The Political Economy of Evaluation : International Aid Agencies and the Effectiveness of Aid

Examines the economic impact of aid, but not in the sense that it questions the relevance of this objective, or tries to measure whether aid works or not. The focus of this book is on the evaluation process itself. Can aid evaluation be improved in order to increase the effectiveness of aid? Most aid projects have the explicit objective to improve welfare and contribute to economic growth. Aid agencies therefore advocate the use of economic analysis in appraisals and evaluations to ensure the achievement of these objectives. Despite such recommendations, economic analyses are rare in many agencies, and when conducted they tend to have more of a legitimizing than predictive or learning value. Within the context of the organizational dynamics of aid agencies, the process of project appraisal and evaluation is studied in four case-studies. The analysis yields important insights into two fundamental questions: What determines international aid agencies' search for knowledge about the economic impact of their operations? And how can aid evaluation be improved in order to increase the effectiveness of aid? Front Matter....Pages i-xii Introduction....Pages 1-8 Concepts....Pages 9-41 Mapping the Terrain of the Case Studies....Pages 42-49 The Gold Mines of Nicaragua....Pages 50-77 Non-Project Aid: The Case of Commodity Import Support....Pages 78-108 Soil Conservation in Kenya....Pages 109-144 How the World Bank Went Green....Pages 145-174 Final Analysis....Pages 175-204 Back Matter....Pages 205-244