Catch the Tiger by its Tail:

Summaries Counterpart funds generated by programme aid do not provide real resources over and above the commodities or foreign exchange transferred as aid: they represent the tail not the tiger. However, donor policy has evolved to recognise this fact and now focuses less on specific ear?marking of counterpart funds, more on the overall quality of the budget process. This development opens up new and more interesting possibilities for evaluating the effectiveness and efficiency of counterpart fund management. The paper proposes performance criteria, especially for bilateral donors supporting the budget through counterpart fund generation. Existing evaluations do not generally provide information about whether these standards have been satisfied. This is a task for the future

Comparisons, Convergence and Connections

My mission is to explore the issues of poverty and social exclusion across the boundary between developed and developing countries. Put briskly, the thesis is that increasing attention to poverty and social exclusion (PSE) in the North opens the possibility of fertile dialogue between North and South, on three questions of successively greater depth. First, are there new comparisons, or lessons to be drawn across geographical boundaries, about the characteristics, causes and remedies of PSE? Second, does the rapid increase in PSE in the North signal a new convergence between North and South? And third, are there theories to hand which will expose connections between PSE in North and South? The thesis is that the answer to each of these questions is 'yes': there are then exciting possibilities for a new 'mono-economics'2, in which the boundaries of development studies begin to dissolve. Perhaps the Third World really is no more than a 'collective psychological delusion' Or does globalisation now mean that we are all developing countries

NEGLECTED ISSUES IN THE COUNTERPART FUND DEBATE

Summary The article reviews the current conventional wisdom on counterpart funds and discusses four neglected issues: sectoral and commodity disaggregation; inter?annual variability; fiscal and import dependence; and absorptive capacity and disincentives. It concludes that new guidelines should focus more on the development function of counterpart funds; pay more attention to inter?annual calibration; and monitor sectoral policy as well as public expenditure. Résumé Quelques questions négligées dans le débat sur les fonds de contrepartie L'article présente un compte?rendu des idées qui prévalent actuellement concernant les fonds de contrepartie, et se penche sur quatre questions négligées: la désagrégation entre secteurs et produits; la variabilité d'année en année; la dépendance fiscale et sur l'importation; les capacités d'absorption et les facteurs de d'ecouragement agricole. La conclusion de l'auteur est que les nouvelles lignes directrices devraient s'adresser plus étroitement aux fonctions développementales des fonds de contrepartie tout en veillant de plus près au calibrage entre années et en surveillant non seulement l'utilisation des fonds publiques mais aussi, la politique en vigueur dans les secteurs. Resumen Cuestiones olvidadas en el debate de los fondos de contrapartida Este artículo revé los juicios convencionales en boga relativos a los fondos de contrapartida, y examina cuatro aspectos que han sido dejados de lado: análisis a nivel de sector y de productos; variabilidad inter?anual; dependencia estatal y de importaciones; y capacidad de absorción y desincentivación. Llega a la conclusión de que las nuevas pautas deben concentrarse en la función desarrollista de los fondos de contrapartida, prestar mas atención a la calibración interanual, y supervisar por partes iguales las políticas sectorales y el gasto público

Does European Aid Work? An Ethiopian Case Study

Simon Maxwel

From Understudy to Leading Star: the Future Role of Impact Assessment in Food Aid Programmes

SUMMARY SUMMARY This paper stresses the difficulty of resolving the many debates on food aid without closer attention to the impact of food aid programmes. It argues, however, that inadequate, casual, ex?post evaluation must be replaced by a comprehensive impact assessment system. The data requirements of such a system are explored for different sorts of food aid activity and ways of simplifying the monitoring and evaluation task are discussed, based on selectivity, a step by step approach and the use of data?economising methods. Specific proposals are made for an international initiative on impact assessment, with donor coordination and a strengthening of indigenous capability in recipient countries. RESUME RESUME De doublure au röle de vedette: le röle future de l'évaluation de l'impact en matiè de programmes d'aide alimentaire Ce document souligne la difficulté qu'il y a à résoudre les nombreux débats sur l'aide alimentaire sans attacher plus d'importance à l'impact des programmes d'aide alimentaire. Il démontre, cependant, qu'une évaluation insuffisante, fortuite, rétroactive doit être remplacée par un système d'évaluation de l'impact complet. Les besoins en renseignements d'un tel système sont explorés pour toutes sortes d'activités d'aide alimentaire et les manières de simplifier la tâche de surveillance et d'évaluation y sont discutées, basées sur la sélectivité, une approche progressive et l'utilisation de méthodes d'économie de renseignements. Des propositions spécifiques sont présentées en vue d'une initiative internationale sur l'évaluation de l'impact, avec coordination du donateur et renforcement de la capacité autochtone des pays bénéficiaires

What Role Does the European Union Play in International Development?

As a body of 28 member states and with a combined GDP of close to US$20tn, greater than that of the US, the actions of the European Union (EU) have the potential to impact heavily – either negatively or positively – on international development cooperation. Ahead of the EU referendum in the UK, this briefing argues neither for nor against membership of the EU, but presents information about the EU’s current role in development, to help inform considered debate