[GKD] UK Government Moves To Outcome Based Conditionality
A potentially very important development. MG - [via PRS Watch] UK Government Moves To Outcome Based Conditionality Report: http://www.dfid.gov.uk/pubs/files/conditionality.pdf The UK Government launched a new policy on conditionality this week, which calls for outcome based conditionality and a de-linking from World Bank and IMF lending signals. The new policy paper 'Partnerships for Poverty Reduction: Rethinking Conditionality' notes that the UK Government will stop making their aid conditional on specific policy conditions, including in sensitive economic areas such as privatization or trade liberations. Instead, the report notes that aid will be provided on the basis of a set of jointly agreed outcome or impact based benchmarks drawn from developing countries own national plans, where possible. Conditionality will be limited to fiduciary concerns only and used to ensure aid is not used corruptly or for purposes other than those intended. The policy states that the UK government will be steered by the following five principles: *Developing country ownership *Participatory and evidence-based policy-making *Predictability *Harmonisation *Transparency and accountability Amongst other things, the policy states that the UK Government will work with other donors to improve aid harmonization and limit the overall burden of conditionality. In particular, the report notes that the UK Government will encourage the World Bank and the IMF to monitor and streamline their combined terms and conditions. Interestingly, the policy also notes that though the UK government will continue to use the analysis from the IMF and the World Bank in making its assessment of progress towards poverty reduction, it will not always follow their funding signals. An IMF or World Bank program going 'off-track' will not automatically lead DFID to suspend its assistance. Finally, the report highlights the circumstances in which the UK will consider reducing or interrupting aid: a) countries move significantly away from agreed poverty reduction objectives or outcomes or the agreed objectives of a particular aid commitment (e.g. through an unjustifiable rise in military spending, or a substantial deviation from the agreed poverty reduction program); or b) countries are in significant violation of human rights or other international obligations; or c) there is a significant breakdown in partner government financial management and accountability. Civil society groups have been broadly welcoming of the report, but question whether it will actually be put into practice. ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
[GKD] CFP: ICTs and Development Conference Track
Call for Papers ICTs and Development Conference Track Sept 2005, UK Dear GKD Members, We are organising a conference track on ICTs and Development at this year's UK Development Studies Association conference, to be held in Milton Keynes, 7-9 September. If you would like to contribute a paper, then please send a 300- 500-word abstract by 22 April 2005 to myself [EMAIL PROTECTED] AND to the conference administrators [EMAIL PROTECTED]. The conference track - organised by the DSA's Information, Technology and Development study group - can encompass a range of issues related to information systems and technology in developing countries. We welcome papers that specifically address the conference theme: Connecting People and Places: Challenges and Opportunities for Development. Such papers are more likely to be considered for publication in the conference-related issue of the Journal of International Development. In particular, I would hope to solicit enough papers to run one session on ICTs and Connections in Remote Regions. Invited speakers relevant to this track include Prof. Robin Mansell from the LSE, and Prof. Lynn Mytelka from UNU- Maastricht. We hope this event will give an opportunity for a forum meeting of the many UK and other researchers and development practitioners working on issues related to information, technology and development. If you have any queries about the event or about your own submission, do please contact me. Further details about the conference, including registration and fee details, can be found at: http://www.devstud.org.uk/conference.htm Please note that funds are not currently available to support attendance of presenters, who will need to arrange for travel, accommodation and conference fees. Richard Heeks Convenor, Information, Technology and Development Study Group UK Development Studies Association [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
Re: [GKD] The $100 Computer
I am afraid this discussion tends to be focalized around the dominant consumerist perspective of development. What will we do with waste resulting from 2 billion obsolete 10$ Xputers that might pile up in 2025? Don Slater's points are however well taken. Actually there was a report a few days ago that MS was going to sell its OS and Office suite in China at much reduced prices. One can only wonder, if the company is so much concerned with supporting development in poor communities, or else by piracy, why such practices are not generalized. As to a cheap Office there is already one, free, Openoffice, which runs on MS Windows as well. Addressing the OS issue in absolute terms is often excessive. Yet there are many instances such as education or large systems where Open Source solutions present a clear advantage in terms of TCO. Not to mention the dependency effect associated with initial learning. Options might need to be considered not on the basis of countries but on the basis of users' institutions or situations. Among the options is also the support of local Open Source developers and backstoppers capacities. Michel Menou On Tuesday, March 8, 2005, Don Slater wrote: This point might seem silly, but surely a very 'sensible' alternative OS would be a very *cheap* Windows XP, with very cheap Office or Works versions? If Windows XP were sold at the price it usually commands in pirate markets, it would be perfectly OK. So doesn't it make just as much sense to pressure M$ for the equivalent of educational licences, or simply donated software? The demand would be for a more appropriate pricing structure, and would be similar to demanding that drug companies allow or produce very cheap generic versions of drugs that are essential to lives in poor countries. I tend to get worried (particularly as an ethnographer) when I see the word 'only' used in these discussions - there may seem to be only one solution *technologically*, but there are always multiple political and economic strategies, and Linux is 'only' one of these. ..snip... === Dr. Michel J. Menou Consultant in Information and Knowledge Management B.P. 15 49350 Les Rosiers sur Loire, France Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Phone: +33 (0)2 41518165 Fax: +33 (0)2 41511043 http://ciber.soi.city.ac.uk/peoplemenou.php ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/
