PROGRAM: REDSO/ESA
TITLE AND NUMBER: Establish a Strong Basis for Implementation of the GHAI, 623-003
STATUS: Ending
PLANNED FY 2001 OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: $0 CSD, $0 DA
PROPOSED FY 2002 OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: $0 CSD, $0 DA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1995 ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2001

Summary: The Greater Horn of Africa Initiative (GHAI) was launched in 1994 in response to continuing political and humanitarian crises and instability in the ten-country Greater Horn of Africa (GHA) region. The goal of the GHAI is a food-secure, just and peaceful region through the development and strengthening of African capacity to 1) improve food security; 2) prevent, mitigate and resolve conflict; and 3) improve access to critical information. The purpose of this objective was to establish within REDSO/ESA the management and programmatic elements needed to implement the GHAI. Direct beneficiaries of this objective were governments in the GHA, U.S. private voluntary organizations (PVOs) and African non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The benefits of the GHAI will ultimately accrue to populations at the grassroots level through activities that increase African capacity to improve food security, reduce conflict and share information.

Key Results: Three key intermediate results have been achieved under this objective. 1) Under the Conflict Pilot Activities Fund (CPAF), pilot activities in conflict prevention and mitigation have been tested in several countries of the Greater Horn to establish best practices. A "tool kit" of best practices in the region is now being prepared and distributed. 2) Regional information on food security and conflict is now accessible to African implementers and policy-makers and is being applied rapidly to events on the ground. 3) Through the Institutional Strengthening and Grant Management (ISGM) program, African NGOs working on food security and conflict prevention, mitigation and response are undergoing the training necessary to expand and strengthen their activities in the region.

Performance and Prospects: This objective is on track, and although it is ending this year, its goals, principles and basic objectives have been fully integrated throughout REDSO/ESA's new strategic objectives (SOs). The new SOs all capture USAID's plans-beyond the life of the GHAI-to further strengthen the capacity of African organizations in food security and conflict management.

Pilot activities in conflict prevention, mitigation and response: Diverse pilot activities were supported through three grant-making mechanisms-the ISGM mechanism with two NGOs (PACT and MWENGO) in collaboration with the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), and the CPAF and Conflict Quick Response Fund (CQUICK) mechanisms in collaboration with the Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA). Several pilot faith-based initiatives made important progress in reconciling differences between conflicting parties. For example, the Acholi Religious Leader's Initiative addressed conflict in northern Uganda by using moral persuasion to convince the government to move forward with the peace process.

Conflict prevention and mitigation through natural resource management has also proven to be an important conflict mitigation approach in the GHA region. Intermediate Technology Development Group and the Pastoralist Development Group (two other NGOs) are collaborating on two projects to help mitigate pastoralist conflict in northern Kenya that will include the development of annual action plans to ensure that peace plans are upheld. Other initiatives have incorporated traditional practices at a local level, mobilized women and youth as agents of change, and harnessed the skills and resources of universities to share peace-building information. The strength of these activities lies in the opportunity they provide to channel potentially violent conflict into constructive peace activities centered around civil dialogue. Stakeholders, through platforms provided by reconciliation meetings and conferences, often have a unique opportunity to provide input into decision-making processes where they may have previously been marginalized.

Enhanced regional information: Building on past efforts to establish Internet connectivity for key policy-makers in the GHA region, recent information efforts have focused on non-governmental institutions as well as strengthening the ability of partners to use and disseminate information. For example, the Kenya Educational Network (KNET), an umbrella body of educational institutions, is building the capacity and ability of universities through Internet connectivity, which will eventually lead to greater ability to reach, research and share information on democracy and conflict/peace activities, especially through university faculties. An Information Resource Center has also been established in a girls' school in Rwanda. In addition to the benefit it provides to the students, during school holidays the center is used for training women's groups in the use of information and communication technologies, with the goal of enhancing women's capacity to contribute to research related to genocide and conflict mitigation in Rwanda. On the food security front, the Drought Monitoring Center (DMC) in Nairobi has improved its ability to produce timely and accurate forecasts on droughts, floods, and other extreme climatic events. Consequently, governments and donors have been able to plan and respond more quickly to food emergencies than had been the case.

African organizations strengthened: USAID's existing partners continued to demonstrate evidence of strengthened capacity. For example, through USAID support to improve its strategic planning and financial management systems, the Association for Strengthening of Agricultural Research in East and Central Africa (ASARECA) has been certified to receive a 5-year, $27 million grant from the European Union (EU). Similarly, improved overall organizational performance-a result of USAID support-has enabled the African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) and Western Indian Ocean Marine Sciences Association (WIOMSA) to leverage $1.5 million and $2 million, respectively, in funding from other donors. IGAD continues to demonstrate increased capacity, most noticeably illustrated by the launching of the Conflict Early Warning and Response mechanism (CEWARN). Similarly, the COMESA Secretariat has begun to implement a peace and security protocol to engage civil society, NGOs and governments to address conflict issues in the region.

New partners are also receiving institutional strengthening support from USAID through the PACT/MWENGO Institutional Strengthening and Grantmaking (ISGM) Program. Eleven grants for more than $2.2 million have been awarded, while seventy-five additional organizations have received technical assistance in organizational development through the ISGM. These organizations have received substantive assistance and training in financial management, strategic and organization planning, monitoring and evaluation, electronic communication system development and conflict resolution skills.

Possible Adjustments to Plans: This is the final reporting period for this strategic objective since REDSO/ESA's Strategic Plan FY 2001-2005 was approved in August 2000. Lessons learned from the implementation of this strategic objective guided the design of all REDSO/ESA's new strategic objectives and any future GHAI core funding (e.g., non-Somalia and non-Sudan funds) will be programmed within these three new objectives.

Other Donor Programs: Other donors play a significant role in USAID's partnership with IGAD. The Joint IGAD Partners Forum-composed of the European Union, Norway, Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, Canada, in addition to IGAD and the United States-remains the primary forum through which USAID interacts with IGAD. The German government and USAID have worked especially closely together to support the CEWARN project.

Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: African Centre for Technology Studies, Association for Support to Agricultural Research in East and Central Africa, Common Market for East and Southern Africa, Inter-Governmental Authority on Development, MWENGO, Participating Agencies Collaborating Together, and Western Indian Ocean Marine Sciences Association.

FY 2002 Performance Tables

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