Refugees:
U.S. Assistance to Bulgarian Ethnic Turks in Turkey
NSIAD-92-59: Published: Dec 18, 1991. Publicly Released: Dec 18, 1991.
Additional Materials:
- Full Report:
Contact:
(202) 275-5790
contact@gao.gov
Office of Public Affairs
(202) 512-4800
youngc1@gao.gov
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of State's and the United Nations Development Program's (UNDP) $10-million project to assist Turkey with the resettlement and assimilation of ethnic Turkish refugees fleeing Bulgaria, focusing on: (1) project development; (2) project management and progress; and (3) the amount of project funds distributed.
GAO found that: (1) State's Bureau of Refugee Programs agreed with UNDP to carry out the project, and UNDP and the government of Turkey agreed to implement the $9,957,000 U.S.-funded project on June 15, 1990; (2) the project was to provide training for 10,500 unskilled refugees, job placement assistance for 25,000 other refugees, and Turkish orientation classes for all 35,500 refugees; (3) although State, the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, and UNDP initially reported successful progress, only about 37 percent of projected funds had been expended as of July 1991, and the project was not likely to meet its objectives by its scheduled June 1992 end; (4) the Bureau of Refugee Programs and the U.S. Embassy at Ankara were not adequately monitoring project progress and expenditures; (5) a review indicated that at least $285,000 had been improperly expended for vocational training classes that were not held; and (6) after the review, UNDP reported that it recovered those funds.
Recommendations for Executive Action
Status: Closed - Implemented
Comments: Monitoring of the project has been increased and UNDP is more carefully managing the project.
Recommendation: The Secretary of State should require the Bureau for Refugee Programs and the U.S. Embassy in Ankara to fulfill their monitoring and oversight responsibilities by actively monitoring the project's progress to ensure that remaining funds are appropriately expended.
Agency Affected: Department of State
Status: Closed - Implemented
Comments: The State Department's Refugee Program Bureau and the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, Turkey, strengthened oversight of the project and recouped $231,910 in funds expended on cancelled or uncompleted training courses.
Recommendation: The Secretary of State should require the Bureau for Refugee Programs and the U.S. Embassy in Ankara to fulfill their monitoring and oversight responsibilities by ensuring that UNDP verify the correctness of all payments to the Turkish Employment Organization and that UNDP recoup erroneous payments.
Agency Affected: Department of State
Status: Closed - Implemented
Comments: The State Department and project managers agreed to discontinue orientation classes: $375,220 in budgeted project training funds were diverted for other training projects as a result.
Recommendation: The Secretary of State should require the Bureau for Refugee Programs and the U.S. Embassy in Ankara to fulfill their monitoring and oversight responsibilities by ascertaining whether the orientation classes are still relevant or if the classes can be terminated and the funds used for other purposes.
Agency Affected: Department of State
Explore the full database of GAO's Open Recommendations
»
Dec 9, 2020
-
International Trade:
Observations On Whether Women's Rights and Economic Interests Are Protected or Promoted by U.S. Trade Preference ProgramsGAO-21-190: Published: Dec 9, 2020. Publicly Released: Dec 9, 2020.
Dec 2, 2020
-
Foreign Assistance:
USAID Should Analyze Data on the Timeliness of ExpendituresGAO-21-51: Published: Dec 2, 2020. Publicly Released: Dec 2, 2020.
Nov 19, 2020
-
Global Food Security:
Information on Spending and Types of Assistance Provided by the United States and Other DonorsGAO-21-47R: Published: Nov 19, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 19, 2020.
Nov 9, 2020
-
Human Trafficking:
Agencies Have Taken Steps to Strengthen International Anti-trafficking ProjectsGAO-21-53: Published: Nov 9, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 9, 2020. -
Rule of Law Assistance:
State and USAID Could Improve Monitoring EffortsGAO-21-14: Published: Nov 9, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 9, 2020.
Oct 27, 2020
-
Forced Labor Imports:
DHS Increased Resources and Enforcement Efforts, but Needs to Improve Workforce Planning and MonitoringGAO-21-106: Published: Oct 27, 2020. Publicly Released: Oct 27, 2020.
Oct 2, 2020
-
Combating Wildlife Trafficking:
Agencies Work to Address Human Rights Abuse Allegations in Overseas Conservation ProgramsGAO-21-139R: Published: Oct 2, 2020. Publicly Released: Oct 2, 2020.
Sep 22, 2020
-
Cyber Diplomacy:
State Has Not Involved Relevant Federal Agencies in the Development of Its Plan to Establish the Cyberspace Security and Emerging Technologies BureauGAO-20-607R: Published: Sep 22, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 22, 2020.
Sep 15, 2020
-
Steel and Aluminum Tariffs:
Commerce Should Improve Its Exclusion Request Process and Economic Impact ReviewsGAO-20-517: Published: Sep 15, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 15, 2020.
Sep 14, 2020
-
Conflict Minerals:
Actions Needed to Assess Progress Addressing Armed Groups' Exploitation of MineralsGAO-20-595: Published: Sep 14, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 14, 2020.
Looking for more? Browse all our products here