Projects

Sapan is the Thai word for “bridge.” The name invokes the vision of bringing together people of various political, economic and cultural backgrounds. It is impartial as everybody can cross a bridge. Our Bangkok-based team is promoting cooperation between civil society and agencies of the Royal Thai Government to strengthen and formalize the role of community organizations, facilitate constructive public dialogue, and promote civic reconciliation. To do so, we have convened leaders, academics, and managers from all sides to design and guide the reform process, which includes bridging the divide between civil society, media, and government and, most importantly, pursuing ways to keep these groups in sustained creative interaction.

After a month of youth-led protests fueled by social and economic pressures, corruption, and political repression, the Tunisian president and several family members fled the country in January 2011, ushering in a wave of political excitement and uncertainty. Steps were taken toward building a more participatory democracy, but a sense of marginalization pervades the regions outside the capital, Tunis. Citizens across many backgrounds feel ignored by decision makers despite their efforts to be heard through existing political channels. Accordingly, momentum is building to develop a more robust civil society across Tunisia.

The Albertine Rift is a vital region for global conservation, harboring more species of vertebrates than any other region on the African continent. It shelters more than half of continental Africa’s bird species and nearly 40 percent of its mammal species. However, high population density, inadequate economic opportunities, and weak natural resources governance threaten biodiversity by causing deforestation, unsustainable forest management, and habitat loss.

UkrSibbank received a €50 million credit line from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in 2008, but had difficulty disbursing funds in the wake of the global financial crisis and its impact on the Ukrainian economy. The free-falling Ukrainian currency, the hryvnia, and dwindling trust in a government paralyzed by infighting led to a frenzied rush in autumn 2008 to withdraw deposits.

DAI was contracted to provide An Binh Commercial Joint Stock Bank (ABB) with a client-driven small and medium enterprise (SME) banking strategy, with a clear objective to become a leading bank serving SMEs in Vietnam. DAI was also contracted to develop an SME marketing plan geared to clearly identify client segments and target market niches, based upon a thorough understanding of the complete banking needs of the targeted clients of ABB.

In December 2001, the governments of the United States and Vietnam signed a historic bilateral free trade agreement that promised to strengthen economic and political ties between the two countries. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded STAR (2001–2006)—the first major USAID technical assistance project in economic growth implemented in Vietnam since 1975—supported the Government of Vietnam in implementing the U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) and began reforms needed for accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), which the country achieved in 2007. Two follow-on projects, implemented by DAI, have deepened that work.