Poverty Reduction: Are the Strategies Working?

1. Poverty Reduction: Are the Strategies Working? Accountability: can the new PRSs engage the poor? WVUK June/July 05 Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

2. Overview • The argument • Methodology • Key Focus Areas/ observations • Recommendations • Conclusion Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

3. The Argument • The PRS approach has the potential to promote domestic accountability and influence the government- donor relationships on poverty reduction(p.9). • But it needs radical improvements in order to effectively move the domestic agenda from consultation with poor people to enabling them to influence and hold it accountable; and the donor agenda from conditionality to mutual accountability Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

4. Traditional institutions media Civil Society Civil Society Parliament Parliament • PRS CYCLE • - Policy • Budget • Aid flows • Trade strategies Who ‘owns’ what? Who is accountable to whom? EXTERNAL CONSTITUENCY DOMESTIC CONSTITUENCY Children, women, poor families CITIZENS Decentralised donor agencies Private sector Decentralised govt DONOR AGENCY GOVERNMENT From consultation to influence From conditionality to accountability Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

5. Methodology - WV’s work with poor communities & PRSPs, other NGOs, chronic poverty research by the CPRC, PRSP evaluations, author’s past work on political economy of participation and negotiation • Zambia and Bolivia as in-depth case studies, other countries through literature review • Individual interviews, focus groups with reps in govt, donors, CSOs, community Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

6. Key Focus Areas/ Issues • Understanding poverty • From consultation to policy influence • PRS accountability • Monitoring and Evaluation as accountability drivers • Donor systems and behaviour Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

7. Understanding poverty/ poverty diagnostics • Wish lists or perspectives and projects/programmes? (the HIPC factor) • Social sectors vs productive sectors (the HIPC factor) • Participatory poverty assessments (PPAs) not able to link micro to macro issues adequately and locate them in power & historical issues Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

8. From understanding poverty to influencing • The extent to which consultations have resulted in policy change not clear • Representation/ ‘representativity’; issues of democratic vs participatory representation • Space & capacity to engage, issues/budget, knowledge of policy making processes • Macro-economic framework e.g. PRGFs vs PRS cycle • Political processes, e.g. PRS vs nature of politics Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

9. PRS accountability • Vertical vs Horizontal forms of accountability, formal vs informal forms of accountability • Social accountability (priorities, mechanisms, monitoring,donors) • The budget process/ MTEF • PRS monitoring • Multi-dimensionality of poverty, data quality, quantity • Fragmented policy processes making • Chain of causality between policies and outcomes • PSIA great potential - - - but • Barriers of access to information • APRs, PAFs, JSAs and JSAN Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

10. Donor harmonisation and alignment; conditionality and accountability • Countries on the driving seat, challenges • Nature of funding vs domestic resources • Sectoral preferences still strong for donors • Commitment to mutual accountability • Outcome based conditionality right direction but - - - • The relationship between outcomes and policies • The relationship between outcomes and impacts Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

11. Recommendations (1) • PRSs must be fully embedded in the national development policy-making process, with well institutionalised CS participation • PRS process leadership together with the donor harmonisation/ alignment agenda, UN role • PRS design processes must include medium and long-term political mapping strategies Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

12. Recommendations (2) 4. The drawing of indicators and targets and monitoring systems for donor progress on ownership, alignment and harmonisation should be based on PRS sector priorities and budgets. CS consultation a key part 5. PRSs must be costed and funded based on a ‘value adding’ approach from grassroots to the national level, including capacity building 6. Donor conditionality and performance frameworks must be based on human rights and strengthening domestic accountability, using transparently agreed outcomes. Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

13. Recommendations (3) 7. Civil society involvement should be formalised in donor development cooperation policies with developing countries. This should include policy provisions for CSO in GBS 8. Special attention should be given to vulnerable groups, especially children and people living with disabilities, in the design and monitoring of PRSs from RBA. Donors should include these in their PAFs Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005

14. Thank you! fletcher.tembo@worldvision.org.uk Telephone: +44(0)1908841000 Fletcher WB/IMF meetings 2005