VZCZCXYZ0007
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHGT #1364/01 3051558
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 311558Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY GUATEMALA
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 6369

UNCLAS GUATEMALA 001364 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT PASS TO USAID FOR LAC/CAM EBOSTIK 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID EAGR ECON PGOV GT
SUBJECT: USAID AND SOCIAL COHESION COUNCIL ESTABLISH WORKING GROUP 
 
REF: A. GUATEMALA 771 
      ¶B. GUATEMALA 1229 
 
¶1. Summary: On October 16, the Ambassador and USAID Acting Mission 
Director Rose Rakas attended a meeting led by First Lady Sandra 
Torres de Colom to discuss the Social Cohesion Council's poverty 
reduction programs and ways in which the USG, through USAID, could 
further support the GOG's anti-poverty efforts.  The Ambassador 
congratulated the First Lady on the GOG's success in coordinating 
the multiagency efforts through the council and welcomed the 
opportunity to deepen the ties between the council and USAID on 
these critical issues.  Both sides agreed to establish a technical 
working group to investigate possibilities of how to work together 
moving forward.  The Ambassador agreed to visit Social Cohesion 
projects.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. Created on January 21 and led by First Lady Torres de Colom, the 
Social Cohesion Council coordinates some of the GOG's multiagency 
anti-poverty efforts and is composed of representatives from the 
Ministries of Education, Health, Finance, and Energy, the 
Secretariat of Food and Nutrition Safety (SESAN), and the Office of 
Social Work (SOSEP).  The Ambassador congratulated the First Lady on 
the council's effective interagency coordination to date.  The 
council does not have its own budget, but manages programs that are 
supported by budgets of other government agencies.  The program's 
proposed budget for 2009 was reported to be an approximate USD373 
million, which would be used to carry out projects in 125 priority 
municipalities.  The Inter-American Development Bank has also 
reportedly approved two loans totaling USD350 million for the 
council's My Family Progresses and My School Progresses Programs. 
 
 
¶3. According to Torres de Colom, the council has had positive 
results in the areas of education, health, infrastructure, and food 
security.  The conditional cash transfer program My Family 
Progresses is the council's flagship program and provides 
conditioned payments for school attendance and vaccinations (Ref A). 
 According to Torres de Colom, 49,921 families in extreme poverty 
have benefitted under this program and a study conducted in nine 
municipalities showed that 3,700 students returned to school due to 
these conditioned payments.  Through the council, the GOG has funded 
1,085 additional health officers, 1,322 teachers, 216 potable water 
projects, and provided 26,832 micro-loans totaling approximately 
USD9 million to women-led cooperatives.  The council's subsidized 
meals program for working families in urban areas has provided 
41,598 meals since September 9. 
 
¶4. USAID Acting Mission Director Rakas highlighted ongoing USAID 
programs in health, education, economic growth, food security, and 
democracy and governance that support the Social Cohesion Council's 
goals of overcoming extreme poverty and developing the country's 
human capital.  USAID is currently providing targeted support to the 
council's programs, such as a six-month agreement with Citizen 
Action (Accion Ciudadana), the Guatemalan chapter of Transparency 
International, to develop the transparency and accountability 
component of the council's conditional cash transfers program. 
 
¶5. The Ambassador confirmed the USG's commitment to support GOG 
programs that increase opportunity and reduce inequity in Guatemalan 
society, and highlighted the issues of health, education, and 
populations at risk as areas of particular importance.  The 
Ambassador also welcomed the opportunity to strengthen the 
USAID-Social Cohesion Council working relationship to pursue common 
objectives.  Torres de Colom expressed appreciation for USAID's 
Qobjectives.  Torres de Colom expressed appreciation for USAID's 
contributions to date, and emphasized that the USG's continued 
support, advice, and training are essential to the council's 
effectiveness.  Both sides agreed to establish a technical working 
group with representatives from USAID and the council to discuss 
ways to work together. 
 
¶6. In recent weeks, the Guatemalan public, members of Congress, and 
some civil society representatives have criticized what they 
consider a lack of transparency in the council's accounting 
procedures.  According to Congresswoman Nineth Montenegro (Encounter 
for Guatemala), My Family Progresses is the council's only program 
with a financial structure that allows budgetary oversight, while 
the remaining five programs do not have adequate accounting 
measures.  Congresswoman Roxana Baldetti (Patriot Party), a 
political rival of the GOG, also expressed concern that the My 
Family Progresses program does not have adequate fraud-prevention 
measures, allowing some families to receive more than the maximum 
monthly amount of USD40 stipulated by the program.  First Lady 
Torres de Colom defended the council's operations, stating that its 
results are measurable and its accounting procedures transparent 
since the council's resources come from other government entities. 
Civil society members are optimistic that the recently passed 
Freedom of Information Act may help to make execution of the 
council's programs more transparent (Ref B). 
 
¶7. Comment: The First Lady's programs are some of the GOG's most 
visible.  Guatemala has shocking levels of extreme poverty, and the 
First Lady's commitment and ability to oblige ministries to act 
faster to address poverty reduction are positive.  However, there 
exists the possibility that these new programs could undercut 
efforts to develop long-term sustainable institutions capable of 
addressing Guatemala's many social needs.  The Embassy is mindful of 
this concern, and is providing assistance that is targeted to areas 
in which it can effectively improve transparency, accountability, 
and effectiveness of these programs.  End Comment. 
 
McFarland