Table 1 presents these  objectives in five categories of assistance—emergency humanitarian,  social development, economic and natural resources, governance, and  security. U.S. Programs and Activities Support the Act’s Policy Objectives

U.S. programs and activities provide support to the Act’s policy objectives. Most recently, in fiscal years 2006 and 2007, U.S. agencies allocated the  largest share of their funds for the DRC to programs that supported the  Act’s humanitarian and social development goals. Although the U.S.  government has not acted on the Act’s policy objective that it bilaterally  urge nations contributing UN peacekeepers to prosecute abusive  peacekeeping troops, it has taken other steps to address this objective. Seven U.S. agencies allocated about  $217.9 million and $181.5 million for aid to the DRC in fiscal years 2006  and 2007, respectively, as shown in table 2. They allocated about 30 percent of the funds for  programs and activities that would support the Act’s economic,  governance, and security objectives. These challenges include (1) the unstable security situation, (2) weak  governance and widespread corruption, (3) mismanagement of natural  resources, and (4) lack of basic infrastructure. The DRC’s unstable security situation has worsened the DRC’s  humanitarian and social problems and impeded efforts to address these  problems, according to NGO representatives, agency officials, and other  sources. Governance problems have also hindered efforts to implement economic  reforms required for debt relief and promote economic growth. U.S. Government Has Not Assessed Its Overall Progress toward Achieving the Act’s Policy Objectives

The U.S. government has not established a process to assess agencies’  overall progress toward achieving the Act’s policy objectives in the DRC. Under DFA’s guidance, State and USAID have  begun to develop a joint planning and budgeting process that, according to  State officials, may eventually assess all U.S. foreign assistance. The NSC interagency group, intended to help coordinate certain agencies’  activities, does not systematically assess these activities and does not  include several relevant agencies. Recommendation for Executive Action

To provide a basis for informed decisions regarding U.S. allocations for  assistance in the DRC as well as any needed bilateral or multilateral  actions, we recommend that the Secretary of State, through the Director of  Foreign Assistance, work with the heads of the other U.S. agencies  implementing programs in the DRC to develop a plan for systematically  assessing the U.S. government’s overall progress toward achieving the  Act’s objectives. Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

Our objectives were to identify (1) U.S. programs in the Democratic  Republic of the Congo (DRC), (2) major impediments hindering  accomplishment of the policy objectives of the DRC Relief, Security, and  Democracy Promotion Act of 2006 (the Act), and (3) U.S. government  efforts to assess progress toward accomplishing the Act’s policy  objectives. These agencies included the  Departments of Agriculture (USDA), Defense (DOD), Labor (DOL), Health  and Human Services (HHS), State, and the Treasury (Treasury); the  Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC); and the U.S. Agency for  International Development (USAID).
Why GAO Did This Study

In enacting the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion Act of 2006 (the Act), Congress established 15 U.S. policy objectives to address the DRC's humanitarian, development, economic and natural resource, governance, and security issues and mandated that GAO review actions taken by U.S. agencies to achieve these objectives. In this report, GAO identifies (1) U.S. programs and activities that support the Act's objectives, (2) major challenges hindering the accomplishment of the objectives, and (3) U.S. efforts to assess progress toward the objectives. GAO obtained and analyzed agencies' program documents and met with officials of agencies and nongovernmental organizations (NGO) active in the DRC.

What GAO Found

U.S. programs and activities support the Act's policy objectives. In fiscal years 2006 and 2007, respectively, the Departments of Agriculture, Defense, Health and Human Services, State, and the Treasury and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) allocated $217.9 million and $181.5 million for the DRC. About 70 percent of the funds were allocated for programs that support the Act's humanitarian and social development objectives, while the remainder was allocated for programs and activities that support the Act's economic, governance, and security objectives. Although U.S. agencies have not acted on the Act's objective of bilaterally urging nations contributing peacekeeping troops to prosecute abusive peacekeepers, U.S. multilateral actions address this issue. The DRC's unstable security situation, weak governance, mismanagement of its vast natural resources, and lack of infrastructure are major interrelated challenges that impede efforts to achieve the Act's policy objectives. For example, the unstable security situation in the eastern DRC has worsened humanitarian and social problems and forced U.S. and NGO staff to curtail some efforts. The lack of roads has prevented deliveries of needed aid. DRC's weak governance structures prevent the country from meeting the requirements for debt relief and discourage private-sector investment, thus hindering economic growth. The U.S. government has not established a process for systematically assessing its progress toward achieving the Act's policy objectives. While some U.S. agencies collect information about their respective activities in the DRC, no mechanism exists for assessing overall progress. State and USAID are developing a joint planning and budgeting process that may eventually assess all U.S. foreign assistance. However, State's Director of Foreign Assistance has yet to complete the fiscal year 2007 DRC operations plan, which does not include a comprehensive assessment of the collective impact of State and USAID programs and does not address activities funded by other agencies. While a National Security Council-sponsored interagency group discusses DRC policies and helps coordinate some activities, it does not include several relevant agencies and, according to key officials, does not systematically assess progress in the DRC.