PVO collaboration and development (Haitian Association of Voluntary Agencies)

Evaluation covered the period 7/85-6/86 and was based on document review and interviews with HAVA and A.I.D. officials and with HAVA members. Although HAVA got off to a slow start due to weaknesses in leadership, the pace and quality of activity picked up impressively during the past year, especially - due to changes in Hava"s Board President and Secretary General - during the past 6 months. HAVA has gained widespread respect and confidence (as seen by the funding obtained from and proposed by donors) and has installed improved management systems. The agency"s success in these regards lends support to an earlier determination by the Bureau PVO Director that A.I.D. should not seek to establish independent sectoral PVO associations. HAVA still has certain deficiencies (e.g., the performance of its technical committees and its need for ongoing funding of core administrative costs), but leadership is well aware of these and has already formulated sound measures to address them. USAID/H has approved a bridging grant for the period 9/86-5/87. Action decisions are as follows. HAVA should give priority to the institutional development of member PVO"s, in particular to strengthening the project planning and management capacities of smaller indigenous PVO"s; a formal plan for this should be developed. With regard to its own institutional development, HAVA should: begin to develop a fundraising program involving U.S. and local efforts; hire personnel to develop an income-generation program, to coordinate technical committee work, and to manage subgrants; focus on first consolidating and then expanding membership; organize regional-level seminars and training sessions and encourage the formation of regional subgroups; and increase the efficiency of meetings at all organizational levels. In addition, HAVA should improve coordination among members, particularly in service delivery, and upgrade its information gathering and dissemination capacities.