This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 001587 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR PRM AND NEA/NGA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREF PREL IZ JO
SUBJECT: MONITORING AND EVALUATING ICMC ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS 
FOR VULNERABLE IRAQIS IN JORDAN 
 
REF:  EXUM/POLASCHIK E-MAIL 1/21/03 
 
¶1.  AS REQUESTED REF, REGIONAL REFCOORD AND REF ASSISTANT 
MONITORED PRM-FUNDED ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS FOR VULNERABLE 
IRAQIS IN JORDAN ADMINISTERED BY THE INTERNATIONAL CATHOLIC 
MIGRATION COMMISSION (ICMC) ON FEBRUARY 19 AND 24.  REPORT 
IS KEYED TO QUESTIONS PROVIDED REF. 
 
¶A.  ON FEBRUARY 19, REFCOORD AND REF ASSISTANT MET WITH 
ICMC/JORDAN COUNTRY DIRECTOR CLIVE CAVANAGH FOR AN OVERVIEW 
OF THE PROJECT AND TOUR OF THE ASSISTANCE CENTER. ICMC STAFF 
INCLUDE PROJECT OFFICER RAMA ISAAQ, SIX CASEWORKERS AND A 
SECRETARY.  ON FEBRUARY 24, REFCOORD ASSISTANT ACCOMPANIED 
 
SIPDIS 
TWO ICMC CASEWORKERS DURING THEIR HOME VISITS TO FIVE 
BENEFICIARY AND PROSPECTIVE BENEFICIARY FAMILIES IN AMMAN. 
 
¶B.  ALTHOUGH THE SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME REQUIRED TO 
START-UP PROGRAMMING IN JORDAN DELAYED THE PROJECT BY FOUR 
MONTHS (SEE PARA D FOR MORE DETAILS), ICMC NOW SEEMS TO BE 
DOING A SOLID JOB OF PROVIDING SERVICES TO VULNERABLE IRAQIS 
IN JORDAN.  MOST IMPORTANTLY, ICMC HAS IDENTIFIED CAPABLE 
STAFF AND APPROPRIATE OUTREACH METHODS TO REACH A VULNERABLE 
POPULATION LIVING IN A QUASI-LEGAL OR ILLEGAL STATUS ON THE 
FRINGES OF JORDANIAN SOCIETY.  IN FOUR WEEKS OF ACTUAL 
PROGRAMMING (JAN 6-FEB 3, 2003), ICMC HAS REVIEWED 254 
CASES, ACCEPTING 87 EXTREMELY VULNERABLE CASES AND REJECTING 
ANOTHER 87 CASES.  80 CASES STILL ARE PENDING. 
 
¶C.  THE FIRST FOUR MONTHS OF THE PROJECT WERE SPENT 
IDENTIFYING AND TRAINING STAFF AND PHYSICALLY SETTING UP THE 
PROJECT, INCLUDING IDENTIFYING AND EQUIPPING OFFICE SPACE. 
ICMC CASEWORKERS ACCEPT MEDICAL REFERRALS FROM UNHCR AND 
ALSO ACCEPT WALK-INS.  GIVEN POLITICAL SENSITIVITIES IN 
JORDAN CONCERNING THIS MOSTLY ILLEGAL IRAQI POPULATION, ICMC 
HAS MADE A CONCERTED EFFORT TO REACH OUT TO THE IRAQI 
COMMUNITY DISCREETLY, SENDING CASEWORKERS OUT TO THE 
COMMUNITY TO SPREAD WORD OF THE PROJECT THROUGH INFORMAL 
NETWORKS.  ONCE PROSPECTIVE BENEFICIARIES CONTACT ICMC, 
CASEWORKERS USE INTERVIEWS, ASSESSMENT FORMS AND HOME VISITS 
TO POTENTIAL BENEFICIARIES TO DETERMINE THEIR ELIGIBILITY 
FOR ASSISTANCE.  ACCORDING TO THE PROJECT PROPOSAL, ICMC 
PLANS TO PROVIDE HEALTH ASSISTANCE TO 2,500- 3,000 
VULNERABLE IRAQIS AND EDUCATION TO 600 VULNERABLE IRAQI 
CHILDREN DURING THE 12-MONTH PROJECT, MEANING A MONTHLY 
AVERAGE OF 250 PATIENTS AND 50 CHILDREN.  ICMC'S RELATIVELY 
SLOW START (254 CASES REVIEWED IN THE FIRST MONTH OF 
OPERATIONS) LIKELY IS DUE TO THE DIFFICULTY OF GETTING WORD 
OUT WITHOUT ACCESS TO THE OFFICIAL MEDIA; WE ANTICIPATE THAT 
THE PROJECT CASELOAD WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE AS WOULD OF 
THE PROJECT SPREADS. 
 
¶D.  ICMC DID NOT BEGIN THE PROJECT UNTIL NOVEMBER 5, AS IT 
SPENT THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF THE GRANT IDENTIFYING AND 
HIRING A QUALIFIED COUNTRY DIRECTOR.  THE COUNTRY DIRECTOR 
THEN SPENT THE NEXT TWO MONTHS OF THE PROJECT ACQUIRING 
OFFICE SPACE AND RECRUITING AND TRAINING SEVEN STAFF 
MEMBERS.  BECAUSE OF THE SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME REQUIRED 
TO ESTABLISH PROGRAMMING IN JORDAN, ICMC DID NOT BEGIN 
PROVIDING SERVICES TO VULNERABLE IRAQIS UNTIL JANUARY 6, A 
FULL FOUR MONTHS AFTER THE START OF THE GRANT. JORDANIAN 
SENSITIVITIES CONCERNING THE MOSTLY ILLEGAL IRAQI POPULATION 
IN JORDAN MAKE IT DIFFICULT FOR ICMC TO CONDUCT OUTREACH 
THROUGH MEDIA AND OTHER OFFICIAL MEANS.  MOREOVER, THE 
POLITICAL SENSITIVITIES ASSOCIATED WITH ANY STRUCTURE OR 
ORGANIZATION AMONG THE IRAQI COMMUNITY MADE IT IMPOSSIBLE 
FOR ICMC TO ESTABLISH AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR THE PROJECT 
AS OUTLINED IN THE PROPOSAL.  ICMC COMPENSATED FOR THESE 
DIFFICULTIES BY FOCUSING ITS EFFORTS ON GETTING WORD OUT 
DIRECTLY TO THE IRAQI COMMUNITY THROUGH ITS SOCIAL WORKERS. 
ICMC HAS ALSO DONE A GOOD JOB OF REACHING INTO ALL ETHNIC 
AND RELIGIOUS COMMUNITIES, SOMETHING OTHER FAITH-BASED 
RELIEF PROGRAMS IN JORDAN HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH. 
AS REPORTED BY ICMC, ITS CLIENTELE IS 67.54 PERCENT MUSLIM 
(MOSTLY SHI'A), 28.94 PERCENT CHRISTIAN AND 3.50 PERCENT 
SABI'A. 
 
¶E. THE ICMC STAFF SEEMS TO BE FULLY AND GAINFULLY EMPLOYED. 
THE SIX CASEWORKERS CONSTITUTE THE CORE OF THE PROGRAM AND 
APPEAR TO DIVIDE THEIR TIME EQUALLY BETWEEN THE OFFICE AND 
THE FIELD.  DURING REFCOORD'S FEBRUARY 19 VISIT, FOR 
EXAMPLE, THREE CASEWORKERS WERE MEETING NEW APPLICANTS IN 
THE OFFICE WHILE THE OTHER THREE WERE CONDUCTING HOME VISITS 
IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROJECT'S PLANNED SCHEDULE. ON 
FEBRUARY 24, REFCOORD ASSISTANT ACCOMPANIED TWO CASEWORKERS 
ON THEIR HOME VISITS TO FIVE BENEFICIARY FAMILIES. THE 
CASEWORKERS WORK IN PAIRS, WHICH ALWAYS ARE COMPRISED OF A 
MALE AND A FEMALE TO RESPOND TO CULTURAL SENSITIVITIES. THE 
CASEWORKERS SHOWED UNDERSTANDING AND RESPONSIVENESS TO THEIR 
CLIENTS AND SEEMED TO BE TRUSTED BY THE BENEFICIARIES -- AN 
IMPORTANT QUALITY WHEN DEALING WITH A MOSTLY ILLEGAL AND 
VERY FEARFUL COMMUNITY.  ICMC MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES INCLUDE 
A DAILY PLANNING MEETING.  THE ICMC DIRECTOR ALSO CONDUCTS 
WEEKLY SOCIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE STAFF TO COUNTERACT THE 
TENSION AND DEPRESSION ASSOCIATED WITH WORKING WITH SUCH A 
VULNERABLE COMMUNITY. 
¶F.  THE ICMC OFFICE IS SPACIOUS AND WELL-EQUIPPED. 
EQUIPMENT APPEARED TO BE IN WORKING ORDER AND USED ON A 
REGULAR BASIS.  ALL EQUIPMENT FOR THE PROJECT, EXCEPT THE 
COUNTRY DIRECTOR'S LAPTOP COMPUTER, WAS PURCHASED WITH USG 
FUNDS AND A LIST OF EQUIPMENT INVENTORY WAS RECEIVED.  AN 
APPROPRIATE INVENTORY CONTROL SYSTEM IS IN PLACE. 
 
¶G.  N/A 
 
¶H.  FROM OUR OBSERVATIONS OF THE IRAQI COMMUNITY (REFCOORD 
ASSISTANT'S VISIT WITH ICMC CASEWORKERS TO BE REPORTED 
SEPTEL), ELEMENTS OF THIS GROUP ARE INDEED EXTREMELY 
VULNERABLE.  HOWEVER, PROVIDING ASSISTANCE TO A GROUP 
WITHOUT REFUGEE STATUS DURING A TIME OF EXTREME POLITICAL 
SENSITIVITY HAS PROVEN TO BE A VERY DELICATE UNDERTAKING 
HERE IN JORDAN.  WE UNDERSTAND THAT ICMC INTENDS TO SEEK 
FUNDING FOR THE CONTINUATION OF THIS PROJECT AND RECOMMEND 
THAT ANY FUNDING DECISIONS BE POSTPONED UNTIL THE OVERALL 
REGIONAL SITUATION IS MORE CLEAR. 
 
GNEHM