OMB Submission: Safeguarding Against Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, Child Abuse, and Child Neglect, 34467-34472 [2023-11382]

Agencies

• Agency for International Development

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 103 (Tuesday, May 30, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34467-34472]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-11382]



[[Page 34467]]

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AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT


OMB Submission: Safeguarding Against Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, 
Child Abuse, and Child Neglect

AGENCY: Agency for International Development.

ACTION: Notice of information collection.

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SUMMARY: Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, the U.S. 
Agency for International Development (USAID) seeks the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) approval for the new information collection 
for safeguarding against exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and 
child neglect.

DATES: Submit comments on or before June 24, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of 
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular 
information collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--
Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
    Written comments for this information collection should be sent 
within 30 days of publication of this notice via:
    1. Web: Through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov. This website provides instructions and includes 
the ability to type short comments directly into the comment field or 
attach a file for lengthier comments.
    2. Email: For comments sent via email, please address them to 
[email protected] and cite OMB Submission: Safeguarding Against 
Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, Child Abuse, and Child Neglect in the 
subject line of the email.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kathleen Stohs, [email protected], 
(202) 216-3183.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. Need and Uses

    The purpose of this collection is to enable the U.S. Agency for 
International Development to respond to allegations of exploitation, 
sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect and institute appropriate 
standards of behavior. Submissions will be required from recipients to 
comply with pending award requirements to safeguard against 
exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect in USAID-
funded programming. Information submitted by recipients as part of this 
collection will be presumed to be confidential. USAID takes the 
protection of personally identifiable information (PII) seriously and 
takes precautions to ensure the confidentiality and security of PII, 
consistent with USAID's Automated Directives System (ADS) Chapter 508 
and does not request PII in this information collection. Agency staff 
must only share information on individual responses on a need-to-know 
basis and take steps to protect any sensitive information, including 
redacting sensitive information and limiting access.
    Notification: A pending standard provision for assistance awards to 
nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) will require the recipient to (1) 
immediately inform, in writing, the Bureau for Management, Office of 
Management Policy, Budget, and Performance, Responsibility, 
Safeguarding, and Compliance Division (M/MPBP/RSC) at 
[email protected] and USAID Office of Inspector General 
(OIG), with a copy to the Agreement Officer whenever the recipient 
receives credible information from any source that alleges the 
recipient, subrecipient, employee, agent, intern, or any other person 
provided access or contact with beneficiaries under the award has 
engaged in any exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child 
neglect of any person, and supported or advanced these actions, or 
intentionally ignored or failed to act upon allegations of these 
actions; and (2) as soon as practicable, the recipient must provide in 
writing, as specified above: (i) additional information on any actions 
planned or taken in response to the allegation; and (ii) any actions 
planned or taken to assess, address, or mitigate factors that 
contributed to the incident.
    Information in the notification may include: award title and 
number, organization name and sub-awardee name, if applicable, location 
of the program and the incident, the type of allegation, the date of 
the incident and/or allegation, information about the survivor--such as 
whether the survivor is a program participant, member of the community, 
staff, or other, and information about the subject of complaint such as 
whether they are a senior leader, employee, agent, intern, volunteer, 
or other. It may also identify: any actions taken or next steps to 
respond to the incident, resources available or provided to the 
survivor, steps taken to ensure the safety of the survivor(s) or 
whistleblower(s), the status of the investigation, any established 
organizational procedures or framework, interim measures or final 
measures taken or planned to address the subject of complaint, and any 
protective measures or organizational reforms, such as changes to 
applicable policies and procedures. The specific information provided 
may differ in each notification and will be up to each partner to 
determine, and the examples provided above are illustrative. 
Notifications should not include PII.
    Compliance Plan: For awards exceeding $500,000, the recipient must 
develop, implement, and maintain a compliance plan, either in 
conjunction with or separate from the Trafficking in Persons Compliance 
Plan, that details risk analysis and mitigation measures that will be 
implemented during the period of performance of the award to prevent 
and address exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect 
of any person. The recipient's compliance plan must be appropriate to 
the size and complexity of the award and to the nature and scope of the 
activities, including the particular risks presented by the operating 
context. The plan must include, at a minimum, the following:
    (i) reasonable measures to reduce the risk of exploitation, sexual 
abuse, child abuse, and child neglect. Where implementation of projects 
under this award may involve children, this includes limiting 
unsupervised interactions with children and complying with applicable 
laws, regulations, or customs regarding harmful image-generating 
activities of children;
    (ii) an awareness program to inform employees, agents, interns, or 
any other person provided access or contact with beneficiaries about 
the requirements of this provision, including the activities 
prohibited, the action that will be taken in response to violations, 
and the mechanism(s) for reporting allegations;
    (iii) a description of how beneficiaries and local community 
members:
    A. are made aware of the prohibited activities,
    B. how they may report allegations, and
    C. how (A) and (B) are carried out in a manner which is inclusive, 
culturally appropriate, and sensitive to the context;
    (iv) safe, accessible, and publicly available reporting 
mechanism(s) that may be integrated with any existing or similar such 
mechanisms, for anyone to confidentially report exploitation, sexual 
abuse, child abuse, and child neglect, with appropriate safeguards to 
protect whistle-blowers and survivors, including express protection 
against retaliation for reporting, and documented procedures for 
protecting personally identifiable information (PII)

[[Page 34468]]

from unauthorized access and disclosure; and
    (v) appropriate measures to protect survivors of or witnesses to 
any exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect of any 
person and not prevent or hinder cooperating fully with U.S. Government 
authorities.
    The recipient must provide a copy of the compliance plan to the 
Agreement Officer upon request.

B. Annual Burden

Notifications

    Respondents: 218.
    Total Annual Responses: 436.
    Total Burden Hours: 1,744 hours.

Compliance Plan

    Respondents: 165.
    Recordkeepers: 2,365.
    Total Annual Responses/Records: 2,530.
    Total Burden Hours: 56,925 hours.

C. Discussion of Comments

    A 60-day notice was published in the Federal Register at 86 FR 
44684, on August 13, 2021. Eight five (85) comments were received.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting the basis and 
text of the new standard provision.
    Response: USAID has made a series of commitments to strengthen 
protections for sexual exploitation and abuse, including the 
Recommendation on Ending Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Harassment in 
Development Co-operation and Humanitarian Assistance: Key Pillars of 
Prevention and Response, adopted by the Development Assistance 
Committee of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development 
(OECD-DAC) in 2019; and the Commitments of the 2018 United Kingdom 
Safeguarding Summit. Congress has shown continual interest in these 
topics. Consistent with section 7019(e) of the Department of State, 
Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2021 (Div. 
K, P.L. 116-260) and the accompanying Joint Explanatory Statement, 
State and USAID jointly submitted a report on allegations of, and steps 
to prevent and respond to, sexual exploitation and abuse committed by 
implementing partners of foreign assistance funds appropriated for 
State and USAID in Fiscal Year (FY) 2020--the third consecutive report 
annually requested by Congress on this subject. The USAID Office of 
Inspector General also recommended that the Agency establish a 
mandatory reporting requirement for sexual exploitation and abuse as 
part of an audit of USAID's response to sexual exploitation and abuse. 
The provision will incorporate the existing USAID Child Safeguarding 
Standards provision to strengthen protections for children, while 
providing clarity and consistency for partners.
    The new standard provision, Safeguarding Against Exploitation, 
Sexual Abuse, Child Abuse, and Child Neglect, will be publicly 
available following the completion of the Information Collection 
process. The provision will be applicable to all U.S. and non-U.S. 
awards NGOs, including fixed amount awards and the full text of the 
provision will be provided in USAID's Automated Directive System (ADS) 
303maa M20, 303mab M15, and 303mat M6. The provision includes 
requirements for the recipient to have and implement a set of publicly 
available standards, policies, or procedures to prevent, detect, 
address, and respond to allegations of exploitation, sexual abuse, 
child abuse, and child neglect that:
    (1) prohibit employees, agents, interns, or any other person 
provided access or contact with beneficiaries, from engaging in any 
exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect of any 
person during the period of performance, supporting or advancing these 
actions, or intentionally ignoring or failing to act upon allegations 
of these actions;
    (2) are consistent with the Inter-Agency Standing Committee's Six 
Core Principles Relating to Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, as amended, 
available at https://psea.interagencystandingcommittee.org/update/iasc-six-core-principles and the Keeping Children Safe Standards, available 
at https://www.keepingchildrensafe.global/accountability/;
    (3) require reporting of suspicions or concerns related to any 
exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect of any 
person to the recipient;
    (4) require a ``survivor-centered approach'' for responding to 
alleged violations of the prohibitions. Such an approach must ensure 
the survivor's dignity, experiences, considerations, needs, and 
resiliencies are placed at the center of the process;
    (5) when a child is involved, require a ``best interest of the 
child determination'' for responding to alleged violations of the 
prohibitions. This determination considers the best possible outcome 
for a vulnerable child who has been exposed to violence, abuse, 
exploitation or neglect;
    (6) include remedies for violations;
    (7) monitor subrecipients, employees, agents, interns, or any other 
person provided access or contact with beneficiaries,
    (8) details the actions that may be taken against subrecipients, 
employees, agents, interns, or any other person provided access or 
contact under the award who commit exploitation, sexual abuse, child 
abuse, and child neglect of any person or who fail to take reasonable 
steps to prevent it; and;
    (9) provide transparency on hiring, screening, and employment 
practices, including on rehiring or transfer and referencing for 
subsequent employers.
    For awards exceeding $500,000, the recipient must develop, 
implement, and maintain a compliance plan, either in conjunction with 
or separate from the Trafficking in Persons Compliance Plan, that 
details risk analysis and mitigation measures that will be implemented 
during the period of performance of the award to prevent and address 
exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect of any 
person. The recipient's compliance plan must be appropriate to the size 
and complexity of the award and to the nature and scope of the 
activities, including the particular risks presented by the operating 
context. The plan must include, at a minimum, the following:
    (i) reasonable measures to reduce the risk of exploitation, sexual 
abuse, child abuse, and child neglect. Where implementation of projects 
under this award may involve children, this includes limiting 
unsupervised interactions with children and complying with applicable 
laws, regulations, or customs regarding harmful image-generating 
activities of children;
    (ii) an awareness program to inform employees, agents, interns, or 
any other person provided access or contact with beneficiaries about 
the requirements of this provision, including the activities 
prohibited, the action that will be taken in response to violations, 
and the mechanism(s) for reporting allegations;
    (iii) a description of how beneficiaries and local community 
members:
    A. are made aware of the prohibited activities,
    B. how they may report allegations, and
    C. how (A) and (B) are carried out in a manner which is inclusive, 
culturally appropriate, and sensitive to the context;
    (iv) safe, accessible, and publicly available reporting 
mechanism(s) that may be integrated with any existing or similar such 
mechanisms, for anyone to confidentially report exploitation, sexual 
abuse, child abuse, and child

[[Page 34469]]

neglect, with appropriate safeguards to protect whistle-blowers and 
survivors, including express protection against retaliation for 
reporting, and documented procedures for protecting personally 
identifiable information (PII) from unauthorized access and disclosure; 
and
    (v) appropriate measures to protect survivors of or witnesses to 
any exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect of any 
person and not prevent or hinder cooperating fully with U.S. Government 
authorities.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting the definition 
of safeguarding.
    Response: Although not defined in the provision, safeguarding 
against exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect 
refers to the practice of implementing preventative, protection, and 
compliance measures for populations who may be at an increased risk for 
harm across an organization's operations, for the purposes of 
preventing harm, including but not limited to exploitation, abuse, and 
violence, generally.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting the definition 
of exploitation.
    Response: For the purposes of the forthcoming standard provision, 
exploitation constitutes any actual or attempted abuse of a position of 
vulnerability, differential power, or trust, including for the purposes 
of profiting monetarily, socially, or politically. When carried out for 
a sexual purpose this constitutes sexual exploitation.\1\
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    \1\ Section 3 of the UN Secretary-General's Bulletin--Special 
Measures for Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse 
(ST/SGB/2003/13) and USAID Child Safeguarding Standards (Automative 
Directives System (ADS) 303maa M27).
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    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting the definition 
of sexual abuse.
    Response: For the purposes of the forthcoming standard provision, 
sexual abuse constitutes any actual or threatened physical intrusion of 
a sexual nature towards another person whether by force or under 
unequal or coercive conditions. When carried out against a child by an 
adult, such conduct is considered sexual abuse even in the absence of 
force or unequal or coercive conditions.\1\
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting the definition 
of child abuse.
    Response: For the purposes of the forthcoming standard provision, 
child abuse means emotional, physical, sexual, or any other ill-
treatment carried out against a child by an adult.\2\
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    \2\ USAID Child Safeguarding Standards (ADS 303maa M27).
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    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting the definition 
of neglect.
    Response: For the purposes of the forthcoming standard provision, 
child neglect means a failure to provide for a child's basic needs in 
the absence of the child's parent or guardian when the care of the 
child is associated with the award activities.\3\
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    \3\ USAID Child Safeguarding Standards (ADS 303maa M27).
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    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting the definition 
of credible information.
    Although ``credible information'' is not defined, under the plain 
meaning of the term, if the source and circumstances support a 
reasonable belief that the event(s) described have occurred, the matter 
shall be referred to the Responsibility, Safeguarding, and Compliance 
(RSC) Division, the appropriate Agreement Officer, and Inspector 
General. This is an intentionally low threshold for initial disclosure, 
which upholds the policy to prohibit exploitation, sexual abuse, child 
abuse, and neglect.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting the definition 
of personnel, two comments requesting the definition of invitee and one 
comment requesting the definition of agent.
    Response: Personnel, invitee, and agent have been replaced with the 
terms ``employees, agents, interns, or any other person provided access 
or contact with beneficiaries.''
    For the purposes of the forthcoming standard provision, employee 
means individual who is engaged in the performance of this award as a 
direct employee, consultant, or volunteer of the recipient or any 
subrecipient.\4\
    For the purposes of the forthcoming standard provision, agent means 
any individual, including a director, an officer, or an independent 
contractor, authorized to act on behalf of an organization.\4\
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    \4\ FAR 52.222-50 Combating Trafficking in Persons.
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    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting the reasoning 
for allowing the combination of the Safeguarding Compliance Plan with 
the Trafficking in Persons Compliance Plan. One commenter asks if these 
requirements should remain separate as the Trafficking in Persons 
requirement is mandatory and one commenter recommends including 
Trafficking in Persons and Safeguarding Against Exploitation, Sexual 
Abuse, Child Abuse, and Child Neglect under one Compliance Plan.
    Response: Recipients will maintain a ``Safeguarding Against 
Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, Child Abuse, and Child Neglect Compliance 
Plan,'' either in conjunction with or separate from the Trafficking in 
Persons Compliance Plan. These options are provided to allow recipients 
to streamline these administrative requirements and align with their 
organizational structures and policies as necessary.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment requesting clarification 
regarding the dollar value impacted by the information collection.
    If the estimated value of services required to be performed under 
the award outside the United States exceeds $500,000, the recipients 
will maintain a ``Safeguarding Against Exploitation, Sexual Abuse, 
Child Abuse, and Child Neglect Compliance Plan,'' either in conjunction 
with or separate from the Trafficking in Persons Compliance Plan.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment requesting the process for 
the agency determining 253 reports of credible information.
    Response: This number of reports is estimated based on the current 
number of notifications received and the predicted increase in number 
of reports received once the notification requirement is mandatory. 
This number has since been adjusted down to 218 based on the most 
recent data.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting the process 
for the agency determining two responses per respondent.
    Response: The number of responses is calculated by the averaged 
expected number of notifications per instance, not by the individual 
recipients since that would be impossible to know.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment asking if the Agency has 
2,365 awards over $500,000.
    Response: At the time of the information collection notice, the 
Agency had 2,365 awards over $500,000, which was used to determine the 
number of recordkeepers for the Safeguarding Compliance Plan.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment requesting the process for 
the agency determining Agreement Officers will request Compliance Plans 
200 times.
    Response: Agreement Officers may request Compliance Plans from 
recipients that have them, and we estimated the number of expected 
requests to be 165 annually.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments regarding solicitation 
requirements for USAID's Bureau for

[[Page 34470]]

Humanitarian Assistance related to sexual exploitation and abuse, which 
recommends consolidating the requirements in the BHA Emergency 
Application Guidelines.
    Response: Recipients would not need to develop a separate plan 
specifically for each award with overseas work that meets the 
threshold, as long as they otherwise have a plan in place that is 
suitable to address the nature and scope of activities to be performed 
and the size and complexity of the relevant award(s). The standard 
provision for assistance awards would apply across the Agency.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment on ways to minimize the 
burden of the collection of information on respondents by initiating 
efforts to increase knowledge and awareness amongst recipients on best 
practices in collecting this information and preventing and managing 
safeguarding within their organization.
    Response: The Agency will provide additional guidance on 
safeguarding against exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child 
neglect, including reporting guidance as part of its efforts under 
USAID's Policy on Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment appreciating that the 
proposed collection of information is necessary as it will enable USAID 
to analyze where safeguarding risks are highest and help to align 
resources to effectively respond.
    Response: The Agency appreciates the comment.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment which supported the 
estimates of burden of the proposed collection of information.
    Response: The Agency appreciates the comment.
    Comment: The Agency received four comments recommending 
clarification for the term ``tolerated.''
    Response: In order to be more specific, tolerated has been removed 
and replaced with the language: ``supporting or advancing these actions 
[exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse and neglect], or intentionally 
ignoring or failing to act upon allegations of these actions.''
    Comment: The Agency received one comment recommending clarification 
for the phrase ``minimum set of policies and internal controls 
necessary,'' including any criteria for USAID to assess the minimum 
standards.
    Response: The forthcoming provision includes requirements for the 
recipient to have and implement a set of publicly available standards, 
policies, or procedures to prevent, detect, address, and respond to 
allegations of exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child 
neglect. These available standards, policies, or procedures must:
    (1) prohibit employees, agents, interns, or any other person 
provided access or contact with beneficiaries, from engaging in any 
exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect of any 
person during the period of performance, supporting or advancing these 
actions, or intentionally ignoring or failing to act upon allegations 
of these actions;
    (2) are consistent with the Inter-Agency Standing Committee's Six 
Core Principles Relating to Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, as amended, 
available at https://psea.interagencystandingcommittee.org/update/iasc-six-core-principles and the Keeping Children Safe Standards, available 
at https://www.keepingchildrensafe.global/accountability/;
    (3) require reporting of suspicions or concerns related to any 
exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect of any 
person to the recipient;
    (4) require a ``survivor-centered approach'' for responding to 
alleged violations of the prohibitions. Such an approach must ensure 
the survivor's dignity, experiences, considerations, needs, and 
resiliencies are placed at the center of the process;
    (5) when a child is involved, require a ``best interest of the 
child determination'' for responding to alleged violations of the 
prohibitions. This determination considers the best possible outcome 
for a vulnerable child who has been exposed to violence, abuse, 
exploitation or neglect;
    (6) include remedies for violations;
    (7) monitor subrecipients, employees, agents, interns, or any other 
person provided access or contact with beneficiaries,
    (8) details the actions that may be taken against subrecipients, 
employees, agents, interns, or any other person provided access or 
contact under the award who commit exploitation, sexual abuse, child 
abuse, and child neglect of any person or who fail to take reasonable 
steps to prevent it; and;
    (9) provide transparency on hiring, screening, and employment 
practices, including on rehiring or transfer and referencing for 
subsequent employers.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment recommending that the 
reporting systems under the Compliance Plan be expanded from 
``beneficiaries'' to ``beneficiaries and bystanders.''
    Response: The Agency considered this comment and expanded the 
reporting system to allow anyone to report exploitation, sexual abuse, 
child abuse, and child neglect, and this change is reflected in the 
reference to local community members in the updated language in this 
notice.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment requesting consolidation 
of the notification requirements under one section, three comments 
requesting clarification on the timing for the three parts of the 
notification requirement, as there will be a time difference between 
part 1 and parts 2-3, and one comment requesting ``immediately notify'' 
be changed to ``promptly notify.'' One commenter recommended specific 
timelines (e.g., 30 days, etc.).
    Response: The Agency has considered this comment and revised the 
timing to ``immediately'' for the initial notification of credible 
information, consistent with the Trafficking in Persons requirement, 
and ``as soon as practicable'' for Notifications part (2) as reflected 
in the Need and Uses section of this notice to allow the necessary 
flexibility for responses where timelines are case-specific.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment asking if the AIDAR 
752.7037 Child Safeguarding Standards will be updated to be consistent 
with the forthcoming standard provision for assistance.
    Response: The Agency anticipates that AIDAR 752.7037 and other 
relevant contract requirements will be updated pursuant to future 
rulemaking.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment requesting the standards 
of behavior expected in the standard provision and recommending that 
the requirements for recipients related to exploitation, sexual abuse, 
child abuse, and child neglect be provided at the beginning of the 
standard provision that will result from this information collection.
    Response: The standards of behavior, as outlined in the forthcoming 
standard provision, will prohibit employees, agents, interns, or any 
other person provided access or contact with beneficiaries, from 
engaging in any exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child 
neglect of any person during the period of performance, supporting or 
advancing these actions, or intentionally ignoring or failing to act 
upon allegations of these actions.
    Comment: The Agency received seven comments requesting the 
safeguards for reporting confidential information and PII. One 
commenter recommended that the Standard Provision clearly state that 
reports to the Agreement Officer do not include PII about a survivor.
    Response: USAID encourages partners not to share the PII, and the 
forthcoming provision states that the recipient should not share PII, 
unless specifically

[[Page 34471]]

requested by the Agency. Agency staff members must only share 
information on individual allegation reports related to allegations of 
misconduct on a need-to-know basis. This means information is only 
shared when there is a need in order to perform official duties and/or 
make an agency decision. As part of upholding a survivor-centered 
approach, USAID will provide internal guidance to USAID staff on 
responding to reports and safeguarding information related to 
misconduct allegations for all individuals involved (e.g., survivors, 
witnesses, subjects of complaints).
    The Office of Inspector General maintains their own policies 
related to the collection of PII and USAID's policies do not affect 
OIG's right to access this information.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting clarification 
on whether the zero-tolerance policy referenced in the awareness 
program is USAID's or the recipient's and recommending that the policy 
be the recipient's.
    Response: The Safeguarding Compliance Plan will require an 
awareness program to inform employees, agents, interns, or any other 
person provided access or contact with beneficiaries about the 
requirements of this provision, including the activities prohibited, 
the action that will be taken in response to violations, and the 
mechanism(s) for reporting allegations. The language has been updated 
and reflected in the Needs and Uses section of this notice.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting clarification 
on the prohibited behavior to make it clear that these behaviors are 
prohibited by anyone engaged in delivery of the project and that 
beneficiaries have the right to be free of these behaviors.
    Response: The Agency considered this comment and clarified that the 
prohibited behavior in this notice covers employees, agents, interns, 
or any other person provided access or contact with beneficiaries.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment on the notification 
requirement's definition of ``immediately notify'' to mean following an 
initial credibility determination.
    Response: Under the plain meaning of the term credible, if the 
source and circumstances support a reasonable belief that the events(s) 
described have occurred, the appropriate Agreement Officer and 
Inspector General must be immediately notified.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments asking if the compliance 
plan requirement replaces the need to undergo a Due Diligence review on 
an annual or bi-annual basis.
    Response: The compliance plan is created at the pre-award stage and 
does not replace annual or other regular reviews.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment asking if the Safeguarding 
Compliance Plan will require specific criteria and one comment 
requesting a standard template.
    Response: The Agency will not be prescriptive in the requirements 
for the Safeguarding Compliance Plan, to allow Recipients and 
subrecipients to develop plans appropriate to the size and complexity 
of the award. The minimum standards USAID will require will be 
reflected in the provision and are:
    (i) reasonable measures to reduce the risk of exploitation, sexual 
abuse, child abuse, and child neglect. Where implementation of projects 
under this award may involve children, this includes limiting 
unsupervised interactions with children and complying with applicable 
laws, regulations, or customs regarding harmful image-generating 
activities of children;
    (ii) an awareness program to inform employees, agents, interns, or 
any other person provided access or contact with beneficiaries about 
the requirements of this provision, including the activities 
prohibited, the action that will be taken in response to violations, 
and the mechanism(s) for reporting allegations;
    (iii) a description of how beneficiaries and local community 
members:
    A. are made aware of the prohibited activities,
    B. how they may report allegations, and
    C. how (A) and (B) are carried out in a manner which is inclusive, 
culturally appropriate, and sensitive to the context;
    (iv) safe, accessible, and publicly available reporting 
mechanism(s) that may be integrated with any existing or similar such 
mechanisms, for anyone to confidentially report exploitation, sexual 
abuse, child abuse, and child neglect, with appropriate safeguards to 
protect whistle-blowers and survivors, including express protection 
against retaliation for reporting, and documented procedures for 
protecting personally identifiable information (PII) from unauthorized 
access and disclosure; and
    (v) appropriate measures to protect survivors of or witnesses to 
any exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect of any 
person and not prevent or hinder cooperating fully with U.S. Government 
authorities.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment asking if subrecipients 
will be required to maintain their own compliance plans.
    Response: Recipients and subrecipients that meet the $500,000 
threshold will be required to maintain a compliance plan.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment asking if these 
requirements will apply only to new awards or if it will be 
retroactive.
    Response: Once the standard provision for assistance awards goes 
into effect, the requirement will apply to new and modified awards.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments asking if organizations 
will be required to ``certify'' for Safeguarding as they currently are 
required to do with Trafficking in Persons.
    Response: USAID will not require recipients or subrecipients to 
submit a certification as part of the new standard provision.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting clarification 
on the risk analysis and mitigation measures in the Safeguarding 
Compliance Plan and whether risk assessments are sufficient.
    Response: The Agency will not be prescriptive in the requirements 
for the Safeguarding Compliance Plan, to allow Recipients and 
subrecipients to develop plans appropriate to the size and complexity 
of the award and assess and mitigate risk as appropriate.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments noting limited actions 
that can be pursued with non-employees.
    Response: USAID acknowledges that available actions may be fact-
specific, including based on the relationship of those involved to the 
recipient.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment requesting the definition 
of project beneficiaries.
    Response: Although not defined in the forthcoming standard 
provision, ``beneficiary'' means any foreign national who is a 
recipient of, derives advantage from, or is helped by USAID foreign 
assistance. Such individuals are not employees of USAID nor providers 
of USAID development assistance.\5\
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    \5\ USAID ADS Chapter 252.
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    Comment: The Agency received two comments noting that the expansion 
of the types of concerns, specifically to include ``tolerating,'' to be 
reported is a substantial administrative burden.
    Response: This increase in the administrative burden is necessary 
for USAID to respond to instances of exploitation, sexual abuse, child 
abuse, and child neglect, ensure recipients have appropriate internal 
controls to

[[Page 34472]]

prevent and address such instances, and protect beneficiaries from 
harm.
    Tolerated has been removed and replaced with the specific language: 
supporting or advancing these actions, or intentionally ignoring or 
failing to act upon allegations of these actions.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments noting that a point of 
contact will be provided at the headquarters level.
    Response: Recipients may designate a relevant point of contact 
based on their organizational structure.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment requesting clarification 
on referral to local authorities in the notification section and 
whether this would be a requirement.
    Response: The potential information that may be contained in a 
notification is illustrative and may not be required or applicable in 
every case. The notification provided by recipients may also identify 
any actions taken to investigate or respond to the allegation, which 
may include referral to local authorities, but the standard provision 
does not require referral to local authorities.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting clarification 
on the established organizational procedures or framework in the 
notification section.
    Response: The potential information that may be contained in a 
notification is illustrative and may not be required in every case. In 
some instances, recipients may have established organizational 
policies, standards, frameworks, or procedures for responding to 
instances of exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and child 
neglect.
    Comment: The Agency received three comments requesting 
clarification on when the Safeguarding Compliance Plan would be 
submitted or requested.
    Response: The submission of the compliance plan is by request of 
the Agreement Officer, and an Agreement Officer may ask for a 
Compliance Plan at their discretion.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment on the inclusion of non-
sexual child abuse and neglect to mandatory reporting diluting the 
importance of sexual exploitation and abuse measures.
    Response: Strengthening requirements for sexual exploitation and 
abuse, in coordination with child abuse, exploitation, and neglect, is 
meant to allow for a consolidated, consistent approach for implementing 
partners to address safeguarding in the areas of sexual exploitation 
and abuse, trafficking in persons, and child safeguarding. Addressing 
these issues in a unified manner strengthens protections for 
beneficiaries and communities, while reducing duplication for partners.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment noting that a ``credible 
information'' standard increases the administrative burden and asking 
if USAID would consider funding for recipients to address the 
additional burden.
    Response: Credible information is the standard consistent with the 
Counter-Trafficking in Persons standard provision and the burden is 
consistent with the burden assessed for that requirement. This burden 
is necessary to enable USAID to respond to allegations of exploitation, 
sexual abuse, child abuse, and child neglect and institute appropriate 
standards of behavior. Consistency with existing standards further 
reduces burden on partners to determine the exact type of misconduct 
early in the process.
    While final decisions on cost allowability, allocability and 
reasonableness will rest with the cognizant Agreement Officer, USAID 
recognizes the need to strengthen the aid community's overall capacity 
for safeguarding against exploitation, sexual abuse, child abuse, and 
child neglect, including individual organizations' varying levels of 
existing capacity.
    Comment: The Agency received two comments requesting clarification 
on the difference between the routine reporting requirements in the 
Need and Uses section and the requirements outlined in the annual 
burden section of the Federal Register Notice and whether an annual 
report is required.
    Response: The Need and Uses section outlines the new information 
collection requirements that will be part of the forthcoming standard 
provision, which is the Notification requirement and the Compliance 
Plan requirement. The annual burden section calculates the annual 
administrative burden of these requirements outlined in the Need and 
Uses section, which includes the burden for reporting notifications to 
the USAID Inspector General and the cognizant Agreement Officer. No 
annual report is required.
    Comment: The Agency received one comment recommending that USAID 
notify Recipients of receipt of final investigative reports and not 
provide further inquiries if no violation is found to occur, unless 
there is reason to believe that the Recipient's final investigation is 
unsatisfactory.
    Response: USAID will address procedures for consistent response to 
reports in internal guidance to staff.

Kathleen Stohs,
Division Chief, Responsibility, Safeguarding, & Compliance Division, 
Office of Management Policy, Budget, and Performance, Bureau for 
Management.
[FR Doc. 2023-11382 Filed 5-26-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6116-01-P