Development Assistance Programs Research Articles

A Review on Scaling Up Successful Agricultural Extension Techniques for Global Benefit

Agricultural extension services are important for enhancing agricultural productivity, food security, and rural development. Examination of future and research needs highlights the significance of innovative approaches and emerging technologies, such as digital agriculture, precision farming, artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, and biotechnology, in transforming extension services. These technologies offer the potential to optimize resource use, increase yields, and improve supply chain transparency. Comprehensive impact assessments, including randomized controlled trials and mixed-methods approaches, are essential for evaluating the effectiveness of extension programs and understanding their long-term impacts on productivity, food security, and livelihoods. Supportive policy development and advocacy efforts are crucial for creating an enabling environment that promotes innovation, collaboration, and sustainable practices. This includes establishing regulatory frameworks, providing financial incentives, and integrating extension services into national development plans. Cross-disciplinary research and international collaboration are key to addressing the complex challenges facing agriculture, fostering the exchange of knowledge and best practices, and enhancing the capacity of national extension systems. Interdisciplinary research teams and systems thinking approaches can provide comprehensive solutions to agricultural challenges, while international research networks and development assistance programs can facilitate the transfer of appropriate technologies and practices. South-South cooperation offers additional opportunities for knowledge exchange and technology transfer between developing countries. By addressing these future directions and research needs, agricultural extension services can effectively contribute to sustainable agricultural development, improved livelihoods for farmers, and greater resilience to climate change. This approach will ensure that extension services remain responsive to the evolving challenges and opportunities in the agricultural sector, ultimately promoting global food security and economic growth.

4 - China in Africa with New Approach of Media Development

Mass media has not only changed the mode of information-sharing but has also changed the mode of policy, foreign policy-making and people-to- people contact in being used as a means of soft power. This paper focuses on Chinese investment in the media sector of African countries and explores what motivates China’s huge investments in the African media landscape. The study is descriptive, based on primary and secondary sources of literature. Methodologically, it uses qualitative research through content analysis of ‘soft power politics’ and ‘public diplomacy’ theories. China’s media development assistance in Africa is a manifestation of the Chinese strategy of soft power politics and the application of public diplomacy. This study claims that China’s media development assistance programme is helping Africa to develop its media infrastructure, techniques of broadcasting and cultural exchanges, which influence African public opinion and offer media content that is entirely different from Western-dominated media groups. In return, this helps China to promote a positive image and win the hearts and minds of people on the African continent.

국제개발협력 분야 경과적 일자리 근로자에 대한 사회적 지지가 직무소진에 미치는 영향 분석

The purpose of this study is to examine the influence on job burnout of KOICA Program Coordinators, one
 of transitional jobs generated by South Korea's Official Development Assistance(ODA) program. Transitional
 jobs, one of the direct job creation projects, are expected to have stepping-stone effects, facilitating the
 transition to better jobs with more work experience and capacity. However, there have been less interest and
 analysis on work condition and positive organizational behavior of transitional workers, especially in the field of
 international development cooperation, in spite of their contribution toward aid effectiveness and their potential
 as key human resources in the future. In this respect, this study analyzed the influence of perceived support
 from Coordinators' supervisor and organization on their job burnout, and how subfactors of
 self-determination--autonomy, competence, and relatedness-- moderate these effects. Specifically, the analysis
 used 86 valid responses from a survey conducted on Coordinators who worked for more than one year
 between 2011 and 2020, and a OLS Regression was performed. The findings indicate that percieved support
 from superiors has a direct and significant effect on alleviating job burnout, and all self-determination
 subfactors also have positive moderating effects that amplified this alleviation. These insights deepen the
 understanding of the work environment and burnout among workers in transitional positions, underscoring the
 significance of perceived supervisor support and self-determination factors in managing their job burnout. This
 study extends the research domain of organizational behavior toward transitional jobs in international
 development cooperation and offers implications for the necessary to establish organizational management
 strategy promoting their positive work experiences.

Composite Performance Index (CPI) Method For Determining Recipients of Community-Based Development (CBD) Assistance Programs At The Dawuan Sub-District Office

The eligibility of recipients of government assistance programs for rural communities is an essential problem in this study. The distribution of recipients of government assistance programs was found to be misdirected. Some rich people receive government assistance programs, but some poor people do not receive government assistance programs. One of the government assistance programs is Community Based Development (CBD), a community development activity directed at increasing community access to achieve better socioeconomic conditions than before development activities to become more independent with a better quality of life and welfare. Everyone wants this assistance program, but the eligibility level of recipients is a problem in distributing it. The research method used is Research and Development (R&D). To solve this problem, a decision support system must be created to assist the Dawuan District Office assess the beneficiaries' eligibility. The Composite Performance Index (CPI) method is needed to determine the provision of CBD assistance by using the criteria of income, housing conditions, education, and environment in the calculation. Each criterion's data from each alternative is weighted and summed to get the CPI value and used for ranking. Based on the results of system testing, the data from the calculation of the CPI method can be used as recommendations that follow the eligibility level of the beneficiaries. The most considerable CPI value is 285 on behalf of Mr. Sarip, who first prioritizes getting assistance from the CBD program. The second priority is on behalf of Mr. Budi, who has a CPI score of 265, to be the following reference as a recipient of assistance from the CBD program.

Evaluation of Program For Funding Assistance for Beginner Entrepreneurs: A Case in Universitas Terbuka

This research examines the impact of the Entrepreneurship Development Assistance Program initiated by the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs through the Field of Entrepreneurship Development and Human Resource Development on Open University (UT) students. In 2015, the Ministry provided financial support and limited training and mentoring to UT students to foster entrepreneurship. The program is monitored over two years, from the student submitting a business proposal to funding, and is extended to the next three semesters. Students interested in starting their own business must submit a proposal, which is evaluated for feasibility and potential funding. This research involves contacting students who have participated in the 2015 Program. A total of 266 program participants were identified as the target population for the study. These participants came from Bandung, Batam, Denpasar, Jember, Jogjakarta, and Semarang. By equipping student entrepreneurs with adaptability and resilience, the program has the potential to foster a culture of entrepreneurship and contribute to economic growth and innovation in the long run.

International development contested: the American Child Health Section in Belgium (1922–1924)

ABSTRACT Failed humanitarian projects provide us with an opportunity to shed light on the complex interactions and conflicts among international donors, humanitarian workers and local recipients. This article explores such a contested and terminated project in post-First World War Belgium. The Child Health Section (1922–24) was a US international development programme initiated by Herbert Hoover and the Commission for Relief in Belgium Educational Foundation. Its aim was to provide health education to school children. Despite reaching 113,136 Belgian children between the ages of six and 12 in 1221 schools across the country, the project was abruptly discontinued after only one year. This contribution examines why the development assistance programme failed by using a micro-historical approach combined with concepts from development studies. The well-kept records of the CHS on the enduring conflicts with Belgian administrations reveal how US assumptions about their role in transforming or modernizing Europe clashed with (the diverse) European views on their own post-war reconstruction. This case demonstrates that the shift from providing short-term, needs-based humanitarian assistance to investing in long-term international development assistance did not always go smoothly or uncontested in post-war Europe.

Implementation of Public Infrastructure, Facilities, and Utilities Development Assistance Program For Low-Income Community Housing in The City of Palembang According to Law Number 1 Year 2011 Concerning Housing and Settlement Area

The Public Housing Infrastructure, Facilities and Utilities Assistance Program for Low-Income Communities (MBR) is the government's support to realize livable housing for Low-Income Communities (MBR) as stipulated in Law Number 1 of 2011 concerning Housing and Settlement Areas. In South Sumatra Province, Palembang City with an area of slum areas based on the Governor's Decree in 2021 reaches 4,451 hectares and is one of the cities that is a priority to get handling of urban slum settlements from the Ministry of PUPR. In accordance with the existing problems, the objectives to be achieved in this study are to determine the implementation of the infrastructure development assistance program in the form of low-income community housing roads in the city of Palembang and to determine the factors that influence the implementation of the infrastructure development assistance program in the form of low-income community housing roads. in the city of Palembang. The method used in this study in discussing the existing problems, the author uses two approaches, namely: a normative juridical approach and an empirical juridical approach. The data used in this study were sourced from library research and field research. After the data is obtained and collected, then it is analyzed descriptively which produces descriptive data in the form of written or spoken words from sources that can be understood. Then in analyzing the data, the author uses a qualitative method, which is a method of analyzing the data collected and then described in words or sentences, separated according to categories so that the final conclusion is obtained. The results and discussion in this study show that the implementation of the PSU Assistance Program in the form of roads can be seen from the following: First, the PSU Assistance Budget, the financial realization in the 2021 fiscal year reached 75.47% of the total budget ceiling, while the physical realization reached 72, 36%. Second, the amount of PSU Assistance in Palembang City, the implementation of PSU Assistance for MBR housing roads is not optimal and is less significant between the annual performance target and the performance agreement of the South Sumatra Province Housing Provision Work Unit. Only 18.89% can be achieved from the annual performance target of 1800 units in 2021. Of that number in Palembang City, there are 124 units. Third, the performance of the South Sumatra Provincial Housing Provision Work Unit, Ministry of PUPR, during the 2021 fiscal year, the activities and programs carried out were less than optimal. However, the performance of the Housing Provision Work Unit in 2021, especially in the housing road PSU Assistance program for MBR, has improved performance, because in 2020 there has been no implementation of PSU construction while in 2021 it has successfully implemented 340 units in South Sumatra Province while 124 units for the City Palembang. Factors influencing the implementation of the PSU Assistance program in the form of roads in Palembang City consist of supporting factors, namely: budget, the application process can be carried out anywhere or online with a web-based application, the number of low-income housing in Palembang City. While the inhibiting factors are: the Covid-19 pandemic, lack of technical staff, weather, coordination between stakeholders, at least proposals for PSU assistance submitted by developers. Suggestions that can be given to the Housing Supply Satker of South Sumatra Province are to improve planning, implementation, supervision and control of housing development, so that the performance targets that have been set can be realized maximally, and the implementers of the Palembang City PSU Assistance Program are more active in providing socialization to members associations for a more even and in-depth understanding. For the Ministry of PUPR so that the requirements for applying for road PSU Assistance for MBR Housing are updated to make it easier for developers to meet the requirements and get road PSU Assistance for MBR Housing, especially in the city of Palembang. And for developers to be more active in seeking information about the requirements and programs at the Ministry of PUPR, so that they can obtain the latest information and regulations to realize the goals and the common good.

Stages of organizational development and employee assistance programs in Taiwan

Employee assistance programs (EAPs) provide work, living, and health services to help employees overcome personal and organizational obstacles that affect their productivity. Most businesses in Taiwan are small or medium-sized, and their scale, stage of development, and resources affect their implementation of EAPs. This study explored EAPs and related measures that organizations can implement in each stage of their development. The results may serve as a reference for human resources personnel in planning EAPs, specifically in identifying appropriate measures to implement for each developmental stage of their organizations. The modified Delphi method and fuzzy analytic hierarchy process were used to organize and analyze key EAP measures and their weights during the creation, guidance, authorization, coordination, and collaboration stages of organizational development. Data analysis revealed that in all five stages of organizational development, work-related EAP measures are the most crucial. As an organization transitions from the creation to collaboration stages, the work dimension is neglected in favor of the health dimension. In the authorization stage, the organization begins to provide a wider range of services in the living dimension. The results and other information regarding EAP service models indicate that in each developmental stage, an organization should adopt a different EAP service model that suits its resources, organizational structure, implementation of EAP measures, and other factors.

How Did Cuba and Canada Practise “Development” in the 1970s? cuso and the cujae Project

The first foreign non-governmental organization (ngo) to operate in Cuba was the Canadian University Service Overseas (cuso). Between 1971 and 1976, cuso coordinated a program to build Cuban engineering capacity by sending Canadian engineering professors to teach short courses at Ciudad Universitaria José Antonio Echeverría, Havana’s engineering school. Over one hundred Canadian professors participated, teaching 300 Cuban students. Cuban graduate students also came to Canada for research terms, and almost one hundred graduate degrees were ultimately conferred. The success of this exchange should also be measured in the relationships formed and the unique framework built by its participants. It was overseen by a joint Cuban and Canadian board. It was guided by the belief that the two countries would work, according to its founding mission, in a “genuine partnership, as opposed to a dominant or subservient relationship.” How did this First World ngo establish equitable relationships in a country that was waging a revolution against foreign assumptions of superiority? How was “development” – which was itself a product of the Cold War struggle to keep the global South on the capitalist side of the ledger – imagined among and between Cubans and Canadians in this era? This project did not conceptualize development as “solidarity” in the ideological sense and nor did it locate the condescending superiority of “technical expertise” that could be found in many of the other Canadian-global South development assistance programs. Based on cuso’s vast archive and interviews with Cuban and Canadian participants, this article explores how this project operated and also the space it opened for ongoing equitable, affective relations.

Modern Scientific, Technological, and Innovation Policy of Japan: An International Vector on the Example of Russia and ASEAN Countries

The article is devoted to the study of the formation and development of Japan's technological policy since the second half of the 20th century. The article shows that initially, the factor of international relations played an important role in Japanese technological policy, since for several decades it was entirely based on the strategy of foreign borrowing. At the same time, Japan carefully studied and often improved technologies borrowed from the USA and Western European countries, developing its own R&D base. Gradually, the country was able to build its own progressive scientific and technical potential and begin technological exports. International cooperation, but no longer in the form of imports but in the form of technology exports, continues to play a crucial role in Japan's innovation policy and diplomacy. As an example, some parameters of Japan's modern technological cooperation with the ASEAN states and Russia are considered. The study shows that, unlike some ASEAN countries, Russia has not been and is not a recipient of technical assistance from Japan within the framework of state official development assistance programs. In addition, the volume of Japanese technological exports to Russia is small and does not meet the interests of the Russian Federation in this aspect. The most successfully developing ASEAN countries receive significant volumes of technological exports from Japan in value terms, but they themselves, except Singapore, do not occupy a niche as technology suppliers to Japan.

CONCEPTS, PRACTICES AND LEGAL AWARENESS OF ETHICS AND INTEGRITY AMONGST KG. SEBERANG TAKIR’S COASTAL COMMUNITY MEMBERS, KUALA NERUS, MALAYSIA: THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER.

Ethics and integrity are important to community development because they influence the success of numerous forms of public and private development assistance programs. However, there is inadequate research on ethics and integrity in the context of coastal community development in Malaysia. Hence, this preliminary research’s main objective is to get an initial picture of the state of understanding of the concepts, practices and legal awareness on ethics and integrity amongst Seberang Takir’s coastal community members; where downward mobility is prevalent among inshore fishermen, labourers and small traders. Intense urbanization and drastic increases in tourism and commercial activities means that the success of community development programs depends on the recipients’ ability not only to uphold ethics and integrity in their daily lives, but also to monitor actions and decisions of other stakeholders as well. This preliminary study uses convenience sampling comprising 23 participants who are government officials, university students and committee members of a mosque at Seberang Takir in the Kuala Nerus district. A Google Form questionnaire comprising seven questions specifically on ethics and integrity, and seven questions on law reveals notable findings, showing that: (i) professing to ethics and integrity does not prevent respondents from ethical misconducts; (ii) 41.1% of respondents are ambivalent, in agreement and strongly in agreement of unqualified people getting various types of government assistance; (iii) 52.2% agree and strongly agree that leaders of organizations/community groups should compromise ethics and integrity if doing so means that the quality of life of their members/subordinates can be improved; and (iv) there is a clear splitting of views amongst respondents on transgressing against ethics and integrity even if no law is broken. This explains why despite the high level of trust that they have in the law, more than 90% agree and strongly agree that the law in Malaysia is still not effective and must be amended. Hence, it is imperative that participants’ levels of understanding on ethics, integrity and law be increased through knowledge transfer so that the concerns identified above can be rectified.

Looking for advice: The politics of consulting services procurement in the World Bank

Scholarship on development aid investigates how donors’ and recipients’ political and economic interests interact to weaken effectiveness of aid. These influences have been traced at various stages of the aid cycle – from aid commitment and disbursement to impact evaluation. Yet, development assistance programs provide not only financial resources for recipient countries, but also human capital. Specifically, development aid agencies often rely on experts’ and consulting firms’ knowledge to enable project development and implementation. Such knowledge can increase recipients’ capacity to implement domestic reforms, thereby spurring economic and social development. However, transfers of human capital may experience similar pressures that influence flows of financial capital and reduce their effectiveness. This article aims to investigate whether donors’ and recipients’ interests sway the flow of human capital provided through development programs. I focus on the procurement process for consulting services funded by World Bank development aid, and show that formal institutional requirements for consultant selection leave room for recipient governments to pursue domestic and foreign benefits from procurement decisions. In addition, my analyses show that governments’ pursuit of such benefits has tangible consequences for aid effectiveness: when recipients favor domestic consulting firms, projects take more time to complete and tend to receive lower outcome evaluations.

The Forthright Political Stance of Sport for Development in Korean Official Development Assistance

The rapid growth of Sport for Development (SFD) policies, practices, and organizations over the past two decades has been widely studied. However, by far the preponderance of attention has been focused on SFD initiatives and analyses concentrated in traditional Western donor states, where they have been characterized by a focus on social development objectives and civil society-led modalities. By contrast, SFD efforts emanating from non-Western countries have been relatively neglected. This paper contributes to correcting this imbalance by focusing on the important and distinctive Korean approach to SFD within its growing Official Development Assistance (ODA) programmes. In contrast to mainstream Western SFD, Korean SFD has been forthrightly oriented towards support for top-down, state-based objectives. Moreover, it has reflected a distinct hybrid character, blending a superficial prioritization of global social development norms exemplified by the United Nations Millennium Development Goals and Sustainable Development Goals with strong and persistent characteristics of the Korean developmental state in its approach to sport.

The Official Development Assistance Policy of the European Union in the Post-Soviet Space: Geopolitical Factors

The structure, priorities, conceptual framework, methods, and resources of EU policies in the Official Development Assistance (ODA) program are considered. Research shows that the EU funding of ODA programs for the post-Soviet space hiked fourfold between 2010 and 2020. The share of funding for Central Asian states decreased substantially compared to the Western part of the post-Soviet space against the background of confrontation with Russia, as well as due to presidential elections in Belarus. This paper argues that this redistribution is caused by geopolitical factors of EU policy. A conclusion is drawn that the recent declarations by the EU leadership about strengthening the “hard” power and the “geopolitical” agenda are not new and reflect long-term trends in EU foreign policy. Thus, a significant share of ODA funds is traditionally allocated to “social infrastructure,” strengthening Brussels’ control over the sociopolitical sphere in target countries of the periphery, aiming to bring them under EU influence in the economy, governance, goal setting, and ideology. This policy serves the interests of the EU, entrenching asymmetrical “metropole–periphery” relations between the EU and target counties.

Political Leaders, Economic Hardship, and Foreign Aid Allocation

AbstractWhile political leaders’ role in foreign policy choices has received increasing scholarly attention, surprisingly less is known about how they affect the allocation and distribution of official development aid. This study examines how the material background of political leaders influences their aid allocation strategies in donor countries. We contend that leaders with economic hardship experience distribute more foreign aid than those without such experience. Through socialization, leaders with economic hardship experience become more supportive of public good provisions that address problems related to poverty and inequality. Resultantly, they exhibit more favorable attitudes toward development assistance programs targeting developing countries. We find that political leaders who experienced economic difficulty in their youth are likely to provide more foreign aid, especially social and economic infrastructure aid, than leaders without such experience. By introducing the political leaders’ role, this study contributes to the literature on the interaction between domestic politics and foreign aid.

Increasing yield and farm income of upland farmers: The case of Panay Island Upland Sustainable Rural Development Project in the Philippines

The 17th Sustainable Development Goal aims to enhance the international cooperation between developed and least-developed countries, and the Official Development Assistance (ODA) program is the largest source of external support in the attainment of this goal. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of the Panay Island Upland Sustainable Rural Development Project (PIU-SRDP), an ODA project supported by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) in partnership with the Department of Agriculture and the Local Government Units of project municipalities in the Philippines. We focused on Phase II of the PIU-SRDP, which implemented randomly various agriculture-based income-generating projects, aimed at improving the sustainable productivity of low-income farming households. Based on a spatial and intertemporal variations of the project, we exploit a difference-in-difference approach using household-level data. The results suggest that the project significantly increased the rice yield and farm income of beneficiaries. With the opposing views about the true impacts of ODA programs, our study shows evidence of the positive effects of an ODA project on farmer-beneficiaries. This study provides insights for future engagement and implementation of related community-based ODA, agriculture, and rural development projects.

SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS OF SOFT POWER DIPLOMACY: A QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS OF AFGHANS’ PERCEPTIONS ABOUT INDIA

Before the Taliban came back to power in Afghanistan in August 2021, India and Afghanistan had cordial bilateral relations and were often described as great friends. Since 2002, India had helped build several infrastructure projects as part of its promised development assistance program of over $2 billion (later increased to $3 billion). Considering India’s investments in Afghanistan, the goodwill it enjoyed among common Afghans was understandable. However, it would be wrong to imply that these unique, multifaceted bilateral relations between the two countries were simply due to India's helping hand. This research paper is one of its kind attempt to explain the perceptions Afghans had about India based on the field survey done in Afghanistan in 2019. Using responses of over 321 Afghan participants, the paper attempts to quantitatively analyze the goodwill and positive vibes that India enticed among Afghans. However, many Afghans felt that India did not do enough during the crisis in August 2021. Based on the survey and the general perceptions of Afghans in the aftermath of the return of the Taliban, this paper argues that the soft power investments in Afghanistan helped India in its nation-branding, making it attractive and creating goodwill. However, New Delhi lacked the will to act smartly and hence did not get the desired strategic influences due to ‘soft power behavior’.

Training and Assistance in Production of Industrial-Scale Bioslurry Compost Fertilizer to Overcome Fertilizer Scarcity in Puntukdoro Village, Plaosan, Magetan

Through the Partner Village Development program, the Training and Assistance Program for Bioslurry Compost Fertilizer Production aims to empower farmer groups (Mulyo Sejati) and livestock groups (Maju Bersama) in Puntukdoro village, Magetan Regency (PPDM). This activity aims to make use of bioslurry waste (available at nearly 200 liters per day) and agricultural and livestock waste, which is abundant in industrially produced Bioslurry compost. The method used in this community empowerment activity is the ABCD (Asset-Based Community Development) approach. From April to December 2021, this activity lasted for eight months. This activity resulted in a map of partner assets, increased partner knowledge of using bioslurry waste, agricultural waste, and livestock (with a 75 percent understanding rate), and increased partner income through profit from production and commercialization. The total revenue generated by partners in a single production cycle is 7.5 million dollars

Aid and forgetting the enemy: A systematic review of the unintended consequences of international development in fragile and conflict-affected situations

Fragile and conflict-affected situations (FCAS) are a significant focus area of international development efforts, with corresponding sizable investments by global donors. When implementing development assistance programmes in this context, the risk of unintended consequences tends to be higher as the conflict tends to increase complexity, and typically, FCAS development programmes are designed to deliver benefits only to parties on one side of the conflict. Searching for new insights, a systematic review of 121 documents was used to identify specific types of unintended consequences, their frequency and the nature of management strategies used to address them. Examination of these documents identified aggravation of the conflict and unintended support either for the opposing side's military regime or a non-state actor was the most common unintended consequence. As nearly all assessments only considered the nature of consequences from the donor's viewpoint, we conclude that there may be a case for assessing impacts from the alternative viewpoint – that is, of unsupported parties to the conflict. More generally, we conclude that FCAS programme guidelines would benefit from the development and deployment of more rigorous evaluation methods and the codifying of unintended consequences terminology.

A qualitative descriptive (QD) analysis of community-level experiences of healthcare delivery in rural, post-structural adjustment Ghana

Structural adjustment programs (SAPs) imposed in Ghana during the 1970s intentionally stratified the country without recognition of the diverse methods of healing commonly relied on by communities. Development assistance programs forced the restructuring of all major institutions and especially the organization of health care. This restructuring changed the cost structure for health care and while intending to increase access and geographic availability, SAPs resulted in the further marginalization of rural communities—exacerbating existing circumstances and further stratifying this society. The focus of this study was to capture key aspects of different types of healthcare delivery in a rural community and to learn more about their disease or illness specialties and treatment approaches. With a qualitative design (QD) approach, and based on fourteen walking interviews, this paper offers insight into seven different ways by which members of otherwise marginalized communities may access healthcare.