§ 262p–1 — Grassroots Collaboration Program

(a) The Secretary of the Treasury shall instruct the United States Executive Director of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association to initiate discussions with other directors of such institutions and to propose the establishment of a Grassroots Collaboration Program to develop improved mechanisms for involving, directly or indirectly, nongovernmental organizations in the design, implementation, and monitoring of development projects financed by, or development policies established by, such bank or association in order to alleviate poverty and promote environmental protection, including— (1) encouraging nongovernmental organizations in borrowing countries to participate in all stages of project planning and country strategy activities to— (A) minimize any adverse impact of such projects or activities on the poor people of such country; (B) minimize any adverse impact of such projects or activities on the environment of such country; and (C) maximize the extent to which such projects or activities will benefit the poor people of such country; (2) increasing the direct involvement of nongovernmental organizations in project design, implementation, or monitoring whenever such organizations have a distinct comparative advantage over other entities in providing such services by virtue of their grassroots involvement with poor people, especially women, in a borrowing country; (3) providing microenterprise credit for small scale economic activities through nongovernmental organizations; (4) supporting the enhancement of the institutional capacity of nongovernmental organizations in borrowing countries as development practitioners; and (5) establishing or supporting jointly funded intermediary mechanisms with nongovernmental organizations to facilitate increased collaboration between such bank or association and nongovernmental organizations in borrowing countries. (b) It is the sense of the Congress that the Grassroots Collaboration Program described in subsection (a) should be implemented and financed as part of the normal operations of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association. (c) To the extent the activities under the Grassroots Collaboration Program described in subsection (a) need more flexible financing, it is the sense of the Congress that— (1) such activities could be funded through a grant from the net income of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development; and (2) an initial grant of not less than $50,000,000 should be made for such activities with subsequent annual allocations of such additional amounts as may be necessary to allow the Grassroots Collaboration Program to maximize collaboration with nongovernmental organizations in the alleviation of poverty and the protection of the environment. (d) (e) Each annual report to the Congress by the National Advisory Council on International Monetary and Financial Policies shall describe the status of the establishment and operation of the Grassroots Collaboration Program described in subsection (a), the activities under taken by the Program and the sum of the amounts expended by the Program.