Local Research, Global Governance: A Challenge for Institutional Design

Abstract

This article explores generic issue in the context of specific case, that of the Global Development Network (GDN). The issue is this: How can global, centralized organization help build the capacity of local, independent institutions and individuals throughout the developing world without imposing an externally driven agenda or indeed stifling the indigenous initiative it is supposed to promote? Perhaps the best illustration of this tension is the relationship between the World Bank or the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the countries whose development they are seeking to assist. These organizations attempt to build capacity and support home-grown strategies, but their efforts are often characterized as heavy-handed, top-down, and centrally driven. Any attempt by global organization to build local capacity must balance hand-holding and hands-off approach. The challenge is especially tricky in the case of GDN. The organization is supposed to empower researchers in the developing and transition countries to conduct independent research in the social sciences. The key word here is independent: good research must be both de facto independent and perceived to be independent. However, GDN is in the process of becoming formal international organization (like the World Bank) with an assembly composed of representatives of the member states as the ultimate authority. Can global organization of this kind build the capacity of local researchers without undermining their independence and originality? The answer offered here is yes. Three aspects of GDN's design support this conclusion: information, governance, and implementation. With regard to information, GDN routinely assesses the needs of its constituents and calls on them to assess the effectiveness of its programs. However, information is of little value if it is not translated into effective action. The second factor therefore is responsive management. In GDN's case, the key feature will be the division of responsibilities between the two major bodies in its governance structure: the Assembly and the Board of Directors. Finally, decisive action, no matter how well intentioned, can fail if it is not properly implemented. By relying on decentralized implementation of its activities and promoting cross-fertilization among peers, GDN increases the prospects of successfully building genuine and lasting local research capacity. While particular manifestations described here may be specific to GDN, the three factors--information, governance, and implementation--are surely critical to all efforts by international organizations to build capacity in developing countries. A Brief Overview GDN was formed in December 1999 to support and link research and policy institutes involved in the field of (1) According to its mission statement, GDN, a worldwide association of research and policy institutes, promotes the generation, sharing, and application to policy of multidisciplinary knowledge for the purpose of development. (2) Achieving these goals involves building policy-relevant research capacity in developing and transition economies in order to generate and sustain effective--and home-grown--socioeconomic policies. Capacity building, in other words, is at the core of GDN's mission. History Beginning its life as unit in the World Bank in late 1999, GDN quickly assumed an independent existence. As early as December 2000, the independent Board of Directors was instituted and charged with the overall management of GDN. While the World Bank retained one slot on the board, the other seventeen slots were filled by representatives of the research community from around the world. The organization also became independent legally and physically. In March 2001, it was incorporated as not-for-profit organization and relocated to 2600 Virginia Avenue in Washington, D.C., where the small secretariat operated for four years. …