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Real AccountabilityImproving aid through better
accountability
Jasmine Burnley
Policy and Campaigns
ActionAid
Presentation Outline
1. Our work on aid effectiveness
2. Aid and Accountability: Key Issues
3. Technical Assistance
4. Will mutual accountability solve these problems?
5. Recommendations
1. Our work on aid effectiveness
• ActionAid has a strong interest in work on aid effectiveness:– Real Aid 1: An Agenda for Making Aid
Work 2005
– Real Aid 2: Making Technical Assistance work 2006
1. Our work on aid effectiveness
• ActionAid has a strong interest in work on aid effectiveness:– Real Aid 1: An Agenda for Making Aid
Work 2005
– Real Aid 2: Making Technical Assistance work 2006
– Publications on conditionality
2. Accountability and Aid – some key problems
• Accountability is central to aid effectiveness, but..• The ways in which donors behave overemphasise
recipient’s accountability to donorsi. Aid focuses on meeting donor objectives not
poverty reduction – this leads to phantom aid
What is “Phantom Aid”?• Aid that is poorly targeted• Aid that is double counted through debt
cancellation• Much TA is overpriced & ineffective• Aid tying• Poor donor coordination• Immigration related costs in donor
countries• Excess administration costs
2. Accountability and Aid – some key problems
• Accountability is central to aid effectiveness, but..• The ways in which donors behave overemphasise
recipient’s accountability to donorsi. Aid focuses on meeting donor objectives not
poverty reduction – this leads to phantom aidii. Donors are not held accountable by recipientsiii. Donors take the driving seat – this undermines
ownership and effectiveness – most notorious example of this is conditionality
Whose accountability matters?
i. Conditionality can undermine the whole of the domestic accountability system
ii. It weakens governments’ ability to decide their own policies
• In turn the ability of citizens to hold their governments to account is reduced
• It also refocuses governments’ view on donors rather than citizens
iii. Bad quality aid increases expectations without delivering extra resources or results
2. Accountability and Aid – some key problems
• Accountability is central to aid effectiveness, but..• The ways in which donors behave overemphasise
recipient’s accountability to donorsi. Aid focuses on meeting donor objectives not
poverty reduction – this leads to phantom aidii. Donors are not held accountable by recipientsiii. Donors take the driving seat – this undermines
ownership and effectiveness – most notorious example of this is conditionality
iv. There are limited forums for governments to hold donors to account
‘Real Accountability’: A genuinely mutual model
Government
Civil Society
Donors
(Mutual accountability)
(Domestic accountability)
4. Technical Assistance
• Real Aid II: our research shows that delivery of TA is largely:– Ineffective
TA is ineffective
• “Almost everyone acknowledges the ineffectiveness of technical co-operation in what is or what should be its major objective: achievement of greater self reliance in the recipient countries by building institutions and strengthening local capacities in national economic management.” UNDP 2003
4. Technical Assistance
• Real Aid II: our research shows that delivery of TA is largely:– Ineffective – Over-supplied
TA is oversupplied and donor-driven
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Public spending on education
TC receipts
4. Technical Assistance
• Real Aid II: our research shows that delivery of TA is largely:– Ineffective – Over-supplied– Overpriced
TA is overpriced
• On TA:
“To all intents and purposes, the money goes back to the developed countries.” Ghanaian Finance Minister, Annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, 2006
4. Technical Assistance
• Real Aid II: our research shows that delivery of TA is largely:– Ineffective – Over-supplied– Overpriced
• TA is a donor-driven aid instrument: – TA overemphasises some relationships of
accountability over others– TA is used to influence policy choices
Sierra Leone: A case study for TA
• Privatisation of water has been a condition for a number of World Bank and IMF loans
• TA was described as “subtle conditionality” used in conjunction with conditionality to pressure the country to privatise
• Support for this privatisation policy is not widely owned within Sierra Leone’s government
5. Will Mutual Accountability solve these problems?
• Paris Declaration 2010 target on mutual accountability: all countries to have mutual assessment reviews in place
• Paris Declaration 2010 target on TA: 50% of TA flows are implemented through co-ordinated programmes consistent with national development strategies
• This signals a greater move towards accountability but…the target is not clear
• Mutual accountability must result in meaningful change – not just tinkering
6. Recommendations:- for the Aid System
• Genuinely mutual accountable aid processes– Clear recipient government policies on criteria
for accepting aid – Mutual commitments monitored at the country
level– National and international forums to review
progress on equal footing overseen by a UN commissioner
– New mechanisms to increase the predictability of aid
Recommendations: - for TA• Allow southern countries to take the lead
in the capacity building process– Allow the country to spend funding on their
priorities– Do not provide TA outside national capacity
building plans– Provide all TA flows through government-led
capacity building mechanisms
• Donor support to Governments could be complimented by donor support for civil society to strengthen accountability