Evaluation of the democratic initiative projects in Uruguay and Argentina

Overall, USAID's support for democratization in both countries has been characterized by an approach that has sought and taken advantage of opportunities to maximize results as well as to be more responsive than instructive. In Argentina, USAID helped modernize the country's largest provincial court system, that of Buenos Aires, and foster within it an openness to change that is spilling out into other provinces. This progress should be sustained by the new USAID-supported Center of Judicial Studies of the Republic of Argentina (CEJURA), which provides the provincial court system with technical services. In the area of judicial education, USAID has spurred Argentina's new interest in creating judicial schools in provincial court systems, including that in Santa Fe, and supported the post-graduate legal program of the University of Palermo. As a result of USAID's efforts, alternative dispute resolution has been institutionalized within the country's judicial system, and Fundacion Libra has become an emissary of the gospel of mediation in Argentina's provinces, international conferences, and in judicial training programs in other Latin American countries. USAID made a small investment in promoting access to justice by strengthening the role of the public defender. USAID reduced opportunities for corruption: in the private sector by supporting Poder Ciudadano, a PVO; and in the public sector by supporting an experiment in accountability in the Sindicatura General de la Nacion (SIGEN), an agency of the office of the President of the Republic. Finally, in the area of civic education, USAID supported CONCIENCIA, an NGO, in its efforts to generate citizen participation and community integration through municipalities and schools, and to train women political leaders and improve an international network for civic education. In Uruguay, the investment of USAID's limited funds has led to more efficient judicial decisionmaking by establishing a functioning judicial school and a modern administrative apparatus within, and a shift in the operational culture of, the Uruguayan Supreme Court. In addition, a small investment in the juvenile justice project resulted in a strategic plan, a new approach to management of offenders through a form of social work/probation arrangement, the use of mediation as an option in juvenile justice proceedings, and a project to create five juvenile centers. Lessons learned are as follows. (1) Success in promoting democratic reform requires political consensus and support of the relevant constituency; efforts in these areas are an important element of democratic initiative programs, as is the need to work -- as USAID did in both countries -- in accordance with the host country's agenda. (2) The community and court mediation programs and legal education in Argentina, and the juvenile justice program in Uruguay demonstrate that small investments may enhance the justice system in more advanced developing countries, especially when a foundation has been laid through years of collaborative reform. (3) Democratic initiative programs require project managers and technical advisors who understand a country's political system. (4) Technical expertise need not be provided by resident TA personnel, but it must be available throughout the project. (5) USAID must develop ways to assure sustainability of its host country NGO partners in democratic development that maximize their survivability while insulating them from the pressures to conform politically.