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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 GUANGZHOU 000081 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
STATE FOR EAP/CM, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KTIP CH
SUBJECT: Government-NGO Cooperation Expanding in Guangxi 
 
This cable is sensitive but unclassified.  Please handle 
accordingly. 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: International nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) 
willing to register and observe a limited set of rules and limited 
supervision have generally found willing government partners in the 
Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.  The financial benefits of 
cooperating with NGOs are not lost on Guangxi's cash-strapped local 
and regional governments.  Government officials focusing on poverty 
alleviation and other social problems look to NGOs to help manage 
programs currently handled by the government.  While NGO 
representatives and government officials alike tout the current 
favorable environment for cooperation, they certainly don't downplay 
problems, including tight government control of donated monies and 
the political sensitivity of certain issues like trafficking in 
persons.  End summary. 
 
Register, Register, Register 
---------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) Once officially registered, NGOs in Guangxi find themselves 
relatively free to operate.  A representative from Habitat for 
Humanity's Nanning office said that government was "generally hands 
off" in its dealings with the NGO, noting that the government does 
not obstruct or intervene in Habitat's projects and sometimes offers 
support.  The representative speculated that the reality of 
Guangxi's poverty made government-NGO cooperation less an 
ideological wrestling match and more a straightforward imperative, a 
sentiment we heard repeatedly from NGOs and government officials 
alike during our meetings. 
 
Cost Sharing and a Change of Perspective 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) The financial benefits of cooperating with NGOs are 
especially attractive to Guangxi's cash-strapped governments, 
according to Yang Guoyi, deputy section chief of the Guangxi 
Government's Poverty Reduction Program Center.  A colleague of 
Yang's who also attended the meeting said that NGOs generally 
provide 30 percent of a project's funding, with the government 
making up the remaining 70 percent.  World Vision began a project in 
2008 where costs were shared evenly with the government.  Yang's 
colleague characterized this arrangement as a positive development 
and went on to say that Guangxi's Poverty Reduction Program Center 
hoped that government could pass the lead role for most social 
programs to NGOs or community organizations and become primarily a 
provider of services. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Working with NGOs to address social issues has helped to 
broaden the government's perspective on what roles NGOs can play in 
society.  In the past, local government mandated what communities 
would do to solve problems or improve conditions.  Government now 
increasingly consults with communities to determine needs, according 
to Yang, and NGOs have been valuable in encouraging local 
communities to actively promote customized, grassroots ideas for 
addressing community problems. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Cooperation with Guangxi government entities on health 
issues such as HIV/AIDS involves both formal and informal 
interaction, Family Health International (FHI) Director Wu Xiaokun 
told us in a separate meeting.  In an effort to design effective 
anti-AIDS programs, FHI -- which is a registered NGO -- consults 
with the Guangxi Center for Disease Control (CDC), which provides 
basic treatment and free checkups for HIV/AIDS infected patients. 
FHI's cooperation extends to annually providing the government with 
the money, supplies and expertise needed to treat 1,600 drug users 
and 1,200 female sex workers, according to Wu.  Informally, the 
local Public Security Bureau (PSB, or police) "keeps an eye out" for 
opportunities for FHI to provide its services, said Wu, who added 
that the PSB sometimes released detained sex workers to FHI for 
treatment.  The released sex workers are not necessarily fined by 
the police, said Wu. 
 
¶6. (SBU) World Vision also cooperates with the Guangxi CDC on 
anti-AIDS awareness campaigns and treatment programs, said Pang. 
It arranges for volunteer students from the medical and pharmacology 
schools at Baise Medical University to provide additional expertise 
and manpower as well. 
 
Still, Not Everything is Easy 
----------------------------- 
 
 
GUANGZHOU 00000081  002 OF 002 
 
 
¶7. (SBU) Though NGO-government relations in Guangxi are generally 
positive, NGOs cite financial control as one area for improvement. 
Officially registered NGOs are permitted only limited use of a local 
bank account, which may only hold funds used to pay for the 
organization's overhead, according to one NGO representative.  All 
other funding must move directly through the government's coffers 
before it gets doled out to pay for projects, the rep said.  Because 
of these rules, NGOs' local offices are unable to accept donations 
directly.  Moreover, NGOs pay one percent of their total funds to 
the government as a "service fee." 
 
¶8. (SBU) The sensitivity of certain issues, too, remains an obstacle 
-- but not necessarily an insurmountable one -- said Pang.  Pang 
quickly deferred to Yang, the government's representative, when 
asked about World Vision's anticipated program to battle trafficking 
in persons (TIP).  Pang called TIP a "sensitive issue" and said that 
the government would take the lead in such a program.  Nonetheless, 
Pang said that staff at World Vision's Hong Kong office was 
"researching" the issue, suggesting that, if approached with 
appropriate consultation with the government, a TIP program could 
become viable. 
 
¶9. (U) This cable is a cooperative effort between Consulate General 
Guangzhou and Embassy Beijing. 
 
GOLDBERG