Project paper : South Pacific PVO co-financing project

and South Pacific PVO"s. Some 12-15 PVO"s will receive partial grant funding through the South Pacific Regional Development Office (SPRDO). The design of the project incorporates recommendations of a 1981-82 A.I.D. audit and outside evaluation of the two prior projects. Under the project, U.S. PVO"s registered with A.I.D. and indigenous PVO"s certified by SPRDO will be eligible for grants of up to $2 million. As in the past, SPRDO will make funds available to PVO"s who administer projects initiated by the Peace Corps. No new PVO"s will be introduced into the region unless they bring special technical expertise needed in a particular circumstance. To minimize the financial risk to A.I.D., SPRDO will assume total responsibility for PVO funding decisions. SPRDO will use recently installed management operations (such as electronic funds transfer between A.I.D. and PVO bank accounts and a computerized accounting system); will require PVO project proposals to have more specific designs, baseline data, and project evaluation procedures; and will require PVO"s and the local groups they assist to contribute at least 25% of project costs. In addition, stress will be laid on project sustainability (including recurrent cost implications) and on sectors that meet basic human needs or promote small-scale private enterprise. During the life of the project, SPRDO will make 2-3 multiproject support (MPS) grants (instead of several individual grants) to the more established and proven PVO"s in the region to enable these PVO"s to carry out several diverse projects in more than one country. Finally, a small fund will be established to provide grants to PVO"s for seminars, evaluations, workshops, consultants, economic analysis, training, and technical assistance which will strengthen projects and attract major donors to replicate projects initiated by U.S. PVO"s. The project will bring to 20-25 the number of PVO projects supported by SPRDO and will favorably affect at least 300,000 low-income people in 10 countries of the South Pacific.