EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: "The Thailand Burma Border Consortium (TBBC) has been working with refugees from Burma for 25 years this year, a cause more for sadness than celebration, but also a triumph for hope and perseverance. 25 years has been a long time for TBBC to maintain interest and support, and a long time to test the patience and goodwill of Thailand, the reluctant host. But it has been an eternity for the refugees who have lost their homes and loved ones, continue to live in exile and yearn to go home. The Thailand-Burma border is at the same time beautiful and exotic, dangerous and tragic but, to most of the world, still largely unknown. The 25th anniversary would probably even have gone un-noticed were it not for TBBC?s archives and so to mark this moment in history for posterity TBBC is publishing a border ?Scrapbook” in which refugees, exiles, aid workers, journalists, and diplomats; anyone who has lived, worked or visited the border over the last 25 years; will share their memories and experiences to help paint the amazing tapestry that is the Thailand Burma border: A permanent record that will hopefully be looked back on before too long as a fading memory. The TBBC story is well documented in six-month reports going right back to the early days and this latest report describes the programme during the first half of 2009, presenting a preliminary budget of baht 1,213 million (USD 36 million or EUR 26 million) for 20101... Refugee situation: After 25 years there is still no end in sight to the refugee situation. For 25 years the Burmese Army has gradually overrun ethnic territory displacing more than a million people from their homes. It has brought terror to the people as villages have been destroyed or relocated, land confiscated, roads driven through, military bases established and the natural resources exploited. This is vast and remote territory and the Burmese Army has yet to take total control, but during these last few months it appears that another concerted effort has perhaps begun. In the run-up to Burma?s promised General Election in 2010, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) is attempting to convert the ethnic cease-fire armies into Border Guard Forces (BGFs) under Burmese Army command. Most are opposed to the idea but some, including the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) are cooperating and helping SPDC launch a renewed offensive against the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA). Since early June at least 4,000 new refugees have crossed the border into Tak Province. These latest arrivals still hope to go home and are being supported on a temporary basis. They are not included in TBBC?s current feeding figure of 134,000. Neither are the majority of the large numbers of new arrivals into the Tak camps since the end of 2007 who are still being verified. It is estimated that currently around 17,000 unregistered people are not receiving rations. The good news is that the long anticipated pilot pre-screening process undertaken by the Royal Thai Government (RTG) to ?screen out” those ?without a manifestly just claim to asylum” is now well underway. It is possible that by early next year the entire unregistered population will have been screened. This will make the ongoing determination of feeding figures much more straightforward. It will also probably result in an increase in TBBC?s feeding figures. For budgeting purposes TBBC is assuming that about two-thirds of the unregistered will be ?screened in” which is the main reason why the 2010 preliminary budget is around 5% higher than in 2009. Although resettlement to third countries continues, with about 17,000 expected to leave this year and around 15,000 projected for 2010, these will be outnumbered by the unregistered ?screened in”, together with new arrivals and new births. After another full year of resettlement, the feeding figure at the end of 2010 is projected to be 138,000 people... Funding situation: After experiencing repeated funding shortages over the last few years it is a relief to report that TBBC is currently expecting to more or less break even in 2009. Revised projected expenditures of baht 1,153 million (USD 34 million or EUR 25 million) are expected to be nearly covered by grants thanks to fairly stable prices and exchange rates, and a generous response from TBBC?s Donors. The situation for next year is less certain however. At this stage TBBC has only two committed grants for 2010 and much work needs to be done before the Donors Meeting in November if the preliminary budget of baht 1,213 million (USD 36 million or EUR 26 million) is to be achieved. The budget is very sensitive to commodity prices, exchanges rates and feeding figures. A combination of increases or decreases of 20%, 10% and 10% in these variables respectively, would increase/ decrease funding needs by EUR 7.6 million or USD 10.8 million... Strategic planning: The main reason why it has been difficult to raise enough funds during the last few years is the fact that the situation has gone on for so long with little prospects for change and, in spite of the large third country resettlement programme, refugee numbers have not gone down. There has been a growing realisation that the current model of encampment, with refugees almost entirely aid-dependent, is neither desirable nor sustainable. Recent reports have documented advocacy with the RTG to allow refugees to be more self-reliant through improved skills training and education and by promoting income generation/ employment opportunities. Donors would like to see a clear medium term plan to this effect and have requested an all-stakeholders Workshop with the RTG to develop a shared strategy. The reality is that there are already embryonic programme activities attempting to challenge the status quo and during this period the Committee for Coordination of Services to Displaced Persons in Thailand (CCSDPT) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have begun drafting a five year Strategic Plan in which all service sectors share the common objectives of helping refugees become more self-reliant and, where possible, incorporating refugee services within the Thai system. Such a strategy will need commitment by all parties, and the necessary allocation of resources. TBBC has reoriented its own Strategic Plan for the next five years looking wherever possible to encourage refugee self-reliance. It represents a fundamental philosophical shift for the organisation from one of strengthening and sustaining services whilst waiting for change, to re-orientating all activities to promote change and durable solutions... TBBC programme: Promoting change has huge implications for TBBC?s human resources. In addition to the on-going challenge of meeting increasing Donor demands for monitoring and accountability, TBBC needs additional resources for research and the development of new activities. Several consultancies have already been undertaken this year, or are about to start, which will help guide the process. A study of TBBC?s building supplies has not only recommended many ways the programme can be improved, but also the potential for new livelihood opportunities in the shelter sector. Another consultancy funded by ECHO will look at current economic coping strategies in the camps to explore ways of expanding these and possible ways of more accurately targeting assistance. During this period TBBC has been recruiting new staff to help manage and monitor the ?supply chain”, to expand its food security programme, develop livelihoods opportunities, and to build the capacity of refugee community organisations to take an increasing role in camp management. To deal with the management challenges of all these developments, TBBC will host a Data Management consultancy to review and improve the way TBBC manages its