REGIONAL EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT - SEAMEO (SOUTHEAST ASIA MINISTERS OF EDUCATION ORGANIZATION)

Project was administered by the Office of Regional Economic Development (RED) of the American Embassy in Bankok. Audit team visited proj sites in the Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia & Thailand. Visits disclosed that RED should concentrate on more effective monitoring of the need, use & value of AID Resources. Proj involved several disparate activities. RED did not make a comprehensive evaluation of the results of these activities; nor was it able to effectively monitor the substantial amount of AID commodities in the proj. Hotel rooms, apartments & other facilities of an 18-story building for which AID contributed $2.1 million for construction costs were used by the proj for public rental. Since proj requirements for the building were less than planned & rental facilities were greater than planned, Audit concludes that additional AID financial support is not required. Recommends that RED consider AID-financed construction only when programs actually materialize (staffs, classes, scholarships, research) and when continued use of alternative facilities are not feasible. Other specific recommendations include establishment of a systematic program of documented proj evaluation as well as establishment of a uniform policy for commodity control -- identifying what part of the proj commodities should be AID supported and controlled and what part will be host-country supported and controlled. To implement the latter recommendation, RED is directed to obtain the services of a supply management specialist(s). Audit notes that the problem in identifying commodity costs was symptomatic of general problem of identifying cost components in programming & budgeting proj resources. Notes that RED indicated that the AID system of management documentation is not suitable to their operations and recommends that RED develop a system of its own.