Regional Development Mission-Asia (RDM-Asia)
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| Objective |
SO Number |
FY 2004 |
FY 2005 |
FY 2006 |
| Foreign Policy Interests | 486-001 |
1,194 |
2,886 |
3,650 |
| Improved Governance and Economic Reform | 486-XXX |
|
6,000 |
6,000 |
| Improved Regional Environmental Conditions | 486-ZZZ |
|
9,736 |
11,000 |
| U.S. Asia Environmental Partnership | 498-009 |
9,000 |
|
|
| Regional HIV/AIDS and Infectious Diseases | 498-022 |
17,073 |
18,651 |
17,319 |
|
Total (in thousands of dollars) |
27,267 |
37,273 |
37,969 |
|
The Development Challenge: The East Asia and Pacific region is one of the world's most important trading routes, and consequently, a key region for facilitating the spread of HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases, as well as trafficking of persons and illicit narcotics. It is a land full of dichotomies. For example, it is home to some of the world's poorest populations right along side of some of the world's fastest growing economies; it has one of the world's most diverse environments and has an alarming history of ecological destruction; and it has some states that are firmly integrated into the society of free nations, while others remain at odds with the principles of democracy and universal human rights.
Overall, East Asia's economies are growing at their swiftest pace since the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis with fewer people than ever living in extreme poverty. Economic growth is expected to exceed 7% in 2004 for the region (excluding Japan), and developing economies in the region are expected to expand by more than 8%. Exports have been buoyant since late 2002, supported by unexpected strong recovery in the developed world, cyclical rebound in the global high tech industry, and a surge in intra-regional trade, led by booming exports from countries in the region to China.
The November 2004 World Bank report on East Asia and the Pacific estimates that the number of people living on less than US$2 a day in East Asia will fall below one third of the population by 2005. As recently as 1999 that proportion was 50%. That is to say, around 300 million people will have escaped from extreme poverty in the years of recovery since the financial crisis. More strikingly, in addition to economic progress, remarkable political advances have been made. This year saw a sweep of legislative and presidential elections across the region, including in Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea, Philippines, and Taiwan. Most were peaceful transitions of authority.
Despite these successes, many challenges remain for the region, not the least of which is recovering from the recent tsunami that devastated much of the area. (A separate regional Strategic Objective is included in this Congressional Budget Justification that speaks to the U.S. Agency for International Development's response to the tsunami.) Many countries in mainland Southeast Asia are still unitary states with relatively centralized systems of government. Vietnam and Laos are essentially authoritarian states. The military junta of Burma continues to detain Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners and refuses to engage in meaningful dialogue with the democratic opposition. Burma's gross human rights abuses contribute to large numbers of internally displaced persons in Burma and refugees in neighboring countries. Trafficking in persons remains a serious concern. According to the Asian Development Bank, about 225,000 persons from Southeast Asia are trafficked yearly.
Another threat is the health and economic impact of poor air quality, unclean water, and lack of safe sanitation. Weak or nonexistent environmental management combined with poverty has led to continued degradation of forests and exploitation of endangered species. Lack of integrated regional planning in water management, as evidenced by myopic planning of upstream dams in China, could further stress the region's major river systems. Sixty-three percent of the population of Asia does not have access to clean water and 80% are without access to sanitation. Rapid urbanization exacerbates these problems. Most countries in the region do not have adequate transport networks and are slow in developing cleaner industries and vehicle controls to keep air pollution at safe levels.
Countries in the region continue to suffer from the scourge of HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis (TB). More than six million persons are already estimated to be infected with HIV in Southeast Asia, making this the region with the second largest population living with HIV outside of Sub-Saharan Africa. Each day, more than 1,000 people die of AIDS and some 2,700 people become infected. Although infection rates have gone down in Thailand, the war against HIV/AIDS in the region is far from won. Similarly, prior advances to reduce malaria and tuberculosis in the region are being threatened with the emergence of drug-resistant strains throughout the Asia Pacific region. Diarrheal diseases, especially in areas lacking clean water and proper sanitation, continue to take a deadly toll, particularly among the region's children. Emerging zoonotic infectious diseases, such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and avian influenza have already had a major impact on the health and economies of the region and have the potential to resurface at any time.
A secure, robust, and integrated Southeast Asia Pacific region would bode well for the economic well-being of all nations in the world. Highly unbalanced growth and political or social instability could jeopardize vital U.S. strategic interests in the region.
The USAID Program: USAID's Regional Development Mission/Asia (RDM/A) which opened in Bangkok, Thailand in June 2003 manages regional and country-specific programs in mainland Southeast Asia (Burma, China, Laos, and Vietnam) as well as HIV/AIDS and environmental programs that extend east into the Pacific and west into South Asia. RDM/A also acts as the regional hub for services including contracting, administration, and disaster response.
RDM/A currently manages five country-specific strategic objectives and four regional strategic objectives (SOs). For the most part, activities under these SOs are a collection of programs previously managed by USAID in Washington D.C. or Phnom Penh, Cambodia and transferred to RDM/A. RDM/A is developing a regional strategy that is expected to be approved by FY 2005. There are currently a couple of approaches to the strategy that are being discussed to reorganize and streamline these objectives into fewer operational units to provide greater strategic coherence and to enhance program management. Reducing the burden of already overtaxed RDM/A staff is a major consideration of strategy development to ensure adequate oversight of the activities. Another consideration in the development of the strategy is to ensure that politically sensitive programs receive the attention they deserve.
USAID programs managed through RDM/A support five Presidential Initiatives: Clean Energy; Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief; Global Climate Change; Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria; and Mother and Child HIV Prevention.
Other Program Elements: RDM/A manages the regional programs summarized above in close coordination with bilateral programs in China, Laos, and Vietnam. USAID's Burma program promotes democracy and addresses humanitarian needs among Burmese populations living outside Burma and works to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS inside Burma. USAID's activities in China attempt to strengthen the rule of law, aid Tibetan communities, and prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS in targeted provinces. USAID's work in Laos attempts to develop a viable economic alternative to opium production, hinder the spread of HIV/AIDS, and improve the well-being of vulnerable populations. USAID's program in Vietnam focuses on accelerating Vietnam's transition to an open and market-based economy, fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic through the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Reduction, and improving access to services for selected vulnerable groups.
Other Donors: USAID coordinates closely with other donors in the region in implementing country-specific as well as regional activities. The HIV/AIDS and environment programs have benefited from regional partnerships with multilateral and bilateral donors that have helped to bolster the results achieved by USAID initiatives. Major donors include the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the European Union, the Japan International Cooperation Agency, and the United Nations.
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