[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1409 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]
H.R.1409
One Hundred Ninth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE FIRST SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
the fourth day of January, two thousand and five
An Act
To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to provide assistance for
orphans and other vulnerable children in developing countries, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

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This Act may be cited as the ``Assistance for Orphans and Other
Vulnerable Children in Developing Countries Act of 2005''.

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Congress makes the following findings:
(1) As of July 2004, there were more than 143,000,000 children
living in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the
Caribbean who were identified as orphans, having lost one or both
of their parents. Of this number, approximately 16,200,000 children
were identified as double orphans, having lost both parents--the
vast majority of whom died of AIDS. These children often are
disadvantaged in numerous and devastating ways and most households
with orphans cannot meet the basic needs of health care, food,
clothing, and educational expenses.
(2) It is estimated that 121,000,000 children worldwide do not
attend school and that the majority of such children are young
girls. According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF),
orphans are less likely to be in school and more likely to be
working full time.
(3) School food programs, including take-home rations, in
developing countries provide strong incentives for children to
remain in school and continue their education. School food programs
can reduce short-term hunger, improve cognitive functions, and
enhance learning, behavior, and achievement.
(4) Financial barriers, such as school fees and other costs of
education, prevent many orphans and other vulnerable children in
developing countries from attending school. Providing children with
free primary school education, while simultaneously ensuring that
adequate resources exist for teacher training and infrastructure,
would help more orphans and other vulnerable children obtain a
quality education.
(5) The trauma that results from the loss of a parent can
trigger behavior problems of aggression or emotional withdrawal and
negatively affect a child's performance in school and the child's
social relations. Children living in families affected by HIV/AIDS
or who have been orphaned by AIDS often face stigmatization and
discrimination. Providing culturally appropriate psychosocial
support to such children can assist them in successfully accepting
and adjusting to their circumstances.
(6) Orphans and other vulnerable children in developing
countries routinely are denied their inheritance or encounter
difficulties in claiming the land and other property which they
have inherited. Even when the inheritance rights of women and
children are spelled out in law, such rights are difficult to claim
and are seldom enforced. In many countries it is difficult or
impossible for a widow, even if she has young children, to claim
property after the death of her husband.
(7) The HIV/AIDS pandemic has had a devastating affect on
children and is deepening poverty in entire communities and
jeopardizing the health, safety, and survival of all children in
affected areas.
(8) The HIV/AIDS pandemic has increased the number of orphans
worldwide and has exacerbated the poor living conditions of the
world's poorest and most vulnerable children. AIDS has created an
unprecedented orphan crisis, especially in sub-Saharan Africa,
where children have been hardest hit. An estimated 14,000,000
orphans have lost 1 or both parents to AIDS. By 2010, it is
estimated that over 25,000,000 children will have been orphaned by
AIDS.
(9) Approximately 2,500,000 children under the age of 15
worldwide have HIV/AIDS. Every day another 2,000 children under the
age of 15 are infected with HIV. Without treatment, most children
born with HIV can expect to die by age two, but with sustained drug
treatment through childhood, the chances of long-term survival and
a productive adulthood improve dramatically.
(10) Few international development programs specifically target
the treatment of children with HIV/AIDS in developing countries.
Reasons for this include the perceived low priority of pediatric
treatment, a lack of pediatric health care professionals, lack of
expertise and experience in pediatric drug dosing and monitoring,
the perceived complexity of pediatric treatment, and mistaken
beliefs regarding the risks and benefits of pediatric treatment.
(11) Although a number of organizations seek to meet the needs
of orphans or other vulnerable children, extended families and
local communities continue to be the primary providers of support
for such children.
(12) The HIV/AIDS pandemic is placing huge burdens on
communities and is leaving many orphans with little support.
Alternatives to traditional orphanages, such as community-based
resource centers, continue to evolve in response to the massive
number of orphans that has resulted from the pandemic.
(13) The AIDS orphans crisis in sub-Saharan Africa has
implications for political stability, human welfare, and
development that extend far beyond the region, affecting
governments and people worldwide, and this crisis requires an
accelerated response from the international community.
(14) Although section 403(b) of the United States Leadership
Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003 (22 U.S.C.
7673(b)) establishes the requirement that not less than 10 percent
of amounts appropriated for HIV/AIDS assistance for each of fiscal
years 2006 through 2008 shall be expended for assistance for
orphans and other vulnerable children affected by HIV/AIDS, there
is an urgent need to provide assistance to such children prior to
2006.
(15) Numerous United States and indigenous private voluntary
organizations, including faith-based organizations, provide
assistance to orphans and other vulnerable children in developing
countries. Many of these organizations have submitted applications
for grants to the Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development to provide increased levels of assistance
for orphans and other vulnerable children in developing countries.
(16) Increasing the amount of assistance that is provided by
the Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development through United States and indigenous private voluntary
organizations, including faith-based organizations, will provide
greater protection for orphans and other vulnerable children in
developing countries.
(17) It is essential that the United States Government adopt a
comprehensive approach for the provision of assistance to orphans
and other vulnerable children in developing countries. A
comprehensive approach would ensure that important services, such
as basic care, psychosocial support, school food programs,
increased educational opportunities and employment training and
related services, the protection and promotion of inheritance
rights for such children, and the treatment of orphans and other
vulnerable children with HIV/AIDS, are made more accessible.
(18) Assistance for orphans and other vulnerable children can
best be provided by a comprehensive approach of the United States
Government that--
(A) ensures that Federal agencies and the private sector
coordinate efforts to prevent and eliminate duplication of
efforts and waste in the provision of such assistance; and
(B) to the maximum extent possible, focuses on community-
based programs that allow orphans and other vulnerable children
to remain connected to the traditions and rituals of their
families and communities.

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DEVELOPING COUNTRIES.
Chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22
U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following
section:
``SEC. 135. ASSISTANCE FOR ORPHANS AND OTHER VULNERABLE CHILDREN.
``(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
``(1) There are more than 143,000,000 orphans living sub-
Saharan Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Of this
number, approximately 16,200,000 children have lost both parents.
``(2) The HIV/AIDS pandemic has created an unprecedented orphan
crisis, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, where children have been
hardest hit. The pandemic is deepening poverty in entire
communities, and is jeopardizing the health, safety, and survival
of all children in affected countries. It is estimated that
14,000,000 children have lost one or both parents to AIDS.
``(3) The orphans crisis in sub-Saharan Africa has implications
for human welfare, development, and political stability that extend
far beyond the region, affecting governments and people worldwide.
``(4) Extended families and local communities are struggling to
meet the basic needs of orphans and vulnerable children by
providing food, health care including treatment of children living
with HIV/AIDS, education expenses, and clothing.
``(5) Famines, natural disasters, chronic poverty, ongoing
conflicts, and civil wars in developing countries are adversely
affecting children in these countries, the vast majority of whom
currently do not receive humanitarian assistance or other support
from the United States.
``(6) The United States Government administers various
assistance programs for orphans and other vulnerable children in
developing countries. In order to improve targeting and programming
of resources, the United States Agency for International
Development should develop methods to adequately track the overall
number of orphans and other vulnerable children receiving
assistance, the kinds of programs for such children by sector and
location, and any other such related data and analysis.
``(7) The United States Agency for International Development
should improve its capabilities to deliver assistance to orphans
and other vulnerable children in developing countries through
partnerships with private volunteer organizations, including
community and faith-based organizations.
``(8) The United States Agency for International Development
should be the primary United States Government agency responsible
for identifying and assisting orphans and other vulnerable children
in developing countries.
``(9) Providing assistance to such children is an important
expression of the humanitarian concern and tradition of the people
of the United States.
``(b) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Aids.--The term `AIDS' has the meaning given the term in
section 104A(g)(1) of this Act.
``(2) Children.--The term `children' means persons who have not
attained 18 years of age.
``(3) Hiv/aids.--The term `HIV/AIDS' has the meaning given the
term in section 104A(g)(3) of this Act.
``(4) Orphan.--The term `orphan' means a child deprived by
death of one or both parents.
``(5) Psychosocial support.--The term `psychosocial support'
includes care that addresses the ongoing psychological and social
problems that affect individuals, their partners, families, and
caregivers in order to alleviate suffering, strengthen social ties
and integration, provide emotional support, and promote coping
strategies.
``(c) Assistance.--The President is authorized to provide
assistance, including providing such assistance through international
or nongovernmental organizations, for programs in developing countries
to provide basic care and services for orphans and other vulnerable
children. Such programs should provide assistance--
``(1) to support families and communities to mobilize their own
resources through the establishment of community-based
organizations to provide basic care for orphans and other
vulnerable children;
``(2) for school food programs, including the purchase of local
or regional foodstuffs where appropriate;
``(3) to increase primary school enrollment through the
elimination of school fees, where appropriate, or other barriers to
education while ensuring that adequate resources exist for teacher
training and infrastructure;
``(4) to provide employment training and related services for
orphans and other vulnerable children who are of legal working age;
``(5) to protect and promote the inheritance rights of orphans,
other vulnerable children, and widows;
``(6) to provide culturally appropriate psychosocial support to
orphans and other vulnerable children; and
``(7) to treat orphans and other vulnerable children with HIV/
AIDS through the provision of pharmaceuticals, the recruitment and
training of individuals to provide pediatric treatment, and the
purchase of pediatric-specific technologies.
``(d) Monitoring and Evaluation.--
``(1) Establishment.--To maximize the sustainable development
impact of assistance authorized under this section, and pursuant to
the strategy required in section 4 of the Assistance for Orphans
and Other Vulnerable Children in Developing Countries Act of 2005,
the President shall establish a monitoring and evaluation system to
measure the effectiveness of United States assistance to orphans
and other vulnerable children.
``(2) Requirements.--The monitoring and evaluation system
shall--
``(A) establish performance goals for the assistance and
expresses such goals in an objective and quantifiable form, to
the extent feasible;
``(B) establish performance indicators to be used in
measuring or assessing the achievement of the performance goals
described in subparagraph (A); and
``(C) provide a basis for recommendations for adjustments
to the assistance to enhance the impact of assistance.
``(e) Special Advisor for Assistance to Orphans and Vulnerable
Children.--
``(1) Appointment.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary of State, in consultation
with the Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development, shall appoint a Special Advisor for
Assistance to Orphans and Vulnerable Children.
``(B) Delegation.--At the discretion of the Secretary of
State, the authority to appoint a Special Advisor under
subparagraph (A) may be delegated by the Secretary of State to
the Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development.
``(2) Duties.--The duties of the Special Advisor for Assistance
to Orphans and Vulnerable Children shall include the following:
``(A) Coordinate assistance to orphans and other vulnerable
children among the various offices, bureaus, and field missions
within the United States Agency for International Development.
``(B) Advise the various offices, bureaus, and field
missions within the United States Agency for International
Development to ensure that programs approved for assistance
under this section are consistent with best practices, meet the
requirements of this Act, and conform to the strategy outlined
in section 4 of the Assistance for Orphans and Other Vulnerable
Children in Developing Countries Act of 2005.
``(C) Advise the various offices, bureaus, and field
missions within the United States Agency for International
Development in developing any component of their annual plan,
as it relates to assistance for orphans or other vulnerable
children in developing countries, to ensure that each program,
project, or activity relating to such assistance is consistent
with best practices, meets the requirements of this Act, and
conforms to the strategy outlined in section 4 of the
Assistance for Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children in
Developing Countries Act of 2005.
``(D) Coordinate all United States assistance to orphans
and other vulnerable children among United States departments
and agencies, including the provision of assistance relating to
HIV/AIDS authorized under the United States Leadership Against
HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003 (Public Law
108-25), and the amendments made by such Act (including section
102 of such Act, and the amendments made by such section,
relating to the coordination of HIV/AIDS programs).
``(E) Establish priorities that promote the delivery of
assistance to the most vulnerable populations of orphans and
children, particularly in those countries with a high rate of
HIV infection among women.
``(F) Disseminate a collection of best practices to field
missions of the United States Agency for International
Development to guide the development and implementation of
programs to assist orphans and vulnerable children.
``(G) Administer the monitoring and evaluation system
established in subsection (d).
``(H) Prepare the annual report required by section 5 of
the Assistance for Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children in
Developing Countries Act of 2005.
``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated to
the President to carry out this section such sums as may be
necessary for each of the fiscal years 2006 and 2007.
``(2) Availability of funds.--Amounts made available under
paragraph (1) are authorized to remain available until expended.''.

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(a) Requirement for Strategy.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of enactment of this Act, the President shall develop, and
transmit to the appropriate congressional committees, a strategy for
coordinating, implementing, and monitoring assistance programs for
orphans and vulnerable children.
(b) Consultation.--The strategy described in subsection (a) should
be developed in consultation with the Special Advisor for Assistance to
Orphans and Vulnerable Children (appointed pursuant to section
135(e)(1) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (as added by section 3
of this Act)) and with employees of the field missions of the United
States Agency for International Development to ensure that the
strategy--
(1) will not impede the efficiency of implementing assistance
programs for orphans and vulnerable children; and
(2) addresses the specific needs of indigenous populations.
(c) Content.--The strategy required by subsection (a) shall
include--
(1) the identity of each agency or department of the Federal
Government that is providing assistance for orphans and vulnerable
children in foreign countries;
(2) a description of the efforts of the head of each such
agency or department to coordinate the provision of such assistance
with other agencies or departments of the Federal Government or
nongovernmental entities;
(3) a description of a coordinated strategy, including
coordination with other bilateral and multilateral donors, to
provide the assistance authorized in section 135 of the Foreign
Assistance Act of 1961, as added by section 3 of this Act;
(4) an analysis of additional coordination mechanisms or
procedures that could be implemented to carry out the purposes of
such section;
(5) a description of a monitoring system that establishes
performance goals for the provision of such assistance and
expresses such goals in an objective and quantifiable form, to the
extent feasible; and
(6) a description of performance indicators to be used in
measuring or assessing the achievement of the performance goals
described in paragraph (5).

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(a) Report.--Not later than one year after the date on which the
President transmits to the appropriate congressional committees the
strategy required by section 4(a), and annually thereafter, the
President shall transmit to the appropriate congressional committees a
report on the implementation of this Act and the amendments made by
this Act.
(b) Contents.--The report shall contain the following information
for grants, cooperative agreements, contracts, contributions, and other
forms of assistance awarded or entered into under section 135 of the
Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (as added by section 3 of this Act):
(1) The amount of funding, the name of recipient organizations,
the location of programs and activities, the status of progress of
programs and activities, and the estimated number of orphans and
other vulnerable children who received direct or indirect
assistance under the programs and activities.
(2) The results of the monitoring and evaluation system with
respect to assistance for orphans and other vulnerable children.
(3) The percentage of assistance provided in support of orphans
or other vulnerable children affected by HIV/AIDS.
(4) Any other appropriate information relating to the needs of
orphans and other vulnerable children in developing countries that
could be addressed through the provision of assistance authorized
in section 135 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as added by
section 3 of this Act, or under any other provision of law.

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In this Act, the term ``appropriate congressional committees''
means the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on Foreign
Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Appropriations and the
Committee on International Relations of the House of Representatives.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.

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Assistance for Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children in Developing Countries Act of 2005

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