Aiding local action: the constraints faced by donor agencies in supporting effective, pro-poor initiatives on the ground

Abstract

This paper examines the institutional and political constraints that inhibit multilateral and bilateral donor agencies supporting poverty reduction initiatives on the ground. These include the constraints related to their own structures and the political systems in which they are embedded, and those related to their relationships with recipient governments. The paper also considers how current trends in development assistance towards greater donor harmonization and the associated processes within Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs), the shift from project support to budget support, and the drive for greater “efficiency” may further limit donors’ capacity to support pro-poor local initiatives. It also discusses how these trends in development assistance are marginalizing support for those aspects of development that require relatively little external funding but also require that this funding be used carefully and strategically, engaging directly with poor groups and their organizations, and enlarging their scope for influence and action.

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