Prepared in response to a question about the appropriateness of taking a hypothetical SED consulting contract
Based on my experience as a consultant engaged in international development, I would like to offer a few comments on some of the points recently discussed on this list. In particular, I would like to clarify the following :
A consultant -whether a major business or an individual-, or a NGO is never hired to implement a project on the basis of a short description : four schools, a few miles of road, etc. Before any governement will engage in a new project, it will discuss it with one or more donors, World Bank, bilateral assistance or other : it does need the funds before going any further. (A project might be initiated by a donor, who sees a need for it : it will then propose to the local government to finance a prefeasibility study). From that point onwards, the donor, or the local government, possibly with some outside assistance, will start the project definition (this in itself can be, and often is, a consultation assignment): What are the objectives ? Do the objectives fall within the scope of the national development plan (if any) or national objectives? What specific problems does the project intend to solve ? What actions are needed to solve these problems ? What should actually result from these actions ? What will these intervention require in terms of technical assistance, materials, accommodations, facilities, and so on ? What are the costs ? What part of these costs could be covered by the country ? What should be te terms of the external funding : commercial loan, concessional loan, straight gift ? How long should it take to implement the project ? How long to repay the loan, if applicable ? The whole process is usually dealt with in full discussion between the donor and the recipient country, in a continuous feedback operation. I feel that the smallest project should be submitted to an analysis that covers every point mentioned in this paragraph. I agree, however, that in the case of a very small project, such a discussion can be over in a matter of minutes.
It is obvious that, during that formulation process, many local people are consulted, and their opinion taken under consideration. The level of the local consultation, however, varies with the type of project : village people will obviously have their say in the location of a new well, but if the project involves the design of a national policy, for example, peasants will not be the only people to be asked for their views, and you can not expect that a national referendum will be held on the subject to insure consultation at every level.
Whether formulated by the government, the donor or a consultant, the proposed project is dicussed in depth before a loan agreement can be signed and the project launched. In most such cases, the consultant or NGO who is asked to undertake the project has no reason to question the validity of the project, unless he feels both the government and the donor agency are usurping their power. I guess you have to be a real anarchist to reject a national government sponsored project funded by a UN or Bilateral agency !
Furthermore, if a well-known donor agency deals with a government whose acceptance is under dispute (Dictatorships, countries where human rights protection is not always guaranteed), it is to be expected that the only projects the donor will finance will be designed to benefit the population, not the government people.
I feel the previous paragraphs provide a pretty clear answer to that question: if the national government, with the highly qualified assistance of an institutional donor, has decided to launch a project, this project should be considered "good" in principle : any other position is a political intrusion by anybody but nationals. That should not mean that no improvement is possible, however, and most development agencies will be open to suggestions. At this stage, however,the major question anybody should consider, if offered the job, is not anymore "Is the project a good one ?" but, more important "Am I competent to implement that project properly ?"
Besides this, it is not impossible for a "good project" to be mismanaged. However,only once in twenty two years have I seen a project so poorly implemented that it had to be closed down instead of being put back on the right track.
The original discussion turned around a question formulated more or less like this : "If you were asked to design a new school system to replace four existing local schools...". Once again, the question becomes "Should I, as an outsider (but self-appointed "development agent"), question this decision, and state that I am better placed than the national government in deciding what is good for the people ?" Is it better to preserve the native culture (and, most of the time, poverty) rather than to offer new perspectives, if nothing else ?
Besides, not all people want to be confined within the closed environment of the native culture, and the search for progress is a widespread human desire. It should be understood that the so-called "local culture protection" can sometimes be a powerfull tool used by some groups to enforce their hold on the community.
I was working, a few years ago, on the evaluation of a rural development project coming to its end in Northern Benin. The project had been working on local road improvement and well digging, and had built village health centres, granaries and an elementary school.. As part of the evaluation process, I was interviewing local people on their perception of the effects of the project. Working with the local teacher acting as interpreter, I had asked a young peasant working his cotton field what he thought was the most important output of the project, and he immediately said: "The school". When I asked him why he thought so, he answered very simply; "We are blind, and our children will see".
There seems to be, especially within the academic world, a lack of understanding of the work done in international development by consultants, and a tendancy to place them in opposition to NGOs, as if incompatible.
First of all, it should be realized that the implementation of a complex project requires the intervention of qualified people, of a level you cannot get as volunteers just out of High School. These people have to make a living, whether they work at home or abroad (I personnally work about 50% of my time on international develoment). Business firms as well as major NGOs rely on hiring these consultants to do specific jobs.
It is highly laudable for young people to give a few years of their life to the third world, and most do a beautiful job at the community level. They don't necessarily have the expertise to do every job. I have seen volunteers, full of goodwill, trying to "help" African villagers to dig new wells in a drying-up area of the Sahel. Unfortunately, they did not have any basic knowledge of hydrology. I didn't stay long enough to see how many wells lasted for more than a few weeks...
I have a deep respect for most NGOs, and VITA, the list owner, is one of them. Many small NGOs, however, try to tackle projects too big for them : without access to the required technical resources, they are unable to complete the work as planned, and there comes the frustration of many unfinished projects.
There is a need for every resource in development, and technical competence is one you find only among professionals : they can be long term field experts in a multitude of projects, or they can be consultants on shorter assignments. The only thing that matters is : can they do the job efficiently.
Hubert Duvieusart, agr. Montreal, QC, CANADA duvieush@francomedia.qc.ca agro-economiste - agronome conseil Agro-economist - agricultural consultant Conseiller en developpement rural Rural Development Adviser
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