BENIN FEEDBACK ON UNICEF PROGRAMS

UNCLAS COTONOU 000294

DEPARTMENT FOR IO/EDA MOLLY KRESS AND AF/W DANA BANKS
PLEASE PASS TO USAID/GH DALE GIBB AND JANET PHILLPS STATE

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID UNICEF UN BN
SUBJECT: BENIN FEEDBACK ON UNICEF PROGRAMS

REF: STATE 044066


1. Summary: Post welcomes the opportunity to provide comments on
UNICEF, a valued partner in development. The UNICEF program in
Benin is effective and coordinates closely with the USG, the
Government of Benin (GOB),and international donors.


2. UNICEF Program in Benin: Overall, the UNICEF country program
document presents an accurate assessment of the health and education
status (the two areas of USAID focus) in Benin. The interventions
identified to improve maternal and child health status support the
strategic orientations and priorities provided by the government of
Benin. The country program document specifically identifies the
decline in the immunization coverage as an issue and plans to
support improvement of the immunization system during the 2009-2013
time period. Other interventions or practices such as exclusive
breastfeeding, hand washing, use of insecticide treated nets, oral
rehydration therapy and health-seeking behavior planned to be
pursued are sound and fit in the strategies recommended by the
Ministry of Health and supported by the WHO and other donors
including USAID.


3. The proposed basic education program addresses some of the major
factors impacting on school enrolment, retention and completion
rates, in particular the weak internal efficiency of the education
system, the physical and pedagogical environment, and inadequate
preliminary and in-service training of teachers and supervisors.
UNICEF activities to promote girls' education and in-service teacher
training for community teachers support the priorities and
objectives of the government of Benin as well as the extended donor
community


4. By targeting geographic areas where important social disparities
occur, complementing already existing interventions, and working to
strengthen the interaction between its three sectoral programs, the
proposed UNICEF country program in Benin will be an important and
specific contributor to coordinated efforts focused on advancing
towards achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.


5. UNICEF Partnership with USG, other donors, other UN agencies,
and the host country and UNICEF Effectiveness in Country:


6. UNICEF is an important financial and technical partner in the
education, health and social sectors for USAID and other donor
agencies. UNICEF is one of the most active partners in the education
donor group. For example, UNICEF played a key role in the joint
committee of Technical and Financial Partners assisting the
Ministries of Education in the development and design of the
education sector ten-year development plan. It also played an
important role in the evaluation process of the plan and in Benin's
acceptance into the Education for All Fast Track Initiative. UNICEF
also assisted with Benin's application for Catalytic Funds, which
subsequently awarded $76.1 million to support the ten-year plan.


7. UNICEF works in close collaboration with several government
ministries at both national and local levels. It has been effective
in its collaboration with the Ministry of Family and Children in
developing a policy for child protection and with the Ministry of
Justice in passing an anti-trafficking law, and a related code of
conduct for transporters. UNICEF recently collaborated with the
Ministry of Primary Education in developing an in-service teacher
training program for community teachers, and continues to have a
productive relationship with the Direction of Girls' Education in
the Ministry of Primary Education. In partnership with this
direction, UNICEF developed a national girls' education policy, now
used in their awareness raising activities with local and district
government agencies, schools and the community.


8. UNICEF continues to be a good partner for USAID as both
institutions work together in targeted geographic areas on child
health, including Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI),
Malaria, and Prevention of Mother-To-Child Transmission of HIV.
During implementation of the current country program, UNICEF has
effectively worked with other donors to achieve health objectives in
Benin. One specific example was UNICEF's commitment and extensive
participation in the bed net distribution campaign conducted by the
government of Benin in October 2007. Not only did UNICEF
participate by contributing commodities (bed nets and vitamin A)
like the other donors, UNICEF also enabled effective communication
among the donors and provided five months of consultancy to the
National Malaria Control Program to assist in designing and
implementing a communication plan to support the distribution
campaign. Also in malaria-specific donors' coordination, UNICEF
participates in USAID/Benin's initiative to coordinate donors'
efforts supporting the government in terms of policy implementation
and effective use of resources under a good governance framework.


9. UNICEF's heath interventions from 2004 to 2008 have focused on
the Zou-Collines regions, thus complementing USAID's integrated
Family Health Team project's interventions in the same health zones.
USAID and UNICEF, together with WHO, are currently working with the
Ministry of Health to conduct a review of the EPI program and assess
the decline in immunization coverage during the past five years as
well as investigate the underlying factors in the recent decline in
child and infant mortality rates as revealed by the DHS-3 findings
in order to support scaled up best and promising practices.


10. One weakness in the area of collaboration and coordination with
the wider donor community is that the country program for 2009-2013
does not indicate whether UNICEF will continue in the same health
zones or shift interventions to new geographic areas. In addition,
no reference is made in the document on how and where UNICEF's
planned program will complement other donors' interventions. The
list of donors provided in the section on major partnerships does
not answer the question of concrete steps UNICEF plans to take to
make its plans for partnerships with other donors operational.

Boustani