MORE BANG FOR YOUR BUCK: SSH/DHRF SUCCESS

UNCLAS ANTANANARIVO 000717

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR F - PAUL CRAWFORD
DEPARTMENT FOR AF/E - MBEYZEROV AND RMEYERS
DEPARTMENT FOR AF/RSA - MARINDA HARPOLE
USAID FOR AA/AFR - KATE ALMQUIST
NAIROBI FOR USAID/EA/LPC - AKARAS, MBARRY, MKIRBY

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID PREL KPAO MA CN
SUBJECT: MORE BANG FOR YOUR BUCK: SSH/DHRF SUCCESS



1. SUMMARY: The Ambassador's Special Self Help (SSH) and Democracy
and Human Rights Funds (DHRF) provide direct, inexpensive, and
meaningful assistance to projects throughout Madagascar and the
Comoros. They generate tremendous positive publicity and good will
for the United States. From women entrepreneurs, to farmers, to the
handicapped, these funds accomplish Mission Strategic Objectives at
the grassroots level. END SUMMARY.


2. The Department received USD 2.95 million in FY 2006 for the
Ambassador's SSH Fund for use throughout Africa. Last year Post
received USD 80,000 for Madagascar and USD 18,000 for Comoros in SSH
Funds and USD 80,000 for Madagascar and USD 22,000 for the Comoros
in DHRF. In comparison to other U.S. Government expenditures, these
allocations may appear insignificant. However, the positive impact
of these small projects in their local communities, as well as the
goodwill generated toward the U.S., makes them disproportionately
valuable to our Mission here in Madagascar and the Comoros. As a
development tool, the impact of these funds is confined to a tiny
locality, but in that location the project benefit is very concrete
and tangible. As a public diplomacy tool it may be
disproportionate, but a five thousand dollar pump can often generate
as much positive publicity as a five million dollar technical
assistance program.



3. In Madagascar, the SSH and DHRF programs have been running since
the late 1960s and have established a nation-wide reputation. No
longer is promotion of the SSH program necessary, as demand far
outweighs supply. Indeed, Post requests allocation increases every
year in the hopes of funding more of the worthwhile projects that
current resource limits force us to turn down.

Success Story: Restaurant with Women's Group
--------------


4. Six women stopped a Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) in their village.
They wanted to open a small restaurant. There is no electricity in
their village. There is no school past 6th grade. There are
definitely no restaurants. It is a village of about 600 people that
only in 2004 had two water pumps installed providing clean, clear
water as opposed to the mud and dung-filled watering holes that they
were used to. This village still suffers from a hunger season
before the harvest.


5. This west coast village is located on the hot and dusty tourist
route leading from Morondava past the Allee des Baobabs to the
Tsingy National Park. These women see up to 15 tourists per day

SIPDIS
stopping in their village to buy traditional carvings made by a
local association of carvers. Wouldn't this same group of people be
thirsty for a cold drink? Or even hungry for lunch or dinner? And
what about the many researchers and NGO workers that spend time in
the village with no place to eat?


6. These six women wanted solar panels and a small refrigerator.
With the help of the PCV, they filled out the SSH proposal and
submitted it to the U.S. Embassy. They did not need a computer.
They did not need to access the internet. They did not need to
travel to the capital. All they needed was a pen and the proposal
form.


7. The inauguration of their restaurant - "Hotely Soafianatsy" - was
held on June 16, 2007. The solar panels are up and running. The
refrigerator is stocked with cold sodas. Coincidentally, six French
adventure bicyclists passed by on the very same day. They were hot
and tired and very hungry. They paid for 12 meals (two each) and
more than flattered the women entrepreneurs with their appetite.


8. Last week a group of 16 American high school students paid to eat
lunch there every day during their two week study tour of the
region, not only benefiting the restaurant but also increasing their
exchange with Malagasy culture. All of this for the project cost of
USD 5,000. All of this for perhaps a little more than the cost of a
roundtrip airplane ticket for one State Department official to
travel to the U.S. from Post.

Success Story: Lentil Farmer
--------------


9. Mr. Henri Jean and his father have been farming lentils and rice
on their land for the last 50 years. Their association of farmers
is now the sole producer of lentils for the two largest grocery
stores in Madagascar. Last year they submitted an SSH proposal to
enable the farmers to utilize crop rotation methods on their
property. Their land sits up high with plenty of water surrounding
it but at a lower elevation than the farmland. The association was
awarded USD 2,750 to purchase a water pump distributing low-lying
water into the rice fields. In this way, the farmers can plant and
harvest leguminous lentils in one season. And in the next season,
they can benefit from the enriched soils to sow rice with enough
water to reach harvest.


10. Henri Jean is now receiving inquiries from businessmen
interested in exporting their lentils to Mauritius. With an
insignificant sum of money, the U.S. Embassy was able to leverage
one small farmers' association's enthusiasm and capabilities to
encourage exactly the kind of economic development our Mission seeks
for Madagascar.

Success Story: Rights of the Handicapped
--------------


11. A study by Handicap International in 2000 stated that only 10
percent of handicapped children in Madagascar are provided with an
education. Over the past five years, the Ambassador's DHRF Program
has supported the Centre Sembana Mijoro. The Centre provides
scholarships and technical training to physically handicapped
children and promotes implementation of Madagascar's Handicap Law.
The Centre literally receives children, parents, and educators at
their doorstep with questions such as this by a 13 year old cripple
- "Is it true that a physically handicapped girl like me is unable
to learn?" She had never attended school.


12. The Embassy has financed their production of a small educational
brochure, a census of handicapped students in Antananarivo, reports
to government and media on the state of the treatment of handicapped
individuals, and seminars educating the audience about the Handicap
Law and to explain the rights of handicapped individuals.

Success Story: Comoros
--------------


13. Two successful DHRF projects are addressing the needs of
handicapped populations on all three islands of the Comoros. For
the sum of USD 16,000, technicians have been provided with supplies
and training in making leg braces, knee splints, and treatment of
club feet. The second project with the minimal cost of USD 6,000
provides humanitarian gifts to children and handicapped individuals.
Over 11,000 boxes filled with toys, tooth brushes, pens, pencils,
and school notebooks have been delivered. The potential impact of
the SSH and DHRF programs in the Comoros has yet to be fully
realized, but clearly has every bit the same potential for success
as the long-established programs in Madagascar.

COMMENT: LOW COST, HIGH IMPACT
--------------


14. Because the amounts of funds involved are so small, it is easy
to overlook these invaluable resources, or to let them fall under
the budget cutter's knife. From our perspective, this would be a
terrible mistake. Dollar-for-dollar there are few better uses of
our development resources. END COMMENT.

SIBLEY