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Vietnam: PPAs and PRS. Finnish Aid in a PRS Context Helsinki Workshop 19-22 May 2003. Vietnam: PPAs and the PRSP. Participatory poverty assessments conducted by 4 PPA partners with local authorities Highly influential in Vietnam policy process unlike much other qualitative research
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Vietnam: PPAs and PRS Finnish Aid in a PRS Context Helsinki Workshop 19-22 May 2003
Vietnam: PPAs and the PRSP • Participatory poverty assessments conducted by 4 PPA partners with local authorities • Highly influential in Vietnam policy process unlike much other qualitative research • Also set the stage for PRS consultation exercise
Donor impetus to the PPA • World Bank, DFID, UNDP, SIDA identified need for a new poverty assessment • To be done in partnership with central and local government, CS and other donors • One poverty assessment would meet needs of all groups • To incorporate qualitative information
NGO impetus to PPA • Action Aid Vietnam – rec’d request from Ha Tinh govt to assist with qual and quant studies in support of policy development • SCFUK - pilot PPA conducted in Ho Chi Minh City to inform devt of larger PPA programme
Donor-INGO partnership • WB entered into a long process of identifying partners both able and willing to implement PRSPs • AAV and SCFUK • Oxfam GB – had worked in Tra Vinh with local authorities to address poverty • Vietnam-Sweden Mountain Rural Development Programme – had worked in 5 provinces of the northern upland region (Lao Cai)
Links with GoV • Poverty Working Group - a high level forum with GoV-donor-CSO membership • Results of PPAs to be published through PWG • Again, long process of negotiation with GoV stakeholders established credibility of research and ensured findings would be relayed to policy makers
Collaboration • PPA agencies collaborated because: • Would have done similar work anyway to inform own research, advocacy or programming • Were able to focus on special areas for their own interest • Link with national policy process was attractive • Important for quality of research that this was not just a contract • Synthesis of results would link to WDR 2000 (and Voices of the Poor) and thus international audience
Synthesis • Considerable overlap between the info needs of the NGOs and the info needed for a national poverty assessment • Agreed that all studies would use certain techniques and cover certain subjects • Close cooperation between 4 agencies
Partnering? • Local NGOs and research organisations were hired to help with the studies • Process of conducting the PPAs meant improved relationships with these organisations • But weakness of local NGO community a hurdle for greater partnership
Methodology • All agencies had been using participatory techniques routinely in their region for many years and employed: • Focus groups • Semi-structured interviews • Wealth/well-being rankings • Matrix and preference ranking and sorting • Flow diagrams • Worked separately with women, elderly, children
Use of the PPAs • Large provincial workshops at the end of each PPA • Findings generally well accepted • Fed into ‘Vietnam: Attacking Poverty’ along with quant data • GoV requested PPA guidelines for local authorities to use in planning • I-PRSP drew on PPA findings
Link with the PRS consultations • Not foreseen at the time of the PPAs but very useful link • After I-PRSP completed, PPA partners took it back to the PPA research sites (+ INGOs facilitated consultations in 2 other sites) • Researchers provided from local NGOs, consultants, research institutes, local mass organisations (though limitations on amount local NGOs could be involved)
Link with the PRS consultations • Drafted a research programme based on the I-PRSP • Asked communities whether the draft policy would address the issues identified in the PPA research • Ability of NGOs to draw direct connection between PPA findings and policy proposals a great strength
Impacts for NGOs • Significant resources demanded • Tight timeframe meant restricted capacity building gains • Improved relationships with local NGOs and research organisations, and local authorities • Helped reorient some of their programmes
Impacts for PRSP process • Value of participatory/qualitative work brought home to GoV • Demonstrated value of revisiting communities to question policies • Policy content of PRS improved