Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/211242 
Year of Publication: 
2019
Series/Report no.: 
WIDER Working Paper No. 2019/12
Publisher: 
The United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER), Helsinki
Abstract: 
This paper critically reviews evidence on "thinking and working politically" in development. Scholars and practitioners have increasingly recognised that development is fundamentally political, and efforts are underway to develop more politically informed ways of thinking and working. The literature does not yet constitute a strong evidence base to link these efforts to more effective aid programming: much evidence is anecdotal, does not meet high standards of robustness, is not comparative, and draws on self-selected successes reported by programme insiders. We discuss factors commonly considered to explain the success of politically informed programmes in areas where conventional programming approaches fall short. We consider evidence in three areas - political context, sector and organization - and provide guidance on where to focus next. Finally, we outline ways of testing the core assumptions of the "thinking and working politically" agenda more thoroughly, to provide a clearer sense of the contribution it can make to aid effectiveness.
Subjects: 
aid effectiveness
donors
evidence
governance
politics
thinking and working politically
JEL: 
O19
O20
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
ISBN: 
978-92-9256-646-3
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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