This semiannual report informs Congress of the Peace Corps Office of Inspector General's work for April 1, 2019 through September 30, 2019.

The objectives of this performance audit were to assess the completeness, timeliness, quality, and accuracy of Fiscal Year 2019, First Quarter financial and award data submitted for publication on USAspending.gov in accordance with the DATA Act and to assess the Peace Corps’ compliance with use of the Government-wide financial data standards established by the Office of Management and Budget and the Department of the Treasury. While the Peace Corps’ FY 2019, Q1 DATA Act submission was of high quality, the agency lacks a comprehensive data quality plan outlining the risks and what mitigating controls it has in place to demonstrate that data submitted is of high quality.

These challenges illustrate the most significant areas the Office of Inspector General (OIG) believes need improvement for the Peace Corps to effectively manage its resources and minimize the potential for fraud, waste, and abuse occurring in its operations. Addressing the issues related to these challenge areas will enable the agency to increase operational efficiencies and improve mission effectiveness.

The Fiscal Years 2020 to 2022 OIG Strategic Plan includes the long-range goals and objectives designed to enhance OIG oversight in support of the Peace Corps and its three goals.

The Office of Inspector General's annual plan outlines the work planned for the year ahead, including agency wide audits or evaluations, mandated reviews, and which posts may receive audits or evaluations.

Inspector General Kathy A. Buller's statement before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Subcommittee on Government Operations, on September 18, 2019.

Our report contains 20 recommendations directed to the post and headquarters. We recommend that the post improve processes related to bills of collection and Volunteer payments and improve controls over property management, PSC contracts, purchase of medical supplies, and fuel and toll costs. Additionally, we recommend that the post comply with policies and guidance related to sub-cashier advances and system access roles.

Our report contains 12 recommendations directed to the post and headquarters. We recommend that the post reassess the country agreement. We also recommend that the post monitor and document the accountability-of-funds transfer to the alternate cashier, as well as liquidate interim advances and issue BOCs in a timely manner. In addition, we recommend that the post ensure the Volunteers’ pro-rated living allowance calculations are accurate and that lease agreements contain necessary information.

This evaluation issued nine recommendations to address findings in the areas of leadership, Volunteer health support, Volunteer safety and security support, training, and site management. Recommendations were directed to staff at the post with the exception of one recommendation that was directed to the regional director. We did not have any findings in the areas of Volunteer administrative support and programming.

The Peace Corps works in countries with histories of civil wars, ethnic clashes, cross-border conflicts, rebel incursions, foreign occupations, genocide, violent protests, and repressive dictatorships. These conflicts often have on-going impacts. This review evaluated the adequacy of Peace Corps guidance on new country entries and re-entries in conflict-affected environments. We found that the Peace Corps needed to more fully assess the conflict status of countries under consideration for opening, re-opening, or expanding a Peace Corps program. The agency should also address gaps in the current “New Country Assessment Guide” and the “New Country Entry Guide” to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the agency’s processes and procedures for opening posts in conflict-affected environments.

The objective of this limited scope follow-up review was to determine if the agreed upon corrective actions taken in response to four findings from the Final Report on the Program Evaluation of Peace Corps/Namibia issued in March 2013 were fully implemented and had the intended effects. We found that, overall, the post had improved with respect to three of the four areas selected for review, particularly in iterating on feedback and agency guidance where technical training was concerned. This follow-up included four recommendations, all with which the post concurred.

The objective of this limited scope follow up review was to determine if the agreed upon corrective actions taken in response to three findings from the Final Report on the Program Evaluation of Peace Corps/Nepal (IG-15-05-E) were fully implemented and had the intended effects. We found that, overall, Peace Corps/Nepal had improved regarding all three findings selected for review. We found 2 areas of concern related to the post's site selection criteria and whereabouts tracking. This report included 2 recommendations for management's consideration.

This evaluation had two objectives: (1) to describe the range of homestay models that Peace Corps posts were implementing and better understand their advantages and challenges; and (2) to assess the impact of homestay requirements on Volunteer safety, language acquisition, integration, and health. We found that the majority (63 percent) of Peace Corps posts implemented homestay requirements during service, though the number of months required varied. Evidence from this analysis does not support the assumption that better Volunteer outcomes will be achieved in all contexts. Given the costs of administering and potential risk associated with homestay programs, posts that transition to or increase homestay requirements should rigorously monitor safety and language outcomes.