RESOURCE CENTER CONNECTS LOCAL GROUPS WITH FUNDS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 000610 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP AND IO; PACOM FOR FPA; F/EAP FOR ESMITH E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM BM SUBJECT: RESOURCE CENTER CONNECTS LOCAL GROUPS WITH FUNDS REF: RANGOON 607 ¶1. (SBU) Summary. The newly-created Local Resource Center (LRC) serves to connect local organizations with one another and potential donors to conduct projects in the Irrawaddy delta. According to the LRC's main advisor, Karl Dorning, the groups with the greatest need and the fewest funding opportunities are newly established village-based organizations and groups formed in response to Cyclone Nargis. These groups seek resources and assistance at the LRC. Embassy Rangoon could bolster their efforts with the DRL democracy promotion funds programmed through our small grants program. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) In July, Poloff visited the Local Resource Center (LRC),which consists of a few small rooms equipped with computers, maps of the Irrawaddy delta area, and notice boards. It serves as a networking center for local organizations who seek support and funding for their projects throughout Burma, and particularly in the Irrawaddy delta region. Karl Dorning, the primary advisor to the LRC, told us that the center came into existence primarily in response to Cyclone Nargis. Local Burmese groups seeking to assist in the relief efforts created the center out of necessity and have extensively utilized its services in recent months. ¶3. (SBU) Dorning told us there are four categories of groups the center serves. The first is established groups and NGOs with offices in Rangoon with a specific sectoral interest such as environment or capacity building. Another group comprises faith-based organizations (FBOs). These, Dorning said, often have a country-wide reach. The third group includes new community-based organizations (CBO),most of which have formed in response to Cyclone Nargis relief efforts. The last group consists of grassroots organizations, including self-help groups for livelihoods rebuilding and non-governmental village-based committees. ¶4. (SBU) One trend in recent weeks, noted Dorning, was that communities had taken greater responsibility and ownership for their own reconstruction. For example, a community leader from a village of 1000 households in Ngapudaw Township established committees for agriculture, fishing, and small business livelihood development and created a plan to implement the programs. He explained to Dorning his concern that villages were increasingly dependent on handouts from the international community, so he sought to establish self-sufficiency in his village. ¶5. (SBU) As a result of this trend, new CBOs and village-based groups come daily to the LRC seeking funding for their initiatives, explained Dorning. Unfortunately, most major international donors have exhausted their funding for the relief efforts or are unwilling to fund such new community organizations. The LRC refers most new groups to Paungku, a consortium of NGOs that jointly funds small groups. Currently, Paungku has approximately 150 groups awaiting funding, Dorning said. ¶6. (SBU) The LRC is exploring other ways to fund these local groups. One idea was to have an established NGO from the network act as a mentor to newer organizations. Dorning also proposed to get funding from the small grants programs of embassies in Rangoon, including ours. The LRC would identify those groups that it considered particularly well-organized, which embassies could then vet through their own evaluation systems. Dorning believed this would provide valuable opportunities for community groups to build self-sufficiency, rather than depending indefinitely on aid donations. ¶7. (SBU) Comment: The aftermath of Cyclone Nargis has provided a rare opportunity in Burma for small community groups to work openly to rebuild their villages. The LRC, while short on funding, provides a window into the true extent of local Burmese involvement in the rebuilding of the Irrawaddy delta region. The organizations and communities involved in this process have the unique ability to identify RANGOON 00000610 002 OF 002 and address their own needs. Since DRL has an estimated USD 417,000 in FY08 for democracy promotion in Burma, we could easily help strengthen civil society by programming those funds to these local organizations through our small grants program. End Comment. VILLAROSA