U.S.: WASHINGTON BLURS LINES BETWEEN PENTAGON AND USAID
The U.S. agency for international Development (USAID) has created several military advisory staff positions that will enhance its ability to carry out reconstruction and stabilization initiatives jointly with, rather than independent of, the Department of Defense (DOD). The agency is recruiting advisors specifically for its recently created Office of Military Affairs (OMA), a Washington, D.C.-based unit of the USAID Bureau of Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance.
USAID launched its recruitment campaign for military-trained staffers in September, though it created the OMA back in March. According to contracting documents obtained through the federal Electronic Posting System database, USAID is seeking a senior military advisor responsible for growing and developing the OMA.
The mission of the senior advisor is to transform USAID’s relationship with the Pentagon and to execute policy that comports with U.S. national security objectives. The new direction of at least some segments of its operations is a departure from its original emphasis “on long-range economic and social development assistance efforts.” According to the agency’s official history, the Kennedy Administration created USAID as an entity free from “political and military functions that plagued its predecessor organizations” so that it could more effectively “offer direct support to the developing nations of the world.”
The senior advisor, working under an executive office manager, will help recruit and train several “senior development advisors” who will serve as liaisons to each respective DOD combatant command. The U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM), which coordinates the Pentagon’s global counterterrorism, development and psychological warfare initiatives, is slated to become one of the first recipients of an OMA liaison from USAID.
This liaison will be stationed at SOCOM headquarters in MacDill Air Force Base, Tampa, Florida. He or she will also work closely with the State Department’s political advisor to the command. This arrangement will bolster State Department operations by ensuring “a close working relationship with the Ambassadors in the respective regions,” the personal services contract-document said.
The OMA has received scant attention since its inception last year. Its creation remains largely unreported in the media as of this writing. Any mention of its existence, outside of USAID and State Department Web sites, is limited to the blogosphere and the home pages of a few nonprofit groups.
In limited instances where federal entities confirm the existence of OMA, they have downplayed—or even omitted—the anticipated marriage of efforts between Special Forces and USAID.
Following an October 24 public meeting of the Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid (ACVFA), the State Department, rather than USAID, issued a statement formally announcing the unveiling of the new office. ACVFA, a nongovernmental panel that counsels federal officials on international development and humanitarian assistance, invited USAID Assistant Administrator Michael Hess to discuss the OMA.
Hess acknowledged during the meeting that the agency would send senior “development professionals” to each of the combatant commands, including SOCOM. He said it was imperative for USAID to develop “an operational link with the military on how to better coordinate strategic development goals.” He also said the OMA “would serve as a contact point to increase working relationships between nongovernmental organizations and the U.S. military.”
Despite mirroring Hess’ references to each of the geographically unified combatant command centers, the State Department press release failed to mention that USAID also planned to send a military advisor to SOCOM. Meanwhile, USAID has not issued a statement about the unveiling of OMA (nor does it list the office on its organizational chart), although its Web site includes an ACVFA page with links to documents from the public hearing.
In addition to assigning an OMA liaison to Special Operations Command, USAID will craft additional senior development advisor slots in combatant commands such as the Southern Command (SouthCom), whose designated geographic responsibility is South and Central America.
According to the USAID contractor-solicitation, civilian-military operations taking place within SouthCom’s region in the past had focused on natural disaster and counter-narcotics missions. It now emphasizes that there is “a growing list of countries of concern and joint interest on the development front in the region.”
About the Author
Steve Peacock is a Pennsylvania-based writer.
ARGENTINA: A KINDERGARTEN JOINS MOVEMENT
The large brick building hangs heavy and desolate, lacking the welcoming pastel colors found at other Argentine kindergartens. But this is not a typical kindergarten; this is Crecer Imaginando en Libertad (Imagine Growing in Liberty, or CIEL), the kindergarten of a community education and cultural center in La Matanza, about two hours south of Buenos Aires.
The school forms part of the Center for the Formation of Community Education and Culture (CEFOCC), which is housed in the building of an abandoned private school. In 2002, members of the Movement of Unemployed Workers (MTD) of La Matanza, a piquetero organization, cut the chains that sealed off the abandoned school and took over the space to create CEFOCC.
The deep entryway of the building opens into a large roofless square, which on any given day bustles with local merchants selling their goods and the toiling workers of CEFOCC’s community bakery. On weekdays, the square doubles as the playground of the school’s two- through five-year-olds.
Since the MTD took over the old school, CEFOCC has counted on the determined support of the community and the financial support of outside donors. “A donation made by the Canadian government allowed us to purchase the needed commercial supplies to start the ovens of the bakery,” says CIEL’s administrator Claudia Oses, giving one of the ovens an affectionate pat. The bakery now churns out bread and pastries regularly, and has fast become one of the most popular bakeries in the neighborhood, as students gobble up its tasty fares everyday during snack time.
With the growing success of CEFOCC and its bakery, the community began talking about opening a kindergarten in 2003. A grant from the Japanese Embassy for materials such as paint, wood for ceilings and tiles for floors helped CIEL open its doors a year later.
CIEL tries to foster community education and development by instilling cooperative ideals in its students. “I first began teaching at regular schools, but found it very difficult to improve the education provided by the state,” says Silvia Flores, a teacher who began working at the school when it opened. “We want to change the fundamental problems that plague Argentina today, and believe early education is the place to begin,” she adds.
Those fundamental problems—a lagging economy, a polarized population and a corrupt political system—have led the educators at CIEL to emphasize “concrete values that will break the cycle of exploitation so prevalent in our society,” explains Flores.
“The children learn ideals of direct democracy, sharing, companionship, solidarity, mutual help and self-management,” adds Oses, who despite her petite frame, seems gargantuan next to the tiny children pouncing and yelping at her side on a hopscotch board painted on the floor. In CIEL’s version, the bold number one at the starting square has been replaced with red blazing letters spelling “Lucha” (struggle), and instead of ending on the number ten, the end space is scrawled with the word “Dignidad” (dignity).
The school’s philosophy and its hopscotch board are not its only unique qualities. The students spend half the day learning mandatory subjects like reading, writing and math, but the second half of the day belongs to the youngsters. “They can decide to stay inside and do art projects and creative works, or they can go outside and play. The choice is up to them,” says Flores. “We believe that by giving them the choice, the students take on more responsibility and teaches them to think independently.”
The school, a good size with three classrooms and 60 pupils, encourages the continued involvement of the community through an innovative tuition policy. “The kindergarten is not free, but we don’t charge money,” explains Oses, instead “we require that all parents with enrolled children attend regular meetings to talk about issues of concern to the community. We really desire that people get active and make a positive impact on the area.”
That impact and the ultimate success of the project may be greater than most could have imagined at first, as plans to open a primary school are now in the works. “We have been looking into different options and will hopefully be able to offer classes for students who are a little older,” says Flores. “This way, we could continue the process we started with the kindergarten.”
About the Author
Sammy Loren is a journalist currently based in Argentina.
