Appendix I to Part 211 - Operational Plan
22:1.0.2.22.9.0.30.14.18 : Appendix I
Appendix I to Part 211 - Operational Plan A. General Outline of
Operational Plans for Title II Activities
In addition to any other requirement of law or regulation, the
Operational Plan will include information outlined below to the
extent it is applicable to the specific activity.
1. Program Goals.
Describe program goals and criteria for measuring progress
toward reaching the goals. Each program should be designed to
achieve measurable objectives within a specified period of
time.
2. Program Description.
a. Describe the characteristics, extent and severity of problems
that the program will address.
b. Provide a clear concise statement of specific objectives for
each program and of criteria for measuring progress towards
reaching the objectives. If there are several objectives, indicate
priorities.
c. Describe the target population by program, including
economic/nutrition-related characteristics, sufficiently to permit
a determination of recipient eligibility for title II commodities.
Describe the educational and employment characteristics of the
target group, if relevant to program objectives; the rationale for
selection of the target group, the rationale for the selection of
the geographical areas where programs will be carried out; the
calculation of coverage and the percent of total target population
reached.
d. Describe the intervention including:
(1) Ration composition. A description of rations,
rationale for size and composition, assessment of effectiveness
(dilution, sharing, acceptance).
(2) Complementary program components and inputs. Identify
existing or potential complementary program components,
i.e., education, growth monitoring, training, etc., that are
necessary to achieve program impact, including determination of
financial costs and sources of funding.
(3) Monetization. Describe to whom the commodities will
be sold; the sales price (which shall not be less than the value of
the food commodities f.a.s. or f.o.b.); arrangements for deposit of
the monetization proceeds in a special (segregated), interest
bearing account, pending use of the proceeds plus interest for the
program; and the capability of the cooperating sponsor and
recipient agencies to use and account for monetized proceeds
properly as well as technical assistance the cooperating sponsor
intends to obtain or provide if necessary in order to ensure that
there are adequate financial and other management systems for the
program proposed.
(4) Intervention strategy. Describe how the commodities,
monetization proceeds, program income and other program components
will address the problems. Indicate the recipient agencies to which
commodities, monetized proceeds or program income will be
transferred, and identify those recipient agencies which will not
be required to execute Recipient Agency Agreements, and provide a
brief explanation of the reasons.
(5) Linkages with other development activities, such as
health or agricultural extension services. Describe specific
areas of collaboration relative to program purposes.
(6) Monitoring and evaluation. Include a description of
the evaluation plan, including information to be collected for
purposes of assessing program operations and impact. Describe the
monitoring system for collection, analysis and utilization of
information. Include a schedule for carrying out the evaluation as
well as a plan for conducting audits (Regulation 11, section
211.5(c)).
(7) Program period. The Operational Plan should cover
enough time for a program to become fully operational and to permit
evaluation of its effectiveness, including specific measurement of
progress in achieving the stated program goals. Normally this will
be a multi-year time frame, such as three to five years. Plans for
and considerations involved in phasing-out U.S.G. support, and any
phasing-over to non-U.S.G. support, should be discussed.
3. Program funding. Provide details of host government,
cooperating sponsor and other non-USG support for the proposed
program, with specific budgetary information on how these funds are
to be used (e.g. complementary inputs, transport, administration).
Where relevant, discussion of arrangements which will be made
covering voluntary contributions.
4. Publicity. Describe how the requirements for public
recognition, container marking, and use of funds set forth in
Regulation 11, §§ 211.5i(h), (i) and (k) and in 211.6 (a) and (b),
will be met.
5. Logistics. Provide a logistics plan that demonstrates
the adequacy and availability in recipient country of port
facilities, transportation and storage facilities to handle the
flow of commodities to recipients to prevent spoilage or waste. A
further affirmation must be made at the time of exportation of the
commodity from the United States.
6. Disincentives. Furnish sufficient information
concerning the plan of distribution and the target group of
recipients so that a determination can be made as to whether the
proposed food distribution would result in substantial disincentive
to domestic food production. It is not necessary to provide a
disincentive analysis if A.I.D. or USDA has completed such an
analysis for another program that is relevant to the program
proposed by the cooperating sponsor.
7. Accountability. Describe the method to be used to
supervise, monitor, and account for the distribution or sale of
commodities and the use of monetized proceeds and program
income.
8. Import duty. Provide information to show approval of
foreign government to import the donated commodities duty free.
9. Voluntary agency regular programs. An Operational Plan
is required for all regular, i.e., non-emergency, title II
nongovernmental cooperating sponsor programs as part of their
program submission, along with the Annual Estimate of Requirements
(AER), to USAID or the Diplomatic Post and AID/W. When new
multi-year Operational Plans are required, they should be prepared
and submitted in advance of the year in which they are to begin, in
order to permit adequate time for substantive review and approval.
In any event, nongovernmental cooperating sponsor Operational Plans
should be submitted to AID/W no later than the Mission Action Plan
covering the following fiscal year's program. Once an Operational
Plan has been approved, only an updating will be required on an
annual basis, unless there has been a significant change from the
approved plan's program directives, methodology, design or
magnitudes. Updates should be submitted each year for review with
the AERs.
B. Operational Plans for Emergency Programs
The response to emergency situations using title II resources
does not usually permit the same degree of detail and certainty of
analysis that is expected in planning title II non-emergency
programs. However, Operational Plans are required for all
nongovernmental cooperating sponsors' emergency programs, along
with the AER. An Operational Plan for an emergency program must
cover the same basic elements, set forth above, as for a
nonemergency program. Thus, all of the above basic issues set forth
in the Operational Plan format must be addressed when proposing
title II emergency programs as well as regular nonemergency
programs.
C. USAID/Diplomatic Post Responsibilities
A USAID or Diplomatic Post is expected to comment on the
substance and adequacy of a nongovernmental cooperating sponsor's
Operational Plan when submitted to AID/W along with a program
request, and to address the plan's relationship to and consistency
with the Mission's Country Development Strategy Statement.
D. Required Approval for Program Change
Cooperating sponsors agree not to deviate from the program as
described in the Operational Plan and other program documents
approved by A.I.D., without the prior written approval of
A.I.D.
E. Emergency Assistance Program Requests
Any cooperating sponsor (governmental or nongovernmental) may
initiate an emergency assistance proposal under Public Law 480,
title II. Requests are received by a USAID or Diplomatic Post and
reviewed and approved before forwarding to AID/W with appropriate
recommendations.
a. Nongovernmental emergency program requests can be cabled by
USAID or the Diplomatic Post for AID/W review based on information
provided and using procedures established for regular programs as
described in Regulation 11, § 211.5(a): AER and Operational
Plan.
b. A foreign government or international organization (other
than World Food Program) emergency request normally requires more
Mission involvement in program design and management. However, as
in the case of nongovernmental programs, the approval will be based
on a cabled program summary based on the program plan outlined in
(2) above. On approval, AID/W will prepare a Transfer Authorization
(TA) to be signed by the recipient government specifying terms of
the program and reporting requirements. Additional guidance in
preparing government-to-government or international organizations
emergency requests is in chapter 9 and Exhibit A of A.I.D. Handbook
9. The TA serves as (1) the Food for Peace Agreement between the
U.S. Government and the cooperating sponsor, (2) the project
authorization document, and (3) the authority for the CCC to ship
commodities. (Under Pub. L. 480, section 207(a), not later than 15
days after receipt of a call forward from a field mission for
commodities, the order shall be transmitted to the CCC.)
F. Local Currency Programs (Public Law 480, Title II Section 203)
Detailed guidance for preparing, approving, implementing and
administering these programs is provided in chapters 6, 7, and 11
of A.I.D. Handbook 9.
G. Problems Conducting Programs In Developing Countries
Describe the problems that can be anticipated in implementing
the program in the recipient country as a result of its being a
developing country.
H. Waivers
A cooperating sponsor should provide a justification for the
waiver of any specific section or sections of Regulation 11 that it
believes necessary for the program.