CIVIL SOCIETY AND DEMOCRACY STRENGTHENING PROJECT QUARTERLY PROGRESS REPORT: Third Quarter 2006 This publication was produced for review by the United States Agency for International. It was prepared by the Civil Society and Democracy Strengthening project, implemented by Chemonics International Inc., in conjunction with its partners: AMIDEAST, CARE International, and MASSAR Associates. October 15, 2006 QUARTERLY PROGRESS REPORT: Third Quarter 2006 DISCLAIMER The author’s views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Agency for International Development or the United States Government. TABLE OF CONTENTS Acronyms ii Executive Summary iii SECTION I TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENTS I-1 A. Restarting Support to Palestinian Civil Society I-1 B. Task 1: Supporting Civil Society Reform Initiatives I-1 C. Task 2: Analyzing Civil Society Support and Impact I-3 SECTION II PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND STAFFING II-1 A. Management and Staffing II-1 B. Grants Management and Compliance II-2 C. Project Communications and IT Systems II-2 D. USAID Reporting II-2 E. Project Closeout II-3 F. Project Retreat II-3 SECTION III PERFORMANCE MONITORING AND EVALUATION III-1 ANNEX A CUMULATIVE GRANTS PAYMENT REPORT, THIRD QUARTER 2006 ACRONYMS ADS Automated Directives System CBO Community Based Organization CLIN Contract Line Item Number CSDS Civil Society and Democracy Strengthening project CSO Civil Society Organization D&G Democracy and Governance FOG Fixed-Obligation Grant GIS Geographic Information System GS Gaza Strip HO Chemonics Home Office IR Intermediate Result IT Information Technology PCDCR Palestinian Center for Democracy and Conflict Resolution PLC Palestinian Legislative Council PMP Performance Monitoring Plan PMU Project Management Unit ST Short-term USAID United States Agency for International Development WB West Bank EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This quarterly progress report covers the activities of the USAID-funded Civil Society and Democracy Strengthening (CSDS) project from July 1, 2005 through September 30, 2006. During the reporting period, USAID extended the project end-date until January 30, 2007 without raising the total value of the contract. At the same time, USAID also rescinded its April 2006 “Notice of Intent to Suspend/Stop Work.”. This quarterly report is modeled on CSDS’s draft work plan for the extension period, submitted to USAID in September 2006.1 With the “Notice of Intent” rescinded and the no-cost extension issued, CSDS was able to restart technical activities during the quarter. Most importantly for Palestinian civil society, the project was able to issue grants for the first time since the January 2006 elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). In close coordination with USAID, the project team and its partner civil society organizations (CSOs) developed 16 grant proposals—13 for fixed-obligation grants (FOGs) and three for simplified grants—in late July and August. Of these, USAID approved and CSDS issued 11 FOGs and two simplified grants at the end of the quarter. These grants are valued at a total of approximately $342,000. The four grants pending USAID approval are valued at approximately $134,000. With the new awards, CSDS has issued a total of 429 grants valued at approximately $17.1 million over the life of the project. The 13 grants awarded during the quarter are designed to strengthen the role of Palestinian CSOs in public discourse and efforts to create a more accountable and transparent government. The grants are also designed to encourage coalition building and help CSO partners expand their constituent bases. As such, the grants address key issues and challenges identified by Palestinian CSO leaders after the legislative elections. The grants are also designed to build a base for future CSO and donor-funded initiatives. For example, five CSOs will conduct democracy and governance after-school programs in Gaza. The entire program will reach between 900 and 1,000 children and their families, most from highly marginalized areas of the Gaza Strip, including refugee camps and rural areas. As designed, the program will provide a needed service, while also delivering valuable content related to the rule of law and other major public issues. At the same time, it is designed to strengthen grassroots connections and support for democratically oriented CSOs. In a West Bank initiative, four CSOs are working to strengthen grassroots women’s cooperatives and clubs, and to help them become more involved in public discourse and public policy at a local level. Again, the effort is designed to create a base for future activities that engage this important, grassroots segment of civil society. In another initiative, a partner CSO will start a youth network for democracy in villages near Ramallah in the West Bank, the pilot stage of an initiative that the CSO hopes will develop into a national network of youths dedicated to promoting democracy and service to the community. At the end of the reporting period, additional grant-making activities were being discussed with USAID. The exact amount of funds allocated for grants under the no-cost extension will be determined by the outcome of budget discussions between USAID and Chemonics 1 The September 2006 version of the work plan was produced to account for changes in USAID priorities and a new USAID strategy for the West Bank/Gaza mission. It was developed with significant input from USAID. The project submitted an earlier draft of the work plan in February 2006. At that point, USAID told CSDS to hold off on finalizing the plan until USAID and US Government policy was clarified, and until the “Notice of Intention to Suspend/Stop Work” was lifted. International, the prime contractor on the CSDS project.2 We hope to conclude these discussions and a related contract modification early in the fourth quarter. In addition to restarting the grant program, the project prepared to conduct one remaining large study and two smaller studies during the final months of the project. At the end of the reporting period, we agreed tentatively with USAID to focus the large study on the role of Palestinian civil society in preventing a further decline in internal peace and rule of law. The subjects of the two smaller studies were still being discussed with USAID as of writing of this report. Finally, CSDS started planning close-out activities during the quarter, including a final conference and report, and the overall administrative and financial closeout of this six-year, $34-million project. A complex and varied range of closeout activities will become an increasingly central part of our work during the fourth quarter. 2 While USAID modified the CSDS contract to extend the end-date to January 30, 2007, it did not modify the project’s budget, in particular the division of funds between the two contract line item numbers (CLINs). USAID told the project that a corresponding budget modification would be forthcoming early in the fourth quarter. Chemonics International submitted a proposed budget for the realignment in late July 2006, followed by a revised realignment request in early September. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY SECTION I Technical Achievements A. Restarting Support to Palestinian Civil Society In close partnership with USAID, CSDS restarted technical activities during the third quarter. Most importantly, we worked with USAID and partner CSOs to issue our first round of grants since the January 2006 elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). Described later in this section, the grants are designed to strengthen the role of Palestinian CSOs in public discourse and efforts to create a more accountable and transparent government. The grants are also designed to encourage coalition building and to help CSO partners expand their constituent bases. As such, the grants address key issues and challenges identified by civil society leaders after the legislative elections and build a base for future CSO and donor-funded initiatives.3 In addition to launching the grants program, CSDS also prepared to conduct the project’s remaining technical activities. In initial agreements with USAID and in accordance with the proposal for the no-cost extension (dated July 2006), we plan to conduct one large study and two smaller studies, convene a final conference, and write a final report summarizing the activities and lessons learned over the course of this six-year, $34 million project. This section of our quarterly report summarizes our technical activities during the reporting period in line with the extension proposal and draft work plan for the no-cost extension period submitted in September 2006. The next section summarizes financial and administrative activities. B. Task 1: Supporting Civil Society Reform Initiatives Under the no-cost extension, CSDS’s primary mode of supporting civil society is grant- making. To prepare to restart the CSDS grant program, the project’s team conducted a series of consultative meetings with its partners throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip during July. In consultation with USAID, we also reviewed and determined that three of the 11 simplified grants originally approved by the CSDS Grants Committee in February 2006 were still viable in the current timeframe and political environment. After the meetings with partners, we asked CSOs to submit brief concept papers for fixed- obligation grants (FOGs). Under CSDS’s current USAID-approved grants manuals, FOGs can have maximum values of $25,000 with durations of up to 3 months. In total, we reviewed more than 20 grant concepts during the first two weeks of August.4 Grants in both the West Bank and Gaza Strip are outlined separately below. 3 See CSDS’s March 2006 report on opportunities and challenges facing Palestinian civil society. Participants in roundtables and one-on-one meetings almost unanimously identified building the grassroots constituent bases of moderate, democratically oriented CSOs and strengthening networks and coalitions as key challenges moving forward after the elections.