International Development Organizations Research Articles

Maximizing Child Development: Three Principles for Policy-makers

The policy note advances three inter-related principles to guide policy-makers and agents in international development organizations to prioritize their actions. These principles are drawn from findings from two Early Childhood Development (ECD) reports recently completed by the World Bank Independent Evaluation Group—one on the World Bank support for ECD and the other a systematic review of the sustained effects of early childhood interventions. The principles are: Support the Early Development of Children, Starting from Birth; Support Parents Through Existing Services; Make Resources Available to Meet Needs of the Most Vulnerable. These principles imply a new emphasis on development beyond survival with effective, evidence-informed interventions. The policy implications also mean starting with what exists in services in health and protection for vulnerable families and augmenting these with parenting support and education components so that children’s risks are reduced and more poor children will be ready to enter primary school at the appropriate age and to persist through schooling and thrive in the labor market.

Industrial Policy in Response to the Middle‐income Trap and the Third Wave of the Digital Revolution

AbstractThe ‘middle‐income trap’ (MIT) is ‘real enough’ for policy makers in developing countries to take it as a serious threat to prospects for achieving ‘high’ average income. Those prospects are further clouded by the major changes occurring as the digital revolution moves from connecting people to the internet to connecting the internet to everything else, across many sectors of human life (the Third Wave). Both sets of forces raise the potential advantages of pro‐active industrial policy. Yet mainstream economic thinking – and the consensus of international development organizations like the World Bank – has long tended to disapprove of it, in the spirit of ‘The best industrial policy is none at all’. In light of the middle‐income trap, the Third Wave, and other conditions in the world economy, this essay discusses some of the big issues in the design of industrial policy, on the theme of how to do it well rather than how to do it less.

Portfolio Similarity and International Development Aid

How do governments distribute their foreign aid resources across international development organizations (IDO)? We argue that governments’ distributional choices across IDOs derive from their attempt to minimize the costs of delegation and to pursue their own interests in foreign aid policy. Governments make decisions about the allocation of resources across a large number of IDOs, and they delegate their scarce aid resources to IDOs that pursue development policies in line with their own foreign development interests. We use data on the financial contributions of 22 OECD governments to 12 IDOs from 1970 to 2008 to test our argument. We find strong support for our claims. Governments regularly contribute to a large number of IDOs, and they tend to delegate more resources to IDOs that provide higher levels of portfolio similarity. The findings suggest that governments can benefit from the increasing complexity of the system of international organizations. It allows them to minimize the loss of control they experience when delegating sovereignty to international organizations.

Domains of faith impact: how “faith” is perceived to shape faith-based international development organisations

ABSTRACTIncreasing interest in faith-based international development organisations (FBOs) recently has improved understanding of these agencies. One reason for complex, often contradictory findings is the lack of frameworks analysing the interactions of worldviews on organisational structures, processes, and behaviours of agencies, and development outcomes. We utilise Lincoln's (2003. Holy Terrors: Thinking about Religion after September 11. Chicago: University of Chicago Press) four “domains of religion” to explore how the literature reports faith impacting the shape of development FBOs’ structures, behaviours, and outcomes. Literature suggests faith has a significant impact upon these agencies. We outline very specific similarities and differences, highlighting the importance of nuanced analysis of faith's role in FBOs. Further research is needed to build more evidence around these impacts of faith on FBOs.

Does the gender composition of forest and fishery management groups affect resource governance and conservation outcomes? A systematic map

Abstract Background Women often use natural resources differently than men yet frequently have minimal influence on how local resources are managed. An emerging hypothesis is that empowering more women in local resource decision-making may lead to better resource governance and conservation. Here we focus on the forestry and fisheries sectors to answer the question: What is the evidence that the gender composition of forest and fisheries management groups affects resource governance and conservation outcomes? We present a systematic map detailing the geographic and thematic extent of the evidence base and assessing the quality of the evidence, as per a published a priori protocol. Methods We screened 11,000+ English-language records in Scopus, CAB abstracts, AGRIS, AGRICOLA, Google Scholar, and Google. The websites of 24 international conservation and development organisations, references of included articles, and relevant systematic reviews were also searched for possible documents. A number of groups and individuals were invited to submit documents through email ‘call outs’. The inclusion criteria were that an article refers to women or gender, forests or fisheries, and a resource management group comparison in a non-OECD country plus Mexico and Chile. Results Seventeen studies met the inclusion criteria. Four were qualitative and 13 were quantitative. Forest studies outnumbered fisheries studies 14–3. The majority of the studies came from India and Nepal and focused on forest management. All 17 studies identified improvements in local natural resource governance, and three identified conservation improvements when women participated in the management of the resources. Only two studies, however, were rated as high quality based on study design. Conclusions For India and Nepal, there is strong and clear evidence of the importance of including women in forest management groups for better resource governance and conservation outcomes. Outside of India and Nepal, there are substantial gaps in the evidence base, but the South Asian evidence presents a compelling case for extending the research to other geographies to see if similar outcomes exist elsewhere and supports a theory of change linking the participation of women in forestry and fisheries management groups with better resource governance and conservation outcomes.

Poverty, urbanization, and environmental degradation: urban streams in the developing world

Urbanization is occurring at a rapid pace in developing countries. The urban stream syndrome has been well documented in higher-income countries, but in lower-income, developing countries, resources often are unavailable for quantifying how urbanization affects streams. Basic infrastructure to support water supply and wastewater treatment frequently is lacking in lower-income countries, and this situation has repercussions for human health and for ecosystem structure and function. The interaction of environmental, social, and economic factors may produce differences in the expression of the urban stream syndrome in lower-income countries relative to in high-income countries. We address how patterns of economic development and urbanization can influence the quality of freshwater resources, and we discuss some of the relationships between urban watersheds and marginalized human populations in lower-income countries. We argue that sustainable management of urban watersheds and the provisioning of drinking water and sanitation services require integration of innovative technology and financing schemes into ecosystem-based management. We must develop new and enhance existing uses for sewage and other wastewater to support ecologically functional urban watersheds. Furthermore, managers of freshwater resources in lower-income countries require more data on which to base decisions. Acquisition of these data will necessitate the creation of interdisciplinary research teams with representatives from national and international development organizations to address stakeholder-driven research questions.

Faith-Based International Development Work: A Review

In the wake of the Faith-Based Initiative in the USA, substantial research has resulted in an increased awareness of religious congregations and faith-based organizations as welfare service providers. The next frontier appears to be the role of religious organizations in international social and economic development, a topic that only recently started to attract academic interest. In this paper, we review available literature on the role that religious, or faith-based, organizations play in international social and economic development. We also provide results from our own study of USA international NGOs1 that are faith-based. We divide the paper into the positive contributions of faith-based international NGOs and the drawbacks of these NGOs. We find that faith-based nonprofits constitute almost 60 percent of USA-based international development organizations, and their contribution to international social development is quite considerable. We conclude with a call for further research and nuanced understanding of the role religion plays in international development.

Using a multicriteria assessment model to evaluate the sustainability of conservation agriculture at the cropping system level in France

Several international research and development organizations are promoting conservation agriculture in a wide range of contexts. Conservation agriculture is based on a combination of three main principles: (i) minimal or no mechanical soil disturbance; (ii) diversified crop rotations and (iii) permanent soil cover (consisting of a growing crop or a dead mulch of crop residues). However, in the face of the diversity of practices that can be associated with conservation agriculture, of goals assigned to agricultural systems, and pedoclimatic contexts, there is still no empirical evidence about the overall performance of conservation agriculture in France. Global assessments of conservation agriculture, with the full or partial application of its principles and in different contexts, are required to provide a more comprehensive picture of the performance of such systems. We tackled these objectives simultaneously, by evaluating 31 cropping systems with the MASC (R) model (for Multicriteria Assessment of the Sustainability of Cropping Systems). These systems were selected to represent a wide diversity of practices, from ploughed conventional systems to crop sequences based on the full application of conservation agriculture principles. Positive interactions were observed between the key elements of conservation agriculture, resulting in better sustainability performances (particularly in terms-of environmental criteria). Nevertheless, the systems most closely respecting the principles of conservation agriculture displayed several weaknesses, principally of a social or technical nature, in this study. Careful attention should be paid to attenuating these weaknesses. A more detailed analysis of the results also suggested that decreasing soil tillage tends to decrease the overall performance of the system unless associated with a diversification of the crop rotation.

Securitising humanitarian assistance and post-conflict reconstruction in Africa: A critical review of South Africa's new defence policy

ABSTRACTThe South African Defence Review 2014 is the country's new defence policy. The Review, which is expected to steer South African defence policymaking for the next few decades, discusses in detail the role of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) in peace missions in Africa and proposes the direct involvement of the country's soldiers in both military and civilian tasks, from peacekeeping to humanitarian assistance, post-conflict reconstruction and development. This paper contains a critical review of the Review with regard to South Africa's envisaged contribution to regional and continental peace and stability. It is argued that humanitarian assistance and post-conflict reconstruction should not be securitised and that the SANDF should only be tasked with peacekeeping and the establishment of stability and security in fragile in-conflict and post-conflict settings. The humanitarian work should be left to humanitarian and aid agencies, while reconstruction and development should be left to organisations such as the New Partnership for Africa's Development, continental and international development organisations, and local actors.

Considering the Social Determinants of Equity in International Development Evaluation Guidance Documents

Abstract: Several international development organizations have published equity-focused evaluation guidance documents to promote and meet an increased demand for equity-focused evaluation practice. Evaluating progress toward equity necessitates focusing on changes in the social determinants of equity (i.e., barriers and enabling factors). Thus, the purpose of this study is to describe how and the extent to which international development organizations recommend addressing the social determinants of equity in evaluation practice guidance documents. Implications for evaluation quality, cultural responsiveness, and the decolonization of evaluation are discussed and a summary of practical examples and guidance is presented.

Participatory Planning and Quality Service Delivery in Local Authorities in Kenya

The preparation of Local Authority Service Delivery Action Plans (LASDAP) through a participatory process is one of the conditions for local authorities to access Local Authority Transfer Fund (LATF) money. The process provides opportunities for promoting community involvement in the planning and budgeting process. Many development agencies such as governments, international development organizations, donors and many others have over time realized the importance of involving the communities in the development processes. The objectives of this study were to establish how community participation in planning process has affected the provision of quality water; improved healthcare facilities; education facilities; and improved infrastructure in Webuye Municipality in Kenya. The study adopted a case study research design targeting a population of 926. A sample size of 238 was used through three sampling techniques namely: stratified, simple random and purposive. Data was analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively. Statistical package for social studies (SPSS) helped to produce frequency tables, testing of significance and the simple regression. The data was presented in form tables, charts, graphs and figures. Overall the study findings revealed that participatory planning plays a crucial role in service delivery in local authority projects. The statistical test carried out revealed that for every unit increase in participation in project planning explain 2.3% improvement in service delivery in the projects. The t-test statistic indicated that the regression coefficients were significant at α = 0.05 level of significance.

How to be a good rural extensionist. Reflections and contributions of Argentine practitioners

Quality rural extension is of utmost importance for generating food security and sustainable rural development. In this paper, Argentine rural extensionists' point of view on how to be a good practitioner is described, as well as compared to good practices proposed by scholars and international development organizations. Forty rural extensionists from the Northeastern Argentine provinces were interviewed (29 men, 11 women). Interviews were recorded and transcribed, texts were categorized and contents analyzed. Scholars and extensionists, despite agreeing to most of the same principles, frame their recommendations for good extension practices in different ways. The former's recommendations tend to be supported by multiple case studies and focused on best practices on the level of extension projects or policies, while the latter's tend to draw upon their own experience and develop proposals more concerned with interpersonal interactions and with overcoming practical problems in real (and not ideal) settings.Best extension practices depend on environmental, institutional, political and cultural contexts, this implying there is no best extension practice in general. Training extensionists in interpersonal skills and in social sciences is key for reaching good extension results. Horizontal communication between farmers and extensionists, negotiation over best technologies, and helping farmers reflect on their productive practices are extension strategies with great potential.

A structural decomposition analysis of global energy footprints

Understanding the drivers of past and present energy consumption trends is important for a range of stakeholders, including governments, businesses and international development organizations, in order to prepare for impacts on global supply chains caused by changes in future energy price or availability shocks. In this paper we use environmentally-extended input–output tables to: (a) quantify the long-term drivers that have led to diversified energy footprint profiles of 186 countries around the world from 1990 to 2010; (b) identify which countries and sectors recorded an increase or decrease in energy footprints during this time period; (c) highlight the effect of international outsourcing of energy-intensive production processes by decomposing the structural and spatial change in energy footprints; and (d) discuss the implications for national economic policy for the identified drivers. To this end, we use a detailed Multi-Regional Input–Output database and three prevalent structural decomposition analysis methods. To reduce biases in the results due to time lapse and currency variations, we convert input–output tables to common US$ and 1990-constant prices. This study provides a broad overview of the magnitude and distribution of the drivers for energy footprints across countries. The results of this study demonstrate that for almost all countries affluence and population growth are driving energy footprints worldwide, which is in part counteracted by the retarding effect of industrial energy intensity. In particular, this study demonstrates that with increasing per-capita GDP, the total energy footprint of a country is increasingly concentrated on imports or consumption.

Capacity Building and Supportive Infrastructural Network for RuralEntrepreneurial Development in Kwara State

Creating an even economic development at both urban and rural communities has been part of developmental agendas for many decades in Nigeria. These imbalances between rural and urban development have resulted to high rate of unemployment and inability of the rural dwellers to meet their basic needs. Ultimately, this has resulted to high poverty rate among the rural communities. This study attempts to investigate how capacity building and supportive infrastructural network could enhance rural entrepreneurial development, thereby reducing high rate of poverty in Nigeria. A survey of 205 self-administered questionnaires was undertaking across three (3) selected Local Government areas in Kwara state, Nigeria. A total of 148 copies were correctly filled, returned and analyzed using simple percentage, t-test and multiple regression analyses. From the result of findings, it is revealed that various government supports contribute significantly to rural entrepreneurial development in the study area. It is further revealed that certain striking challenges impede rural entrepreneurial development among which are poor infrastructure, low access to finance, low population and poor policy support. Consequently, the study recommends a conscious effort by the government through the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) and Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria to provide more entrepreneurial capacity building programmes and other incentives to the rural entrepreneurs. More so, government should focus on integrated rural development programmes through collaboration with international development organizations such as United Nations International Development Organization (UNIDO), United State Agency for International Development (USAID) among others.

Miracle Foods: Quinoa, Curative Metaphors, and the Depoliticization of Global Hunger Politics

Since the post–World War II “discovery” of global malnutrition and the concomitant rise of the development apparatus, various “miracle foods” have been proposed by international development organizations as solutions to chronic undernourishment in developing countries. This article draws on media analysis, development literature, and interviews to explore the “miracle food narrative” (MFN) in three cases: high-lysine corn, Golden Rice, and quinoa, which as the incumbent miracle food is the focus of the paper. The essay contends that miracle food narratives depoliticize hunger through a “curative metaphor.” This trope bolsters a paternal logic that blames malnutrition on the undernourished, and blurs problems of access and dispossession, locating “the solution” in Western philanthropy or economic development. The essay argues that quinoa’s interpellation as a global miracle food is directly related to the rise of “multicultural” and “sustainable” development paradigms, and corresponding changes in the roles of “culture/tradition” and “environment” in development discourse. While quinoa’s insertion in the MFN departs in some ways from the fable of the Western scientist designing the hunger antidote by representationally displacing authority in science with authority in “traditional ways,” this recasting of the actors leaves the broader narrative and underlying curative metaphor in place. As malnutrition alleviation programs integrate cultural difference, critical food scholars must pay close attention to the ways in which tradition and culture are invoked. To conclude, I draw attention to the fraught interaction of the politics of indigeneity and the politics of global malnutrition that arises with the shifting roles of science and tradition in quinoa’s adaptation of the miracle food narrative, as well as scale disjunctures between simple miracle food stories and complicated realities, a dynamic that underscores the need for agrifood and food policy scholars to pay close attention to complex interactions of scale.

Harvested rainwater: quality, adequacy, and proximity in Ghanaian rural communities

This article presents a study that aimed to assess the accessibility, use, and quality of harvested rainwater in three rural communities in Ghana where the government of Ghana and local and international development organisations have sponsored domestic rainwater harvesting. The results showed that rainwater storage facilities were within the recommended distance of 1000m from each house. The amount of rainwater per person per day was below the recommended amount. The majority of the respondents therefore depended on other sources of water. Though the physico-chemical quality of rainwater met the WHO guideline limit for drinking water, the bacteriological quality did not. The majority of common water-associated infections experienced prior to the project have not been experienced after the project.

Global civil society and education policy in post-genocide Rwanda

Drawing on the case of Rwanda, this article investigates why certain global norms are more likely to be ‘translated’ to national educational policies and the differential influence of inter-governmental organizations (IGOs) and international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) in transmitting global norms. Qualitative analysis of national education policy documents and interviews with international development organizations reveal that global norms linked to development, Education for All (EFA), and gender equality are more amenable to ‘translation’ to the local level, while human rights norms are contested and ‘edited’ for a post-conflict context. The restricted political space for civil society constrains the ability of INGOs to openly advocate for contentious issues; thus, IGOs have more financial and normative influence on national education policies. Findings elucidate mechanisms for the adoption of global models in post-conflict settings.

Peace by Peaceful Means? A Preliminary Examination of Buddhist Peacebuilding in Post-Conflict Nepal

This article reflects the growing interest of governments, international development, peace and interfaith organizations, and academics in the link between religions and conflict, and in the fact that religion often serves as a vehicle and language for protest and conflict. It is often deeply implicated in national, ethnic, cultural, and/or geopolitical considerations. The article also reflects the fact that religious studies as a discipline is increasingly required to demonstrate public relevance and impact in debates concerning the role of religion in conflict and conflict transformation. It grows out of a research project which explores the potentially constructive role of religions in active peacebuilding, postconflict reconciliation and restorative justice while acknowledging that there are multiple interpretations of religious traditions that can relate to militancy, chauvinism and nationalist ideologies. The project is focused on post-conflict Nepal, and works horizontally and vertically with grassroots and local organizations as well as with transnational institutions and international bodies. This article is a preliminary contextualization of one strand of the project, Buddhist contributions to the peace-building and post-conflict recovery. It draws a broad picture of the ways in which Buddhism has been constructed politically as a universalist culture of peace, but is also associated with competing ethnic identities and ‘nationalities’. It considers how far Buddhist organizations, communities and leaders have been able to engage with the immediate causes of the civil war (1996–2006), and the deep structural issues, inequalities and injustices which drive grievance and violence.

Women's Empowerment and Education: linking knowledge to transformative action

Women's empowerment is a concept that has acquired substantial recognition in the past decade. However, it is better known among international development organisations, NGOs, and grassroots groups than in academic circles. This article examines the concept of women's empowerment as a foundational element in a theory of social change in which the oppressed must be key actors in the change process. On the basis of empirical evidence, it highlights four dimensions of empowerment: economic, political, knowledge, and psychological. The knowledge dimension is fostered by one of the most respected and universal of institutions: formal education. Yet schools do not always provide friendly or even safe spaces for girls; moreover, the school curriculum emphasises academic subjects and avoids ‘life skills’ discussions. Most successful cases of empowerment through education have occurred in non‐formal education programmes that specifically promote critical reflection on gendered social norms and encourage corrective responses. The article argues that the empowerment process must consider the close connection between the private and the public arenas, as the private space seriously constrains women's availability and possibilities for transformative action; therefore, both macro‐ and micro‐level interventions are needed to create a modified gender division of labour. The promotion of agency — at both the individual and collective levels — plays a major role in the development of women's empowerment. Such a process requires the engagement of non‐state actors, particularly women‐led NGOs. The article ends with challenges for policy.

Shifting social dynamics and economic inequality in the post‐Soviet space: Networking and participation in toi among the novyi Kyrgyz

AbstractThis article analyzes recent changes in the important social gatherings of feasting celebrations in Kyrgyzstan (toi in the Kyrgyz language) as markers of significant change in social networking practices over the post‐Soviet period. I argue that the observable increase in the number of these celebrations has been mistaken for a revitalization of kinship relations, when in fact the toi often reflect more pragmatic and strategic considerations vis‐à‐vis social networking. In the context of the attrition of state services and increasing economic and social inequality since the collapse of the Soviet Union and Kyrgyzstan's subsequent independence in 1991, the resultant patterns of association evident in toi I interpret as a mélange of custom and the assimilation of neoliberal rhetoric that was widely disseminated across the former Soviet Union during this period. This has significant consequences for well‐being among the poorest segments of society that might not be appreciated by considering numerical measures of inequality alone, such as Gini measures of income inequality preferred by international development organizations like the World Bank.