Global Fragility Act of 2019

II Calendar No. 155 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 727 To combat international extremism by addressing global fragility and violence and stabilizing conflict-affected areas, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 7, 2019 Mr. COONS (for himself, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. YOUNG, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BOOZMAN, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. GARDNER, Mr. CASEY, Mr. DURBIN, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. KAINE, Mr. PETERS, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. ISAK- SON, and Mr. VAN HOLLEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations JULY 18, 2019 Reported by Mr. RISCH, with an amendment [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] A BILL To combat international extremism by addressing global fra- gility and violence and stabilizing conflict-affected areas, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 727 RS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Global Fragility Act 2 of 2019’’. 3 SEC. 2. APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DE- 4 FINED. 5 In this Act, the term ‘‘appropriate congressional com- 6 mittees’’ means— 7 (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations and 8 the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and 9 (2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the 10 Committee on Appropriations of the House of Rep- 11 resentatives. 12 TITLE I—DEVELOPMENT OF A 13 COMPREHENSIVE, TEN-YEAR, 14 GLOBAL FRAGILITY STRAT- 15 EGY, AND SELECTION OF PRI- 16 ORITY COUNTRIES 17 SEC. 101. GLOBAL FRAGILITY STRATEGY. 18 (a) STRATEGY.—The President, in coordination with 19 the Secretary of State, the Administrator of the United 20 States Agency for International Development (USAID), 21 the Secretary of Defense, and the heads of other relevant 22 Federal agencies, shall establish a comprehensive, inte- 23 grated, ten-year strategy, to be referred to as the ‘‘Global 24 Fragility Strategy’’, to contribute to the stabilization of 25 conflict-affected areas, address global fragility, and 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 727 RS strengthen the capacity of the United States to be an ef- 1 fective leader of international efforts to prevent extremism 2 and violent conflict. The strategy shall focus on addressing 3 long-term causes of fragility and violence, and shall— 4 (1) consider the causes of fragility and violence 5 at both the local and national levels, the external ac- 6 tors that reinforce and exploit such conditions, and 7 successful prevention strategies and their key fea- 8 tures; 9 (2) include specific objectives and multisectoral 10 approaches to reduce fragility and the causes of vio- 11 lence, including those that strengthen state-society 12 relations, curb extremist ideology, and make society 13 less vulnerable to the spread of extremism and vio- 14 lence; 15 (3) encourage and empower local and national 16 actors to address the concerns of their citizens, in- 17 cluding in vulnerable communities, and build com- 18 munity resilience against violence and extremism; 19 (4) address the long-term underlying causes of 20 fragility and violence through participatory, locally 21 led programs, empowering marginalized groups such 22 as youth and women, inclusive dialogues and conflict 23 resolutions processes, justice sector reform, good 24 governance across all sectors, community policing 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 727 RS and civilian security, and accountable and fair serv- 1 ice delivery; 2 (5) describe approaches that ensure national 3 leadership where appropriate and participatory en- 4 gagement by civil society and local partners in the 5 design implementation and monitoring of programs; 6 (6) assign roles for relevant Federal agencies to 7 avoid duplication of efforts, while ensuring that— 8 (A) the Department of State is responsible 9 for leading the strategy, establishing United 10 States foreign policy, advancing diplomatic and 11 political efforts, and guiding security assistance 12 and related civilian security efforts; 13 (B) USAID is responsible for overseeing 14 prevention programs, and is the lead imple- 15 menting agency for development, humanitarian, 16 and related non-security program policy; 17 (C) activities undertaken or supported by 18 the Department of Defense in relation to the 19 Global Fragility Strategy are established 20 through joint formulation and with the concur- 21 rence of the Secretary of State; and 22 (D) other Federal agencies support the ac- 23 tivities of the Department of State and USAID 24 as appropriate, with the concurrence of the Sec- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 727 RS retary of State and the Administrator of the 1 United States Agency for International Devel- 2 opment; 3 (7) describe programs that agencies will under- 4 take to achieve the stated objectives, including de- 5 scriptions of existing programs and funding by fiscal 6 year and account; 7 (8) identify mechanisms to improve coordina- 8 tion between the United States, foreign govern- 9 ments, and international organizations, including the 10 World Bank, the United Nations, regional organiza- 11 tions, and private sector organizations; 12 (9) address efforts to expand public-private 13 partnerships and leverage private sector resources; 14 (10) describe the criteria, metrics, and mecha- 15 nisms for monitoring and evaluation of programs 16 and objectives in the strategy; 17 (11) describe how the strategy will ensure that 18 programs are country-led and context-specific; and 19 (12) identify mechanisms or activities to reduce 20 the risk that the programs, policies, or resources of 21 the United States and its partners will facilitate cor- 22 ruption, empower or abet repressive local actors, or 23 be exploited by extremists to gain support for their 24 cause. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 727 RS (b) REPORT.— 1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 270 days 2 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 3 President shall submit to the appropriate congres- 4 sional committees a report setting forth the strategy 5 described in subsection (a), which shall be submitted 6 in unclassified form, but may include a classified 7 annex if necessary. 8 (2) REPORT CONTENTS.—The report required 9 under paragraph (1) shall include the elements de- 10 scribed in paragraph (3), and may include additional 11 elements relevant to the strategy described in sub- 12 section (a). 13 (3) REPORT ELEMENTS.—The elements re- 14 ferred to in paragraph (2) are as follows: 15 (A) The objectives, general and specific, of 16 the strategy. 17 (B) An identification of the relevant Fed- 18 eral agencies that will be involved and the as- 19 signment of priorities to such agencies. 20 (C) A description of the compact-based 21 partnerships that will be established to ensure 22 local leadership of strategies, policy, and pro- 23 grams, as well as mutual accountability for re- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 727 RS sults and resources needed to support such 1 partnerships. 2 (D) Identification of the authorities, staff- 3 ing, and other requirements needed to effec- 4 tively implement the Global Fragility Strategy. 5 (E) A description of the ways in which 6 United States leadership will be used to en- 7 hance overall international prevention efforts, 8 including through increasing the engagement of 9 the member states of the Group of Eight and 10 Group of Twenty. 11 (F) Identification of which officials of the 12 Department of State, USAID, and the Depart- 13 ment of Defense, with a rank not lower than 14 Assistant Secretary or Assistant Administrator, 15 will be responsible for overseeing and leading 16 the strategy. 17 (G) A list of priority countries selected 18 pursuant to section 102, including descriptions 19 of the rationale for such selections. 20 (c) STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION.—The Global 21 Fragility Strategy required under this section shall be de- 22 veloped in consultation with representatives of civil society 23 and national and local governance entities in countries de- 24 scribed in section 103, as well as relevant international 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 727 RS development organizations with experience implementing 1 programs in fragile countries, multilateral organizations 2 and donors, relevant private, academic, and philanthropic 3 entities, and the appropriate congressional committees. 4 SEC. 102. SELECTION OF PRIORITY COUNTRIES. 5 The President, in coordination with the Secretary of 6 State, the Administrator of the United States Agency for 7 International Development, and the Secretary of Defense, 8 and in consultation with the appropriate congressional 9 committees, shall select certain countries as ‘‘priority 10 countries’’ for the purpose of implementing the strategy 11 required under section 101(a)— 12 (1) on the basis of— 13 (A) the national security interest of the 14 United States; 15 (B) clearly defined indicators of the levels 16 of violence or fragility in such, such as the 17 country’s— 18 (i) ranking on recognized global fra- 19 gility lists; 20 (ii) ranking on select United States 21 Government conflict and atrocity early 22 warning watch lists; and 23 (iii) levels of violence, including vio- 24 lence committed by armed groups, state 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 727 RS actors, and violent extremist organizations, 1 gender-based violence, and violence against 2 children and youth; and 3 (C) an assessment of the commitment and 4 capacity of national and sub-national govern- 5 ment entities and civil society partners in such 6 country to work with Federal departments and 7 agencies on the Global Fragility Strategy, in- 8 cluding by demonstrating commitment to— 9 (i) improving inclusive, transparent, 10 and accountable power structures, includ- 11 ing effective, legitimate, and resilient na- 12 tional and sub-national institutions; and 13 (ii) ensuring strong foundations for 14 human rights, rule of law, and equal access 15 to justice; and 16 (2) in a manner that ensures that not fewer 17 than five countries are selected, and such countries 18 are in the areas of responsibility of at least three ge- 19 ographic bureaus of the Department of State. 20 SEC. 103. PRIORITY COUNTRY PLANS. 21 Not later than one year after the date of the enact- 22 ment of this Act, the President, in coordination with the 23 Secretary of State, the Administrator of the United States 24 Agency for International Development, the Secretary of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 727 RS Defense, and the heads of other relevant Federal depart- 1 ments and agencies, shall submit to the appropriate con- 2 gressional committees ten-year plans to align and inte- 3 grate under the Global Fragility Strategy established pur- 4 suant to section 101 all diplomatic, development, security 5 assistance and cooperation, and other relevant activities 6 of the United States Government with respect to each of 7 the countries selected pursuant to section 102. Each such 8 country plan shall include the following elements: 9 (1) Specific multi-year interagency plans for co- 10 ordination and implementation under each such 11 plan. 12 (2) An up-to-date baseline analysis for each 13 such country, including an analysis of power dynam- 14 ics, impacts of violence, and conditions that con- 15 tribute to violence and fragility. 16 (3) Prioritized descriptions of the goals and ob- 17 jectives for stabilizing conflict-affected areas, reduc- 18 ing fragility, and preventing the spread of extremism 19 and violence in each such country. 20 (4) Descriptions of how and when the relevant 21 goals, objectives, plans, and benchmarks for each 22 such country will be incorporated into relevant 23 United States country plans and strategies. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 727 RS (5) Interagency plans to ensure that appro- 1 priate local actors, including government and civil 2 society entities, have an appropriate ownership stake 3 in relevant activities under each such plan. 4 (6) Interagency plans to integrate existing and 5 planned security assistance and cooperation pro- 6 grams in each such country with the strategy, and 7 to mitigate risks associated with such programs, in- 8 cluding risks related to corruption, governance, and 9 human rights. 10 (7) Assessment, monitoring, and evaluation 11 frameworks for diplomatic, development, and secu- 12 rity activities, which shall be informed by consulta- 13 tions with the stakeholders specified in section 14 101(c), with clear, date-certain metrics for each such 15 country. 16 (8) Descriptions of available policy tools and 17 how such tools will be used to reduce fragility, pre- 18 vent the spread of extremism and violence, and sta- 19 bilize conflict-affected areas in each such country. 20 (9) A description of how planning and imple- 21 mentation for each such country will be coordinated 22 to ensure such planning and implementation are 23 conducted in partnership between the United States 24 Government and— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:44 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S727.RS S727 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 727 RS (A) governments of such countries; 1 (B) international development organiza- 2 tions; 3 (C) relevant international donors; 4 (D) multilateral organizations; and 5 (E) the private sector. 6 (10) A regional component outlining plans to 7 address relevant transnational issues and how such 8 count [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]