments partner with for-profit companies, with gov-
ernment agencies and with nonprofits to ensure that their com-
munities get the services they need. Such contracting is often surveys documented the percentages and frequency of govern-
seen as a way to replace a monopoly in service provision with the ment contracts with for-profit companies, other government
competition of the marketplace (and the benefits of that mar- agencies and nonprofits. While governments contracted with all
ket). three sectors for most categories of services, Feiock and Jang did
identify some key trends:
The researchers identified a range of services that local govern-
ments contract with other entities (from any sector) to provide. a Over the ten years covered by the survey, the researchers
Such services include “hard” services such as garbage collection, found striking increases in the contracting done with non-
utility service, road maintenance, street construction, vehicle profits in order to provide services in areas such as daycare,
towing, building repair and ambulance services, as well as “soft” child welfare, homeless shelters, programs for the elderly,
services like mental health services, child care, care for the elderly, public health and mental health.
homeless shelters, libraries, and cultural and art services. Feiock
a Governments also continued to contract with nonprofits to
and Jang point out that there are important distinctions between
provide services in the areas of recreation, parks, libraries,
contracting hard and soft services: hard services can be purchased
and culture and art; the level of contracting in these areas
in a cost-effective way on the basis of per-unit payment contracts.
remained stable over the ten years of the survey. In these
The harder to measure soft services, on the other hand, must be
areas, the most substantial amount of contracting with non-
concerned with clients’ quality of life as well as effective service
profits is for art and culture (41 percent of contracts in this
delivery. area were with nonprofits).
In order to better understand the decisions that local govern- a On the other hand, for-profit companies maintained or in-
ments make about contracting with nonprofits, Feiock and Jang creased their lead as contractors of choice with local govern-
compared surveys conducted by the International City/County ment in the areas of residential solid waste collection, street
Management Association (ICMA) in 1992, 1997 and 2002. The repair, vehicle towing and storage, and legal services.
Until this study, no one had ever surveyed nonprofits to find a The median total revenue of nonprofits that contract with local
out about the relationships between nonprofits and local govern- governments is higher than the revenue of nonprofits that do
not contract with local government. This may suggest that
ments and their contractors. For this part of the study, Feiock
the financial condition of a nonprofit is crucial in attracting
and Jang surveyed 1,512 nonprofit organizations in 12 large,
government contracts.
metropolitan areas in the United States. The researchers specifi-
cally wanted to find out how the characteristics of nonprofit or- a More than half of those nonprofits surveyed report that they
ganizations and community factors contribute to the decision of primarily serve low socioeconomic status target groups (70
the nonprofit to engage in contractual relations with local gov- percent of health organizations and 63 percent of human
service organizations, but only 19 percent of art and culture
ernment.
nonprofits).
The researchers found that 53 percent of the surveyed respon- Challenges of Contracting with Local Government
dents had contracted with local government in the past five years.
Echoing the ICMA survey, Feiock and Jang found that nonprof- a 66 percent have seen an increase in demands on their primary
its specializing in some kinds of activities were much likelier than services.
others to fulfill contracts with local government: a Nearly half make significant efforts to change their
management style to outcome-oriented management.
a 70 percent of reporting human services nonprofits had
a Nearly one-third have experienced problems that were the
fulfilled contracts
result of poor coordination by local government.
a 57 percent of health-related nonprofits a 25 percent report that the turnover of elected officials
a 30 percent of education and environmental nonprofits heightens nonprofits’ uncertainty about future expectations and
commitments.
a 22 percent of arts and cultural nonprofits.
a 21 percent report that the turnover of administrative officials
The researchers found that nonprofits that contract with local causes hardships related to local government’s supervision.
governments may experience some challenges, particularly with a 24 percent say that government regulations and monitoring
management difficulties, uncertainty and regulations. These is- make it hard to provide specialized service to clients.
sues may also make it hard for nonprofits to provide specialized
Adapted from “The Role of Nonprofit Contractors in the Delivery of Local Services.”
services. (See box for more details.) For more information, contact Richard Feiock, rfeiock@coss.fsu.edu
A
number of countries have enacted or proposed laws that
significantly restrict the activities of civil society organi-
zations (CSOs). Such countries tend to exhibit one or In the early 1990s, an “associational revolution” (to
more of the following characteristics: quote Lester Salamon’s phrase) swept through Cen-
tral Europe and the former Soviet Union. Recently,
a They have a “closed” or command economy (China, Cuba)
or are governed by leaders with autocratic tendencies (Libya, however, there are signs that a counter-revolution
Zimbabwe). is under way and spreading globally. A recent study
by the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law
a There is political dissension in the country or a neighboring
country that is perceived as threatening the current regime (ICNL) found that countries in all regions have used
or incumbent party (Sudan, Ethiopia). the law to constrain civil society. In this article, we
summarize ICNL’s survey of challenges; a forthcom-
a There are concerns about religious fundamentalism
(Egypt).
ing ICNL study will examine possible responses.
a Similar legislation or practices have been introduced else-
where in the region (various countries in the former Sovi-
et Union and the Middle East). In some cases this almost
amounts to an “exchange of worst practices.” a In Azerbaijan, Ethiopia and Algeria, regulations governing
the registration process are vague and leave great discretion
a They have a history of human rights abuses (North Korea).
to registration officials. As a result, CSOs are sometimes de-
a They are concerned about “foreign influence” (Venezuela). nied registration or experience long delays.
In many countries, this trend almost certainly springs from the a In Belarus, the government has in recent years adopted a
perception that CSOs played a fundamental role in the recent series of laws restricting both public gatherings and CSO ac-
tivity. As a result, the government has significant discretion
“color” revolutions in Georgia and Ukraine. Indeed, ICNL’s re-
over the opaque registration process. Applicants can wait
search has shown that governments often enact restrictive CSO
more than a year, only to be denied registration without ex-
legislation before elections. In addition, the Bush administration’s
planation.
focus on “democracy promotion” has created concern about for-
eign funding of civil society. As Thomas Carothers states, “Some
autocratic governments have won substantial public sympathy Inability to obtain foreign funding
by arguing that opposition to Western democracy promotion is For some years, ICNL has warned of an increasingly concerning
resistance not to democracy itself, but to American intervention- trend, namely the use of foreign funding restrictions to restrain
ism.” As such, it seems that autocratic leaders have sensed a po- civil society. In Eritrea, for example, legislation introduced in
litical window of opportunity to crack down on civil society. 2005 restricts the ability of international agencies to directly fund
local CSOs under most circumstances. In Uzbekistan in 2004,
We must also recall that governmental restrictions on private ini- the government required CSOs to deposit foreign grants in one
tiative are nothing new. Authoritarian governments throughout of two government-controlled banks. This effectively obstructed
history have sought to limit the space for civil society. Combined the transfer of the vast majority of foreign grants to CSOs.
with preexisting constraints, the current backlash threatens the
growth and vibrancy of civil society. Also in 2004, Zimbabwe proposed a bill to prohibit local CSOs
engaged in “issues of governance” from accessing foreign funds
and foreign CSOs involved in these activities from registering.
Common legal barriers to civil society In the event, Mugabe declined to sign the bill, but there is con-
Increasing government restrictions have posed obstacles to the cern that it will be revived. Zimbabwe recently suggested a similar
ability of both foreign and domestic CSOs to form, operate and proposal at the inaugural session of the new UN Human Rights
sustain themselves. Council.
Limited rights to associate and form CSOs Arbitrary or discretionary termination and
In the most restrictive environments, governments effectively dissolution
deny the right to associate by granting it on extremely limited Some countries retain substantial discretion to shut down CSOs
terms. Saudi Arabia, Libya, Cuba, China and Vietnam fall into and use this to quash opposition groups. In 2003 and 2004, Be-
this category. In other countries, governments often closely con- larus government officials dissolved a significant number of lead-
trol the registration process. Governments may insist that all ing CSOs. Similarly, Egypt’s Law 84/2002 permits the supervis-
groups, however small or informal, must register, or they may ing ministry to shut down an organization at any time on the
make registration difficult. grounds that it is “threatening national unity” or “violating pub-
lic order or morals” – both broad and ambiguous criteria which
Tactics include: excessive government discretion over the regis- give the government substantial discretion to terminate CSOs.
tration process, making registration expensive, inconvenient or
burdensome; excessive delays in making decisions; and requiring
re-registration every few years.
The news is not all bad, however. Turkey and Mexico, for ex- We were all struck by the stark reality that without unity,
ample, have recently enacted more positive reforms, while CSOs clarity of message and an astute strategy, civil society will
throughout the world have at times been able to successfully be unable to reverse the counter-revolution. CSOs must be
counter these repressive government tactics. ICNL is catalogu- able to obtain a better understanding of the government
ing these strategies and plans to disseminate them to a wider perspective in order to develop alternative solutions and
audience. While not every strategy is effective in every country avert proposals that will be more damaging to civil society.
or circumstance, together they constitute a useful array of tools This presents an urgent call to arms, not only to CSOs to
to protect basic rights against government incursion. Moreover, consider new tactics and strategies, but also to groups
there is some solace in the words of C. Wright Mills, who once such as CIVICUS to rally support, and to organizations
said, “Every revolution has its counter-revolution – that is a sign such as the UN and the EU to facilitate inter-governmental
the revolution is for real.” dialogue and discourage regressive legislation.
I
n late September of 2006 President Apparently some U.S. government agen- Who must report? It is clear that the
Bush’s signature of the Federal Fund- cies were hoping to comply by hav- most unsettled FFATA compliance issues
ing Accountability and Transparency ing standalone websites with the data concern the world of sub-awards, sub-
Act of 2006 (FFATA) required the required by the FFATA, but OMB has grantees and sub-contracts. Does the
U.S. government’s Office of Manage- directed that U.S. government agencies FFATA mean that even though the Paper
ment and Budget (OMB) to establish a will be required to feed the required data Reduction Act requires less paperwork,
public, online database containing “full into the OMB portal. OMB is further InterAction members will be badgered to
disclosure of entities receiving federal considering “several important addition- assist in providing data at that level?
funding.” As OMB states, “citizens have al data elements such as award number
a right and need to understand where tax and data” not specified by the Act.
dollars are spent and disclosure is a key
How might InterAction
ingredient to building public trust.” The Potential Concerns & Issues members prepare?
FFATA requires OMB to provide a single
“searchable” web database that is down- Who must report. In the next few a Monitor the OMB website, FAADS,
loadable and permits users to determine days OMB plans to publish for comment FPDS and Grant.gov
the total amount of federal funding an in the Federal Register new definitions for
InterAction member organization re- a Ensure all information reported on
“sub-award” and “contract,” as well as
ceives beginning with 2007 data. those sources is accurate and report
further clarification of which sub-recipi-
inaccuracies to OMB and the U.S.
ents must report and exactly what they
OMB has stated that “to the extent pos- government agency that made the
must do to comply with the FFATA. This
sible” data will come from three exist- award.
seems to be partly driven by the need to
ing databases: the Federal Procurement clarify which tiers of participants in an
Data System (FPDS), the Federal Assis- a Be prepared for increased public
award or contract must report data. scrutiny of your dealings with the
tance Award Data System (FAADS), and
U.S. government.
Grants.gov. USAID has initiated ePICS, Data reliability. With OMB rely-
a web-based data reporting tool to re- ing on existing databases as the prime a Be prepared – more information
place ProDocs as an interim tool to help sources for the FFATA web interface, it about your organization to be read-
USAID fulfill reporting requirements is highly likely the persistent question- ily available to parties with good and
pending the full implementation of the able reliability of the data will continue less than desirable intentions.
Global Acquisition System (GLAS) and but that questionable data will simply
Joint Assistance Management System be available on a more timely basis (up-
(JAMS). OMB plans to “make use of dated every 30 days instead of every six Conclusion
tools we already own” to comply with months). An illustration is a 2005 report
the Act. The FFATA makes provision for Transparency and accountability are es-
by the Government Accountability Of-
excluding data on awards of a nature that sential principles and must always be a
fice which concluded that users lacked
could be reasonably expected to have a core goal. However, where is the inde-
confidence in Federal Procurement Data
“national security consideration.” pendent, apolitical humanitarian space
System (FPDS) data “as a mechanism to
for InterAction members that is vital
routinely verify data accuracy is absent.”
The OMB database site is to be operation- to successfully implement programs in
Human error and weak internal controls
al by January 1, 2008 for prime awards sensitive situations? A number of new
can contribute to erroneous entries.
and contracts and by January 1, 2009 for requirements such as the FFATA online
information on sub-grantees and sub- Use of the information. Not only database, USAID branding rules and the
contractors. The law requires data to be will anyone with a web connection have proposed USAID Partner Vetting pro-
updated within 30 days of an award. The access to data about awards and contracts cess seriously erode the important space
database will require details such as the made, they will also be able to submit for independent NGO humanitarian
name of the awardee, the award amount “feedback” on the OMB website. There operations that existed just a few years
and type, the name of the U.S. govern- is always the possibility that interest ago. The FFATA poses a number of chal-
ment agency making the award, program groups that are unfriendly or even hos- lenges and InterAction members would
source, and the award title and purpose, tile to one or more InterAction member be well advised to carefully monitor its
among other items. Awards to multiple organizations or to certain types of pro- implementation.
recipients will contain data on the por- grams implemented by InterAction mem-
tion awarded to each recipient. bers may take advantage of this option.
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