In 2024, Integra was awarded USAID Indonesia’s Health Technical Assistance Project II (BANTU II). BANTU II  is a five-year task order awarded to Integra in partnership with FHI 360. BANTU II  provides specialized technical assistance to support USAID Indonesia’s health programs and CDCS strategies, the Government of Indonesia, sub-national government, NGOs, CSOs, academic institutions, and other research institutes. Additionally, BANTU II coordinates a diverse pool of professionals and organizations with specialized expertise that may be lacking in the health systems but are critical to the success of Indonesian public health programs.

In support of start up efforts, Integra assigned Ganyapak (Pin) Thanesnant, the Activity Project Director/Contract Manager, to travel to Jakarta, Indonesia in early April to meet with the local team and ensure the smooth launch and onboarding of additional staff. The visit included conducting orientations for the staff, implementing the work plan and other critical deliverables, establishing compliance and reporting systems, reconciling financial and results tracking systems, among other tasks. Additionally, Ms. Thanesnant met with USAID/Indonesia representatives to discuss progress updates, country registration, project pipeline, and other important matters.

Throughout BANTU II’s first year, the team has successfully onboarded it’s key personnel and kicked off its first nine task orders. Through three overall objectives, BANTU II will provide rapid and targeted technical assistance, meeting and logistics facilitation support, and targeted capacity building assistance and support to meet USAID/Indonesia’s objectives.

  1. Objective 1: Provide short-term and long-term technical assistance
  2. Objective 2: Arrange meetings and provide other logistics
  3. Objective 3: Support local organizations to address gaps in their organizational capacity

The majority of tasks orders thus far received have been related to objectives 1 and 3.

Localization is the set of internal reforms, actions, and behavior changes USAID is undertaking to ensure its work puts local actors in the lead, strengthens local systems, and is responsive to local communities.1 To advance localization, USAID is working to adapt its policies and program practices, shift power to local actors, channel a larger portion of assistance to local partners, and serve as a public advocate and thought leader.

Though its support for localization has been evident through decades of development policies and strategies, in recent years, USAID has gained momentum for this initiative with the 2014 Local Systems Framework, the signing of the Grand Bargain in 2016, the 2018 Acquisition and Assistance Strategy, 2018 Journey to Self-Reliance Country Roadmaps, 2019 New Partnerships Initiative, the 2021 Local Capacity Development Policy, and in 2021, Administrator Power’s New Vision for Global Development. Localization is now a key priority of USAID practice, programming, and procurement. At Integra, we believe that localization progress will lead to improved development programming outcomes, cost efficiencies for the U.S. Government, and greater, large-scale, and sustainable impact.

USAID/Kenya and East Africa (USAID/KEA) is one of the localization leaders at the Agency, beginning its most recent process of localization in 2019 during the development of its 2020–2025 Country Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS). In line with the CDCS, the Mission aimed to redefine how it works with local partners under a collaborative framework, supporting Kenya’s commitment to self-reliance at the local level. The Mission worked with counties throughout the country to develop Annual Program Statements and subsequently designed a country strategy for Kenya-owned, Kenya-led, and Kenya-managed development. Concurrently, the Mission instituted approaches to localization that considered Kenya’s devolved system of government, including using County Liaison Teams, planning for Local Development Organizations, and initiating plans for co-creating local development initiatives through local partners to include non-government entities. The Mission worked with the national government to sign a Development Cooperation Framework Agreement, sign implementation letters with government ministries, sign memoranda of understanding with county governments, and begin issuing development assistance awards to local organizations.

OPPORTUNITY

In 2023, under the Kenya Evaluations, Assessments, and Analysis IDIQ, USAID/KEA requested assistance from Integra to assess their localization efforts. The Localization Engagement Assessment aimed to understand the extent of the Mission’s implementation of localization approaches and its achievements to date through its local partners, awards, and internal operating framework. Additionally, it was designed to identify best practices and bottlenecks in its approaches, processes, and structures and to generate actionable recommendations and tools to integrate improved localization efforts into future programming.

The Integra Team began the assessment by conducting a desk review, desk research, and stakeholder identification and outreach. Data collection included online questionnaires and 50+ in-person and virtual interviews with Mission staff, international implementing partners, local partners, and local county government officials. Interviewees included staff from USAID service line offices and stakeholders involved in 18 selected USAID activities across technical offices.

METHODOLGY

Integra mapped the assessment findings against four categories: 1) USAID skills and level of effort, 2) risk mitigation, 3) outcomes, and 4) local community involvement. For example, the team mapped the existing and needed skills to effectively work with local partners, such as financial management and compliance, risk management, and growth facilitation. The team made specific recommendations for enhancing co-creation and community engagement during the design and implementation phases, which could help ensure localization is a priority throughout the program lifecycle. The team also noted successes, such as increased funding to local engagements, and challenges, such as insufficient data to measure activity-level outcomes to date. It found that there is a high level of appreciation for USAID’s efforts, that additional capacity strengthening is needed, and that stakeholders could benefit from clearly defined localization objectives and metrics. Integra challenged USAID to consider their return on investment, utilize a CLA approach to support portfolio management, and cultivate shared-value partnerships.

Along with the final report of findings and recommendations, the team also produced a stakeholder matrix, a summary of the current extent of localization, a process roadmap for best practices, localization objectives and metrics, three case studies, a localization ranking tool, and stated dis/advantages of four program pathway structures. Pathway structures include Direct, Accelerate, Project, and Collaborate Pathways.

IMPACT

Ultimately, this assessment aids USAID/KEA in understanding its stakeholder and localization engagement achievements. USAID will use the report to inform localization approaches and tools related to projects and activities’ current and future design and implementation. Our findings and recommendations also support the development of the Mission’s localization strategic framework and achieving its CDCS’ localization objectives. Our work will help USAID further empower local actors, respond to local priorities, and draw on local capacities and networks for development results better sustained by local institutions.

Integra is excited to have had the opportunity to support USAID/KEA in its localization journey and looks forward to supporting the Agency in its continued localization efforts.

In response to Russia’s illegal war on Ukraine, countries worldwide and governmental organizations initiated a coordinated effort of economic sanctions against Russia. The imposed measures aim to penalize the Russian economy through hardships in Russia’s relations, trade, and financial sectors. The force behind these sanctions remains as the last leg of deterrence before moving toward the use of existential force. However, the impacts of these sanctions cannot be contained within Russia’s borders. Economic sanctions aim to disrupt the economy. However, Russia must interact with the outside world to maintain its economy and society. Neighboring countries sharing borders with Russia are subsuming the effects of the sanctions with sometimes even more profound impacts based on the respective countries’ size and pre-sanction stability.

To understand the current situation, USAID/Armenia utilized the Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis Project (LEAP III), implemented by Integra, to conduct an on-the-ground qualitative investigation to examine the current situation in Armenia, a country heavily dependent on the Russian economy. The study looks at the sanctions’ immediate and possibly longer-term direct impact on the Armenian economy. The study outlined the troubling, often surprising implications of the sanctions on Russia on the Armenian economy and potential benefits and opportunities. The study focused on the agriculture, food security, and tourism sectors and cross-cutting issues, including transportation/logistics and currency fluctuations.

Based on the study findings, Integra developed several recommendations aimed at helping Armenian stakeholders in the agricultural, food processing, and inbound tourism sectors overcome or soften the negative impact of the recent developments. Among those are recommendations to help U.S. ICT firms smoothly relocate to Armenia, bridge the information asymmetry gap at local banks, help food processing exporters to begin hedging foreign exchange risks, assist producers in diversifying export destinations in the face of new opportunities and help property owners bring those up to a level for rent-out for tourism.

ABOUT LEAP III
LEAP III provides a mechanism for USAID field missions and bureaus to efficiently and cost-effectively access rigorous, independent, and high-quality analytical services to support economic and policy analyses, strategy and project design, monitoring and evaluation, training, and knowledge management.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has profoundly impacted the global economy, spiraling food and fuel prices, significant energy shortages, and the prospect of protracted recession in the US and EU. The countries in the immediate geographical neighborhood were also affected. Both Russia and Ukraine are among the top five export destinations for Georgia. Ukraine accounted for 9.5 percent of Georgia’s exports in January 2022, while Russia for 12.9 percent. The biggest linkages, however, come not from the export of goods but services, such as tourism.

To provide a deeper understanding of the effects of Russia’s war on Ukraine on the Georgian economy, USAID utilized the Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis Project (LEAP III), implemented by Integra, to assess to estimate the impact of Russian sanctions on the economy of Georgia with deep dives into the agricultural, transport/logistics, and

tourism sectors of the Georgian economy.

Preliminary results based on the first six months of 2022 revealed some surprising findings not anticipated initially by most analysts. Contrary to the initial expectations, the financial sanctions against Russia did not significantly curtail goods trade with Georgia. Moreover, Georgia’s May and June growth estimates remained strong primarily due to the positive trends in tourism, massive inflows of money transfers from Russia, and significant immigration from Russia and Ukraine, which boosted local consumption.

Despite the signs of economic resilience, substantial risks to the Georgian economy remain. One of the main risks is double-digit inflation (especially food inflation) emanating from demand and supply pressures. Real estate prices, particularly for rental real estate, nearly doubled, hurting vulnerable populations. Financial inflows from Russia strengthened the Georgian Lari to the point where the country’s exports may become less competitive. At the same time, the outflow of the Georgian labor force abroad in the wake of weakening COVID regulations is further hurting local businesses.

The preliminary results suggest that the government should strive to strengthen the protection of the vulnerable groups while closely monitoring the risks emanating from massive money transfers from Russia.

ABOUT LEAP III

LEAP III provides a mechanism for USAID field missions and bureaus to efficiently and cost-effectively access rigorous, independent, and high-quality analytical services to support economic and policy analyses, strategy and project design, monitoring and evaluation, training, and knowledge management.

COVID-19 and measures taken to control the spread of the virus have had a significant effect on migrants everywhere, but the impact on migrants in Asia and the Pacific has been particularly dramatic.  This webinar provided an overview of research commissioned by USAID to examine the impact of COVID-19 on migrant resilience in the region.

The effects of COVID-19 are not just an issue of immediate humanitarian concern to governments and other stakeholders in the region.  They raise fundamental questions about migrant resilience to recover from the immediate shock of COVID-19 but also about migrant resilience to face future shocks.

The webinar began with opening remarks from Micaela Arthur, Special Populations Advisor, USAID/Asia Bureau and an overview by research Team Lead, Elizabeth Ferris, on the impacts of COVID-19 on migration through various lenses, including impacts on economies, governance, health, the environment and gender.  The webinar then dove deeper into the pandemic’s effects on migrant resilience, focusing on the following subregions:

  • South Asia – Ellen Boccuzzi
  • Central Asia – Jenna Holliday
  • Maritime Southeast Asia – Renzo Guinto
  • Mainland Southeast Asia/ The Pacific – Phil Hirsch

The live webinar took place on Zoom with sixty six participants and was presented by Integra Government Services International LLC, through USAID’s Asia Emerging Opportunities (AEO) Mechanism.

More specific information about the webinar content will be posted soon.

While the team is grateful for the support of the American people through USAID, the views expressed in the webinar do not necessarily reflect those of USAID or the United States Government.

For any questions regarding this event, please contact Isabella Cazier at icazier@integrallc.com

Tim Schur, CEO

Integra Government Services International LLC, an international development firm delivering solutions to promote self-reliance among emerging economy governments and markets through academically grounded analytical tools and private sector engagement, announces the transfer of ownership and leadership to industry executive, Timothy Schur.

With the completion of this transaction, Integra will continue to serve its clients by developing and managing results-oriented, innovative strategies for social and economic development in the areas of economic growth, agriculture and food security, gender and women’s empowerment, climate and environment, and information and communication technology. Integra maintains a roster of world-class experts with analytical, consultative, and managerial skills in several key areas of expertise.

Robert Otto, Founder and retiring President, said, “After an extensive search, I am confident that Tim has the values and experience to lead Integra into the future.”  With more than 30 years of experience in advisory and consulting services to government, Mr. Schur has filled wide-ranging roles in corporate finance, strategy and innovation, impact investment, business development, and business practice leadership. For the last decade, he has been supporting International Development programs and investments for the United States, United Kingdom, and Australian governments as well as direct investments by governments across the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Most recently, he served as Chief Financial Officer of Palladium.

Mr. Schur started his career more than 30 years ago as a founding employee in a small business and is looking forward to repeating that growth journey. “Bob has attracted and developed a highly talented and experienced team at Integra. I’m looking forward to guiding that team in delivering sustainable impact in emerging economies.” Mr. Schur and the Team at Integra will be building on firm’s nine-year history and track record of success in 35 countries, impacting millions of stakeholders, and leveraging over $1.2 billion in public and private investment for development reforms.

In late July, Integra’s evaluation team made the first of three trips to Indonesia to collect data, speak with stakeholders, and design three separate performance evaluations for the Millennium Challenge Corporation’s (MCC) Green Prosperity Project.

Totaling $313 million over five years, the Green Prosperity Project was designed to increase productivity, reduce reliance on fossil fuels by expanding renewable energy, and reduce land-based greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Under the project, this was to be done through the improvement of land use practices and better management of natural resources. Particularly in Indonesia, a country with a large forest-dwelling population, developing alternative land-use mechanisms is an essential part of safeguarding the future wellbeing of the diverse population. Divided into five portfolios – partnership grants; community-based natural resources management; renewable energy; technical assistance and project preparation; and the Green Knowledge activity (a knowledge-sharing component) – the Green Prosperity Project developed and implemented solutions for some of Indonesia’s key environmental issues. This included the development of participatory land use and planning mechanisms as well as a grant financing facility aimed at funding renewable energy initiatives throughout the country.

Integra is currently in the process of evaluating the successes and impact of facility grants within the renewable energy and community-based natural resources management portfolios. Our on-grid renewable energy team, led by Matthew Addison, is focused on the impact made by on-grid renewable energy projects financed by the GP Grant Facility. Our social forestry team, led by Scott Bode, is conducting an evaluability assessment of the project’s efforts in developing community-engaged forest management (‘social forestry’) processes. Finally, our peatlands rehabilitation team, led by Corey Nelson, is assessing the performance of peatland rehabilitation efforts. These efforts will continue through submission of the final report, estimated for completion in January 2020.

Integra is conducting this evaluation on behalf of the Millennium Challenge Corporation. For more information about this assignment, please visit the project page here.

 

Under the Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis Project (LEAP III), Integra is conducting the Performance Evaluation of USAID/Vietnam’s Environment Remediation at Da Nang Airport. The Environmental Remediation at Da Nang Airport Project is part of the United States Government’s (USG) efforts to carry out Agent Orange/dioxin health and remediation activities in Vietnam, in close collaboration with the Government of Vietnam (GVN). The purpose of USG participation in dioxin remediation is to address the legacy of the American-Vietnam war through the reduction of dioxin contamination.

This end of project performance evaluation will obtain an independent, third-party review and evaluation of the overall effectiveness of the project in addressing legacy dioxin-contaminated soil and sediment, and document the benefits of USAID/MND cooperation on remediation of Danang Airport to the region. With this objective in mind, and understanding the political sensitivities surrounding the project, Integra rapidly assembled an environmental remediation evaluation team, including economists and remediation experts from third-party countries with experience dealing with environmental remediation, and rigorous evaluations.

Based on the evaluation’s findings, the evaluation team will develop recommendations for future cooperative efforts addressing legacy dioxin contamination at Bien Hoa Airport, slated to begin at the end of 2018.

LEAP III provides a mechanism for USAID field missions and bureaus to easily and cost-effectively access rigorous, independent, and high-quality analytical services to support economic and policy analyses, strategy and project design, monitoring and evaluation, training, and knowledge management. For more information, please contact the LEAP III Chief of Party, Mark Gellerson, at mgellerson@integrallc.com.

You may also download our two-page factsheet here.

Under the Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis Project (LEAP III), Integra is currently conducting a Performance Evaluation of USAID/Zambia’s Community Forests Program (CFP).

In 2014, USAID Zambia awarded a Cooperative Agreement to BioCarbon Partners, Ltd. (BCP) to implement the Community Forests Program (CFP) in Zambia. The CFP is designed to exemplify and support the Government of Zambia’s (GRZ) Reducing Emission from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) strategy by establishing the largest REDD+ program to-date in Zambia. The CFP aims to establish REDD+ project areas across a minimum of 700,000 hectares within the Zambezi and Luangwa Valley ecosystems, and in so doing, to support deforestation mitigation activities taking place on a total of up to 2 million hectares, involving up to 10,000 households.

Integra is conducting a performance evaluation of USAID/Zambia’s Community Forests Program (CFP), which will provide USAID/Zambia with an independent review of progress made by this important project, and hopefully identify lessons that can be applied to future activities in the sector. The evaluation has three main objectives:

  • Document the overall effectiveness of the project in reducing deforestation of biologically significant forest landscapes
  • Identify lessons learned from the project—specifically, the strengths and weaknesses of the design and implementation of the CFP, and how they contributed to the project’s successes and challenges
  • Assess the sustainability of CFP results related to forestry conservation. That is, are the gains and successes of the CFP likely to continue after the end of the project

Integra has partnered with RuralNet Associates Ltd., a local Zambian firm, to conduct four simultaneous field assessments in CFP project areas.

LEAP III provides a mechanism for USAID field missions and bureaus to easily and cost-effectively access rigorous, independent, and high-quality analytical services to support economic and policy analyses, strategy and project design, monitoring and evaluation, training, and knowledge management.

For more information, please contact the LEAP III Chief of Party, Mark Gellerson, at mgellerson@integrallc.com.  You may also download our two-page factsheet here

 

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