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Agency Budget Summary
Department of State
U. S. Information Agency
I. Resource Summary
* Pursuant to the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998, as contained in P. L. 105-277, the United States Information Agency (USIA) will be integrated into the Department of State and the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), now part of USIA, will become a separate federal entity by October 1, 1999. This display is for comparative purposes only.
II. Methodology
- The drug percentage figure is based on estimates provided by the six geographic area offices, the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the Office of Research and Media Reaction, the Bureau of Information, the International Broadcasting Bureau and the Office of the Director. Programs that involve grants directly attributable to drug control, such as speaker programs, educational exchanges and foreign visitors to the U.S., are easy to identify. It is more difficult to calculate the drug control portion of other activities. For example, the costs of radio broadcast and Internet sites are spread over a number of thematic areas. An attempt has been made to estimate some of those amounts. Areas in which the costs are not possible to attribute to drug control include the press support provided by overseas posts for visiting U.S. officials and the contact work done by officers in the field with key foreign publics.
III. Program Summary
- The mission of the U.S. Information Agency (USIA) is to inform foreign audiences about U.S. Government policies. Through the use of multilingual media products, exchange programs and the activities of its overseas posts, USIA explains policy within a foreign cultural context and seeks to influence public opinion through interaction with key host country media, academic institutions, government departments and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs). USIA officers abroad seek to facilitate contact and broaden the dialogue between U.S. institutions and their counterparts in other countries.
- USIA's drug control efforts support Goal 5 of the Strategy. Public affairs programming is designed to build understanding and support for U.S. international counterdrug activities. It provides timely and accurate information about U.S. policies and programs, demonstrates the threat posed by drug trafficking to source and transit countries, and strengthens the capacity of foreign countries to fight drug abuse, trafficking and related criminal activities. USIA's counterdrug programs are carried out in the following ways:
- Overseas Posts. USIA officers at 192 U.S. Information Service (USIS) posts in 141 countries direct public affairs programs on drug issues under the direction of the ambassador and in close collaboration with State, DEA and other U.S. government agencies. USIS posts provide information products to the media, organize press support for visiting U.S. government officials, build relationships with key government and non-government organizations, and administer exchange-of-persons programs. The drug-producing and transit countries of Latin America continue to be USIA's primary focus for building public support against illegal drugs. Posts in the heroin-producing and drug transit countries of Asia, Africa and Europe conduct more limited programs.
- Information, Exchanges and Research. USIA supports the activities of its overseas posts with products and services from its Washington headquarters: news, official texts and other materials on drug issues are transmitted electronically to the field or posted on the agency's various Internet sites; American experts are recruited to participate in speaker programs, teleconferences and seminars; and reference services are available to respond to inquiries from post contacts. Professional and academic exchange programs on drug-related issues are conducted to enable Americans and their international counterparts to compare techniques and experiences. USIA also conducts polls of foreign public opinion and analyzes the reporting of foreign media on U.S. programs and policies related to drugs.
- Broadcasting. USIA regularly provides news, features and interviews on drug issues through the Voice of America's 52 language services and through affiliated media outlets Radio Marti, Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty and Radio Free Asia. The WORLDNET television service transmits news stories, public service announcements and documentaries for use at field posts or for rebroadcast by foreign media and conducts interactive teleconferences via satellite on drug-related issues.
IV. Budget Summary
1999 Program
Goal 5: Break foreign and domestic drug sources of supply.
- USIA's budget estimate for FY 1999 totals $8.2 million, maintaining FY 1998 funding levels.
- A total of $6.3 million will be spent on drug-related activities at USIA's overseas posts. This base program includes the cost of media programs, salaries and administrative overhead, and local costs for seminars and speaker programs. It does not, however, include expenses paid directly by the Department of State Embassy Narcotics Affairs Sections in support of USIA programs, particularly on demand reduction and prevention. In FY 1998, USIA implemented an international public affairs strategy in concert with other U.S. government agencies to improve coordination and effectiveness of U.S. government expenditures across agencies on public diplomacy concerning drug control.
- Washington-based activities will cost $1.5 million, including: (1) $1.0 million for International Visitor and other drug-related exchange programs; (2) $0.4 million for information programs including teleconferencing, speaker programs, texts, background articles and reference services; and (3) $0.1 million for foreign media analysis and public opinion research and overall policy coordination.
- The Bureau of Broadcasting will spend a total of $0.4 million on the Voice of America's multi-language news and features programs and on Worldnet television programs, including live teleconferences.
2000 Request
Goal 5: Break foreign and domestic drug sources of supply.
- In FY 2000, the former USIA's information and cultural programs, totaling $8.2 million in support of counternarcotics efforts, will be integrated into the Department of State. Included is a $0.4 million enhancement to cover anticipated increases in overseas and domestic salaries and other operation costs. Most of these resources will continue to focus on efforts in the Western Hemisphere. In addition, the Broadcasting Board of Governors, which will become a separate federal entity, will spend approximately $0.4 million in FY 2000.
V. Program Accomplishments
- In FY 1998, USIA and its USIS posts abroad employed a wide range of program tools to advance Goal 5 of the Strategy. Many activities provided support for the Strategy byensuring that foreign publics had accurate information about U.S. policies and "best practices." These efforts contributed to strengthening support for and understanding of U.S. actions to control drugs at home and abroad. Among the many positive outcomes were the following:
- USIS San Jose provided media support for a DEA-sponsored seminar on "Assets Forfeiture." The President of Costa Rica used the opportunity to speak in favor of a proposed shiprider agreement. The positive publicity resulting from this and other USIS-supported anti-drug programs has changed media attitudes towards the controversial shiprider proposal. The proposal was submitted for the third time to Costa Rica's legislature in September 1998 with favorable support from the press and editorial commentators.
- In August 1998, USIS Vientiane sent two Lao government officials (provincial governors representing large opium growing regions) to the U.S. on an International Visitor project to investigate counternarcotics issues and economic development. The two visitors cooperated with the U.S. mission in joint efforts to find alternatives to opium cultivation for local farmers. Success thus far under the joint project has resulted in an end to commercial opium production in the regions concerned.
- USIS Tel Aviv and USIS Jerusalem encouraged a developing relationship between Israeli and Palestinian anti-drug activists by bringing them together for seminars conducted by a U.S. speaker. The drug experts plan to conduct joint research projects and training programs in the field of drug education. In March 1998, they published a pamphlet called "Palestinian and Israeli People Against Substance Abuse."
- Achieving greater French-American cooperation against drug smuggling and international crime is a major objective of USIS Paris. USIS organized a briefing for the Ministry of the Interior, which provides a year of training for law enforcement specialists, including judges, prosecutors and police officials. The Embassy briefers spoke about money laundering and the Euro, new patterns in drug trafficking, decriminalization of "soft" drugs, terrorism, and Internet crime. The briefing established contacts that the post believes will result in closer cooperation between U.S. and French officials.
- A police superintendent who participated in an International Visitor program on "Substance Abuse Prevention and Education" was recently promoted to the post of Assistant Commissioner in the newly established Anti-Corruption Unit of the Government of Swaziland. He had been favorably impressed with the visit, especially the Miami-Dade County public school anti-drug abuse education programs. The visitor noted that his promotion was due to support he had received from the U.S. Mission in his efforts to fight drugs in Swaziland.
- During President Clinton's trip to Latin America in October 1997, USIS Sao Paulo conducted a program which brought together the ONDCP Director and one of Brazil's most prominent drug abuse prevention NGOs. Upon returning to the U.S., the ONDCPDirector wrote letters to CEOs of several American companies based on the suggestions from USIS urging them to support the aforementioned organization. In September 1998, that NGO received over $70,000 in contributions from Mobil Oil, Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer.
- USIS Buenos Aires reports that on September 2, 1998, the "Alliance for a Drug-Free Argentina" media campaign was officially launched by the Argentine Ad Council in a press conference which received blanket news coverage. Over two million copies of a Spanish version of the well-known U.S. Parents' Guide for dealing with drug use by young people appeared in the Sunday, September 13 editions of the two most important newspapers in Argentina, La Nacion and Clarin, as well as the weekly magazines. The publisher of La Nacion was instrumental in making this happen, a direct result of his recent anti-drug visitor program in the U.S.
- In a series of talks on "Narcotics, Crime and Corruption: Toward Practical Policies," a UCLA professor of policy studies and specialist in crime prevention told Mexican audiences about anti-crime measures which have been proven effective in New York and Boston. Both local and national legislators listened to his examples of methods that have successfully reduced crime in the U.S. The Mexico City prosecutor (who traveled to the U.S. on a visitor program earlier in 1998) grilled the speaker for over an hour on the specifics of establishing databases of criminal acts as well as using a national database to identify criminals quickly. The speaker presented new ideas to deal with general crime and narcotrafficking, and argued forcefully that Mexico needed to fight drug trafficking for its own sake, not just that of the U.S.
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