,,ii #aaeth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #ccfh ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,august #bb1 #bjah ,mr4 ,coons 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,rubio1 ,mr4 ,merkley1 ,mr4 ,young1 and ,mr4 ,graham7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations ,a ,,bill ,to reduce global fragility and violence by improving the capacity of the ,united ,states to reduce and address the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,global ,fragility and ,violence ,reduction ,act of #bjah4 #b4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,according to the ,united ,nations1 an unprecedented #fh1ejj1jjj people around the world are currently forcibly displaced from their homes4 ,this is the highest level of global displacement ever recorded4 7#b7 ,according to the ,world ,bank1 violence and violent conflict1 rather than natural disasters1 are now the leading causes of displacement worldwide1 driving #hj percent of humanitarian needs4 ,the ,bank also notes that the same conflicts have accounted for the majority of forcibly displaced persons every year since #aiia4 7#c7 ,according to the ,world ,health ,organization1 preventable forms of violence kill at least #a1djj1jjj people each year and cause debilitating physical and mental harm to many others4 7#d7 ,according to the ,global ,peace ,index #bjah1 published by the ,institute for ,economics and ,peace1 violence containment costs the global economy #ad1gfj1jjj1jjj1jjj a year1 or #ab4d percent of the world's ,gross ,domestic ,product 7,,gdp74 ,the ,index also states1 ,over the last decade1 countries with the largest improvements in peace recorded seven times higher per capita ,,gdp growth than those that deteriorated the most4 7#e7 ,violence and violent conflict underpin many of the ,united ,states ,government's key national security challenges4 ,notably1 violent conflicts allow for environments in which terrorist organizations recruit and thrive1 while the combination of violence1 corruption1 poverty1 poor governance1 and underdevelopment often enable transnational gangs and criminal networks to wreak havoc and commit atrocities worldwide4 7#f7 ,according to new research by the ,university of ,maryland and the ,university of ,pittsburgh1 exposure to violence increases support for violence and violent extremism4 ,research increasingly finds exposure to violence as a predictor of future participation in violence1 including violent extremism4 7#g7 ,since #bjjb1 a body of research has emerged on failed or fragile states4 ,the ,world ,bank defines a fragile state as a low-income country characterized by weak state capacity or weak state legitimacy1 leaving citizens vulnerable to a range of shocks4 7#h7 ,united ,states foreign policy and assistance efforts in highly violent and fragile states remain governed by an outdated patchwork of authorities that prioritize responding to immediate needs rather than solving the underlying problems that cause them4 ,united ,states ambassadors1 ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development mission directors1 and ,department of ,defense combatant commanders do not have the policy framework or tools they need to direct ,united ,states policy or assistance towards a long-term1 overarching strategy with the end goal of reduced fragility and violence in fragile and violence-affected states4 7#i7 ,lessons learned over the past #bj years1 documented by the #bjac ,special ,inspector ,general for ,iraq ,reconstruction ,lessons ,learned ,study1 the #bjaf ,fragility ,study ,group ,report1 and the #bjah ,special ,inspector ,general for ,afghanistan ,lessons ,learned ,study on ,stabilization show that effective1 sustained ,united ,states efforts to reduce violence and stabilize fragile and violence-affected states require clearly defined goals and strategies1 adequate long-term funding1 rigorous and iterative conflict analysis1 coordination across the ,united ,states ,government1 including strong civil-military coordination1 and integration with national and subnational partners1 including local civil society organizations1 local justice systems1 and local governance structures4 7#aj7 ,the ,stabilization ,assistance ,review3 ,a ,framework for ,maximizing the ,effectiveness of ,u4,s4 ,government ,efforts to ,stabilize ,conflict-,affected ,areas states1 ,the ,united ,states has strong national security and economic interests in reducing levels of violence and promoting stability in areas affected by armed conflict1 especially to consolidate security gains against ,,isis and other non-state armed groups4 ,the ,review further states1 ,stabilization is an inherently political endeavor that requires aligning ,u4,s4 ,government efforts--diplomatic engagement1 foreign assistance1 and defense--toward supporting locally legitimate authorities and systems to peaceably manage conflict and prevent violence4 7#aa7 ,united ,states ,national ,security ,strategies over the past #ae years have regularly affirmed that the ,united ,states has a national security interest in improving its capacity to prevent1 manage1 and mitigate violence and violent conflicts in order to mitigate the consequences of armed conflict1 including humanitarian disasters1 terrorism1 organized crime1 increased risk of mass atrocities1 and reversed development4 7#ab7 ,according to the ,small ,arms ,survey1 the extent to which the international community will be able to bring down global levels of violence will depend largely on the actions taken by states to achieve the ,sustainable ,development ,goals1 which will require more tangible commitments to improve governance1 promote inclusive development1 and protect human rights1 among other things4 #c4 ,statement of policy ,it shall be the policy of the ,united ,states-- 7#a7 to ensure that all relevant ,united ,states ,government departments and agencies coordinate to achieve coherent1 long-term goals for programs designed to reduce and address the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility in fragile and violence-affected states1 including when implementing the ,global ,fragility and ,violence ,reduction ,initiative developed under section #d2 7#b7 to improve the global1 regional1 and local coordination of relevant international and multilateral development and donor organizations on efforts to reduce and address the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility in fragile and violence-affected states2 7#c7 to increase support for foreign assistance programs and activities that reduce and address the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility1 including programs intended to improve the indicators described in section #d7;f72 7#d7 to increase ,united ,states support for the research and development of effective approaches to reduce and address the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility2 and 7#e7 to improve the monitoring1 evaluation1 learning1 and adaptation tools and authorities for relevant ,united ,states ,government departments and agencies working to reduce and address the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility4 #d4 ,global ,initiative to ,reduce ,global ,fragility and ,violence 7a7 ,initiative ,not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary of ,state and ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 in coordination with the ,secretary of ,defense and the heads of other relevant ,federal departments and agencies1 shall develop and submit to the appropriate congressional committees a #aj-year interagency initiative to be referred to as the ,global ,initiative to ,reduce ,fragility and ,violence1 relating to reducing and addressing the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility in no less than six priority countries4 7b7 ,agency and department roles and responsibilities ,with respect to the ,global ,initiative to ,reduce ,fragility and ,violence required under subsection 7a7-- 7#a7 the ,department of ,state shall be the overall lead for establishing ,united ,states foreign policy and advancing diplomatic and political efforts2 7#b7 the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development shall be the lead implementing agency for non-security programs2 7#c7 the ,department of ,defense shall support the activities of the ,department of ,state and the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development as appropriate1 including by providing requisite security and reinforcing civilian efforts with the concurrence of the ,secretary of ,state and ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development2 and 7#d7 other ,federal agencies and departments shall support the activities of the ,department of ,state and ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development as appropriate1 with the concurrence of the ,secretary of ,state and the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development4 7c7 ,initiative elements ,the initiative required under subsection 7a7 shall include #aj-year plans of action for ,united ,states ,government activities in each of the priority countries designated pursuant to subsection 7c71 including development1 security1 and other assistance activities that are relevant to reducing and addressing the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility1 including the following activities3 7#a7 ,interagency plans for implementation that include processes for coordination among and within relevant ,federal departments and agencies4 7#b7 ,interagency assessments of the risk factors for violence1 instability1 and fragility1 as well as sources of resilience4 7#c7 ,interagency plans to ensure country ownership and the inclusion of appropriate local actors1 including governance and civil society entities and organizations led by women1 youth1 and underrepresented communities1 in developing1 implementing1 monitoring1 evaluating1 and updating relevant aspects of each priority country plan4 7#d7 ,clear1 transparent1 and measurable political1 diplomatic1 security1 and developmental benchmarks1 timetables1 and performance metrics for each priority country1 with a focus on outcome metrics1 including metrics that capture grievances and patterns that cause violence and1 where applicable1 align with best practice indicators determined by ,sustainable ,development ,goal #af and the ,,oecd ,development ,assistance ,committee's ,fragility ,framework4 7#e7 ,interagency plans for monitoring and evaluation1 adaptive management1 and iterative learning that provide for regular and iterative policy and program adaptations based on monitoring and evaluation findings and other evidence generated in each priority country and across priority countries4 7#f7 ,descriptions of the available policy tools to reduce and address the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility in each priority country4 7#g7 ,descriptions of the resources and authorities that would be required for each relevant ,federal department and agency to best implement each priority country plan1 as well as evidence-based iterative updates to the plans4 7#h7 ,descriptions of potential areas of improved partnership between the ,united ,states ,government and recipient countries1 international development organizations1 relevant international donors1 multilateral organizations1 and the private sector on efforts to reduce and address the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility in each priority country4 7#i7 ,descriptions of potential areas of improved public and private sector research and development1 including from academic1 philanthropic1 and civil society organizations1 on more effective approaches to reducing and addressing the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility in fragile and violence-affected states4 7d7 ,priority country designation ,the ,secretary of ,state and the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 in coordination with the ,secretary of ,defense1 shall carry out the following actions3 7#a7 ,develop the list of candidate countries under consideration for the initiative required under this section on the basis of specified criteria1 including the following3 7,a7 ,current levels of violence1 instability1 and fragility1 as determined by empirical data1 such as the following1 to the extent such data are available3 7i7 ,total levels of deaths due to violence and violence-related deaths per #ajj1jjj population in the candidate country under consideration4 7ii7 ,total levels of violent injuries or violence exposure levels and violent injuries or violence exposure levels per #ajj1jjj population in such country4 7iii7 ,levels of persons forcibly displaced1 whether internally or internationally1 due to violence or violent conflict in such country4 7iv7 ,total levels of gender-based violence and violence against children and youth in such country4 7v7 ,prevalence of physical or sexual violence in the last #ab months in such country4 7vi7 ,levels of mortality due to armed group violence in such country4 7vii7 ,levels of citizen support for armed groups in such country4 7viii7 ,the country's ranking on select global fragility lists and select good governance indexes4 7ix7 ,the country's ranking on select ,united ,states ,government conflict and atrocity early warning watch lists4 7x7 ,the country's vulnerability to current or future transnational threats4 7,b7 ,an assessment of the potential for ,united ,states ,government activities to reduce and address the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility in each candidate country under consideration1 including the willingness and capability of relevant entities within each such country to participate in the ,global ,initiative to ,reduce ,fragility and ,violence4 7#b7 ,organize the candidate countries under consideration into the categories of ,core ,country and ,prevention ,country1 such that-- 7,a7 a candidate country shall be a ,core ,country for purposes of country selection where current levels of violence1 instability1 and fragility are highest in the world1 as determined by the data specified in paragraph 7#a72 and 7,b7 a candidate country shall be a ,prevention ,country for purposes of country selection where current levels of violence1 instability1 and fragility are lower1 as determined by the data specified in paragraph 7#a71 but warning signs for future violence1 instability1 and fragility are significant and strategic prevention efforts are likely to make a meaningful difference in mitigating or preventing future violence1 instability1 and fragility4 7#c7 ,designate1 on the basis of the criteria specified in paragraph 7#a71 not less than six priority countries1 organized with not fewer than three countries in each of the ,core and ,prevention categories described in paragraph 7#b7 and not more than three countries in each geographic region1 as defined by the ,department of ,state4 7#d7 ,consider1 when making designations pursuant to paragraph 7#c71 designating multiple countries in the same region if the drivers of violence1 instability1 and fragility are transnational in that region4 7e7 ,stakeholder consultation ,in addition to the individuals specified in subsection 7a71 the initiative required under this section shall be developed in coordination with-- 7#a7 the ,united ,states ,ambassador1 the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development ,mission ,director1 the relevant ,department of ,defense ,combatant ,commander1 and relevant interagency country teams in each applicable country2 and 7#b7 representatives of local civil society1 national and local governance entities1 international development organizations1 relevant international donors1 multilateral organizations1 and relevant private1 academic1 and philanthropic entities1 as appropriate4 7f7 ,congressional consultation ,the ,secretary of ,state1 the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 and the ,secretary of ,defense 7or their respective designees71 shall provide briefings to the appropriate congressional committees not later than-- 7#a7 #de days after the date of the enactment of this ,act regarding the countries selected as priority countries for the initiative required under this section2 7#b7 #ij days after such date of enactment regarding progress on the individual priority country plans for the initiative2 and 7#c7 #cj days after submission of the initiative regarding the implementation plans for the initiative4 7g7 ,measuring violence1 instability1 and fragility ,for the purposes of implementing1 monitoring1 and evaluating the effectiveness of the individual country plans required under subsection 7a71 progress towards reducing and addressing the causes of violence1 instability1 and fragility shall be measured by indicators established for each priority country by relevant interagency country teams1 through consultations with the stakeholders specified in paragraphs 7#a7 and 7#b7 of subsection 7d74 ,the indicators shall be based on the data described in subsection 7c77#a77;,a71 as appropriate1 and updated regularly to account for any improvements in the available indicators and to include indicators for additional priority areas1 such as-- 7#a7 improving inclusive1 transparent1 and accountable power structures1 including effective1 legitimate1 and resilient national and subnational institutions2 7#b7 improving effective and respected conflict prevention1 mitigation1 management1 and resolution mechanisms2 7#c7 reducing levels of citizen support for violent extremism and adversarial armed groups2 7#d7 ensuring strong foundations for political and economic inclusion1 reconciliation1 and other measures of democracy and governance1 including plurality1 nondiscrimination1 human rights1 rule of law1 and equal access to justice2 7#e7 addressing political1 social1 economic1 and environmental vulnerabilities1 grievances1 and conflicts2 7#f7 ensuring inclusive economic development and sound business environments2 and 7#g7 improving resilience to transnational stresses and shocks1 including from organized crime and violent extremist organizations4 #e4 ,implementation and updates of priority country plans ,the ,secretary of ,state1 the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 the ,secretary of ,defense1 and the heads of other relevant ,federal agencies and departments1 along with relevant ,united ,states ,ambassadors1 ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development ,mission ,directors1 ,department of ,defense ,combatant ,commanders1 and other relevant individuals with responsibility over activities in each priority country designated pursuant to section #d shall ensure that-- 7#a7 the ,global ,initiative to ,reduce ,fragility and ,violence and individual priority country plans required under section #d are implemented in each priority country designated pursuant to such section2 7#b7 the initiative and individual priority country plans are used to guide ,united ,states policy at a senior level and incorporated into relevant strategies and plans across the ,united ,states ,government and in each priority country2 7#c7 resources for all relevant activities in each priority country are requested and utilized consistent with the initiative and individual priority country plans2 and 7#d7 the results of program monitoring and evaluation under the initiative and individual priority country plans are regularly reviewed and utilized to determine continuation1 modification1 or termination of future year programming1 and regular and iterative policy and program adaptations are made to each plan4 #f4 ,biennial reports and congressional consultation 7a7 ,biennial reports 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than two years after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 and every two years thereafter until full implementation of the #aj-year individual country plans required under section #d1 the ,secretary of ,state1 the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 the ,secretary of ,defense1 and the heads of other relevant ,federal agencies and departments shall jointly submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on progress made and lessons learned with respect to the ,global ,initiative to ,reduce ,fragility and ,violence and each individual country plan required under section #d4 7#b7 ,elements ,the report required under paragraph 7#a7 shall include the following elements3 7,a7 ,descriptions of steps taken to incorporate the initiative and individual country plans into relevant strategies and plans4 7,b7 ,detailed accountings of all funding received and obligated to implement each individual country plan during the past two years1 as well as funding requested1 planned1 and projected for the following two years4 7,c7 ,descriptions of progress made towards the goals and objectives established for each individual country1 including progress towards achieving the specific targets1 metrics1 and indicators described in section #d4 7,d7 ,descriptions of changes made to programs based on the results of monitoring and evaluation in accordance with sections #d and #e4 7b7 ,congressional consultation ,the ,secretary of ,state1 the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 the ,secretary of ,defense1 and the heads of other relevant ,federal agencies and departments 7or their respective designees7 shall jointly consult with the appropriate congressional committees not less often than annually regarding progress made on the initiative and individual priority country plans required under section #d4 ,the consultation requirement under this subsection shall terminate upon full implementation of the #aj-year individual priority country plans required under such section4 #g4 ,assistance for the ,global ,initiative to ,reduce ,fragility and ,violence 7a7 ,in general ,notwithstanding any other provision of law1 including minimum funding requirements for funding directives1 funds made available in any prior or future ,act making appropriations for the ,department of ,state1 foreign operations1 and related programs for priority countries designated under this ,act may be made available to support the ,global ,initiative to ,reduce ,fragility and ,violence and individual priority country plans described in this ,act4 7b7 ,consultation and notification ,any exercise of the authority under subsection 7a7 shall be subject to prior consultation with1 and the regular notification procedures of1 the appropriate congressional committees4 #h4 ,,gao review 7a7 ,in general ,not later than #e years after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,comptroller ,general of the ,united ,states shall conduct an independent review of all ,united ,states assistance activities in each priority country designated pursuant to section #d4 7b7 ,matters ,to be included ,the review required under subsection 7a7 shall include-- 7#a7 an assessment of the extent to which ,united ,states ,government activities in each priority country designated pursuant to section #d are being implemented in accordance with the relevant individual country plan required under such section2 7#b7 descriptions of the ,united ,states ,government assistance activities that are being implemented in accordance with each individual priority country plan1 including the role of each relevant ,federal department or agency in each activity1 the entities responsible for implementing each activity1 and the funding level for each activity2 7#c7 assessments of the processes and procedures for coordinating among and within each relevant ,united ,states ,government department and agency when implementing each individual priority country plan2 7#d7 assessments of the monitoring and evaluation efforts under each individual priority country plan1 including assessments of the progress made and lessons learned with respect to each such plan1 as well as any changes made to activities based on the results of such monitoring and evaluation2 and 7#e7 recommendations for changes necessary to better implement ,united ,states ,government assistance activities in accordance with individual priority country plans1 as well as recommendations for any changes to such plans4 #i4 ,appropriate congressional committees defined ,in this ,act1 the term appropriate congressional committees means-- 7#a7 the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations1 the ,committee on ,armed ,services1 and the ,committee on ,appropriations of the ,senate2 and 7#b7 the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs1 the ,committee on ,armed ,services1 and the ,committee on ,appropriations of the ,house of ,representatives4