Transcript From Effective Aid to Effective Institutions Synthesis of Joint International Evaluations Julia Betts and Helen Wedgwood Paris 5th October 2011

From Effective Aid to
Effective Institutions
Synthesis of Joint International Evaluations
Julia Betts and Helen Wedgwood
Paris 5th October 2011
Structure
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Rationale
Content and method
Findings
Learning
Implications for Busan?
Rationale
Purpose – Overview of evidence base
Status – work in progress, policy briefs
2nd draft Outcome Doc, Manila Consensus (PFM); Cusco
Declaration (Procurement)
Coverage - Key aspects of public sector governance and aid effectiveness
• country ownership and leadership
• centre of government capacity for planning
• financial management and delivery
• accountability and incentives for reform
• the channelling and management of development assistance
Content and Method
• 4 joint international evaluations:
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Public Sector Governance Reform
Budget Support
Paris Declaration
Anti-Corruption
• Country studies (22) plus syntheses
• Analysis of findings and conclusions - themes from First Draft Outcome
document + GovNet priorities SOME CAUSAL FACTORS
• Evidence base to inform discussion
• Limitations – draft reports, PFM not available, limited on fragility / gender
Three Themes
1. What has been achieved from the combined effort to make states more
effective and accountable?
2. What contribution and quality of development cooperation partnerships?
3. Progress on the measurement, monitoring and use of results information
to drive future progress.
Three categories
– Majority of studies report positive progress;
– Reports divided between good and poor results;
– Majority of reports cite poor results.
OVERALL – Findings mostly in the ‘mixed progress’ category.
(different starting points / mixed success)
Findings on Impact
What has been achieved from the combined effort to make
states more effective and accountable?
• Connection from development assistance to impact level
results challenging in governance.
• Few results at impact level and few direct connections
between development aid and impact-level results
• Budget support - health and education (Mali), tertiary and
vocational training (Tunisia); primary education and roads
(Zambia) – plus macro-economic environment (Tunisia)
1. Making States More Effective and
Accountable?
CONSISTENTLY POSITIVE PROGRESS
• Public Financial Management – efforts showing results
• Country ownership of / commitment to reform
• Country efforts to improve transparency, but donor effort insufficient
MIXED OR INCONSISTENT PROGRESS
• Improving accountability to citizens and parliaments e.g. state accountability /
oversight functions - donors mainly process efforts
• Inconsistent approach to generating inclusive dialogue on reform
• Contributions (donor) to combating corruption; stronger frameworks, institutions,
dialogue & information - limited impact on trends
CONSISTENTLY WEAK / LIMITED PROGRESS
• Reform efforts at the centre of government
• National procurement systems - donor insistence on own systems
• Demand side accountability – insufficient attention despite improved consultation
2. The Global Partnership
CONSISTENTLY POSITIVE PROGRESS
• Trend towards improved quality of aid partnerships – transparency, country
ownership
• Improved quality of dialogue on policy and institutional reform - Budget support a
major contributory factor
MIXED OR INCONSISTENT PROGRESS
• Some moves towards joint analysis, but insufficient political economy analysis
• Alignment and Donor co-ordination and harmonization slow & uneven
• Predictability improving, but disbursement delays still problematic.
• Capacity development efforts slow, un-coordinated, short-term
CONSISTENTLY WEAK / LIMITED PROGRESS
• Mutual accountability - continued asymmetrical relationships
• Limited use of country systems - even in face of reform.
• Donor risk aversion - variable attitudes undermining effectiveness.
3. Measuring Results
• NO areas of CONSISTENTLY POSITIVE PROGRESS
MIXED OR INCONSISTENT PROGRESS
• Momentum growing for performance management approaches
• Progress on performance assessment tools though weaknesses in
content. Budget Support a major positive driver
• Joint monitoring and review improving - but seemingly no reduced
burdens
CONSISTENTLY WEAK / LIMITED PROGRESS
• Frustratingly weak progress in managing for results - few donor
programmes in support, lack of clarity on goals and strategy
• National monitoring and evaluation systems still weak & poorly
integrated
• Few public sector reform –related programmes with robust theories of
change and monitoring systems .
Examples – factors in success / failure?
E.g. PFM reform – success?
• International (not donor-led) standards
• Focus on transparency and accountability (beyond aid)
• Measurability of progress
• Budget support aid dialogue
E.g. Civil Service Reform support – failure?
• Drivers of reform largely domestic – not ODA
• Reform affecting the political process
• Challenge to monitor quality of performance
• Political risk underestimated
• Different agendas / ways of working, donors v reform process
Some Learning?
Confirmed existing lessons - but that still need learning: eg.
• ODA partnerships matter – but context, politics and political will matter far more
• Donors can make important contributions but need to ‘walk their talk’ more
• Countries need to move from planning to execution / beyond the central
Some strong areas of progress to build on:
- public sector legal and policy frameworks for accountability & oversight
- national planning and budget
- translating reform into reduced corruption
Reform success associated with:
• Benefits to citizens
• Wider competitiveness and national economic development agenda
• Transparency – open government
Implications for Busan?
Approaches
• Cannot buy reform – must work with the grain (national political economy)
• Importance of shared vision and agreed strategies / results
• Need for consistency / coherence / sequencing in approach
• Needs different ways of working from donors in complex reforms (mismatch)
Some priorities?
1. Rethinking public sector reform strategies and support – political economy vs
technocratic, incentives vs systems, long term capacity development vs short term
results
2. Risk acknowledgment and management – fiduciary vs strategic, use of country
systems, national political risk
3. Accountability – mutual & demand side, inclusive dialogue (national)
4. Results measurement and management - donor support, national M&E systems,
measurability
5. Importance of ‘new’ capacity development (international standards / peer to peer
support / peer review)
Further information
Managing for Results in complex long term processes demands long
term vision and long term commitment; a contextualised strategy
based on understanding of political economy & a mature approach to
risk
‘Donor governments need to acknowledge frankly that development and
development aid are inherently uncertain and risky and put in place
measures to manage risks jointly with partners in the spirit of a mature
partnership.’
• Helen Wedgwood – [email protected]
• Julia Betts – [email protected]
• Megan Kennedy-Chouane – [email protected]