[EQ] From Paris to Accra - Will Aid Become Effective Now?

From Paris to Accra - Will Aid Become Effective Now?

Development Outreach, February 2009
Development OUTREACH is a flagship magazine in the field of global knowledge for development

After Accra: Delivering on the Agenda for Action

Website: http://www1.worldbank.org/devoutreach/index.html

“……..Just after last September’s High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Accra, the Economist offered the stark assessment that, “the development aid business is a shambles.” Aid managers themselves, in both recipient and donor countries, agree that too many agencies finance too many projects, following different systems of accounting and multiple objectives, in uncoordinated efforts that often overtax developing-country ministries, which are already struggling with meagre resources, skills gaps and governance weaknesses. The outcome is that sought-after “development results”—often not clearly-defined at the outset—are disappointing to all concerned, deepening the scepticism that already surrounds development aid.

In Accra, donors and developing countries hammered out an agenda for action that aims to change this. They promised to “take bold steps to reform the way aid is given and spent,” focusing on country ownership of programs, more effective partnerships, achieving results and openly accounting for them.

So what are the prospects for these “bold steps”? In this issue of Development Outreach, we asked experts from diverse perspectives to consider specific examples of how issues raised in the Accra Agenda have surfaced in their experience. What is needed, we asked, for the Accra principles to become reality in practice?............”  Christopher Neal, Executive Editor

CONTENT:

After Accra: Delivering on the Agenda for Action
—Guest Editorial Jeffrey Gutman
What is needed to deliver on the Accra Agenda for Action (AAA), and what the international donors and the World Bank Group need to do.

 

Committing to Effective Aid: Why can't donors walk their talk? Eckhard Deutscher
Why has harmonization among donor-countries been elusive?
The article discusses attempts by the DAC of the OECD to get donors aligned and sustain the alignment.

 

The Struggle for Ownership of Assistance: Health and HIV/AIDS in Rwanda John Rwangombwa
Aid earmarking reflects donor priorities more than those of the recipient country.
Rwanda has sought to reform its health care system, while donor funding was focused on fighting HIV/AIDS.

 

AID REFORM: A TALE OF TWO DONORS

The U.S. and Germany each undertook a major effort to reform their respective development aid programs.
Their paths were different, but both programs incorporate principles present in the Accra Agenda for Action (AAA).
To what extent have these reform efforts succeeded?"

The Millennium Challenge Account: Making U.S. foreign assistance more effective?
Sheila Herrling and Steve Radelet

Germany Seeks Influence by Setting Example of Being a Multilateral Team Player on Aid Effectiveness
Hans Dembowski

 

Brazil as an Emerging Donor: Huge potential and growing pains   - Paulo Sotero
This article offers an examination of Brazil's experience as a new donor: its purposes, goals, and the effectiveness of its approach.

 

Partnering for Progress: A new approach to capacity development after Accra
Mark Nelson and Ajay Tejasvi
Much technical assistance aimed at building capacity has failed to deliver the results sought.
The article examines the causes and the possible solutions.

 

Aid Effectiveness and Governance: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly - Daniel Kaufmann
Good governance and political corruption should be considered when aid flows to governments.

 

Development Marketplace Helps Scale up Grassroots Innovation that Reduces Poverty
Elena Altieri and Christopher Neal
This article presents examples of grassroots aid projects and programs that deliver results, within the framework of the Development Marketplace.
It discusses the extent to which such community-based efforts can be replicated.

 

Promoting Aid Effectiveness from the Bottom Up with ICTs
Caroline Figuères, Denise Senmartin, Hilde Eugelink
The article offers examples of projects sponsored by IICD in Africa and Latin America that confirm the lasting impact of ICT on poverty alleviation.

 

Multi-Donor Trust Funds: Instruments of first choice for post-crisis situations?
Leonie Guder
MDTFs can enhance aid effectiveness by reducing transaction costs and by mitigating the high risk levels inherent in post-crisis situations.

 

 

 

 

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