The GAO findings were released by Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), co-chair of the Caucus on International Narcotics Control, Jesse Helms (R-NC), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Mike DeWine (R-OH). All three senators requested the review, concerned that significant portions of aid appropriated for Colombia had not yet been spent.
"Alternative development is and will remain an important component of U.S. assistance to Colombia," Grassley said. "But it's important that we're sure the funnel we are pouring this assistance through is pointed in the right direction and can handle the amount we're pouring into it. Otherwise, we're going to have a mess. We need to ensure that our expectations are consistent with our abilities, and I believe this report shows that we may have been overly optimistic."
"Drug trade continues to emerge as the dominant threat to peace and freedom in the Americas," said DeWine. "It threatens the sovereignty of the Colombian democracy and the continued prosperity and security of our entire hemisphere. Alternative development must remain a priority as we work to ensure the preservation of peace and democracy. It's clear from this report that delivery of assistance continues to be a problem and we must ensure that the tools and resources are reaching the appropriate areas to eliminate the possibility of additional lawlessness and violence."
The report states that the Colombian government's lack of control at alternative development project sites "hampers access to beneficiaries; prevents monitoring of compliance with eradication agreements; and discourages commercial activity, investment, and public support." The report goes on to say that ineffective procedures to interdict drug trafficking and eradicate illicit crops leave drug producers with little incentive to participate in legal economic activities. Furthermore, poor coordination of interdiction and eradication efforts with alternative development actions hinders the mutually reinforcing benefits of these activities
At the end of the 2001 fiscal year, only $5.6 million of the $52.5 million provided for alternative development programs in Colombia had been spent by the U.S. Agency for International Development. According to GAO, USAID expects expenditures to total $31.8 million by the end of the current fiscal year.
Under the current alternative development approach, the Colombian government reaches agreements with local communities to voluntarily eradicate illicit crops in exchange for help finding other income-producing opportunities. The program is targeted at small farmers who raise less than 3 hectares of coca with the objective of providing alternative crops and markets to those farmers who agree to voluntarily eradicate their illicit crops. Once the agreement is signed, farmers are obliged to eradicate illicit crops within one year. The plan is for farmers to receive additional assistance as the eradication progresses; however, mechanisms are not in place to ensure that either the agreed-to eradication occurs or to deliver additional assistance as promised.
The report makes clear how the lack of territorial control of the coca-growing areas, where the development aid is targeted, is severely limiting the potential effectiveness of alternative development programs. The senators said that alternative development is an important factor to the long-term success of eliminating coca production.