The Asia Foundation

San Francisco

Three years ago, a devastating tsunami hit Southeast Asia, bringing destruction to hundreds of thousands of people throughout the region. In the months and years since, The Asia Foundation has focused on long-term recovery and reconstruction of institutions, economies and livelihoods. With fifty plus years in the region and local partners on the ground, the Foundation has helped survivors rebuild their communities bit by bit.

• In Indonesia, in the days after the crisis, the Foundation helped Radio 68H restore news service to displaced persons in fifty welfare camps. The network was able to quickly provide crucial information, such as status of water quality, which prevented mothers from unknowingly feeding their babies contaminated water. In 2007, The Foundation supported a micro-finance program creating new economic opportunities for 2,740 women in 52 Acehnese villages to create or expand small business.
• In Sri Lanka, where more than 48,000 people were killed and 1.5 million displaced, the Foundation launched a mobile library initiative to help 80,000 families whose schools and libraries were destroyed. The Foundation turned a fleet of buses into libraries on wheels, stocked with books, laptop computers, a multi-media projector, and educational DVDs. Books include Sinhala, Tamil, and English languages and are geared to school children, university students, and teachers.
• In Thailand thousands of families lost their homes, possessions and legal documents. Land ownership, identification, guardianship for orphaned children, inheritance and unemployment all continue to plague survivors. The Foundation’s Tsunami Rights and Legal Aid Referral Center (T-LAC) helps lawyers and paralegals go door-to-door in tsunami-ravaged provinces dispensing free legal services. In addition, the Foundation is helping administer DNA tests to prove citizenship and issue ID cards – the only way to be eligible for basic services, including going to school, getting health care, applying for a job, or getting a drivers’ license.
• Additionally, The Foundation’s Books for Asia program has put tens of thousands of textbooks into the hands of students in schools operating with extremely limited resources. Phuket, Thailand, teacher Pranorn Maisan and her students sorted and distributed books, so that schools could resume.

Lao Bar Association Receives Grant from The Asia Foundation to Improve Access to Justice

Vientiane

In recent years, the Lao government has given increased attention to improving the rule of law. Yet the public still has a limited understanding of existing laws, citizen rights, the legal system, and the role of lawyers. This is especially true in remote areas of the country and among ethnic community populations where there is very little awareness about the formal justice system or how it can help people in their daily lives. In response, The Asia Foundation, the premier non-profit organization devoted to Asia’s development since 1954, announced today a grant to the Lao Bar Association (LBA) for a three-year access to justice project to conduct the nation’s first-ever mobile legal aid clinic and to support the creation of community legal advisors.

The project, which is modeled on The Asia Foundation’s successful post-tsunami legal aid program in Thailand and adapted to the specific circumstances and needs of Laos, will strengthen access to justice and the rule of law, especially for the most vulnerable and marginalized groups of people across the country.

In Laos, people tend to consult relatives and friends, rather than lawyers, regarding legal matters. While this may be useful in small civil conflicts, it has not proven effective when confronting larger legal issues, especially those that involve criminal charges. In many such cases, even though there are laws to protect the rights of the accused, violation of rights still occur and many people do not know they have any form of redress. Two legal aid clinics, one in Champasak and one in Udomxai, will serve as bases for nationwide mobile legal assistance and outreach to southern and northern regions of the Lao PDR. Coordination and oversight will be conducted by the LBA in Vientiane, which will also provide legal aid services to those in central Laos. To reach rural citizens, the LBA will conduct mobile legal aid clinics where trained legal volunteers will travel to villages to talk to citizens about their legal issues. These clinics and legal education efforts will provide even the most rural areas with essential information about the law and legal sector.

“Lao citizens often do not have the financial resources to obtain a lawyer even when they recognize that they have a legal problem; particularly if they live in a remote area. The LBA therefore needs both provincial clinics and mobile legal aid clinics to ensure that all citizens have access to justice,” said Dr. James Klein, country representative of The Asia Foundation.

Another core element of this project is to enhance the institutional capacity of the LBA itself. In order for the Bar to conduct the legal aid program effectively and efficiently, The Asia Foundation will provide technical support and adaptation of best practices from relevant legal aid projects in other countries. Support will include establishing efficient methodology to conduct legal surveys and expertise in program management.

“The project will also train volunteers from different parts of Laos in basic legal procedures and systems. Although they will not become lawyers, they will have a practical understanding of the legal system in Laos and, perhaps most importantly, know how to access help,” said Mr. Phoumy Sioudomphanh, President of the Lao Bar Association. “Therefore, even when this program ends, communities throughout the country will still have a valuable resource –a community-based advocate— so that they are able to help themselves long into the future,” he added.

The Asia Foundation has a long history in the Lao PDR, maintaining an office in Vientiane from 1958 to 1975. The Foundation’s current program in Laos, managed from its Bangkok office, was launched in 1989. Prior to this program, the Foundation supported the LBA’s institutional and staff capacity building with the purchase of equipment as well as providing training in program design and report writing.

This new access to justice initiative complements the support provided to the LBA by other donors such as the UNDP, European Commission and AusAID. Effective donor collaboration and liaison will ensure that the LBA can increase its capacity to deliver access to justice to the most vulnerable communities in Lao PDR.

About the Lao Bar Association

The Lao Bar Association (LBA) is a professional organization that represents lawyers in the Lao PDR. It was established to clarify the organization of lawyers, their training and qualifications, and the rights and responsibilities of lawyers in this country. It has both male and female lawyer members. Decree 64 Pertaining to the Organization and Operation of the Bar Association of the Lao PDR was signed and took effect on February 21, 1996. For more information, please visit:
www.laobar.org.

Kuala Lumpur

As Malaysian voters face general elections in the coming months, its youngest constituents feel that elections are important but that there is little people can do to hold government accountable between elections, as reported in a nationwide poll released today. The opinion poll, National Youth Survey 2007, was conducted by the Merdeka Center for Opinion Research – the nation’s foremost independent polling institution – in cooperation with The Asia Foundation to gauge youth perceptions of politics, current issues, democracy, and their own levels of civic and social involvement.

The poll’s findings will inform policymakers, politicians, and grassroots advocacy groups as they address young voters’ needs as well as guide civic education efforts ahead of the upcoming election. This is the second time in two years that the Foundation and Merdeka have partnered on a poll to measure the attitudes of youth voters, providing a side-by-side comparison of 2007 with results from 2006 on important concerns like crime, employment, elections, and the economy.

“As this is the second time we have conducted this poll, the data helps Malaysian voters and policymakers understand the needs of young voters and address their concerns based on factual findings. These young voters will shape Malaysia’s future so it is critical that we look at their attitudes towards their role in the community and in politics,” said Ibrahim Suffian, director of the Merdeka Center.

While the majority of young voters, 94%, feel that voting in elections is important, 52% think there is little they can do to hold government accountable between elections.

Results reveal that ethnicity contributes to significant differences in Malaysian youth perspectives. For instance, the majority of the ethnic Malay, Indian, and non-Muslim Bumiputera feel they are free to speak what they think, while Chinese respondents disagree at 50%. When asked if Malaysians are treated equally by the government, the majority of Malay and non-Muslim Bumiputera agree, but 59% of Chinese and 58% of Indians disagree. 53% of young people do not wish to be involved with politics, with findings being significantly higher among ethnic Chinese and Indian respondents at 75% and 68%, respectively.

As in the 2006 poll, the respondents – structured along the national population profile and specifically proportional to gender, ethnicity, and state of residence – answered questions detailing their news consumption, membership in groups, political awareness, and interpretations of democracy.

“Conducted within the framework of the Foundation’s commitment to increased citizen participation and responsive governance, both the 2006 and 2007 polls offer important baseline information and allow individuals to gauge their views against those of their fellow citizens,” said Anthea Mulakala, The Asia Foundation’s country representative in Malaysia.

The nationwide telephone survey of 1,508 randomly selected Malaysians between 20 and 35 years old was conducted between August 8 and September 1, 2007 and was funded by The Asia Foundation with support from the Netherlands Embassy. In addition to the questions asked in the main survey, expanded polling was done in both Sabah and Sarawak to a broader segment of voters. Detailed findings from Sabah and Sarawak will be released at upcoming events in December.

The full results of the survey are available to download from both the Merdeka Center’s website and The Asia Foundation’s website.

About the Merdeka Center

Merdeka Center was formally established in 2001 as an independent organization focused on public opinion research and socio-economic analysis. Its members are comprised of social scientists and professionals with qualifications in economics, communications, marketing, and law. Merdeka’s mission is to act as a bridge between Malaysians and the leading members of their society – by collecting public opinion and expressing them through survey results, analysis and position papers. For more information, please visit www.merdeka.org.

Kathmandu

The Asia Foundation, a non-profit organization devoted to Asia’s development since 1954, and The McConnell Foundation are entering a new phase of a program to provide community mediation services across 12 districts in Nepal, a country coming out of a decade of insurgent rebellion. The absence of effective courts and the breakdown of traditional methods of dispute resolution in Nepal’s communities have led to a distinct need for new mechanisms of village-based conflict management. The new two-year project will build upon previous Asia Foundation mediation efforts in Nepal funded by McConnell and other donors.

Since 2002, The Asia Foundation has been working in Nepal to train and certify long-term mediation service providers who are skilled at finding solutions acceptable to all parties involved in a dispute. Because of these efforts, communities across Nepal are beginning to experience quick, inexpensive, and effective resolution of disputes, an improvement in social and family relations, and improvements in social justice. This has been achieved in the face of significant shifts in village society and the effects of ten years of guerilla insurgency.

“Mediation is a far more viable option for most Nepalis than taking a dispute to court, which is expensive and contentious,” says Nick Langton, The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in Nepal. “While litigation results in losers, the win-win possibilities of mediation are more suited to village communities. Establishing mediation services throughout Nepal will take many years, and The McConnell Foundation’s willingness to make a long-term commitment to the program is an important contribution to this process.”

With renewed funding from The McConnell Foundation, The Asia Foundation will expand its efforts. These efforts include increasing community and government support for mediation services, strengthening mediator competency, mobilizing community members as catalysts for peaceful interaction and ongoing community dialogue, and conducting research to deepen understanding of Nepali approaches to community mediation and social harmony.

The Asia Foundation will partner with five local NGOs in Nepal to implement project activities: the Center for Legal Research and Resource Development; the Forum for Protection of Public Interest; the Institute for Governance and Democracy; Service to Underprivileged Sectors of Society; and the Rural Women’s Unity and Development Center.

The Asia Foundation has for the first time been included in the Philanthropy 400, an authoritative listing of U.S.-based charities. Compiled annually by The Chronicle of Philanthropy, the Philanthropy 400 examines and ranks organizations based on criteria such as how effectively they raise private support. In 2006, the list reports, The Asia Foundation spent just 0.2% of total income on fundraising – among the lowest on the list – while still increasing private donations. This strategy had enabled The Asia Foundation to focus its spending on supporting actual programs in the field, a practice for which it was recently recognized with a 4-star Charity Navigator rating for the fifth consecutive year.

Last year, the Foundation provided more than $53 million in program support and distributed 920,000 books and educational materials valued at $30 million throughout Asia.

Colombo

According to a new study of economic governance conducted by The Asia Foundation in Sri Lanka good governance in Horana makes it the easiest place to do business in Sri Lanka, followed by Nawalapitiya, Embilipitiya, Haputale, and Hatton-Dickoy. The study covers all 15 municipal and 33 urban council localities in seven of the nine provinces and 5000 firms in total. The Northern and Eastern Provinces were left out in the study due to the difficulties in carrying out the survey in those areas.

Despite several previous studies, little is known about the business environment affecting private enterprise at the local level. The Economic Governance Index 2007 (EGI) is an initiative of The Asia Foundation’s local governance strengthening program with funding support from the Australian Government and the Department for International Development (UK). The goal of the Foundation’s program is to support improvement in the enabling environment for private enterprise throughout the country, not just in the Western Province where most of the growth has been concentrated.

The EGI was released to leaders in government and the private sector in a symposium on November 13, 2007 in Colombo. Speakers included the Australian High Commissioner Dr. Greg French and Mr. Nivard Cabraal Governor of the Central Bank.

Panel discussants included senior officials from the Ministry of Local Government and Provincial Councils, Ministry of Enterprise Development and Investment Promotion., Provincial Council Chief Ministers, Commissioners/Assistant Commissioners of Local Government, Mayors and Chairmen of urban councils and representatives of district and national chambers of commerce attended this event.

The EGI is a measure of the enabling environment for private enterprise in the localities and considers economic governance indicators as the key factors in its ranking. This document identifies and facilitates understanding of government-influenced constraints to economic growth and the impact of local governance on business behavior. Nilan Fernando, Country Representative of The Asia Foundation noted that “similar studies have been carried out by The Foundation in Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, and the Philippines, and it was this proven methodology and experience that was applied to the Sri Lankan context to produce this important Index for the first time.” Survey data that represent the perception of business leaders regarding the local regulatory environment, as well as published data, are used to construct the indicators.

In terms of the sub-indicators, Kuliyapitiya comes out on top in the area of registration, permits and licenses while Chilaw does well in the area of land access and property rights. Matale is the most transparent and encourages participation while Hatton-Dickoya has the best regulatory environment and Nuwara Eliya provides the best infrastructure and basic services. Businesses get the best value for money in terms of the tax levied and the services rendered in Horana. The legal environment at Minuwangoda was adjudged the best while the government’s attitude toward business was most encouraging in Haputale. Nawalapitiya generally serviced all businesses equally and was the least influenced by informal charges while Gampola was considered the most secure for operating a business. The report notes that the Index will be a useful guide in facilitating the sharing of best practices and learning from localities that scored higher in specific sub-indices.

The report also assesses business friendliness by province using the same indicators. Suresh Bartlett, Program Director of The Asia Foundation stated “The findings have highlighted critical areas that require the attention of local officials and national policy makers and would serve as an excellent opportunity for strategic private-public partnerships to be forged in addressing issues and improving the enabling environment for private enterprise.” The EGI will help enhance private sector growth and job creation by providing information and incentives for local authorities to improve the local economic environment and thereby increase employment and alleviate poverty in different regions of the country.

Hanoi

National Survey Measures Role of Economic Governance in Vietnam

Since its accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2006, Vietnam has continued to improve the regulatory environment for business. To measure economic governance for private sector development, The Asia Foundation and its partners today released the 2007 Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) report. The 2007 PCI survey – the third annual edition – is the largest and most comprehensive assessment and ranking of the performance of provincial governments based on the views expressed by over 6,700 entrepreneurs and managers of small and medium (SME) enterprises across Vietnam’s 64 provinces.

Developed and implemented by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry and The Asia Foundation, with funding from the United States Agency for International Development’s Vietnam Competitiveness Initiative (VNCI), the 2007 PCI results can be compared to previous reports in 2005 and 2006 to gauge improvements as well as identify areas in need of reform. Based on the perceptions and the experience of Vietnamese businesses, the PCI examines provincial efforts to improve access to land and information, lower transaction costs related to inspections and registration waiting periods, increase transparency, and improve labor training and legal institutions.

The 2007 PCI findings show that, as provincial governments strive to create a better business environment, the private sector has flourished and economic welfare has improved. Findings reveal that the overall standard of provincial economic governance in Vietnam has improved over the past year. The aggregate PCI 2007 score for the median province has increased by 3.2 points from 2006 and significant achievements have been made in the area of entry costs, registration, administrative requirements, and inspections. For example, the number of registration days for businesses has decreased from 20 to 15.

Top performers this year include the provinces of Binh Duong, Da Nang, Vinh Long, Binh Dinh, Lao Cai, An Giang, Vinh Phuc, Dong Thap, and Ho Chi Minh City. Provinces demonstrating the greatest single year improvements – a 7-13 point increase – were Thua-Thien Hue, Ca Mau, Tien Giang, Soc Trang, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Long An, Ben Tre, Quang Ngai, and Thanh Hoa.

Despite some important improvements, economic governance needs to progress in a number of key areas such as legal institutions, transparency, labor, and private sector development policies so that Vietnam’s domestic enterprises can effectively compete in the global economy. The PCI report focuses on four national policy challenges: 1) addressing growing inequality across lower and higher ranking provinces; 2) strengthening the formalization process of enterprises; 3) improving the post-equitization performance of enterprises so there are more medium and larger enterprises; and 4) analyzing how domestic enterprises can benefit more from reforms related to WTO and Bilateral Trade Agreements.

In the past three years, the PCI surveys have become an important tool used by government leaders, academics, financial analysts, entrepreneurs, and the media as a way of understanding how leadership can influence economic performance as well as guide provinces on how to increase economic competitiveness. Interestingly, the PCI has also entered into the wider world of social awareness; it even found its way into the final question for Vietnamese university students competing in the country’s well-known television game show, Ring the Golden Bell. Together, these landmark reports have consistently demonstrated direct links between good economic governance and positive investment and economic growth.

The Asia Foundation’s economic programs in Vietnam focus on improving the environment for private sector development and economic growth, particularly provincial economic competitiveness. The Foundation and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry pioneered research carried out between 2002 and 2004 to identify factors that set high-performing provinces apart. This work informed the subsequent development of the Provincial Competitiveness Index.

Download and view the full report in PDF format.

Book Will Enhance Dialogue and Understanding between Communities and Government

Manila

Mindanao, home to a majority of the country’s Muslims, is a region suffering from poor infrastructure, high poverty, and violence that has claimed the lives of more than 120,000 in the last three decades. At a ceremony held today at the Intercontinental Hotel Manila, The Asia Foundation released Rido: Clan Feuding and Conflict Management in Mindanao, the definitive reference book on clan violence and resolution in the Philippines. The book offers the most comprehensive and in-depth analysis of rido, which is defined as feuding between families and clans and is characterized by sporadic outbursts of retaliatory violence between families, kinship groups, and communities. The book is available for purchase. Written by leading conflict resolution scholars and advocates, the book aims to dispel widely-held stereotypes. Indeed, rido is only one aspect in the complex web of violence in Mindanao, which also includes Muslim separatism, communist insurgency, and banditry. The interaction of these different conflicts has explosive consequences for the long-running separatist war in Mindanao. A deeper understanding of specific conflicts is crucial to disentangling the blurred lines of conflict and to enable communities and the government to effectively address the problem.

View an excerpt from the book.

Presented in 10 chapters and concluding with a stirring personal account and recommendations, Rido: Clan Feuding and Conflict Management in Mindanao offers for the first time a clear understanding of the root causes of the conflict, the parties involved, the conditions for escalation and recurrence, and the potential for conflict resolution. The first three chapters provide a general overview of the prevalence of clan and family feuds across Mindanao. Three research institutions inventoried rido cases in 11 provinces and documented a total of 1,266 rido cases that killed over 5,500 people and displaced thousands more. These chapters record the number of settled, unresolved, and recurring cases of rido, as well as the number of fatalities, injuries and persons jailed in relation to these feuds. Chapters 4 through 9 utilize detailed investigations to dissect important conflict dynamics from escalation to resolution. The case studies illustrate how rido escalates from petty offenses to more serious crimes, oftentimes accelerated by land disputes and political rivalries. Chapter 10 gives a unique juxtaposition between clan feuding in Sulu and in Corsica. Finally, in “Conclusion: A Personal Reflection,” the author presents prospects for sustained peace in Mindanao.

The volume chronicles the result of extensive research conducted by The Asia Foundation beginning in 2002. The coordinated study on clan conflicts began with a household survey in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and adjacent areas on the local citizens’ perceptions of conflict. The survey results showed that while the Muslim-Christian conflict in Mindanao dominates the attention of the media, clan conflicts are actually more interwoven in the daily lives of the people. Findings showed that citizens are more concerned about the prevalence of clan conflict and its negative impact on their communities than the conflict between the state and rebel groups in Mindanao. This insight illustrates the complexity of conflicts in Mindanao and encouraged the Foundation to help address the problem. With support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Foundation spearheaded a set of diagnostic activities to help design strategic interventions that enable communities and government agencies to prevent the escalation of conflicts.

“Our aim in this book is to provide a careful expert review of data concerning clan feuds,” said Dr. Steven Rood, Country Representative of The Asia Foundation. “This book is a vital resource for understanding complex issues and will help promote the important long-term benefits of cooperation among all stakeholders.”

Results from the survey and the research have been provided to such institutions as the Joint Coordinating Committees on the Cessation of Hostilities, which is responsible for maintaining the ceasefire between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Currently, the studies are helping local governments, civil society groups, and local communities to design more effective strategies to address these conflicts.

Wilfredo Torres, who is a program officer at the Foundation, coordinated the research, edited the book, and authored the Introduction. He observed, “The Asia Foundation published this book to empower communities to break the cycle of violence. In putting this collection together, we have already seen the positive results of fresh, constructive dialogue through a better understanding of rido.”

For instance, through support from The Asia Foundation, funded by USAID, Muslim organizations like United Youth for Peace and Development (UNYPAD) and Reconciliatory Initiatives for Development Opportunities (RIDO) have been settling clan feuds and preventing the escalation of violent conflicts. In 2007, within a span of eight months, The Foundation was able to support capacity building for 253 local peace mediators, and its local partners were able to resolve 23 rido cases.

Browse all related materials, including an executive summary, a project timeline, a presentation on the findings, and information about other work in the Philippines.

Book Details

Title: Rido: Clan Feuding and Conflict Management in Mindanao
Editor: Wilfredo Magno Torres III, The Asia Foundation
Published: October 2007
348 pages
ISBN: 978-971-92445-2-3
Price: $15.00 (630 pesos)
Language: English
Copyright © 2007 The Asia Foundation

About The Asia Foundation’s Conflict Management Program in the Philippines

The Asia Foundation aims to transform conflicts through increased understanding of the dynamics of the specific conflict, enhanced conflict resolution mechanisms, improved communication channels within affected communities and between government and community groups, and substantive policy-oriented discussions with input from key stakeholders. The Foundation supports academic institutions and civil society organizations throughout Mindanao to design locally-based interventions to manage these conflicts, including a better recognition in media and security services that such conflicts ought not be confused with possible separatist conflict. In the Philippines, The Asia Foundation has been focused on applying conflict resolution strategies to rido since 2002.

TO PURCHASE IN THE PHILIPPINES

To purchase a copy of Rido: Clan Feuding and Conflict Management in Mindanao please contact:
The Asia Foundation
Attention: Wilfredo Torres, Editor
Phone: +63-2-851-1466
Email: tafphil@asiafound.org

TO PURCHASE IN THE U.S. (FOR U.S. ADDRESSES ONLY)

For purchasing the book in the United States, please send an email to info@asiafound.org.

MEDIA CONTACTS

For more information, please contact:

Steven Rood, Ph. D.
Country Representative, The Philippines
The Asia Foundation
Tel. +63 (2) 851-1466
srood@asiafound.org

Debbie Felix
The Asia Foundation
+ 66 (2) 233-1644 (office)
+ 66 (81) 645-3637 (mobile)
dfelix@asiafound.org

KABUL AND SAN FRANCISCO

The third survey since 2004 is the largest and broadest survey ever conducted at one time in Afghanistan, and reports public opinion on security, reconstruction, governance, and other important issues.

Click here to download Korean version of this release.

Click here to download Japanese version of this release.

Today, The Asia Foundation released findings from its most recent public opinion poll in Afghanistan, which covers the largest population sample ever surveyed at one time in all 34 of Afghanistan’s provinces. “Afghanistan in 2007: A Survey of the Afghan People” follows polls conducted by the Foundation in 2004 and 2006. Collectively, the three surveys establish an accurate and long-term barometer of public opinion across Afghanistan to help assess the direction in which the country is moving in the post-Taliban era.

A copy of the 2007 survey is available for download.

The 2007 survey captures the Afghan public’s perceptions of reconstruction, security, governance, and poppy cultivation — as well as attitudes towards government and informal institutions, the role of women and Islam in society, and the impact of media. The fieldwork for the survey was conducted in June 2007, and consists of a random sample of 6,263 in-person interviews with Afghan men and women 18 years of age and above, from different social, economic, and ethnic communities in rural and urban areas in all 34 provinces of Afghanistan.

The survey report opens with findings on the overall national mood in Afghanistan in 2007, which states that 42 percent of Afghans think the country is headed in the right direction (compared to 44% in 2006, and 64% in 2004); 24 percent feel it is moving in the wrong direction (21% in 2006, 11% in 2004), and 25 percent have mixed feelings (29% in 2006, 8% in 2004).

The 2007 survey — which was funded through The Asia Foundation’s ongoing cooperative agreement with the U.S. Agency for International Development — was designed, directed, and edited by the Foundation, with all in-person interviews completed by 494 Afghan men and women employed by the Afghan Center for Socio-economic and Opinion Research (ACSOR) in Kabul. Similar surveys will be conducted in 2008, 2009, and 2010.

Download Key findings in:

English

Japanese

Korean

Dari

Pashto

To view all materials related to this and past years’ Surveys of the Afghan People, including Frequently Asked Questions, click here.

San Francisco-based landmark effort has provided critical services to close to a million women

San Francisco

Two San Francisco-based organizations are leading the effort to provide Chinese migrant women workers with free social services, education and legal aid. The Levi Strauss Foundation enters its ninth year of partnership with The Asia Foundation – San Francisco’s largest international charity – with a $200,000 grant to continue to best serve the immediate needs of migrant women workers in China, protecting migrant women’s rights, and providing educational and legal services, while expanding the project into new regions. Both organizations are participating in this week’s Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) conference in San Francisco.

China’s rapid economic development has brought a mass migration of workers from the country’s rural inland to the booming southern and eastern industrial cities to pursue the promise of high-paying jobs. On the way, these migrant laborers leave behind not just their families, but also social and community support and services. Since 1999, The Asia Foundation, with the support of the Levi Strauss Foundation, has been working to ensure that migrant women workers – who make up sixty percent of all migrant labor in Guangdong province – are provided free education and counseling, occupational health and safety training, HIV/AIDS awareness education, and legal services.

The Asia Foundation’s staff in Beijing works with local government agencies, Chinese women’s organizations, labor unions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), academic leaders, and workers to build social support networks and deliver services to migrant women workers. To date, the Foundation has provided assistance to more than 850,000 migrant women workers from more than 1,000 factories in 22 cities and districts in China’s Pearl River Delta, more than 50 factories in the Lower Yangtze River, and in Beijing municipality and has helped enhance joint policy making in favor of migrant workers.

“Our nine-year partnership with The Asia Foundation has reached hundreds of thousands of migrant women workers in Guangdong province and will now further expand into Jiangsu and Beijing. The Asia Foundation program provides access to critical worker-rights and life-skills services and information that ultimately provide opportunities for advancement and improve the quality of life for women workers living away from their families and villages,” said Theresa Fay-Bustillos, Executive Director of the Levi Strauss Foundation.

“A safe working and living environment, with real opportunities for securing the additional skills for advancement by China’s migrant laborers, should be a widely shared goal,” Douglas Bereuter, President of The Asia Foundation said. “Through responsible corporate initiatives businesses operating within China are well-positioned and should be motivated to take a proactive role in supporting such conditions and employee improvement opportunities.”

At this week’s BSR conference, which runs from October 23-26, representatives from The Asia Foundation’s Beijing office will present on the current climate for NGOs operating in China, based on its own strong record of cooperation with Chinese government and civil society organizations in implementing vital social services and legal rights programs for workers.

Jakarta

On October 9, Indonesia’s State Minister for Women’s Empowerment, Meutia Farida Hatta Swasono, led a campaign to encourage people to send sms text messages to a database especially established for people to show their support for changing the electoral laws to mandate an obligatory 30% quota for women candidates. Names on the sms petition will be taken to the parliament in November. This is thought to be the first ever political advocacy campaign in Indonesia using text messaging.

The campaign, which runs until November 20, is being led by a coalition of NGOs including the Civil Society Alliance for the Revison of Political Laws (ANSIPOL) and the Movement for Concerned Indonesian Women (GPPI). This program is being supported by The Asia Foundation through funding made available from the Royal Norwegian Embassy.

Hanoi

Essay Contest Winners To Visit U.S. Cities

Click here to view this press release in Vietnamese (pdf).

At a press conference held today in Hanoi, The National Library of Vietnam and The Asia Foundation launched a national essay contest to find three young ambassadors who will promote friendship and cooperation between the youth of Vietnam and their counterparts in the United States. The topic of the essay contest — open to Vietnamese students between the ages of 18-22 — asks each candidate to express his or her hopes for Vietnam’s future, which will provide a rich portrait of the expectations of modern-day Vietnamese while promoting a better understanding of Vietnam in the United States.

Through the National Library of Vietnam’s network of provincial libraries, regional committees have been established to judge the essays and to select three finalists each from the North, Central, and South regions of Vietnam. The National Library will oversee the process and select a panel of judges to recommend the finalists. The nine finalists will be interviewed by a joint panel of representatives of the Foundation and the National Library in Hanoi to further gauge the candidates’ suitability as cultural ambassadors for Vietnam.

The three grand prize winners, one from each region, will embark on a 10-day trip to the United States to meet with American university students and civic leaders in San Francisco, Chapel Hill in North Carolina, and Washington, D.C. The U.S. visit will be coordinated and funded by The Asia Foundation.

During the trip, the ambassadors will be accompanied by the Director of the National Library and a Vietnamese professor of American Studies. The three students will stay with American families to allow for a more holistic experience and a deeper understanding of the diversity of American life and culture, while allowing American families the opportunity to learn more about modern-day Vietnam.

Upon their return to Vietnam, these cultural ambassadors will assemble for two days in Hanoi to discuss their experiences in the United States, their impressions of American culture and society, and the impact the trip has had on them personally. Finally, the ambassadors will each give a presentation at the provincial libraries to their home communities.

For more information about the essay contest in Vietnamese, click here to view the brochure.

Colombo

The Asia Foundation is launching a new mobile library initiative aimed at helping an estimated 80,000 families and children who do not have access to the existing library services in four local authorities. Many of these communities were devastated by the tsunami, and schools and libraries are still in the process of being rebuilt. The mobile library initiative is being launched with support from the AIG Disaster Relief Fund (DRF), and Give2Asia, an organization founded by The Asia Foundation to promote philanthropy to Asia.

The Asia Foundation has retrofitted buses to become mobile libraries, which are stocked with books selected by each local authority, a laptop computer, a multi-media projector, and educational DVDs. Books are available in Sinhala, Tamil and English languages and will be highly useful for school children, university students, and teachers. The mobile libraries will also have textbooks from student reading lists. Stationed at different points, these mobile units will cover the entire geographic area of each participating local authority.

“Through the AIG Disaster Relief fund, AIG and its employees are proud to support this important initiative which brings books and learning to these families and children,” said Ned Cloonan, President of the AIG DRF. “Education is a critical part of rebuilding communities and will help bridge the transition from immediate relief to sustainable recovery in Sri Lanka.”

At a ceremony at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) on September 7, The Asia Foundation Country Representative, Nilan Fernando, and the Minister of Local Government and Provincial Councils, Honourable Janaka Bandara Tennakoon, presented the mobile libraries to the representatives from the Hambantota Pradeshiya Sabha, Hikkaduwa Pradeshiya Sabha, Kattankudy Urban Council and Thirukkovil Pradeshiya Sabha. The four Local Authorities were selected based on their commitment to increase citizens’ access to library and information services. Each Local Authority has established citizen advisory committees and neighborhood “Reading Circles” to get public feedback about their library services.

The Asia Foundation’s popular Books for Asia Program provided books for the libraries. Books for Asia distributes approximately 100,000 brand new, high-quality text books and children’s books per year in Sri Lanka and is now further widening its reach through the launch of these mobile libraries.

The generosity of AIG and its employees made possible the donation of the mobile libraries to tsunami-affected local authorities, which are still grappling with reconstruction and recovery activities, including the restoration of schools and libraries.

About the American International Group’s Disaster Relief Fund
The AIG Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) is a global charitable organization formed by American International Group, Inc. (AIG), world leaders in insurance and financial services, to encourage a wide range of philanthropic endeavors, including providing assistance to victims of manmade and natural disasters and emergencies around the world. The DRF is funded by generous donations from AIG and its employees, whose contributions are matched by AIG.

For more information, please visit: http://www.aigcorporate.com and http://phx.corporate-ir.net.

About Give2Asia
Give2Asia facilitates and encourages charitable giving to meet needs in Asia by providing personalized services to donors and recipients. Founded by The Asia Foundation, Give2Asia helps overcome the common challenges that U.S. and Canadian donors face when giving to Asia. With a flexible menu of custom giving options, Give2Asia provides individuals, families, corporations, donor advised funds, and foundations the tools for fulfilling their charitable goals. Give2Asia and its program advisors in Asia make philanthropy convenient, accountable, and tax deductible.

For more information, please visit: http://www.give2asia.org

DAVAO CITY, PHILIPPINES

At a ceremony held today, 600 children’s books were presented to day care centers in Davao City. The books are being donated by The Asia Foundation’s Books for Asia program to The Kiwanis International Philippine South District, which will facilitate the delivery to child centers in need. Together in the past three years, The Asia Foundation and The Kiwanis International Philippine South District have distributed approximately 65,000 books to 1,500 schools in Visayas and Mindanao.

Each new book is provided by U.S. publishers and shipped from The Asia Foundation’s headquarters in San Francisco to its office in Manila. Since 2004, the Foundation has collaborated with over 90 Kiwanis Clubs in the Philippines to bring new books, textbooks, and education materials to public elementary schools and high schools, public libraries, and day care centers.

Dr. Steven Rood, country representative of The Asia Foundation, noted the Foundation’s shared goal with Kiwanis Clubs of promoting education and increasing literacy. Speaking at the Kiwanis annual district convention, Dr. Rood said, “The dedication of the Kiwanis Clubs to identify centers and schools in need and then coordinate the allocation of books to these children–some in the most remote areas of Mindanao–has opened the doors of education to our future leaders.”

The broad network of Kiwanis Clubs ensures that the donated books reach learning centers in every village. The Kiwanis work directly with educators to select the materials and subjects then covers the cost of book distribution. Monitoring and evaluation are done also by Kiwanis Clubs to check the status of books and that the needs of the recipients have been met.

Kiwanis Book Bank District Chairman and Past District Governor Mr. Jose S. Altavas said, “The Philippine South District of Kiwanis International made an unwritten contract based on trust and commitment to become partners with The Asia Foundation in distributing books to a network of Kiwanis clubs all over Visayas and Mindanao. The Asia Foundation’s continuous support became a boundless resource of books to thousands of children.” Mr. Altavas expressed that the Kiwanis Book Bank Project, through the help of The Asia Foundation, has contributed significantly to child literacy and education and a budding development of lifelong readers. “Early literacy skills are nurtured by Kiwanians who distribute and read books and build mini-libraries for the children. For all of us, Kiwanians, we always say, ‘books are real life’s treasures just like little children.’ Because, by placing books in their hands to read may greatly influence not only their hearts and minds but also their hopes and dreams for tomorrow,” Mr. Altavas added.

For more information about Kiwanis International, please visit: www.kiwanis.org.

Jakarta

In 1999, the Indonesian National Police separated from the military structure to become its own independent entity. The transformation to an accountable, civilian police force has been an essential part of Indonesia’s transition to democracy. For over four years, The Asia Foundation has supported the development of Community-Oriented Policing (COP) programs that assist police in their efforts to reform, improve services to citizens, and reduce crime. COP programs have improved the performance of the Indonesian police and built public trust by fostering collaborative police-community partnerships that use a problem-solving approach to respond to the public safety needs and expectations of the community.

Over the past four years, the Foundation, together with PUSHAM UII (Human Rights Centre – Islamic University of Indonesia), PUSHAM UNAIR (Airlangga University), Manikaya Kauci, and the Percik Foundation, has supported the establishment of 42 community task forces in 4 provinces: Yogyakarta, East Java, Bali, and Central Java. It has been at the forefront of police reform in Indonesia. These community policing programs have led to a near 30 percent reduction of crime in Malioboro, Yogyakarta, apprehension of child traffickers in Putat Jaya, East Java, and a reduction of domestic violence in Tejakula, Bali.

Recognizing the program’s effectiveness, the Indonesian National Police Chief adopted COP as a national policy (SKEP 737/2005) in late 2005, directing the establishment of partnership forums between police and communities in 5,117 police precincts in Indonesia.

Davao City, Philippines

Transparent and Accountable Project Reaches Five Year Milestone

Corruption can cripple the Philippine economy and hinder efficient governance. Today in Mindanao representatives of the business sector, government officials, and civil society organizations from 16 Mindanao cities will evaluate program milestones and share best practices of a unique, cross-sector anti-corruption initiative. The two-day conference, “Transparent Accountable Governance Partners Conference,” will be attended by 10 members from each of the participating cities and will mark the project’s fifth year. The Asia Foundation – a San Francisco-based non-profit, non-governmental organization committed to the development of a peaceful, prosperous, just, and open Asia-Pacific region since 1954 – has implemented the nationwide Transparent Accountable Governance (TAG) project, with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), since 1999.

To foster public debate on the issue of corruption and strengthen good governance and economic development, The Asia Foundation began addressing endemic corruption using analytical research activities to examine the problem in the Philippines. In 1999, the Foundation launched a national counter-corruption advocacy program – an empirically-based initiative – to identify key governance areas in need of reform, analyze economic costs of corruption, and focus public attention on the effects of corruption in Philippine society. Five years ago, the Foundation, in partnership with the League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP), the Mindanao Business Council (MinBC) and the Mindanao Coalition for Development NGOs (MinCODE), expanded the TAG Program to Mindanao cities.

Since 2002, 16 participating cities – Butuan, Cotabato, Dapitan, Dipolog, General Santos, Iligan, Island Garden City of Samal, Koronadal, Malaybalay, Marawi, Oroquieta, Ozamiz, Panabo, Surigao, Tacurong, and Zamboanga – have made significant progress in program objectives. The TAG project provides technical assistance to participating cities’ efforts to increase efficiency, build capacity for economic reform, and streamline local government services. Examples of accomplishments made by different TAG participating cities include:

• reducing the time to issue a Mayor’s Permit from seven days to half day;
• increased the number of Mayors Permits issued by 35%;
• increased business tax collection by up to 40%;
• improved the collection efficiency of real property taxes up to 60%;
• reduced cost to collection ratio of real property taxes from 0.98 cents to 0.80 cents;
• and reduced actual expenditures on procurement of drugs and medicines by 350% and medical supplies by 270%.

The Foundation’s TAG project in Mindanao has worked across sectors to convene stakeholders and solicit solutions from the city government, the business sector, and civil society. This integrated approach relies on public opinion survey research, investigative reports, case studies, and briefings to engage officials and the public in a discussion on corruption and pursue a common goal of transparent, accountable government in the Philippines. Program activities provide citizens with tools to understand budgets, design projects according to local priorities, and hold governments accountable for improved delivery of basic services.

According to Mayor Alfonso Casurra, executive vice president of the League of Cities, “Working with the business and industry groups and the civil society organizations in a participatory tripartite structure has worked wonders for the City of Surigao. Bringing these sectors together has greatly enhanced our efforts towards better customer servicing and invariably pushing further continuing effort towards graft-free governance and the critical support of responsible citizenship. No matter how well our plans are made, how well our structures are designed, at the end of the day it all boils down to a political decision. As local chief executive, it is critical that our commitment for good governance should be unwavering and founded on solid principles.”

The conference, co-organized by Mindanao cities, MinBC and MinCODE, will feature presentations from each city about their experiences promoting transparency and accountability in city governance, constituency building for counter corruption reforms and forming public-private partnerships, and enhancing the capacities of stakeholders in implementing and monitoring counter corruption reforms.

The conference, held on August 23-24, will also provide an opportunity for project partners and stakeholders to assess the TAG Program’s goals, design, and results in the Stakeholders’ Assessment. On the agenda is a discussion of the 2007 Enterprise Survey on Corruption, led by Social Weather Stations, and the tracking results of business permit registration in the 16 cities. On the second day, the conference will be closed by Mayor Benhur Abalos, President of the League of Cities of the Philippines.

“The Asia Foundation is proud to support the collective efforts of our partners and their dedication to good governance in Mindanao cities,” said Dr. Steven Rood, country representative of The Asia Foundation, “and we celebrate five years of cross-sector partnerships that have reduced corruption, improved the business climate, and served the citizenry.”

A press conference will be held immediately following the conference, on Friday, August 24, at 5:00 p.m. at the Waterfront Insular Hotel, Davao City.

Kuala Lumpur and San Francisco

Today The Asia Foundation, the premier non-profit organization devoted to Asia’s development since 1954, announced the appointment of Anthea Mulakala as Country Representative designate in Malaysia. Ms. Mulakala brings a wealth of experience in program design, implementation, and management in South and Southeast Asia to her new position, which she will begin September 19. She replaces Mr. Julio A. Andrews, who led the Foundation’s office in Malaysia since its reopening in 2005.

Ms. Mulakala has been overseeing programs in Asia since 1991, when she joined the South Asia Partnership (SAP) in Ottawa, Canada, to manage and administer a $13 million CIDA project to strengthen non-government organization (NGO) capacity in Sri Lanka. During that time she also served as advisor on gender-based issues to SAP offices in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh. From 1997-2005, she was with the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID), initially in Bangladesh when she was team leader of a large Government of Bangladesh and multi-donor health project consortium, which provided essential health services to the poor through NGOs. Subsequently, as DFID’s Reconciliation and Development advisor in Sri Lanka, she developed and implemented the UK’s peace building and reconciliation strategy for the country, and chaired the Donor Working Group on the Peace Process, which consisted of bilateral donor agencies, UN agencies, and international financial institutions operating in Sri Lanka.

Currently a World Bank senior advisor to and operations manager for the $50 million multi-donor Decentralization Support Facility (DSF) in Indonesia, Ms. Mulakala has been piloting an innovative experiment in aid effectiveness and “donor harmonization” which brings together diverse development actors around common agendas in support of Indonesian decentralization.

Ms. Mulakala has a Masters Degree in International Affairs from the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada. She speaks French and intermediate Indonesian, Bangla, and Tamil.

“We are thrilled to welcome Ms. Mulakala to the Foundation,” said Douglas Bereuter, president of The Asia Foundation, “and we look forward to furthering our programs with Malaysian partners to support Malaysia’s continued development and to help build constructive, mutually beneficial U.S.-Malaysia relations.”

Jakarta

Dalam dasawarsa terakhir, Indonesia telah mengalami suatu transformasi politik yang luar biasa namun masih berjuang untuk mencapai pertumbuhan ekonomi yang kokoh. Sementara negara-negara lain di kawasan Asia, seperti Vietnam dan Cina telah mengalami peningkatan tingkat investasi, Indonesia terus menghadapi isu-isu kemiskinan dan tingkat pengangguran yang mencengangkan. Menanggapi hal ini, Pemerintah Indonesia telah mendorong pembangunan ekonomi dengan pembentukan dan pengembangan Pelayanan Perizinan Terpadu Satu Pintu untuk menyederhanakan proses perizinan usaha. Hari ini, The Asia Foundation merilis dua laporan yang menyoroti kesempatan-kesempatan utama untuk meningkatkan kualitas perizinan usaha dan menetapkan sistem-sistem yang lebih baik untuk mengukur pelayanan perizinan di Indonesia. Laporan-laporan ini diharapkan memberi informasi mengenai upaya-upaya reformasi pemerintah.

“Menelaah Perizinan Usaha di Indonesia: Suatu Tinjauan atas Kebijakan Perizinan Usaha dan Survei atas Pelayanan Terpadu Satu Pintu” adalah suatu studi mengenai kerangka perizinan tingkat nasional yang kompleks di negara ini dan bagaimana kebijakan-kebijakan ini dilaksanakan di tingkat kota/kabupaten. Laporan kedua, “Mengukur Kinerja Pusat Pelayanan Perizinan Terpadu Di Indonesia,” menyajikan suatu pendekatan baru untuk mengukur kinerja pelayanan perizinan terpadu di Indonesia untuk menilai seberapa jauh instansi ini berhasil meningkatkan pelayanan perizinan usaha.

Kedua laporan tersebut didasarkan pada pendampingan teknis dan penelitian ektensif yang dilakukan oleh The Asia Foundation di kabupaten/kota. Pelayanan perizinan terpadu adalah instansi-instansi pemerintah yang memproses perizinan dan memberikan izin-izin usaha umum, serta bertujuan menyediakan layanan-layanan publik yang lebih cepat, lebih singkat, dan lebih murah. Sejak tahun 1999, para mitra lokal The Asia Foundation telah membantu mendirikan atau meningkatkan lebih dari 55 Pusat Pelayanan Terpadu Satu Pintu di Indonesia. The Asia Foundation juga telah menjalin kerja sama erat dengan pemerintah di tingkat pusat, provinsi, dan kota/ kabupaten dalam hal reformasi-reformasi kebijakan ekonomi.

“Pertumbuhan ekonomi Indonesia dihambat oleh suatu birokrasi perizinan yang kompleks, mahal, dan korup. Alat ukur kinerja Pelayanan Perizinan Terpadu dapat membantu pemerintah pusat, provinsi, dan kota/ kabupaten untuk meningkatkan kualitas dan efisiensi layanan perizinan usaha,” ungkap Neil McCulloch, Direktur Program Reformasi Ekonomi The Asia Foundation.

Dalam tahun-tahun terakhir ini, perbaikan kebijakan-kebijakan perizinan usaha di Indonesia tampaknya menjadi perhatian penting bagi pemerintah pusat maupun daerah. Sejak akhir tahun 1990-an, pusat-pusat layanan yang pembentukannya diprakarsai pemerintah ini telah berdiri di sekitar 30% dari keseluruhan 467 kota dan kabupaten, sementara Peraturan Menteri Dalam Negeri 24/2006 mengumumkan upaya untuk mengembangkan Pusat Pelayanan Terpadu Satu Pintu di seluruh dari 467 kabupaten/kota di Indonesia untuk menyederhanakan prosedur-prosedur, mengurangi biaya, dan menggabungkan persyaratan-persyaratan perizinan usaha. Kementerian-kementerian di tingkat pusat berupaya memberikan arahan yang lebih jelas mengenai pelaksanaan kebijakan perizinan untuk membantu memperkokoh iklim investasi dan mendorong pertumbuhan ekonomi.

Reformasi-reformasi ini telah terbukti mempunyai tantangannya tersendiri. Laporan-laporan The Asia Foundation menunjukkan bahwa masih banyak kebijakan yang bermasalah, serta bahwa memahami dan mengukur dampak peningkatan layanan tersebut adalah sesuatu yang tidak mudah. Temuan-temuan dan rekomendasi-rekomendasi spesifik dari kedua laporan tersebut meliputi:

Prosedur perizinan yang kompleks menghambat pendirian, formalisasi, dan ekspansi perusahaan baru di Indonesia. Begitu bertele-telenya prosedur birokratik ini menyebabkan hampir 80% sektor swasta dalam negeri masih bersifat informal dan tak terdaftar. Reformasi perizinan pun menjadi suatu bidang yang dapat memicu perkembangan usaha dengan cepat.
Sebagian besar Pusat Pelayanan Perizinan Terpadu di kota/kabupaten belum mencapai potensi maksimal mereka. Studi yang dilakukan The Asia Foundation menunjukkan bahwa banyak dari pusat pelayanan terpadu tersebut sejauh ini belum memangkas waktu maupun mengurangi persyaratan-persyaratan perizinan. Namun terdapat cakupan kinerja yang sangat luas, di mana pusat-pusat pelayanan terpadu terbaik menunjukkan peningkatan yang besar dalam pemberian layanan mereka.
Peningkatan kinerja Pusat-Pusat Pelayanan Perizinan Terpadu di Indonesia memerlukan reformasi di tingkat daerah maupun pusat. Pemerintah-pemerintah daerah perlu mengurangi perhatian pada bentuk kelembagaan dan lebih memfokuskan untuk memastikan agar pusat-pusat pelayanan perizinan terpadu memiliki kewenangan yang mereka perlukan. Pemerintah pusat perlu menyederhanakan perizinan dengan menjadikan pendaftaran usaha sebagai langkah pertama dan bukan yang terakhir dalam proses perizinan usaha secara umum, serta menghapuskan perizinan-perizinan yang tidak perlu atau yang berlebihan.
Indeks Kinerja Pelayanan Perizinan Terpadu (IKP)dari The Asia Foundation merupakan suatu alat yang komprehensif untuk memantau peningkatan-peningkatan dalam kualitas Perizinan Perizinan Terpadu. Karena mengukur adanya perubahan dalam hal waktu dan biaya perizinan saja tidak cukup memberikan suatu gambaran yang utuh, IKP menelaah beragam faktor yang mempengaruhi kinerja Pelayanan Perizinan Terpadu untuk memberikan suatu gambaran yang multi-dimensi.
IKP ditujukan untuk memulai suatu diskusi mengenai pengukuran kinerja pelayanan perizinan usaha. Indeks ini tidak dimaksudkan sebagai sesuatu yang kaku, dan karenanya dapat disesuaikan dengan lingkungan daerah. IKP dapat digunakan untuk menunjukkan kemajuan kinerja PPTSP dari waktu ke waktu, sekaligus untuk membandingkan kinerja PPTSP antara satu daerah dengan daerah lainnya. Informasi ini kemudian dapat digunakan untuk mengarahkan upaya-upaya perkembangan kelembagaan di masa mendatang atau untuk menciptakan insentif-insentif untuk meningkatkan layanan perizinan.

Report will inform government reform efforts

Jakarta

In the past decade, Indonesia has undergone a remarkable political transformation but has struggled to generate robust economic growth. While other countries in the region, like Vietnam and China, enjoy surging investment levels, Indonesia faces persistent poverty issues and high unemployment rates. In response, the Government of Indonesia has encouraged economic development with the implementation of nationwide One Stop Shop business licensing centers to streamline and simplify the process for new companies. Today The Asia Foundation released two new reports highlighting key opportunities to improve business licensing and establish better systems to measure licensing services in Indonesia. The reports will inform government reform efforts.

“Making Sense of Business Licensing in Indonesia: A Review of Business Licensing Policy and Survey of One Stop Shop Service Centers” is a study of the country’s complex national level licensing framework and how these policies are implemented at the district level. The second report, “Measuring One Stop Shop Performance in Indonesia,” presents a new approach to measuring the performance of One Stop Shops in order to assess how much One Stop Shops are improving licensing services for businesses.

Both reports build on the Foundation’s extensive research and technical assistance in the areas of licensing policy and One Stop Shop (OSS) establishment. OSS are government offices that process common business licenses and permits and aim to provide faster, simpler, and cheaper public services. Since 1999, the Foundation’s local partners have helped to set up or improve more than 55 One Stop Shops in Indonesia. The Foundation–which has been working in Indonesia since 1955–has also worked closely with national, provincial, and district governments on licensing policy reforms.

“Economic growth in Indonesia is stifled by a licensing bureaucracy that is complex, costly, and corrupt. Tools that measure OSS performance can help district, provincial, and national government to improve the quality and efficiency of business licensing services,” said Neil McCulloch, Director of The Asia Foundation’s Economic Reform Program.

In recent years, improving Indonesia’s business licensing policies has become a leading policy objective for local and national government agencies. Since the late 1990’s, these government-initiated centers have been opened in about 30% of the country’s 467 cities and districts while Ministry of Home Affairs Decree 24/2006 announced efforts to develop One Stop Shops in all districts in Indonesia to simplify procedures, reduce costs, and consolidate requirements for business licenses. National ministries are working to provide clearer guidance on the implementation of licensing policy to help strengthen the investment climate and drive economic growth.

These reforms have proved challenging. The Foundation’s reports show that many burdensome policies remain, and understanding and measuring the impact of improvements has been difficult. Specific findings and recommendations from the two reports include:

• Complex licensing procedures discourage new company establishment, formalization, and expansion in Indonesia. Red tape is so pervasive that nearly 80% of the domestic private sector remains informal and unregistered. Licensing reform is therefore an area that can quickly catalyze business development.
• Most district-level OSS centers have not reached their potential. The Asia Foundation’s study shows that many of these service centers have, so far, neither reduced license processing time nor requirements. But there is a very wide range of performance with the best OSS centers showing big improvements in service delivery.
• Improving the performance of Indonesia’s OSS centers will require reform at both the local and national levels. Local governments need to focus less on institutional form and more on ensuring that OSS centers have the political authority they need. The national government needs to simplify licensing by making business registration the first, rather than the last, step in the general licensing process, and eliminate unnecessary or redundant licenses.
• The Asia Foundation’s OSS Performance Index provides a comprehensive tool for monitoring improvements in OSS quality. Because measuring changes in time or costs of licensing alone do not provide a full picture, the OSS Performance Index (OPI) examines a broad range of factors that affect OSS performance in order to create a multi-dimensional picture.
• The OPI is intended to start a discussion about performance measurement of business licensing services.  The Index is not meant to be definitive and can be adapted to fit the local environment. The OPI can be used to demonstrate the progress of OSS performance over time as well as to compare OSS performance in one region to that in another. This information can then be used to guide future institutional development efforts or create incentives for licensing service improvements.

To download the full report, please click here.

SAN FRANCISCO AND KABUL

The Asia Foundation, the premier non-profit organization devoted to Asia’s development since 1954, announced today the appointment of Dr. George Varughese as Country Representative in Afghanistan. Serving as Deputy Country Representative in Afghanistan since 2005, Dr. Varughese’s in-country experience and program expertise in Afghanistan position him well for this important leadership role. Dr. Varughese will replace Dr. Jon Summers who has been leading the Foundation’s country office in Afghanistan through a critical period of tremendous program growth since 2003. Dr. Summers began his post as the Foundation’s Country Representative in Pakistan on August 1.

Dr. Varughese has worked in the fields of political economy of development, social science research, and management in Nepal, India, Italy, Madagascar, and the U.S. Most recently, in Afghanistan, he spearheaded the largest public opinion survey ever conducted in that country, the findings of which present an important view of Afghan perceptions of their country’s progress since the ouster of the Taliban. He also directed the poll’s companion study “State Building, Political Progress, and Human Security in Afghanistan: Reflections on a Survey of the Afghan People,” which examines areas of priority interest in Afghanistan, and describes how Afghans view the security situation, democratic values, trust in formal and informal institutions, political progress, and the role of women in society.

Prior to his post in Afghanistan, Dr. Varughese was Deputy Country Representative in The Asia Foundation’s office in Nepal. In this role, he was a key figure in developing Foundation programs to strengthen the capacity of key government institutions and civil society organizations to provide access to justice through alternate dispute resolution, encourage greater respect for human rights, and support policy reforms in the economic sector with regard to small business. Dr. Varughese joined The Asia Foundation from the United Nations Development Programme in Nepal, where he was Country Program Development Advisor until 2000. Dr. Varughese holds a joint doctorate in political science and public administration from Indiana University.