POINT FOURR PROGRAM


   2. Chiefs of Mission    (ECA) would report directly to ECA
 Administrator.
   a. Missions would be expected to coordinate with Embassy but
 would not be responsible to it.
   b6 It is not clear why ECA should extend this pattern to South
 East Asia where the program     is relatively small compared to its
 European operations.
   3. Coordinating Committee in Washington to include:
     State, Chr.
     ECA
     Defense
   a. This leaves out all other civilian agencies.
   The authorizing legislation leaves to the President the decision
 as to where the responsibility shall be lodged, and how it shall be
 operated.
   1. It has been assumed that the President will place the responsi-
 bility in State for planning, control, and general supervision, and that
 the Federal Agencies will do the operating.
   2. Presumably State could designate ECA in those areas in which
 ECA is authorized to operate.
   3. It is believed that such a decision will cause trouble with the
 other agencies, since ECA operates directly and not through the
 agencies. The importance of this should not be overlooked.
   4. ECA operations are identified with the cold war, and if ECA
operates part of the Point Four program, the latter will certainly tend
to lose its identity in the minds of the receiving countries. Mr. Hayes 2
reports that countries have been sold on the Point Four program as
a program for the people, and that this is a psychological factor of
significance.
  5. Technical assistance under Point Four has a very broad base
which 'includes health, social welfare and education, and an emphasis
which differs from other foreign aid programs. Both this broad base
and this emphasis will be difficult to maintain when technical assist-
ance becomes merged with the ECA program in which the straight
technical assistance method of operation will have a low priority. In
this connection it is essential to know whether it is contemplated that
ECA will continue to be the operating agency for foreign aid programs
in areas other than Europe at the close of ERP in 1952.
  Samuel P. Hayes, Jr., Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary for
Eco-
nomic Affairs. Hayes was a member of the Griffin Mission.


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