	Background

OPAP was established by the Secretary of State following the August 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. OPAP made five additional recommendations regarding the size and location of overseas posts:   Rightsize the U.S. overseas presence; reduce the size of some posts, close others, reallocate staff and resources, and establish new posts where needed to enhance the American presence where the bilateral relationship has become more important. Form a new Interagency Overseas Presence Committee—a permanent committee to regularly adjust U.S. presence to U.S. goals and interests. Adopt explicit criteria to guide size and location decisions. OPAP also recommended that some administrative services be performed at regional centers or in the United States—actions that would lessen the need for administrative staff at some posts, thereby reducing security vulnerabilities. In a March 2000 report to the Congress, the Department of State said that the interagency committee planned to complete pilot studies by June 2000 to assess staffing levels, to recommend necessary changes at the study posts, and to develop decision criteria applicable to subsequent rightsizing reviews to be conducted at all overseas posts over a 5-year period. Pilot studies were conducted at six embassies— Amman, Jordan; Bangkok, Thailand; Mexico City, Mexico; New Delhi, India; Paris, France; and Tbilisi, Georgia, from March to May 2000. The teams spent a few days at each post. Results of the Pilot Studies

The interagency committee’s June 2000 report to the Under Secretary of State summarizing results of the pilot studies concluded that it was impractical to develop a staffing methodology that would be applicable to all posts, as OPAP had recommended, because no two posts are sufficiently similar. State’s August 2001 Final Report on Implementing the Recommendations of the Overseas Presence Advisory Panel agreed with the recommendations of OPAP to rightsize the overseas presence, rather than with the positions taken in the interagency committee’s report on the pilot studies.
What GAO Found

The Department of State is leading an interagency assessment of staffing needs in U.S. embassies and consulates to improve mission effectiveness and reduce security vulnerabilities and costs. This process, called "rightsizing," was begun in response to the recommendations of the Overseas Presence Advisory Panel. In the aftermath of the August 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Africa, the Panel determined that overseas staffing levels had not been adjusted to reflect changing missions and requirements; thus, some embassies and consulates were overstaffed, and others were understaffed. The Panel recommended a rightsizing strategy to improve security by reducing the number of embassy staff at risk. The Panel also recommended the establishment of a permanent committee to regularly adjust the U.S. presence, and the adoption of explicit criteria to guide decisions on the size and location of posts. A State-led interagency committee conducted pilot studies at six embassies in 2000 to (1) develop a methodology for assessing staffing at embassies and consulates during the next five years and (2) recommend adjustments to staffing levels at the embassies studied. The interagency committee formed teams that visited U.S. embassies in Amman, Jordan; Bangkok, Thailand; Mexico City, Mexico; New Delhi, India; Paris, France; and Tbilisi, Georgia. The pilot studies did not result in a staffing methodology at all embassies and consulates, as had been anticipated. The interagency committee said that it was impractical to develop explicit criteria for staffing levels at all posts because each post has unique characteristics and requirements. Contrary to the Panel's recommendations, the committee's report also questioned the need for rightsizing and establishing a permanent committee to adjust U.S. presence. The report did recommend the relocation of the regional finance centers in France and Thailand, and it identified instances in which additional study was needed.