 |
Russia
Please note: All linked documents are in PDF format
| Objective |
SO Number |
FY 2004 |
FY 2005 |
FY 2006 |
| Small Business Development |
118-0131 |
8,574 |
7,215 |
3,100 |
| Economic Policy Reform |
118-0141 |
4,221 |
680 |
|
| Environment |
118-0161 |
3,590 |
625 |
|
| More Open, Participatory Society |
118-0211 |
12,290 |
19,800 |
12,280 |
| Legal Systems Strengthened |
118-0221 |
3,395 |
5,587 |
3,600 |
| Improved Local Governance and Economic Development |
118-0231 |
2,850 |
3,553 |
1,520 |
| Health and Child Welfare |
118-0321 |
19,720 |
22,800 |
14,480 |
| Special Initiatives |
118-0410 |
12,000 |
|
|
| Cross-Cutting Programs |
118-0420 |
13,709 |
11,750 |
6,820 |
| Transfers |
|
19,001 |
15,990 |
9,200 |
| Total (in thousands of dollars) |
99,350 |
88,000 |
51,000 |
Excludes P.L. 480. See Program Annex.
|
The Development Challenge:
Russia's history, cultural and demographic complexity, massive land area, and stage of development pose unique challenges and unprecedented opportunities for the U.S. foreign assistance program. The goal of USAID programs is to help Russia become a reliable and effective partner working on key transformational development, geo-strategic, and transnational issues of importance to both countries. USAID's program develops and strengthens policies, mechanisms, and legacy institutions to support that partnership. USAID's program develops and strengthens policies, mechanisms, and legacy institutions to support that partnership.
Russia's strategic importance is clear. It has 17,000 nuclear warheads and a large standing conventional military force. It has stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons. It is the world's second largest producer of oil and natural gas and has vast timber, mineral, and petroleum resources. With almost a quarter of the world's forest acreage, it provides nearly a third of the planet's carbon dioxide absorption.
Because of Russia's strategic importance, there are a number of issues where cooperation will continue to be of critical interest to the United States for the foreseeable future. These range from concerns about Russia's own social and economic stability to global issues such as trafficking in persons, climate change, combating terrorism, and access to weapons of mass destruction. At the moment, Russia faces a growing health and social crisis. Increased infectious disease transmission and unhealthy lifestyles overburden an already-stretched health care system. In 2004, male life expectancy is 60 years, the same as that of Bangladesh. HIV/AIDS and multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (TB) infection rates are growing rapidly. The birth rate is one of the lowest in the world with 9.63 births per 1,000 people. If these trends continue, Russia's population could decline by one third in the next 45 years.
Poverty is rife. Despite recent dramatic petroleum-led economic growth, it is estimated that about 20% of Russia's population lives in poverty. Small and medium enterprises account for only 12% of the gross domestic product (GDP) compared to 50-70% in other European countries. Scarce job opportunities raise social challenges. Continuing internal migration and consequent co-location of disparate people and cultures coupled with large income disparities are introducing new strains into the social fabric. Democratic reforms have drastically slowed over the past several years as the government has moved to limit independent media and recentralize power.
The USAID Program:
USAID's assistance objectives in Russia extend beyond traditional economic and social development. They include broader geostrategic and transnational issues such as counter-terrorism, non-proliferation, infectious disease control, global warming, and trafficking in persons. USAID's development experience and instruments complement the work of other agencies on such issues. In particular, the focus is to strengthen partnerships and to establish lasting mechanisms to link United States and Russian agencies, institutions, governments, organizations, and citizens in common efforts to address key concerns of both countries. The program addresses Congressional interests in: combating infectious diseases; promoting reproductive health and family planning; child survival and maternal health; the needs of vulnerable children and orphans; combating trafficking in persons; domestic violence; and focused support for the Russian Far East (RFE). In FY 2006, more prominence will be placed on democracy and health, with an emphasis on HIV/AIDS, while support to the economic area will be phased out.
Overwhelmingly, USAID assistance is implemented by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other private sector entities. Over the short- to medium-term, this support will target the achievement of increased self-sustainability for these groups to ensure continuation of their positive impacts on Russia's politics, society, and economy.
During FY 2005, USAID will prepare its program strategy for the next five years. Evaluations and assessments previously carried out and planned will be drawn upon for lessons learned and to identify priority activities for the future.
USAID's program in Russia has three primary objectives: economic growth (to be phased out over this period); democracy and governance; and health. Within those areas, special efforts will be made to focus on selected local communities and regions in order to introduce proven models that can eventually be applied in other communities and nationally, when appropriate. The requested funds will be used to implement ongoing programs in these areas.
Other Program Elements:
There are a number of other significant programs active in Russia for which non-bilateral funds are provided and activities managed by USAID in Washington. These include U.S./Russian health and environmental partnerships supported by the USAID's bureau for Global Health and Economic Growth, Agriculture, and Trade; focused regional programs to fight corruption, strengthen NGOs, and promote international accounting standards; activities of the Eurasia Foundation; the U.S. Russia Investment Fund (TUSRIF), small business loan guarantees, as well as P.L. 480 activities through the World Food Program and modest efforts to promote tolerance in Chechnya.
In addition, USAID works closely with other U.S. government agencies present in Russia, especially in supporting Department of Energy programs in formerly "closed cities," the Department of State on public diplomacy (along with the Library of Congress) and counter-terrorism, and the Department of Justice on the prevention of trafficking in persons.
Other Donors:
The United States is the largest bilateral donor to Russia providing well over half of all bilateral assistance according to OECD data. Total bilateral aid was estimated to be over $892 million in FY 2004. Other donors, both bilateral and multilateral, include the European Union, World Bank, the United Nations, Germany, Israel, and the United Kingdom. Key emphases for bilateral assistance include: health, education, and other social sectors (48%) and economic infrastructure and services (38%).
Local and foreign private foundations also play an important role, particularly in the areas of civil society and health. However, recent GOR attacks on some of Russia's most successful entrepreneurs and their companies have chilled enthusiasm for charitable giving. Whether corporate charitable giving recovers the strength it showed in 2003 (estimated at $50 million) depends in great part on whether the Kremlin demonstrates that such giving is welcomed and encouraged.
Back to Top ^
|
