Assessment report : displaced children and orphans program in Lebanon

Assessment covers a period ending 2/97. WRF has skillfully targeted and managed DCOF resources; by also supporting NGOs and community-based organizations (CBOs) that are sectarian and with political affiliations, it has allowed itself room to maneuver. This unique approach is beginning to yield results, although the butter is spread thin; while DCOF funding has reached a broad range of organizations and constituencies within the fractured Lebanese political and confessional culture, optimization of impact will require focusing on fewer projects. The NGO community continues to face many constraints. Despite its own good opinion of itself and the government s verbal tokens of appreciation, it is poorly served by the coordination agencies and other groups that purport to serve its interests. As a result, the NGO community is fractured and weak and plays little or no role in social policy. DCOF could exert some influence in this area, if it continues its partnership with the WRF. In the government sector, social service delivery policies are made by a variety of ministries, resulting in waste and inefficiency. Again, the WRF, through its participation in numerous committees, has the potential to wield its influence. Further, there is a plethora of anecdotal information but a paucity of hard data about the needs of vulnerable children in Lebanon. At both the policymaking and operational levels, there is a widespread lack of capacity and willingness to address this problem. Also, no mechanisms are in place at a national or regional level to address the deinstitutionalization of children, and the WRF has not had a significant influence on the advancement of alternative models. It is unrealistic to expect one U.S. NGO to achieve much more than putting the issue on the table, as the WRF has done. However, there is hope for further progress; USAID support for displaced children and orphans has been significantly increased for 1996 and the four special objectives within the three Agency goals offer the DCOF a promising framework for ongoing investment. A continuing partnership between the DCOF and the WRF would offer opportunities to optimize the leverage effect of DCOF funds. Recommendations are that DCOF adopt a three-track approach in Lebanon (increase funding to projects that deliver rapid benefits to disadvantaged children, enhance capacity-strengthening for subgrantee service delivery agencies, and increase investment in support for national committees and advocacy groups); work through the WRF to influence change in policy on child care and welfare issues under USAID Special Objective 2 (increased effectiveness of selected democratic institutions); and pursue a much closer partnership between USAID-funded NGOs in order to optimize both impact and value for taxpayer dollars. Also, WRF should improve its reporting capacities in a manner that will be more satisfactory to donors in the long-term. (Author abstract, modified)