US embassy cable - 03RANGOON625

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 000625 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR PRM AND EAP 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREF, EAID, BM, Ethnics 
SUBJECT: ROHINGYA PROJECT PROPOSAL 
 
REF: STATE 85587 
 
1.  Summary: Embassy Rangoon would like to apply for a 
$20,000 grant from PRM's Ambassador's Fund for an assessment 
of communicable diseases among returning refugees in Burma's 
northern Rakhine State.  If done immediately, the assessment 
can provide the basis for a comprehensive health program in 
northern Rakhine State funded by the European Commission 
Humanitarian Aid Organization and/or the Federal Republic of 
Germany.  End Summary. 
 
2.  Embassy Rangoon would like to apply for a $20,000 grant 
from PRM's Ambassador's Fund for an initial assessment of 
communicable diseases in northern Rakhine State.  Northern 
Rakhine State is one of the least developed regions in Burma 
and has twice been the source for major refugee crises (in 
1978 and 1991), as Rohingya Muslim residents of the area fled 
increasing Burmese Army control and religious discrimination. 
 Most refugees (220,000 out of 240,000) have since returned 
to Burma, but conditions in northern Rakhine State make 
recurrence of a refugee crisis as likely as ever.  Health 
conditions are particularly bad.  Recent surveys indicate 
that 55 percent of the population of northern Rakhine State 
live under survival or critical conditions.  Access to 
essential health services is limited to urban settings, and 
the entire region is plagued by acute and chronic illnesses, 
associated with high mortality.  Infant mortality (death 
within the first year of life) is reported to be an 
astounding 141/1000 births.  Malaria, tuberculosis, and 
intestinal diseases are also rampant, aggravated by a high 
degree of malnutrition.  Tuberculosis is a particular 
problem.  According to one survey, 9 percent of all 
households in Northern Rakhine State have had at least one 
person ill with tuberculosis, and 67 percent of all persons 
surveyed recognized the disease as a major health concern. 
 
3.  Donor support for the population in the region, 
meanwhile, is limited and may decline further, if action is 
not taken now.  UNHCR, which has orchestrated relief 
operations in northern Rakhine State since 1994, is phasing 
out.  It is scheduled to end repatriation of refugees from 
Bangladesh at the end of 2003 and has hinted that it may 
close its operations in Burma altogether at the close of 
2004. 
 
3.  Our proposed project will help fill a gap in basic 
services for this threatened population.  It will do an 
assessment of the current situation in Northern Rakhine State 
in regard to communicable diseases and provide an initial 
package of basic support, pending development of an 
integrated health services project.  The implementing agency 
would be Malteser, a German INGO with extensive experience in 
completing health projects and assessments in third world 
nations.  In Burma, Malteser is already engaged in a $1.2 
million malaria control project in the Wa territories of 
northern Shan State, with funding from the European 
Commission Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO). 
 
4.  We believe this is an excellent project.  If executed as 
outlined, it will lay the basis for a comprehensive health 
program among one of the most vulnerable popoulations in 
Burma.  It will also help protect that population from the 
neglect and abuse that might follow UNHCR's exit. In 
addition, it will facilitate a handoff of operations in 
Northern Rakhine State from UNHCR to agencies and INGOs with 
a longer development focus. 
 
5.  There are risks in the project.  The GOB has approved 
Malteser's survey in northern Rakhine State, but Malteser 
will need to negotiate an MOU with the Ministry of Health, 
before it can undertake  programs that go beyond the survey. 
In addition, funding for the follow-on comprehensive health 
program is not totally in place.  While Maltheser has 
received solid indications of support from both ECHO and the 
FRG, final commitments will only be made once the survey is 
completed and the need has been fully documented.  Finally, 
this project will be most effective, if it is done 
immediately, before the close of June 2003.  If the survey is 
delayed beyond that, it may not be possible to begin delivery 
of basic health services during the current rainy season. 
This is not necessarily a fatal problem, but it does put a 
premium on early approval of the project. 
 
7.  On balance, we believe the proposal merits funding. It's 
cheap; it promises to be effective, and it may catalyze donor 
funding for a population we care about for both humanitarian 
and human rights reasons.  It will also be executed by an 
excellent INGO with proven record of success.  Finally, as 
U.S. law requires, Maltheser's involvement will ensure that 
none of the funds pass to or through the government here. 
 
8. We have faxed a copy of the full proposal to PRM and will 
be happy to follow up on any questions PRM may have. 
McMullen