Embassy New Delhi, India and Constituent Posts - OIG - US ...

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November 2009 visit to the United States. The total budget is now $7.6 million, of which the
United States provides $4.05 million and the Government of India $3.35 million
Embassy relations with the commission and its executive director are cordial and
productive. Embassy officers sit on the board and participate in selection committees. USIEF
runs the U.S. government-funded student advising operations throughout the country. The effort
has benefited from additional money from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA)
and the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs in recent years. Student
advising operations exist in USIEF offices and in the consulates general. In addition, three
satellite centers offering advising services receive funding from the U.S. Government through an
ECA grant to the Institute of International Education.
The OIG team found only one issue of concern. Neither PAS nor USIEF has the
resources or the mandate to provide meaningful oversight to the satellite operations. In view of
this and of actual and projected growth in student advising in India, the presence of a regional
educational advising coordinator is imperative. Visa difficulties and health issues have prevented
persons in that position from being available. ECA should work with the Institute of
International Education to assign a regional educational advising coordinator who will be based
in the USIEF office in New Delhi and oversee educational advising countrywide, with area of
responsibility limited to India.
Recommendation 12: The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs should take steps to
ensure that a regional educational advising coordinator is assigned to India. (Action: ECA)
English-Language Programs
A regional English-language officer oversees Mission India’s English-language
operations. The program is large: this year, additional money from SCA brings the total to about
$11.5 million. The largest component, the Access Program, targets underprivileged youth ages
15 to 18, including Muslim youth. Access has recorded some notable successes, but the
Government of India is suspicious of mission activities that appear to target Muslim audiences. It
often delays visas for English-language specialists so long that invited specialists cannot
participate in the program. Opinions in the embassy differ on the seriousness of the issue. Some
believe that the programs are such a vital component of the mission’s effort to establish
relationships with a younger and more diverse audience that they must continue regardless of
bureaucratic cost. Others believe that the problem will only get worse, and the mission may
eventually have to decide whether to continue. The OIG team formed no conclusion on the
subject but notes that it ought to remain on the embassy’s agenda.
Public Affairs Section Mumbai
An experienced PAO leads PAS Mumbai, which includes an information officer, a CAO,
an ACAO, and a large local staff. The section runs efficiently, and the OIG team found no
problems of consequence. Long resident in the American Center downtown, PAS will move to
the new consulate compound later this year. The move brings serious challenges. Although the
new compound includes a library and multipurpose room, the space is much smaller than that at
the center. Seating for library staff is problematic. Located in a growing area of the city, the new
consulate compound is much less convenient, especially for students, than the current center. In
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