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Note: This document is from the archive of the Africa Policy E-Journal, published
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Africa: African Development Foundation on Chopping Block
Any links to other sites in this file from 1995 are not clickable,
given the difficulty in maintaining up-to-date links in old files.
However, we hope they may still provide leads for your research.
Africa: African Development Foundation on Chopping Block
Date Distributed (ymd): 950701
Washington Office on Africa Update
June 30, 1995
With a $16.9 million budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 1995 and
$17.4 million proposed by the Clinton administration for FY
1996, the federally funded African Development Foundation
(ADF) is a small, innovative and effective agency with an
distinct mandate to support grassroots development. But if
the direction set by votes so far this year in the House of
Representatives is maintained, the ADF will suffer drastic
cuts over the next two years, and be phased out entirely in
FY 1988.
The appropriations bill passed by the House of
Representatives last week (HR 1868) includes $10 million for
ADF in FY1996, a 41 percent cut from this year's budget.
The authorization bill passed earlier by the House (HR1561)
further specifies a cut to $4 million in FY 1997.
The Senate will be considering parallel action in July and
August, possibly continuing into September.
The ADF has just published the results of a ten-year
assessment of its operations, entitled Sustaining
Development at the Grassroots: The African Development
Foundation, Lessons Learned 1984-1994. It is available frm
the ADF at 1400 I St. NW, 10th Floor, Washington, DC 20005.
Phone: 202-673-3916. Fax: 202-673-3810.
The text of a companion summary released by the ADF follows
below:
ADF FOSTERS SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC GROWTH THROUGH DIRECT AID
TO THE GRASSROOTS
Congress, recognizing the need to establish a small,
flexible agency to provide development assistance directly
to grassroots communities in Africa, created the African
Development Foundation (ADF) as an enterprising, value-added
alternative to traditional assistance programs.
Where traditional development agencies typically provide
assistance to central governments to carry out large
capital-intensive projects, ADF works directly with
grassroots people to reduce poverty and effect positive
social change through small, local, private sector
development projects that deliver lasting benefits long
after ADF ceases its involvement.
Since FY 1984, ADF has funded more than 500 small-scale,
private-sector development projects in 26 African nations.
Many of these projects have served as laboratories for
innovative, cost-effective approaches to development--
testing strategies to maximize sustainability, local
control, and capacity building--that often have been adopted
by other development agencies.
Employing a participatory, "bottom-up" approach to economic
development, ADF supports African grassroots recipients:
* In their own efforts,
* To design and implement their own strategies,
* To resolve their own problems, and
* To promote their own economic progress.
Consequently, ADF-funded projects focus on inducing lasting,
self-sufficient economic and social outcomes.
Today, with a modest annual budget of $16.9 million, ADF
continues to successfully fulfill its Congressional mandate.
By focusing on achieving attainable goals in countries most
likely to benefit from U.S. development assistance, ADF
concentrates on alleviating poverty and creating durable,
small-scale, market economies in desperately poor, mostly
rural areas of Africa where no such economies previously
existed.
In short, ADF demonstrates appropriate and responsible use
of limited foreign assistance dollars that helps promote a
U.S. foreign policy committed to promoting democratic
participation, self-sufficiency, and income generation.
TYPES OF PROJECTS FUNDED BY ADF
ADF responds to project proposals designed by grassroots
African community organizations, providing grants to local
cooperatives, farmers' associations, youth organizations,
community service associations, women's groups, and others
in the local private sector.
Because of the small size and non-bureaucratic,
non-governmental nature of ADF-funded projects, the U.S.
government can readily see where and how its money is being
put to good use.
ADF primarily supports income-generating projects in five
areas:
* Micro-enterprise development,
* Agriculture and animal husbandry,
* Credit,
* Irrigation and water supply, and
* Energy and the environment.
By law, ADF cannot fund any of the above activities for an
amount greater than $250,000.
WHAT ADF DOES NOT FUND
* Government organizations
* Organizations not based on the African continent
* Capital intensive projects that emphasize large-scale
building and construction
* Relief activities
* Development grants for private individuals
* Major infrastructure projects; and
* Scholarships.
AFRICANS WORKING TO HELP AFRICANS
Unlike traditional development agencies, ADF does *not*
incur the expense of maintaining expatriate staff in the
field. Instead, supporting ADF grantees are Country Liaison
Officers (CLOs).
In each country, the CLO is a highly trained and experienced
African development specialist, who works directly with, and
for, grantees and potential grantees.
The CLO assists grantees and potential grantees in:
* Drafting project proposals;
* Identifying competent technical assistance providers
among local development experts and organizations;
* Obtaining any available assistance from their own
governments; and
* Monitoring projects.
In short, each CLO is a cost-effective, value-added liaison
between private-sector grantees and ADF, helping to insure
that U.S. dollars are being used wisely and providing
maximum benefits for grantees.
WHY ADF IS A UNIQUE ALTERNATIVE TO TRADITIONAL FOREIGN AID
ADF provides assistance directly to the private sector--
local cooperatives, farmers' associations, youth
organizations, community service organizations, women's
groups, and similar organizations--not to governments or
state-owned enterprises.
ADF grants range from $700 to a maximum of $250,000; average
FY 1994 development grant, $124,000.
Every ADF project must have an income-generating component
to foster long-term viability of the project.
Instead of funding national, capital-intensive projects, ADF
supports small, limited projects that directly address the
specific needs of local peoples in their communities.
Rather than incur the expense of supporting expatriates
abroad, ADF keeps project costs down by employing highly
trained and experienced African development specialists.
ADF SEEKS EVEN GREATER EFFICIENCY AS A STEWARD OF SCARCE
U.S. FOREIGN AID $$$
In October, 1993--prior to Vice-President Gore's call for a
National Performance Review and before the 104th Congress
set forth its new priorities for U.S. foreign aid--ADF
launched a self-initiated ten-year self-assessment.
To maximize objectivity, the evaluation was conducted by an
"Assessment Review Committee" composed of Congressional
staff, academicians, and representatives from the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB), the General Accounting Office
(GAO), and Office of Technology Assessment (OTA).
ADF's principal reasons for undertaking this assessment were
to:
* Evaluate the broad impact of its programs;
* Determine which aspects of its programs and
procedures work best;
* Systematically document and share its "lessons
learned."
The Committee oversaw the review of more than 200 ADF grants
and found that the vast majority of ADF projects were
meeting their stated goals and objectives. The assessment
found that ADF's program is working well and documented
that:
* More than two-thirds of ADF projects produce
increased income and/or needed services for
participants.
* More than half of ADF projects increase the skills
and knowledge of participants through training and
technical assistance.
For the vast majority of ADF projects, participants are
actively involved in implementation of project activities.
Most ADF projects produce sufficient income and possess
management capabilities to continue to produce benefits for
participants long after ADF funding has ended.
In addition, ADF contracted with an international management
consulting firm to explore ways ADF can streamline its
operations, both at ADF/Washington and in the field.
As a result, ADF's board of directors has established the
following goals for the Foundation:
* Reduce the number of active countries to which ADF
extends grants by at least 20 percent in FY 1996.
* Reduce the number of employees at ADF by at least 17
percent in FY 1996.
* Reduce ADF's overhead expenses by at least 16 percent
in FY 1997.
Since 1984, ADF's goal has been to continuously improve its
operations to maximize the benefit of limited dollars
available for U.S. foreign aid. And it will continue to do
so.
A TYPICAL RURAL ADF-FUNDED PROJECT
The Kalijiisa Blacksmith and Farmers Association Project
typifies a rural ADF-funded project.
Location: Kalijiisa, a remote village in the Upper East
Region of Ghana, 725 miles north of Accra, Ghana's capital
Grant recipient: Kalijiisa Blacksmiths and Farmers
Association (membership: 78 men; 50 women).
Project funded: In 1990, ADF granted the cooperative
$148,000 to:
* Build and equip a workshop
* Begin a reforestation program
* Increase agricultural production
* Purchase a grinding mill
In 1993, an additional $81,000 was granted for:
* Purchasing a tractor
* Building a storage facility for farm produce
* Building classrooms
Results: Four years after the original ADF funding:
* Kalijiisa is the region's top cultivator of rice.
* 800 trees have been planted.
* Local children and adults are receiving literacy
training.
* Ten additional townsmen have been trained as
blacksmiths.
* In addition to hoes and plows, blacksmiths now
produce cooking pots, bicycle carts, and iron
furniture.
* Using their earnings as capital, cooperative has
expanded into a chain of small retail outlets.
* Last year, the cooperative earned more than $10,000,
an enormous sum of money for the region.
Today, Kalijiisa's quality products are in high demand in
northern Ghana.
The capital provided by ADF helped this group turn a
traditional activity into a thriving business.
A TYPICAL URBAN ADF-FUNDED PROJECT
The Spring Cabinet Furniture Manufacturing Project typifies
an urban ADF-funded project.
Location: Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe
Grant Recipient: Spring Cabinet Cooperative Society, Ltd.
(original membership: 10 men)
Project Funded: In 1987, ADF granted the cooperative
$217,035 to:
* Provide low-cost, quality wood furniture for
consumers
* Employ craftspeople and provide vocational training
opportunities for recent school graduates
* Purchase machinery, tools, timber for furniture
making
In 1989, an additional $25,542 was granted for the purchase
of a sawdust exhaust system.
Results: Eight years after the original ADF funding:
* Spring Cabinet was named Zimbabwe's 1993 Small
Business of the year.
* Earnings have risen dramatically, from nearly
$700,000 in 1992 to more than $1 million in 1994.
* Profits have been reinvested, qualifying Spring
Cabinet for an overdraft credit line with a local
commercial bank.
* Spring Cabinet's payroll has risen from 10 to 178
employees; and with the construction of an expanded
facility, the group continues to expand its operations.
Today, Spring Cabinet produces dressers, bedroom suites,
dining room suites, and cabinets from locally available
wood. It also imports fabric and oak from the United
States. Originally targetting its products for low-income
consumers, Spring Cabinet's quality furniture is now
purchased by upper-income consumers, government offices, and
private business.
ADF's minimal investment provided the necessary start-up
capital for this group to become one of Zimbabwe's major
furniture suppliers.
ADF AT A GLANCE
Created by U.S. Congress, 1980; began assistance to African
grassroots organizations, 1984.
Current annual budget, $16.9 million.
Makes grants directly to local private sector organizations,
not through governments or state-owned enterprises.
Overseen by seven-member Board of Directors: five
uncompensated members from the private sector, appointed by
President of the United States with advice and consent of
U.S. Senate.
Mission:
* Provide support to small, private sector development
efforts;
* Support long-term local development strategies;
* Support research on grassroots development issues by
African researchers working directly with local
peoples; and
* Facilitate dissemination of development information
at community level throughout Africa.
Since 1984, ADF has funded 415 development projects and 123
research projects in 34 African counties. Average FY 1994
development grant: $124,000. Average FY 1994 research grant:
$25,000.
Generally, development projects involve from 10 to 2,000
participants, with up to 10,000 beneficiaries for largest,
most comprehensive local or regional undertakings.
ADF supports small, limited projects that directly address
the specific needs of local peoples in their communities.
Because of the non-bureaucratic, non-governmental nature of
ADF-funded projects, the U.S. government can readily see how
its money is being put to good use.
ADF supports U.S. foreign policy by fostering sustainable
economic growth through direct aid to the grassroots.
*******************************************************
This material is made available by the Washington Office on
Africa (WOA), a not-for-profit church, trade union and civil
rights group supported organization that works with Congress
on Africa-related legislation. Reposting or reproduction
(with acknowledgement) is welcomed.
*******************************************************
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