Within Consular Affairs, the directorate of  Overseas Citizen Services in Washington, D.C., is charged with protecting  and providing services to U.S. citizens abroad. Overseas, emergency services are provided by State’s 267 embassies and  consulates in 174 countries. State Provides a Variety of Emergency Services to Americans Abroad

State provides an extensive range of around-the-clock services to  Americans in need of emergency assistance overseas. Emergency Assistance Provided at All Hours

Emergency assistance to American citizens is available and provided by  posts at any time of day or night. Travel and Emergency Information Is Provided by Consular Affairs through Several Mechanisms

Consular Affairs provides information to travelers and Americans living  overseas through several of mechanisms. Embassies and consulates also maintain a warden system for American  citizens living overseas. Based on a random sample of embassy and consulate  Web sites, we estimate that 14 percent had the post’s phone number on  the main page of its Web site. State’s Ability to Provide Emergency Services Depends on Having Trained and Experienced Consular Staff

State relies on a cadre of trained consular staff to provide assistance to  U.S. citizens in need of emergency services. Some staff may rotate through  the ACS section at a larger post, whereas at smaller posts, the consular  officer may be the sole provider of all consular services, including  emergency services. LES are a key component of posts’ provision of  emergency services, as is State’s ability to move both FSOs and LES from  post to post when emergencies arise. State provides guidance, training,  and other resources to ensure staff are able to carry out these services. As a result, the bureau does not know the global demand for its  services or if it is allocating its resources effectively. For example, reporting weaknesses and unclear guidance  associated with the ACS system prevent posts from monitoring and  evaluating their workload or using the data to make management  decisions. Although State shifts consular resources to meet emergency service  demands, such as in the case of the Mumbai bombings, resource  allocation, training, and planning decisions may not be based on a clear  understanding of global workload. Recommendations for Executive Action

To ensure the Bureau of Consular Affairs has accurate and reliable data  from the mechanisms used to monitor and evaluate its provision of  emergency services worldwide, and therefore make informed resource  allocation decisions, we recommend that the Secretary of State direct the  Bureau of Consular Affairs to take the following two actions:    provide guidance on the information to be entered into the ACS system to  ensure that data are consistently captured across posts and accurately  reflect workload, and  improve functionality in the ACS system so that Consular Affairs and posts  can use the system more effectively. Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

We examined (1) the emergency services that the Department of State  (State) provides U.S. citizens, (2) how State is prepared to assist U.S.  citizens in need of emergency services, and (3) how State monitors the  assistance it provides U.S. citizens in need of emergency services. To describe the services State provides to U.S. citizens who are the victims  of crimes, suffer accidents, or otherwise need emergency services  overseas, we interviewed State officials from the Bureau of Consular  Affairs, including officials from the Office of Overseas Citizens Services.
Why GAO Did This Study

In 2008, the Department of State (State) estimated nearly 5 million U.S. citizens lived overseas, and 64 million trips were taken overseas by U.S. citizens. Since protecting and serving U.S. citizens abroad are among State's chief priorities, State must be prepared to provide emergency assistance to Americans abroad. This report describes (1) what services State provides to U.S. citizens who are the victims of crimes, suffer accidents, or otherwise need emergency services; (2) how State is prepared to assist U.S. citizens who are in need of emergency services; and (3) how State monitors the assistance it provides to U.S. citizens in need of emergency services.

What GAO Found

State provides a number of emergency services to American citizens abroad through its network of 267 embassies and consulates in 174 countries. State's emergency services cover circumstances including deaths, arrests, medical or financial concerns, crime, and missing persons' cases. State provides emergency assistance to Americans at all hours, and provides information such as travel warnings to travelers and U.S. citizens living overseas through a variety of mechanisms, including the department's embassy and consulate Web sites. However, our review of a random sample of posts' Web sites found that only 14 percent had emergency phone numbers on the Web sites' main page. State also maintains a warden system to disseminate information from the embassy to U.S. citizens living in the country, and can send messages directly to Americans who provide contact information to the department. State has trained staff dedicated to providing emergency assistance overseas as well as in Washington, D.C. Depending on the size of the post, American Citizen Services (ACS) may be provided by multiple staff, or a single consular officer serving as the sole provider of all consular services including emergency services. Locally engaged staff are a key component of posts' provision of emergency services, as is State's ability to deploy staff where needed when emergencies arise. State provides guidance, largely through the Foreign Affairs Manual, formal on-the-job training, and other resources to ensure staff are able to carry out these services. The Bureau of Consular Affairs has a variety of mechanisms to monitor its provision of emergency services; however, all of these mechanisms have limitations and, as a result, Consular Affairs cannot be assured it is allocating its resources effectively. The ACS system, which is intended to track emergency services provided by posts, and the consular package, which provides post-specific workload information to guide consular resource allocations, both contain unreliable data. For example, reporting weaknesses and unclear guidance associated with the ACS system prevent posts from accurately monitoring and evaluating their workload or using the data to make management decisions. Although State shifts its consular resources to meet emergency demands, absent current and reliable data on the worldwide demand for emergency services, Consular Affairs may not make decisions based on a clear understanding of the global workload.