This article examines the available evidence about training as an instrument of capacity development and asks whether it works and under which conditions it is most optimally pursued. The first part of the paper considers evidence from the World Bank and other international donors, which spend...

This paper from the water sector in Uganda turns on its head conventional wisdom about capacity growth and how long it takes to effect enduring change. This example of a transformational process that was driven by passionate leadership and, contrary to popular development wisdom, was front-ended...

This brief highlights DFID's experience in Nigeria in adopting an issues-based approach in which its role lies more in responding to and following, rather than leading, local change processes. This shifts the donor's role to engaging with a wider variety of stakeholders, identifying groups and...

Achieving rapid development calls for improved capacity in the public and private sectors to support development policies and projects. The World Bank recognizes that capacity building is a long-term process requiring a systemic approach. That is why many Bank projects in Africa and elsewhere...

As articulated in the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness (2005), country capacity is at the core of sustainable development. The concepts of capacity and capacity development (CD) are so all-encompassing, however, that practitioners have often found it difficult to make operational sense of...

Evaluation skills are central to effective development work. Evaluation captures real results, leads to feedback and learning, and identifies areas where more capacity is needed. It is also an essential tool for making mid-course corrections in ongoing programs, developing appropriate...

Achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) and poverty reduction objectives of developing countries requires a substantially greater investment in capacity development. This translates into action at three levels: improving the skills of individuals, developing organizational processes and...

National, regional, or global networks of parliamentarians are proving important vehicles for enhancing their capacity and the effectiveness of parliaments and parliamentarians in developing countries. The networks have been particularly active in fighting corruption and mitigating its negative...