VZCZCXRO3831
PP RUEHRN
DE RUEHNR #1496/01 0940615
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 040615Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY NAIROBI
TO RUEHLGB/AMEMBASSY KIGALI PRIORITY 4772
INFO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8731
RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS 1805
RUEHRN/USMISSION UN ROME 0150
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 4137

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 NAIROBI 001496 
 
SIPDIS 
 
USAID/DCHA/AA FOR WGARVELINK, LROGERS 
DCHA/OFDA FOR GGOTTLIEB, CGOTTSCHALK, KCHANNELL 
DCHA/FFP FOR JDWORKEN, TANDERSON, TMCRAE, WHAMMINK 
AFR/EA FOR JBORNS, SMCCLURE 
ROME FOR FODAG 
GENEVA FOR NKYLOH 
BRUSSELS FOR PLERNER 
NAIROBI FOR JMYER; ADWYER 
KIGALI FOR KMULLALLY, CTOCCO, RWASHBURN, VSAFALI 
NSC FOR JMELINE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: USAID
SUBJECT:  USAID/EAST AFRICA/FFP MONITORING MISSION OF 
TITLE II COOPERATING SPONSORS IN RWANDA 
 
 
¶1.  SUMMARY:  Regional East Africa FFP Officer and USAID 
Rwanda Mission conducted a joint monitoring mission 
February 26 ? March 3, 2007, of Title II Cooperating 
Sponsors (CSs) World Vision (WV), Catholic Relief 
Services (CRS), ACDI/VOCA and their sub-grantees: 
Africare, ADRA and Food for the Hungry International 
(FHI).  They operate under Development Assistance 
Programs (DAPs) that are all scheduled to end between 
2009 and 2010. Program implementation by the CSs has 
been severely hampered by budget cuts, delays in call 
forward (CF) for monetized and distributed commodities 
and the various clarifications on food aid requested by 
the Rwandan Government. Despite the challenges, the CSs 
continue to provide good and important assistance to 
vulnerable populations in Rwanda. END SUMMARY 
 
¶2.  The CSs are providing support to vulnerable 
populations including People Living with HIV and AIDS 
(PLWHA), elderly people, orphans, street children in 
safety net centers, farmers using improved agriculture 
techniques in food insecure zones and agri-business 
cooperatives.  These groups are supported through direct 
distributions of Title II commodities as well as 
proceeds from the sale of monetized commodities that are 
distributed as grants. 
 
BUDGET CUTS, LIMITED CALL FORWARD AND DELAYED PROGRAM 
IMPLEMENTATION 
 
¶3.  The Title II non ? emergency program in Rwanda was 
valued at USD 13.3 million for FY 07. However, under the 
new F Process, that sum has been reduced to USD 11.4 
million and this will be the working figure for the 
remainder of FY 07. The newly announced budget 
reductions will surely force CSs to reduce staff and cut 
down on critical activities even more. In addition to 
the budget cuts, the Cooperating Sponsors were all faced 
with the inability to call forward commodities for 
monetization and distribution in a planned or timely 
manner. Additionally, the Mission in Rwanda and its 
partners were challenged for a period of time, by the 
Government of Rwanda?s restrictions on food aid. This 
situation has been worked out to the satisfaction of all 
parties. These instances have prevented partners from 
fully implementing the DAPs as approved. 
 
¶4.  The implications of these measures have been far 
reaching for the CSs and their sub-grantees. Program 
implementation has been severely hampered. CRS? 
Comprehensive Close-Out Strategy Amendment (COSA) with 
implementation 2006-2009, has two objectives: direct 
distribution to 39 Safety Net Centers and food security 
initiatives. They are half way through their program in 
the first year and they have yet to start implementing 
the food security initiatives that represent 75 percent 
of their programming. ACDI/VOCA?s approved five year DAP 
(2005-2010) allocates USD 3.2 million for distribution 
as grants to local cooperatives. As of FY 07, they have 
only disbursed USD 50,000 at this half-way point. 
Similarly, WV was to receive USD 5 million to disburse 
as small grants. As of FY 07, more than half way through 
the DAP, they report receiving USD 1.3 million.  The 
challenge for the TITLE II grant dispersal process is 
that grants ideally should not be distributed in the 
last year of the program because follow-up will be 
difficult during the close-out period.  Given program 
delays, it looks as though CSs will have to do just 
that. 
 
¶5.  WV and Africare (a sub-grantee of ACDI/VOCA) have 
not received any CF commodities in FY 07. There is a 
consignment due in March/April.  For now, they are 
working off their FY 06 balance, but will run out of 
cash in March. Africare?s distribution commodities have 
been insufficient, forcing them to diminish rations to 
their target population of PLWHA. Currently they receive 
 
NAIROBI 00001496  002 OF 004 
 
 
12.5 kgs of Corn Soya Blend (CSB) and one liter of oil 
instead of the 25 kgs CSB, 1.8 liters of oil, and 25 kgs 
of Soya-Fortified (SF) Bulgur per family per month, 
suggested by USAID. In many instances, these food 
rations are the only lifeline for PLWHA who need food to 
properly digest Anti-Retrovirals (ARVs) as part of their 
AIDS management therapy. 
 
¶6.  The cash that comes from 202e grants and 
monetization are needed early in the fiscal year in 
order to move programming along. It is understood that a 
large part of the reason for CF delays is caused by the 
continuing resolution.  FFP has had to prioritize 
available cash resources for the immediate emergencies. 
The delays of CFs have forced the CSs to reduce staff 
and/or slow down activities resulting in low morale of 
their teams. Further, the CSs have to also work hard to 
maintain the morale of their target beneficiaries. 
 
¶7.  FFP/W, in an effort to correct the CF delays, has 
initiated ways to better plan and prioritize non- 
emergency spending. They have developed a pipeline 
analysis tool that CSs have been requested to test. This 
will facilitate FFP/W in knowing the ?what, when and 
whys? of programs needs in order to more effectively 
lobby for necessary resources for Multi Year Assistance 
Programs (MYAPs) in a more timely fashion. The fine- 
tuning of this process will allow for greater 
predictability of non-emergency needs, as well as 
promote a greater integration with other resources. 
FFP/W reports that they have now prioritized the CFs and 
cash for the DAP partners in Rwanda. Final confirmation 
is expected in April 2007. These changes in Washington 
to improve the planning and operations of food aid 
programs are welcomed in Rwanda and the Mission looks 
forward to implementation. 
 
 
 
TITLE II and the SUPPORT FOR PLWHA 
 
¶8.  In Rwanda, TITLE II resources are feeding 17,445 
PLWHIVAs through the two Development Assistant Programs 
of WV and ACDI/VOCA and their sub grantees FHI, ADRA and 
Africare.  The USAID team was joined by PEPFAR on visits 
to two associations of PLWHA: Imbaraga z?Urukundo (Power 
of Love) and Inziramugayo (People of Integrity). In 
order to be a member of the associations, one must be 
HIV positive.  There were hungry people (with very low 
Body Mass Index (BMIs)) that were turned away if they 
were not HIV positive. The Imbaraga z?Urukundo 
Association is located in Nyamata District in the 
Eastern province. They are one of 135 associations 
supported by Title II through World Vision and ADRA. 
There are 111 members in which 71 are receiving food due 
to their ARV intake. WV is employing PEPFAR guidance to 
scientifically target food aid beneficiaries which is 
primarily based on a recipient?s BMI. In addition to 
food, WV provides nutritional training and counseling. 
The USAID/PEPFAR team listened to many testimonies by 
association members supported by Title II. They shared 
with enthusiasm how the food enabled them to intake the 
ARVs that usually caused vomiting and nausea.  ?Medicine 
without food is not good? declared one member.  They 
spoke of their weight gain and new-found energy. A widow 
with five children shared that because of the food she 
was getting along with the ARVs, ?I now have strength to 
work in my garden?. Another member declared that her CD4 
count (that determines the level of immunity against 
opportunistic infections) went from 23 ? 249 once she 
started taking food with her ARVs. 
 
¶9.  Africare supports 34 Associations numbering 1,210 
PLWHA in Nyamagabe district in the Southern Province. 
Through a series of volunteers they provide Home Base 
Care, peer education and testing and counseling and pay 
 
NAIROBI 00001496  003 OF 004 
 
 
health fees. Africare provided community-based 
nutritional support for 5,013 moderately malnourished 
children as of February 2007. 
 
¶10. The GOR has established a protocol that requires 
that direct distribution recipients be ?graduated? from 
programs after six months. All of the CSs providing 
direct distribution in the form of safety nets find it 
difficult to respect this protocol. World Vision 
graduates beneficiaries once they improve their 
nutritional status as measured by BMI, which does not 
usually respect a six-month calendar.  Similarly with 
Africare, they are feeding 12,600 beneficiaries. They 
find it difficult to respect the six month rule as they 
operate in an acute food insecure zone where one can 
find an entire family that is HIV positive. 
 
Pascasie ? 13 Years old, HIV+, with Help and Hope 
 
¶11.  The PEPFAR/USAID team met Pascasie, a 13 year old 
girl diagnosed with HIV when she was just 2 years old. 
She has lived with her grandmother and aunts since that 
time when she lost both her parents to AIDS.  She is 
twice the age of her 2nd year primary school classmates, 
but opportunistic diseases such as tuberculosis have 
forced her to miss many days and months of school. 
Pascasie appears healthy and when asked, how she feels, 
she responds ?Meze neza? in Kinyarwanda which means ?I 
am well?.  She is understandably shy with all eyes on 
her, but she readily receives the hugs we want to give 
her.  Her 75 year old grandmother and her two aunts are 
all widows.  They farm a small plot of beans in very 
sandy soil that ?doesn?t give much?.  They depend on the 
one month ration distributed by Africare that in 
reality, only lasts 15 days.  Pascasie is visited by 
Africare?s Home Base Care (HBC) volunteer Godbert Umwana 
who visits 18 households per month.  She moves with her 
HBC kit filled with petroleum jelly, compresses, 
thermometers, tarp, wound dressing material and gloves 
and an apron, that all fit in a back pack that easily 
weighs 22 pounds.  She does all of this on foot with her 
furthest client located some 12 kms away, in return for 
a monthly ration of 6 kgs of CSB and half tin of oil. 
When asked why she does it, she responds, ?I worked as a 
health professional in the hospital and when Africare 
made the requests for volunteers, I thought I would be 
good at it.?  She is particularly challenged in the 
rainy season with all the walking that is necessary, but 
she still trudges on for her clients who anxiously wait 
for her to treat their wounds, bring news of the day, 
see her beautiful smile and just talk and keep them 
company... 
 
 
 
PEPFAR AND THE POSSIBILITIES 
 
¶12.  Though the CSs are doing good work with 
associations that support PLWHA, food aid alone it is 
not sufficient. One way to graduate members out of the 
safety net programs is to support them in income 
generating activities.  CRS reports using USD 
100,000/year of its own resources to provide start-up 
resources for income generating activities such as the 
provision of cows for milk and cheese production and 
start-up equipment support for commercial activities. 
 
¶13.  Rwanda is one of four PEPFAR countries in Africa 
that has TITLE II.  In a time when many budgets are 
shrinking, the PEPFAR budget is increasing annually by 
30 percent in Rwanda.  It is an opportunity to fill the 
many gaps that exist with TITLE II partners supporting 
PLWHAs.  The Mission and USAID/FFP are challenged by the 
most appropriate mechanism for PEPFAR to finance TITLE 
II partners.  Having two separate contract actions is a 
very cumbersome way to do business when the mission is 
 
NAIROBI 00001496  004 OF 004 
 
 
doing its best to foster program integration. 
 
OTHER PARTNER FIELD VISITS 
 
¶14.  The USAID team also visited WV?s agro forestry 
initiatives in the Eastern Province.  Title II was used 
as Food for Work to create progressive terraces and tree 
plantation as an anti-erosive measure.  The teams 
initially planted 30,000 trees, but due to drought, only 
5 percent survived.  Another 5000 trees were planted 
with an improved survival rate of 80 percent due to the 
good rains.  Local farmer Cassian Rutagana received a 3 
month ration for his labor in making terraces.  When 
asked what difference terracing made, he responded, ?My 
yields are three times more than before.  If I had not 
used this technique, my seeds would have been washed 
away to the marshland?.  As the team prepared to depart, 
Cassian approached our vehicle and leaned inside, and 
through an interpreter said, ?Please thank the American 
people for us?. 
 
¶15.  The USAID team visited a series of safety net 
centers: Maison de la Jeunesse, based in Kigali and 
supported by CRS, provides meals and vocational and 
educational training for street children.  CRS provides 
food aid to the Noel Orphanage of Nyundo in Rubavu 
District in the Western Province, who in turn provides 
food and shelter to over 600 orphans between the ages of 
a few weeks to 19 years old. The USAID team visited 
agribusiness cooperatives specializing in coffee, wheat 
flour and cheese, supported through grants, buyers of 
monetized commodities or leveraged loans through 
ACDI/VOCA. 
 
¶16.  The USAID team spent a morning touring the coffee 
washing station of COOPAC in Nyamwenda sector of Rubavu 
District of the Western Province, on the shores of Lake 
Kivu.  The Cooperative was established in 2001 with the 
aim to regenerate the coffee sector in Gisenyi region 
given its high potential for high quality coffee 
production for a gourmet market while increasing the 
welfare of coffee producers.  They received Fair Trade 
certification in 2003. COOPAC has been a long time 
partner of ACDI/VOCA who supported the construction of 
the coffee washing station under the previous DAP. 
Currently they work on capacity building with the 
cooperative management.  The investment has paid off as 
COOPAC won Third Place overall and First Place among 
Rwandan coffees at the 2007 Taste of Harvest Coffee 
Cupping Competition in Addis Ababa in February 2007, 
sponsored by the East African Fine Coffees Association. 
This was a stellar achievement for COOPAC and helps to 
boost the reputation of Rwanda coffee internationally. 
 
CONCLUSION 
 
¶17.  Despite the multiple challenges for the FFP 
Cooperating Sponsors in Rwanda, they are doing 
impressive activities with vulnerable populations.  In 
HIV/AIDS programming there are clear opportunities for 
PEPFAR to twin with FFP Cooperating Sponsors to fill the 
clear and pervasive gaps in sustainable support for 
PLWHAs.  FFP/Washington is making efforts to address the 
issues of delayed call forward.  The CS? were advised to 
continue to document their progress (or lack thereof) 
and respect reporting deadlines in order to maintain the 
institutional memory of why indicators and objectives 
have not been achieved as the case may be.  USAID/East 
Africa/FFP would like to extend kudos to USAID/Rwanda 
SO7 team who continue to provide active monitoring and 
guidance to FFP partners in Rwanda. 
 
RANNEBERGER