The Delusion of Knowledge Transfer

Peter Weingart, Susanne Koch

Description

With the rise of the ‘knowledge for development’ paradigm, expert advice has become a prime instrument of foreign aid. At the same time, it has been object of repeated criticism: the chronic failure of ‘technical assistance’ – a notion under which advice is commonly subsumed – has been documented in a host of studies. Nonetheless, international organisations continue to send advisors, promising to increase the ‘effectiveness’ of expert support if their technocratic recommendations are taken up. This book reveals fundamental problems of expert advice in the context of aid that concern issues of power and legitimacy rather than merely flaws of implementation. Based on empirical evidence from South Africa and Tanzania, the authors show that aid-related advisory processes are inevitably obstructed by colliding interests, political pressures and hierarchical relations that impede knowledge transfer and mutual learning. As a result, recipient governments find themselves caught in a perpetual cycle of dependency, continuously advised by experts who convey the shifting paradigms and agendas of their respective donor governments.
For young democracies, the persistent presence of external actors is hazardous: ultimately, it poses a threat to the legitimacy of their governments if their policy-making becomes more responsive to foreign demands than to the preferences and needs of their citizens.

Sujets

• African Studies

Informations

• Publié par: African Minds
• Date de parution: 13 décembre 2016
• Nombre de lectures: 1
• EAN13: 9781928331414
• Langue: English

Extrait

A NOTE ABOUT THE PEER REVIEW PROCESS
This open access publication forms part of the African Minds peer reviewed, academic books list,the broad mission of which is to support the dissemination of African scholarship and to fosteraccess, openness and debate in the pursuit of growing and deepening the African knowledge base. The Delusion of Knowledge Transfer was reviewed by two external peers. Copies of the reviews are available from the publisher on request.
First published in 2016 by African Minds
4 Eccleston Place, Somerset West 7130, Cape Town, South Africa
[e-mail]
www.africanminds.org.za
2016 African Minds

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
ISBN: 978-1-928331-39-1
eBook edition: 978-1-928331-40-7
ePub edition: 978-1-928331-41-4
ORDERS:
African Minds
4 Eccleston Place, Somerset West 7130, Cape Town, South Africa
[e-mail]
www.africanminds.org.za
For orders from outside Africa:
African Books Collective
PO Box 721, Oxford OX1 9EN, UK
[e-mail]
Contents
List of tables
List of figures
List of abbreviations
Acknowledgements
Introduction Perpetuating dependence: Expert advice as tool of foreign aid
Chapter 1 Knowledge transfer to young democracies: Issues of legitimacy, sovereignty, and efficacy
Chapter 2 Accessing the world of development aid: Study design and fieldwork
Chapter 3 South Africa and Tanzania: Two different types of ‘donor darlings’
Chapter 4 Multiple actors, colliding interests: The main players of the aid game
Recipient governments and bureaucracies
Donor countries and aid organisations
The epistemic community of development experts
Chapter 5 Intricacies of expert advice in the aid context
The linkage between aid and politics
Structural flaws pertaining to expert employment
Unequal relationships
Chapter 6 Retaining autonomy of agenda-setting in dealing with advice: Structural conditions
Financial strength
Administrative capacity
Local knowledge base
Chapter 7 The impact of expert advice on policy-making in young democracies: Sector studies
Tanzania education: The hijacked agenda
South Africa education: Exploiting outside expertise to create a local vision
Tanzania health: The normality of foreign involvement
South Africa health: Rebuilding relationships with local and external experts
Tanzania environment: Opportunistic adaption
South Africa environment: On top of the game
It’s not all about the money: Synthesis of findings
Chapter 8 There is no substitute for local knowledge: Summary and conclusion
References
Appendix
List of Tables
Table 1: Top ten recipients of aid worldwide based on net ODA received 1980–2014
Table 2: Rationales legitimating aid in donor policies
Table 3: Advisory activities, types of support and impact levels
Table 4: Monthly salary bands of advisors, consultants and government staff
Table 5: Aid as share of government expenditures 2010/2011 (%)
Table 6: External resources as share of total health expenditure in South Africa
Table 7: Environment-related expenditures (TSh million)
Table 8: External resources as share of total health expenditure in Tanzania
Table 9: Government and donor expenditures on HIV/Aids in Tanzania
Table 10: Sectoral strength in terms of finances
Table 11: South Africa and Tanzania as assessed by governance indices
Table 12: Staffing levels of South African line departments 2011/2012
Table 13: MoEVT staff by educational level
Table 14: Sectoral strength in terms of administrative capacity
Table 15: Research and development indicators for South Africa and Tanzania
Table 16: Scientific output by subject area in South Africa and Tanzania 1990–2013
Table 17: Sectoral strength in terms of the local knowledge base
Table 18: HIV/Aids expenditures in Tanzania in 2007
Table 19: Expert support to the NHI process through SARRAH 2010–2013
Table 20: Local and foreign resources in GEF-supported CAPE projects
List of Figures
Figure 1: Aid flows to Tanzania and South Africa 1992–2012
Figure 2: Actors and interests in aid
Figure 3: Donor typology based on aid rationales and decision-making structures
Figure 4: Aid to selected sectors 1990–2012
Figure 5: Spending patterns in health-related aid 1990–2010
Figure 6: Aid targeting global environmental objectives 2002–2012
Figure 7: Aid as share of GNI in South Africa, Tanzania and sub-Saharan Africa
List of Abbreviations AfDB African Development Bank AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome ANC African National Congress ART Antiretroviral Treatment ARVs Antiretroviral Drugs AusAid Australian Agency for International Development BMZ Bundesministerium für Wirtschaftliche Entwicklung und Zusammenarbeit (German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development) BTI Bertelsmann Transformation Index CAPE Cape Action for People and the Environment CBD Convention on Biological Diversity CEPF Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund CFR Cape Floristic Region CHAI Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative CIDA Canadian International Development Agency CPIA Country Policy and Institutional Assessment CSIR Council for Scientific and Industrial Research DAC Development Assistance Committee DANCED Danish Cooperation for Environment and Development Danida Danish International Development Agency DBE Department of Basic Education DEA Department of Environmental Affairs DEAT Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism DEO District Education Officer DFID Department for International Development DHET Department of Higher Education and Training DoH Department of Health DPG Development Partners Group DPG-E Development Partners Group on Environment DPs Development Partners ED-DPG Education Development Partners Group EDP Essential Drugs Programme EMA Environmental Management Act EMA-ISP Environmental Management Act Implementation Support Programme EMIS Education Management Information System ESDC Education Sector Development Committee ESDP Education Sector Development Programme EU European Union GBS General Budget Support GEF Global Environment Facility GERD Gross Domestic Expenditure on Research and Development GFATM Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria GIZ Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (German Agency for International Cooperation) GMOs Genetically Modified Organisms GDP Gross Domestic Product GNI Gross National Income GNP Gross National Product GPE Global Partnership for Education GTZ Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (German Agency for Technical Cooperation) HAART Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy HCT HIV Counselling and Testing HEDP Higher Education Development Programme HIV Human Immunodeficiency Virus HR Human Resources HSRC Human Sciences Research Council ICAI Independent Commission for Aid Impact ICT Information and Communication Technology IDA International Development Association IDC International Development Cooperation IHI Ifakara Health Institute IIAG Ibrahim Index of African Governance IK Indigenous Knowledge ILFEMP Institutional and Legal Framework for Environmental Management Project IMF International Monetary Fund IPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change IPD Institutional Profiles Database IRA Institute for Resource Assessment JAST Joint Assistance Strategy for Tanzania JICA Japan International Cooperation Agency LEAT Lawyers’ Environmental Action Team LGA Local Government Authority MAC Ministerial Advisory Committee MDGs Millennium Development Goals MKUKUTA Mkakati wa Kukuza Uchumi na Kupunguza Umaskini Tanzania (Tanzania National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty) MNRT Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism MoEVT Ministry of Education and Vocational Training MoH Ministry of Health MoHSW Ministry of Health and Social Welfare MRC Medical Research Council MSDGC Ministry for Social Development, Gender and Children MUHAS Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences NACOSA National AIDS Committee of South Africa NAP National AIDS Plan NBSAP National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan NCTP National Care and Treatment Plan NEMA National Environmental Management Act NEMC National Environmental Management Council NGO Non-governmental Organisation NHI National Health Insurance NIMR National Institute for Medical Research NSP National Strategic Plan for HIV&AIDS and STIs ODA Official Development Assistance OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development PAF Performance Assessment Framework PEDP Primary Education Development Plan/Programme PEPFAR US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief PES Payments for Environmental Services PFM Participatory Forest Management PHC Primary Health Care PMO-RALG Prime Minister’s Office Regional Administration and Local Government PMTCT Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission PRSP Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper PRC People’s Republic of China PS Permanent Secretary RDP Reconstruction and Development Programme REDD Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation SANAC South African National AIDS Council SANBI South African National Biodiversity Institute SANParks South African National Parks SARRAH Strengthening South Africa’s Revitalised Response to Aids and Health SETAs Sector Education and Training Authorities Sida Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency STDs Sexually Transmitted Diseases STIs Sexually Transmitted Infections SUA Sokoine University of Agriculture SUBSTTA Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice