This report assesses the administration of the PVO registration process by USAID Missions in the Africa Bureau. Its purpose is to assess the impact of the registration process on USAID relationships with local PVO’s and determine if the process serves as a disincentive for African NGO’s to work with USAID Missions. Based on interviews, document review, and visits to four countries (Kenya, Uganda, Mali, and Senegal), the report discusses the growing interest of the Africa Bureau in working with indigenous private organizations, describes the registration process and the standards that are applied when registering an applicant organization, and reviews several issues and problems that most Missions will deal with when designing and applying registration procedures. Missions tend to regard registration as a Washington-imposed requirement which necessitates a heavy burden of monitoring and recordkeeping for small, understaffed PVO’s, as well as on Missions themselves. some registration requirements are not suited to local conditions. Local PVO’s by and large feel that the registration requirements are reasonable and that the process is essentially constructive. At the same, they note that it is costly, time- consuming, and often frustrating. Particular problems include inappropriate registration criteria, unclear criteria, and intrusive documentation requirements. Several recommendations are made. (Author abstract, modified)
