Combating Terrorism: State Department Can Improve Management of East Africa Program
Highlights
What GAO Found
State Department's (State) Partnership for Regional East Africa Counterterrorism (PREACT) supports U.S. counterterrorism efforts in East Africa. PREACT's five goals focus on improving partner nations' military capacity, rule of law, border security, ability to counter violent extremism, and ability to counter terrorist financing. PREACT has funded activities such as providing training for terrorist investigation techniques for Somali police, new communications equipment for the Ethiopian military, and computer literacy to teachers working with at-risk youth in Kenya. PREACT assistance is in addition to other U.S. counterterrorism assistance to East Africa and peacekeeping and stability efforts in Somalia.
As of November 1, 2013, State reported disbursing $42.3 million of the $104 million allocated for PREACT from fiscal years 2009 through 2013. Since 2009, State allocated PREACT assistance to countries near Somalia, as shown below.
PREACT Allocations by Country, Fiscal Years 2009-2013
State considers key factors in managing PREACT but lacks comprehensive documentation of factors considered when selecting activities and does not routinely maintain information on the status of PREACT activities or funding. Presidential Policy Directive 23 highlights key factors—partner country needs, absorptive capacity, sustainment capacity, U.S. efforts, and other donor efforts—as critical to building partner capacity and focusing limited resources. State reported considering these key factors when selecting PREACT activities. However, State did not consistently document its consideration of the five factors. In addition, State's Foreign Affairs Manual calls for managers to collect program information to inform decision making and reporting. However, State does not routinely collect PREACT activity and financial information from implementing partners to enable it to have complete information needed to inform program management and accurately report on PREACT. For example, GAO discovered that State mistakenly allocated PREACT funds to Mauritius, which is not a PREACT partner, and the managing bureau was unaware of $3 million in unobligated balances in Antiterrorism Assistance that are no longer available for obligation. Routinely collecting such information, as the Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government calls for, could enhance PREACT managers' ability to make operating decisions, monitor performance, and allocate resources.
Why GAO Did This Study
Terrorism in East Africa has remained a concern of the United States since 1998, when al Qaeda bombed U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. As part of its efforts to address this threat, State launched PREACT in 2009 as a program for long-term engagement and capacity building in East Africa. PREACT—which focuses on countering terrorist threats, including al Shabaab, an al Qaeda affiliate based in Somalia—is managed by State's Bureau of African Affairs and provides assistance in a region composed of 12 partner countries.
GAO was asked to examine PREACT, including (1) the role it plays in U.S. counterterrorism assistance to East Africa, (2) the extent to which funds allocated for PREACT since 2009 have been disbursed, and (3) the extent to which State considers key factors in managing PREACT. GAO reviewed agency documents and interviewed U.S. officials in Washington, D.C., and in Germany, Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Uganda.
Recommendations
GAO recommends that the Secretary of State improve the management of the PREACT initiative by taking steps to improve the documentation of key factors considered and by routinely collecting activity and funding information. State agreed with all three recommendations and stated that it is taking steps to address them.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of State | To improve the management of PREACT, the Secretary of State should take steps to improve documentation of consideration of key factors when selecting PREACT activities for each funding account, such as country needs, absorptive capacity, sustainment capacity, other U.S. efforts, and other donor efforts. |
State agreed with the findings in the GAO report and reported to Congress that State was taking corrective actions. In August 2014, State reported that, in response to our recommendation, it planned to adjust proposal forms and related memos to better document how key factors such as country needs, absorptive capacity, sustainment capacity, other U.S. efforts, and other donor efforts inform PREACT program decisions. In January 2015, State provided a summary of how it considers the five key factors for each funding account. As evidence of improved documentation of its efforts, State updated forms and proposals to reflect the five key factors following the reports' issuance. For example, in February 2015, State's Bureau of Africa Affairs provided an updated ESF proposal form for PREACT activities that now includes all five factors, including absorptive capacity and sustainment capacity. Similarly, State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement provided a FY2015 request for proposals that included requesting information related to all five factors. Lastly, in May 2016, State's Bureau for Counterterrorism provided documentation of how the bureau collects information regarding absorptive capacity and sustainment capacity prior to site selection using a standardized form, as well as an internal report of coordination with a non-U.S. government entity. As a result, State is now able to better document its consideration of the five factors across all PREACT accounts.
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| Department of State | To improve the management of PREACT, the Secretary of State should routinely collect information on and maintain a comprehensive list of PREACT activities. |
State agreed with the findings in the GAO report and reported to Congress that the Bureau had taken corrective actions to resolve the cited deficiency. In response to GAO's recommendation, State's Bureau of African Affairs created a comprehensive list of PREACT activities. On August 13, 2014, State reported in a letter to Congress that it had completed a spreadsheet listing all PREACT activities; therefore this action was taken between June 17, 2014 and August 13, 2014.
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| Department of State | To improve the management of PREACT, the Secretary of State should routinely collect and maintain information that will better enable State to more efficiently determine and report on the status of funds allocated for PREACT. |
State agreed with the findings in the GAO report and reported to Congress that the Bureau had taken corrective actions. Specifically, State's Bureau of African Affairs created a tracking sheet to report on the status of funds allocated for PREACT on a semi-annual basis. In August 2014, State reported in a letter to Congress, that State had begun to institutionalize a centralized system for collecting data on the status of all PREACT funds and in September 2014, State provided GAO with an example of its semi-annual financial update.
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