92591 Capacity Development briefs S h a r i n g k n o w l e d g e a n d L e ss o n s L e a r n e d Putting Evidence to Work: Linking Policy and Practice in Capacity Development By Thomas Theisohn, Mark Nelson, and Janet Awimbo One of the major challenges facing the international development community is creating a capacity development (CD) architecture built on solid evidence. In this CD Brief, the authors argue that, although a significant body of evidence on CD is being produced, the knowledge is poorly captured and managed. As a result, CD practice and policies fail to take full advantage of lessons and experiences that could lead to better results. Addressing these challenges is the basis of the three-year strategy of the Learning Network on Capacity Development (LenCD), a broad partnership of practitioners and donors dedicated to improving the outcomes of capacity development initiatives. The strategy has three key pillars: evidence, practice, and policy. The aim is to create a more professionalized CD practice and transfer CD learning into the mainstream of development. After many years of conflict and economic decline, nouncements into improved practice on the ground the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is now trying requires a concerted effort to learn from the growing to put itself on a path of recovery. But even before that body of evidence on what does and does not work. To journey begins, DRC faces a major roadblock. support this effort, the Learning Network on Capacity Development (LenCD) is creating a multipartner plat- The DRC is not only receiving a large flow of assis- form to strengthen the links among evidence, practice, tance from a multitude of donors, but has bountiful and broader international development policy. natural mineral wealth and potential. Yet, the popula- tion remains one of the poorest in Africa with a per The Open Window capita income of less than $300 a year. The basic struc- tures of the state have virtually collapsed during the Two key agreements on aid effectiveness, the Paris long years of conflict and internal decline. And creating Declaration (2005) and the Accra Agenda for Action working institutions across 11 provinces and a territory (2008), opened a window of opportunity that requires the size of Western Europe is a massive challenge that that both developing countries and donors work almost no one knows how to tackle. “Capacity devel- together to make CD efforts more effective. The two opment is an urgent priority for us,” said Planning agreements together represent a major change in the Minister Olivier Kamitatu Etsu recently on a visit to business model for development cooperation and, in Washington, D.C. “It’s the key to our development.” particular, for how capacity development is understood and delivered (see box 1). Yet, a number of challenges The DRC is just one country among many that face similar challenges. Improving the effective- ness of capacity development support is a $25 billion About the Authors question—roughly the amount of international devel- opment assistance that goes to enhancing capacity. Thomas Theisohn is Coordinator of LenCD. Mark Nelson of the World Bank Institute and Janet Awimbo More than 100 countries pledged to improve the way of the Aga Khan Foundation, Tanzania, are co-chairs that money is spent at a major conference last year of the LenCD Steering Group. in Accra, Ghana. But moving from these policy pro- June 2009 NU M B E R   3 3 must be addressed for this change to take hold on the into a more horizontal approach in which champions ground in practice. focus their energies on contributing to a country’s overall development objectives. It is at the country level—the epicenter of action—where judgments can Issue 1: Evidence be effectively made about the appropriateness of Although the practice of CD has long been ham- interventions and the degree to which they contrib- pered by a lack of agreed definitions and quantitative ute to the whole. Collective processes at the country indicators to measure progress, a significant body of level, such as the United Nations Joint Programme research and evaluations are now available that can on Capacity Building Support to Zanzibar, are real inform how CD is carried out on the ground. The chal- opportunities to build cross-sectoral, multistakeholder lenge is not only to continue adding to the quality and capacity to address gaps in institutional capacity. depth of the CD knowledge base, but to make that body of knowledge less fragmented and more easily Issue 3: Policy accessible. Lessons learned through evidence can be a power- Recent developments among CD practitioners are ful way to shape policy at the country and interna- contributing to the effort to develop a body of knowl- tional levels. Some progress has been made in the aid edge that can be used to understand what does and effectiveness agenda, but this needs to be translated does not work. The World Bank Institute, the United into national and sector policy as well as into the Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and oth- operational policies of international financial institu- ers are developing assessment tools and results tions and other development partners. In the DRC, frameworks that contribute to the comparability of for example, many of the projects and programs of CD efforts across countries, programs, and sectors. A various development agencies contain CD elements, growing cadre of professional CD specialists is starting but little effort has been taken to coordinate these pro- to use a similar language to describe CD interventions. grams or build links among them. Many of these CD issues cut across sectors and involve reforms that are Yet, the global CD knowledge architecture needs outside the purview of any one sector or program. strengthening through better knowledge management tools and capture of experiences. Although many The fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness operational agencies have sought to address this in 2011 will provide a new opportunity to take stock issue, evaluations and reports remain difficult to find of progress and significantly strengthen benchmarks and poorly catalogued. Another priority is integrating in coming years. These multipartner forums, which knowledge from the plethora of CD initiatives such as Capacity.org, CD Net, Capacity Collective, Intrac, Impact Alliance, Development Gateway, Train4Dev, and the international financial and development insti- Box 1: An Ambitious CD Agenda tutions. From paragraph 14 of the Accra Agenda for Action — Issue 2: Practice “Together, developing countries and donors will take the following actions to strengthen capacity development: Similar problems of fragmentation plague the prac- tice of CD on the ground. Capacity development is • Developing countries will systematically identify areas where there is a need to strengthen the capacity to recognized as the major development objective of perform and deliver services at all levels—national, a majority of development programs (two-thirds of subnational, sectoral, and thematic—and design strate- World Bank projects, for example, include CD in the gies to address them. Donors will strengthen their own statement on overall development objective); how- capacity and skills to be more responsive to developing countries’ needs. ever, the way that those development objectives are • Donors’ support for capacity development will be addressed vary across a huge array of practices and demand-driven and designed to support country owner- approaches. Many use only training and technical ship. To this end, developing countries and donors will i) jointly select and manage technical co-operation, and assistance as the main instruments, while other more ii) promote the provision of technical co-operation by successful approaches are emerging from efforts to local and regional resources, including through South- address the enabling environment, political economy, South co-operation. and other motivational factors that drive progress and • Developing countries and donors will work together at all levels to promote operational changes that make create incentives for change. capacity development support more effective.” From the country perspective, multiple vertical pro- Source: http://www.accrahlf.net. grams accountable to individual donors must be turned June 2009 NU M B E R   3 3 Table 1: Shift from Supply to Demand Implies Significant Leap From To • Supply-driven approaches, often packaged with funding • Demand-driven approaches with a choice of relevant services • Transfer of knowledge or “delivery” of training • Supporting the acquisition of knowledge and learning • External agency-driven delivery systems • Adjusting to contexts and multiple partnerships on the country level • Results measured as outputs • Impact through multistakeholder processes • Vertical systems built around the requirements of service • Horizontal systems primarily servicing the needs of country-level providers decision making and learning • Outward accountability to boards and funders • Downward accountability to country stakeholders in 2008 included large representation from develop- For pillar one on “practice,” LenCD will support ing countries and nongovernmental organizations, regional and local initiatives to help change CD prac- have been critical to raising awareness of frequently tice on the ground. A CD Learning Initiative is a key disjointed practices and behaviors that have worked part of this effort. The learning effort will be a joint against effective capacity development. project among an array of partners. Intraregional knowledge exchanges (both virtual and face-to-face) will be led by regional working groups that will ana- Closing the Learning Loop: The Role of LenCD lyze demand and identify opportunities. In the first LenCD intends to play a central role in this ambitious year, the main focus will be on Africa. The approach capacity development agenda. The network, built on a will establish links with African institutions and net- partnership of donor agencies and practitioners from works, take stock of ongoing efforts to strengthen South and North, has helped establish a collective these institutions and networks, and help formulate learning process that now spans many countries and an action plan for the future. official development agencies. Today, LenCD is seen by many as a network that can tap into knowledge, con- vene a broad array of constituencies, provide substan- tive advice, and give legitimacy to a collective learning Box 2: LenCD and Aid Effectiveness process that transcends ideological differences. It has also preserved its independence from more institution- LenCD’s earliest work was done in partnership with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s alized intergovernmental processes and maintained an Development Assistance Committee and focused on the ability to add an authoritative voice to the CD debate. Paris High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in 2005, at which LenCD provided technical advice and organized LenCD initially began as an open learning network the roundtable on capacity development. LenCD was also instrumental in guiding research and organizing consulta- for collaboration among donors (see box 2). The net- tions for developing the reference paper “The Challenge of work has now evolved to include practitioners from Capacity Development: Working Towards Good Practice.” partner countries and donor countries alike. By its DAC adopted the paper in 2006 as collective guidance very nature, LenCD is a partnership effort in which on capacity development. In an effort to build a broader community of practice on CD issues and reach out to prac- many partners implement their own CD programs. The titioners in the South, in October 2006 LenCD organized network provides a platform for development practitio- the Nairobi Forum “Addressing the Paris Declaration: ners to converge across institutional boundaries and Collective Responsibility for Capacity Development.” to promote collective action, complementarities, and For the Accra High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in synergies. Its strategy is to start modestly to promote September 2008, LenCD supported the organization of concrete change in practice on the ground, distill and a DAC preparatory workshop (Bonn, May 2008). The disseminate lessons, and bring back relevant knowl- workshop “Capacity Development: Accra and Beyond” contributed to setting a priority agenda for action on edge to inform policy decisions. capacity development that informed debates in Accra and helped shape the relevant sections in the Accra Agenda for Action. These concepts were embodied concisely in the Strategic Pillars of the LenCD Strategy 2009–11 Bonn Consensus (May 2008) and more substantively in the “Perspectives on Capacity Development for Accra and Figure 1 illustrates how LenCD will organize itself in Beyond.” LenCD carried these messages to Accra with a the next three years to address practice, evidence, and marketplace display, outreach materials, and a side event. policy, and to forge the links that will help inform and Full documentation can be found at www.LenCD.org. enhance all three pillars of its strategy. Figure 1: Pillars of the LenCD Strategy 2009–2011 Practice Evidence Policy Regional and local initiatives Knowledge base and good practice Advocacy and integration Learning, change practice on the ground Learning modules, policy briefs on key CD issues Focus on aid effectiveness Deliverables: Deliverables: Deliverables: CD Learning initiatives – knowledge Evidence – Resource corners – policy briefs – Tailored inputs to policy-making processes, sharing – lessons from practice case material synthesis reports Make it happen Operational underpinnings Deliverables: Legitimate governance – vibrant network – workspace & tools – improved knowledge architecture Pillar two on “evidence” is intended to strengthen Pillar three on “policy” will promote integration of evidence and facilitate dissemination of knowledge on CD into mainstream development policy, including good practice. Synthesizing existing and tacit knowl- aid effectiveness. Particular attention will be paid to edge in the network will be clustered around the prior- LenCD helping the CD debate to move from the cur- ity areas that have emerged in the Accra Agenda for rently small group of activists into the mainstream of Action. Existing and emerging evidence will be made other development agendas. Efforts under this pillar accessible through virtual “resource corners,” the will tailor products to support policy decisions and “wisdom of the crowd” captured through face-to-face guidance, in particular, in further shaping the aid and virtual meetings and synthesized into learning effectiveness agenda. LenCD will organize an annual modules. The themes will include the following: global forum in conjunction with and relevant to other mainstream events. In particular, it will seek close • Civil society and private sector engagement, own- collaboration with the aid effectiveness agenda and ership, and accountability specific inputs for policy guidance and synthesis in • Technical cooperation, quality standards, South- preparation for the 2011 High Level Forum. South cooperation, and strengthening the demand side of capacity development For more information: www.LenCD.org or e-mail: • National, sector, and thematic strategies contact@lencd.org. • Enabling environment and incentive systems • Country systems, including aid management, public finance management, procurement, and results-based management • CD in fragile situations Ajay Tejasvi of the World Bank Institute contrib- • Conceptual and methodological issues, including uted to this CD Brief. measurement of CD About World Bank Institute (WBI): Unleashing the Power of Knowledge to Enable a World Free of Poverty The World Bank Institute (WBI) helps countries share and apply global and local knowledge to meet development challenges. WBI's capacity development programs are designed to build skills among groups of individuals involved in performing tasks, and also to strengthen the organizations in which they work, and the sociopolitical environ- ment in which they operate. WBI Contact: Mark Nelson; program manager, Capacity Development Resource Center Tel: 202-458-8041, e-mail: mnelson1@worldbank.org Ajay Tejasvi; program coordinator, Capacity Development Resource Center Tel: 202-458-4064, e-mail: anarasimhan@worldbank.org Visit our website for more information and download the electronic copies of all Capacity Development Briefs at http://www.worldbank.org/capacity June 2009 NU M B E R   3 3