Should all donors report on results using similar principles

Comment

Comment by Solomon Mhlanga on August 11, 2010 at 7:09am

Hello George,

Thank you very much for your contribution. From the arguments you have put forward, there are indeed well meaning donors whose wish is to contribute to the development of Africa. However, on our own part, we need to show that we are organised enough to come up with the required road map to development so that donors can fit in this roadmap.

The Paris Declaration commits donors and partner countries to manage and implement aid in a way that focuses on the desired results and use information to improve decision making; partner countries to strengthen the linkages between strategies and budgets and endeavour to establish results-oriented reporting and assessment frameworks; donors to link country programming to results and align them with partner' assessment and monitoring frameworks, and harmonise reporting requirements; and partner countries and donors to jointly strengthen the necessary capacities.

As partner countries, it is very important that we unpack the above and unsure that we have put the necessry structures in place. Where we lack capacity or resources, we can then request for assistance in an informed way. The problem will arise if we do not know what we want to put in place and how. Donors will then call the shorts and we find ourself reacting to what the donors will be doing.

It is therefore important for us to lead the way and Managing for Development Results is there to assist with the knowledge of what needs to be put in place.

Comment by George Chapotera on August 9, 2010 at 9:49am

I can not agree more!

My own experience and indeed conviction is that capacity building in the systems is essential. I think we all have to recognise that there well meaning partners whose wish is to develop and others who, after noting the weak systems, tend to be leaning towards less trsuting and pushing for their own systems. The merits of using the country and unified systems for all donors is that transaction costs are greatly reduced. The main demerit, however, is that they are unable to push for their own ideologies in the systems they have tried and tested at home. And indeed there are multilateral partners who many a times push for different systems that are contrary to either some bilateral donors or developing countries.

Unfortunately in some cases, leadership of Ministries/departments/countries seem not to know the direction they are supposed to take to the extent that they have tended to recruit Short term and Long term Technical Assistants. In the end these are the same people that come from the donor countries and hence the Catch 22 problems.

I think we should be talking about enganging local technocrats or if that is not possible technocrats from neighbouring or fellow regional countries in order to ensure that we sustainably develop the systems. Moreover, local HR personnel are much cheaper than if sourced from donor countries. That way i beleive the lack of trust that both developing countries and donor partners will be dealt with.