At Results for Development Institute (R4D), we strive to break down the barriers that prevent poor people in Africa, Asia, and Latin America from building better lives for themselves. Targeting some of the most challenging problems in health, education, governance, finance, and other areas of development, we help
countries and communities to attack poverty and unleash human potential.
We also work in the area of capacity building through our Governance program, focusing on working with experienced and emerging leaders in developing countries’ governments and civil society institutions to strengthen their individual and organizational capacities.
Executive Summary
Dennis de Tray, R4D Principle, in a new working paper addresses both capacity building as the bedrock of international development assistance and areas where it can be improved. He argues that the international community’s record on this front is not what it should be and offers strategic insight into how they can do better. He also argues that this problem is most serious in poor, weak and capacity constrained countries. Using Timor Leste as a case study, de Tray notes that donor good intensions often do little to build capacity in weak and fragile states and in some cases may actually undermine what capacity those governments have. In their eagerness to help—and to be seen to help—donors can overwhelm governments with programs that far exceed local ability to implement. These donor-driven and implemented programs lock in dependency on high cost foreign consultants and may signal to the people of these countries that their governments are not worth supporting.
