[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3196 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3196

 To defend economic livelihoods and threatened animals in the greater 
             Okavango River Basin, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 11, 2018

Mr. Portman (for himself, Mr. Udall, Mr. Coons, Mr. Whitehouse, and Mr. 
Burr) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 
                 to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To defend economic livelihoods and threatened animals in the greater 
             Okavango River Basin, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Defending Economic Livelihoods and 
Threatened Animals Act'' or the ``DELTA Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
        Development.
            (2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                Representatives.
            (3) Kavango zambezi transfrontier conservation area.--The 
        ``Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area'', (in this 
        Act referred to as ``KAZA'') is the world's largest 
        transboundary conservation area and was established by treaty 
        by the five partner states of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, 
        Zambia, and Zimbabwe for the primary purpose of harmonizing 
        policies, strategies, and practices for managing shared natural 
        resources across international borders and deriving equitable 
        socio-economic benefits through the sustainable use and 
        development of their natural and cultural heritage resources, 
        including wildlife.
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of State.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The greater Okavango River Basin, which ranges from the 
        highland plateau of Angola to northeastern Namibia and northern 
        Botswana, is the largest freshwater watershed in southern 
        Africa.
            (2) The greater Okavango River Basin is home to over 
        1,000,000 people and is critical to the survival of several 
        species of the world's most endangered large mammals, including 
        serving as a core habitat for the world's largest elephant 
        population.
            (3) Poaching and trafficking of threatened wildlife species 
        in the greater Okavango River Basin and adjacent areas within 
        KAZA have increased in recent years.
            (4) Governments in the region have taken important steps to 
        coordinate through existing conservation frameworks to combat 
        wildlife trafficking, ensure responsible resource management, 
        support local livelihoods, and protect threatened wildlife 
        species.

SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that it is in the interest of the 
United States to engage, as appropriate, with the Governments of 
Angola, Botswana, Namibia, and neighboring countries, and in 
partnership with donors, regional organizations, nongovernmental 
organizations, local communities, and the private sector, to advance 
conservation efforts and promote economic growth and stability in the 
greater Okavango River Basin and neighboring watersheds and 
conservation areas.

SEC. 5. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    It is the policy of the United States to promote inclusive economic 
growth through conservation and biodiversity programs that facilitate 
transboundary cooperation, improve water and natural resource 
management, and build local capacity to protect and preserve threatened 
wildlife species in the greater Okavango River Basin and neighboring 
watersheds and conservation areas within KAZA.

SEC. 6. STRATEGY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary and the Administrator, in 
coordination with the heads of other relevant Federal agencies, shall 
seek, as appropriate, to work with the Governments of Angola, Botswana, 
Namibia, and neighboring countries, and in partnership with donors, 
regional organizations, nongovernmental organizations, local 
communities, and the private sector, to develop a strategy to--
            (1) create and advance a cooperative framework to promote 
        sustainable natural resource, water, protected area management 
        and wildlife management practices in the greater Okavango River 
        Basin;
            (2) protect traditional migration routes of elephants and 
        other threatened wildlife species;
            (3) combat wildlife poaching and trafficking;
            (4) address human health and development needs of local 
        communities; and
            (5) catalyze economic growth in such countries and across 
        the broader region.
    (b) Elements.--The strategy established pursuant to subsection (a) 
shall--
            (1) promote cooperative and sustainable water, natural 
        resource, protected area management, and wildlife management 
        policies and practices within and among the countries of 
        Angola, Botswana, and Namibia, with a particular focus on the 
        greater Okavango River Basin and the critical headwaters 
        located in Angola;
            (2) protect and restore wildlife habitats and traditional 
        migratory patterns of elephants and other threatened species;
            (3) combat wildlife poaching and trafficking in Angola, 
        Botswana, Namibia, and adjacent areas within KAZA, including 
        within regional and national parks and reserves, by building 
        the capacity of the governments of such countries, local law 
        enforcement, community leaders, and park rangers to detect, 
        disrupt, and prosecute poachers and traffickers;
            (4) identify opportunities and mechanisms to leverage 
        regional organizations, nongovernmental organizations, and 
        public-private partnerships to contribute to support the 
        implementation of the strategy;
            (5) establish monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, 
        including measurable goals, objectives, and benchmarks of 
        success, that are included in grants, contracts, and 
        cooperative agreements to ensure the effective use of United 
        States foreign assistance; and
            (6) coordinate with and build the capacity of regional 
        conservation frameworks in order to advance regional 
        conservation objectives.

SEC. 7. UNITED STATES SUPPORT.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary and the Administrator, in 
coordination with the heads of other relevant Federal agencies, are 
authorized to prioritize and advance ongoing efforts to--
            (1) promote inclusive economic growth and development 
        through responsible water and natural resource management, 
        protected area management, and wildlife protection activities 
        in the greater Okavango River Basin and KAZA;
            (2) provide technical assistance to governments and local 
        communities in Angola, Botswana, and Namibia and neighboring 
        countries to create a policy-enabling environment for such 
        responsible water and natural resource management, protected 
        area management, and wildlife protection activities; and
            (3) build the capacity of local law enforcement, park 
        rangers, and community leaders to combat wildlife poaching and 
        trafficking.
    (b) Coordination and Integration With Regional Conservation 
Frameworks.--The Secretary and the Administrator, in coordination with 
the heads of other relevant Federal agencies, shall coordinate 
assistance provided by the Department of State, the United States 
Agency for International Development, and other relevant Federal 
agencies with existing regional conservation frameworks in order to 
ensure regional integration of conservation, wildlife trafficking, and 
water management initiatives, to prevent duplication of efforts, and to 
advance regional conservation objectives.
    (c) Coordination With Private Sector.--The Secretary and the 
Administrator, in coordination with the heads of other relevant Federal 
agencies, are authorized to work with the private sector and 
nongovernmental organizations to leverage public and private capital to 
promote sustainable resource management, combat wildlife poaching and 
trafficking, and support inclusive economic growth and local 
livelihoods in the greater Okavango River Basin and KAZA.
    (d) Monitoring and Evaluation.--The Secretary and the Administrator 
shall establish monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, including 
measurable goals, objectives, and benchmarks, to ensure the effective 
use of United States foreign assistance to achieve the objectives of 
this section.

SEC. 8. REPORT.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 3 years after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary and the Administrator, in 
coordination with the heads of other relevant Federal agencies, shall 
submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the 
implementation of this Act.
    (b) Matters To Be Included.--The report required under subsection 
(a) shall include a description of the strategy required under section 
6, including--
            (1) the monitoring and evaluation plans and indicators used 
        to measure performance under the strategy;
            (2) any legislative impediments to meeting the objectives 
        of such strategy;
            (3) the extent to which the Governments of Angola, 
        Botswana, Namibia, and neighboring countries have demonstrated 
        a commitment and willingness to cooperate to advance efforts 
        described in section 6(b);
            (4) progress made to date in meeting the objectives of such 
        strategy;
            (5) efforts to coordinate, deconflict, and streamline 
        conservation programs in order to maximize resource 
        effectiveness;
            (6) the extent to which the Governments of Angola, 
        Botswana, and Namibia and other governments in the region are 
        investing resources to advance conservation initiatives; and
            (7) the extent to which other funding sources, including 
        through private sector investment and other investment by the 
        Governments of Angola, Botswana, and Namibia and neighboring 
        countries have been identified to advance conservation 
        initiatives.
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