Bureau for Policy and Program Coordination
Please note: All linked documents are in PDF format
| Objective |
SO Nunber
| FY 2004 |
FY 2005 |
FY 2006 |
| Learning from Experience |
996-013 |
10,208 |
8,335 |
9,952 |
| Total (in thousands of dollars) |
10,208 |
8,335 |
9,952 |
Excludes P.L. 480. See Program Annex.
|
The Development Challenge: President Bush's National Security Strategy (NSS) of September 2002 outlines a new direction in foreign policy, including a new emphasis on "development." This new emphasis provides an opportunity for USAID, as the leader in development, to play an even stronger role in U.S. foreign policy. USAID and the Department of State subsequently developed the 2004-2009 Joint Strategic Plan to identify a shared foreign policy and national security agenda, reflecting USAID's five core operational goals: promote transformational development; strengthen fragile states; provide humanitarian relief; support geo-strategic interests; and address global issues and special concerns. USAID's development activities within those operational goals are in direct response to the new challenges of the 21st century, particularly the risks posed by fragile states and terrorism. Operationally, USAID is a participating Agency in the President's National Strategy for Combating Terrorism, which further highlights the fact that conflict and failed states provide opportunistic environments in which terrorists can operate. Additionally, in the face of these and other global challenges, USAID also coordinates closely with State's HIV/AIDS Coordinator and the Office for Reconstruction and Stabilization, and liaises with the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), along with participating in other inter-Agency meetings on foreign policy.
The Bureau for Program and Policy Coordination's role is to help develop and coordinate sound policies and strategies within the Agency and among U.S. Government agencies. Internationally, its role includes implementing the development component of the NSS. The Agency achieves this by guiding the evolution and adaptation of Agency programs to changing global conditions consistent with U.S. national interests, values and foreign policy objectives. Account levels managed by the Agency have grown from $7.8 billion in FY 2001 to nearly $14.2 billion in FY 2003, (including supplemental funds for Iraq).
The USAID Program: USAID's Bureau for Policy and Program Coordination (PPC) addresses the above development challenge on four fronts: 1) providing the most up-to-date knowledge for development in the form of information, analyses and evaluations related to policy and critical development issues, including coordinating with the MCC; 2) directly addressing and shaping the global policy debate on development assistance and humanitarian relief; 3) coordinating with other donor governments; and 4) integrating the best practices of strategic budgeting and performance monitoring to ensure that budgets reflect strategic priorities of Congress and the Administration.
The PPC Bureau performs internal analytical work and actively engages external groups to both better inform the Agency's policy agenda and influence the international development policy agenda. New and ongoing research and analysis is sharpening our understanding and effectiveness in working with fragile states, and enhancing our understanding of the Muslim world. In addition, Knowledge for Development (KfD), the Agency's knowledge management initiative, is actively developing a systematic approach to harness, tap and replicate international development best practices. USAID will continue to promote creative and innovative ways to provide timely and pertinent information and analyses to its workforce in order to help them excel in their program activities. Elements of this area include mid-term, final, and impact evaluations of Agency programs, the USAID Library, interactive Web sites, access to electronic journals and other data resources, and the facilitation of "technical communities of practice" to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and experience within and between groups of practitioners. In so doing, USAID will maximize the value of its knowledge and provide a stronger base of understanding personnel and for its development partners. USAID will also use this learned knowledge to support and transfer lessons learned to the MCC for eligible and threshold countries.
Additionally, we will continue to work with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to use the program assessment rating tool (PART) process to advance budget and performance integration, and improve the strategic budgeting model. We will continue to reshape and streamline the strategic planning process, establishing a new standard set of program components in FY 2005 and performance monitoring plans for improved performance and accountability reporting under the Government Performance and Results Act. In FY 2004, USAID went from red to yellow in status on performance and budget integration under the President's Management Agenda (PMA), and the Agency is on track to reach green in status by July 1, 2005.
USAID will also be conducting comprehensive Mission Management Assessments on most of its overseas missions during the next five years, coordinated by PPC. Such assessments will evaluate the effectiveness of mission programs and operations, as well as identify best practices, lessons learned and Agency-level issues for broader application or resolution.
Other Program Elements: An innovative aspect of the PPC Bureau's program is that almost any overseas mission or Washington-based office can participate in and benefit from the Bureau's activities through "buy-ins" to many of PPC's contracting mechanisms. For instance, over two-thirds of the funding for the Integrated Managing for Results contract is provided by non-PPC entities that cover expenses for activities such as the Agency's Planning, Achieving and Learning course, considered to be the principal introductory course ("USAID 101") for new direct-hire personnel. Other activities funded through this contract are Performance Monitoring Plan preparation and Mission Strategic Planning workshops and technical assistance. With buy-ins, USAID missions and offices are able to work directly with the contract vendor to customize the delivery of services, which allows PPC to respond to the wide variety of programmatic needs experienced in the field.
Other Donors: In helping to shape the global policy debate, USAID will actively participate in a host of international fora carried out between governmental and quasi-governmental development partners from around the world. These partners include Great Britain's Department for International Development, the Canadian International Development Agency, the European Commission, the United Nations, the international development banks, and the Japanese International Cooperation Agency, among others. USAID plays a crucial role in coordination of international responses to both natural and man-made disasters and took the lead in the President's Famine Initiative at the Sea Island G8 Summit. USAID assists other donors in strategy development; supports U.S. Government (USG) reporting to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development's Development Assistance Committee (OECD/DAC), and produces reports on other donors. USAID will continue to promote and develop the policy priorities elaborated in its new Joint Strategic Plan with the Department of State, the 2002 Agency report on "Foreign Aid in the National Interest," and the White Paper entitled "U.S. Foreign Aid: Meeting the Challenges of the Twenty-first Century."
Back to Top ^
|
