USAID to scale down operations

AMERICAN government organisation USAID is to scale down some of its operations during the new US fiscal year, which starts on October 1, The Namibian has learnt.

“Projects for good governance, anti-corruption and the trade sector will be reduced as the US government will rather concentrate on health, especially the fight against HIV-AIDS and tuberculosis,” a source involved in development aid indicated. At the end of last month a USAID-funded project run by the Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) for small and medium enterprises came to an end, and a new phase of the project on similar lines will be funded by another donor.The Namibian has also reliably learnt that programmes to strengthen democracy in Namibia will have to look for other donors in due course.The US government has, through USAID, provided over US$161 million (about N$1,4 billion) in development aid to Namibia between 1990 and 2005.The scaling-down plans were denied by the US government, however.”All programmes continue as normal,” US Embassy spokesperson Ray Castillo told The Namibian yesterday.He could not confirm whether a budget for Namibia for the new fiscal year has been approved in Washington.However, funding for the fight against HIV-AIDS might increase since US President George W Bush on Wednesday requested Congress to double the funding of US$15 million for his Presidential Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (Pepfar) to US$30 million by 2008.Pepfar was started in 2003.Namibia is one of 15 focus countries that receive additional help from the fund in the form of anti-retroviral medicines for Government’s ART programme.At the end of last month a USAID-funded project run by the Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) for small and medium enterprises came to an end, and a new phase of the project on similar lines will be funded by another donor.The Namibian has also reliably learnt that programmes to strengthen democracy in Namibia will have to look for other donors in due course.The US government has, through USAID, provided over US$161 million (about N$1,4 billion) in development aid to Namibia between 1990 and 2005.The scaling-down plans were denied by the US government, however.”All programmes continue as normal,” US Embassy spokesperson Ray Castillo told The Namibian yesterday.He could not confirm whether a budget for Namibia for the new fiscal year has been approved in Washington.However, funding for the fight against HIV-AIDS might increase since US President George W Bush on Wednesday requested Congress to double the funding of US$15 million for his Presidential Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (Pepfar) to US$30 million by 2008.Pepfar was started in 2003.Namibia is one of 15 focus countries that receive additional help from the fund in the form of anti-retroviral medicines for Government’s ART programme.