Approaches to Improving the Delivery of Social Services in Difficult ...

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Approaches to Improving the Delivery of Social Services in Difficult Environmentsthe National Solidarity Programme in Afghanistan shows 29 , it is possible toscale up these approaches and integrate them into government planningprocesses. Sectors themselves can also be entry points. Educationreform, for example, is frequently seen as a key to social cohesion incountries emerging from conflict, and HIV and AIDS has been a focus ofinternational and national resource mobilisation in Burma.Box 1: Entry points for building political willCentral government commitment to reform in Nigeria – the election of President Obasanjoin 2003 set the scene for political commitment to reform. A report by the OPSRrecommends that leadership from the top needs to be matched by service deliveryinterventions that are highly visible to the public, can be turned around quickly, and arecapable of replication. Options include strategic services that are of concern to allNigerians (such as the police), targeted interventions in the health sector, and singleservice functions such as passports.Quick impact projects as a demonstration of political will in Afghanistan - The World Bankimplemented a $45 million dollar programme in 2002 in order to move money down to thecommunity level for the reconstruction of basic infrastructure and the creation oflivelihoods opportunities (road building in this case). Community empowerment andparticipation were explicit goals of the design.32. Strengthen capacity of state 30 policy making functions: where there issome state willingness, efforts to build policy making and implementationcapacity are best directed at the state and state structures because this iswhere ultimate responsibility for pro-poor service delivery lies. Support forthe state can occur at central planning and financing levels, at the sectorallevel, or at decentralised levels of government (or a combination of thethree). Decisions as to where to engage will depend very much onanalysis of capacity and will at the different levels. Approaches to buildingstate capacity include providing long-term technical assistance, supportingelements of recurrent expenditure, and financing community recoverythrough decentralised structures. Engagement in capacity buildingrequires a long-term commitment from the international community. Policybased interventions aimed at supporting the public sector in difficultenvironments pose several challenges for the international community.Some of the key lessons, based on an analysis of post conflictinterventions, but with potential applicability across other environmentswith weak capacity 31 , are summarised in box 2 below.29 http://www.acted.org/article/articleview/586/1/20/30 The state is understood in its widest, most generic sense to be the system of social control capable ofmaintaining a monopoly of violence over a defined territory with international recognition.31 Macrae, J. (2001).This working paper is intended to stimulate public discussion. It is not necessarily DFID orUK Government policy16
Approaches to Improving the Delivery of Social Services in Difficult EnvironmentsBox 2: Lessons for the international community in supporting public policy capacityin countries emerging from conflict• In resource-poor environments, in the short to medium term, the state is unlikely tobe able to assume responsibility for recurrent costs associated with service delivery• Donor coordination and alignment behind the government are crucial, but are likelyto be highly problematic (both because of the limitations of government, and theconflict between political interests of international agencies).• Service delivery cannot be restored through the provision of infrastructure alone –human resource development and attention to equitable distribution of resources isalso essential.• There are trade-offs between meeting immediate needs and planning forsustainability – with regards to financing, for example, difficult decisions have to bemade about whether to channel funds through government or to bypassgovernment structures for the sake of efficiency and effectiveness.33. Use non-state mechanisms for policy coordination: in environmentswhere there is unwillingness on the part of government, or where capacityis so weak as to make a sector or sub-sector dysfunctional, then it may benecessary to consider alternative mechanisms for co-ordinating policy, atleast in the short to medium term. Mechanisms may be necessary at thecentral level, at the sectoral orthematic level, and/or at thesub-sectoral level. Box 3gives some indication of thepossible types ofarrangements that may beappropriate depending oncontextual analysis. Theseexamples come fromSomalia 32 , where there is norecognised government and avirtual absence of statestructures; Myanmar 33 , whichsome funding agencies do notrecognise as a legitimategovernment; and Nepal 34 ,where the state is conflictaffected and the legitimacy ofthe government is internallycontested. The first twoexamples highlight thecontribution that UnitedNations agencies can play tocoordinate activities in difficultenvironments. This isBox 3: Non-state mechanisms for policycoordinationSomalia Aid Coordination Body: a voluntary bodythat includes donor, NGO and UN bodies asmembers. Designed to facilitate informationsharing and coordinate programming and policyformulation and ‘avoid the mistakes of large-scale,top down aid programmes. providing unsustainablesocial services until a crisis ends’.Joint programme on HIV/Aids control in Myanmar:includes UN organisations, donors, NGOs and thegovernment. Objective is to maximize cost effectiveuse of funding and resources, including minimisingduplication in geographic and sectoral coverageand reporting mechanisms.Nepal Rural Water Supply and Sanitation FundDevelopment Board: World Bank formed the FundBoard in response to the perceived failure of theNepalese Government to deliver sustainableservices. The Bank also felt that politicalinterference in project selection was leading tomajor distortions in coverage. Fund Board’s majorobjective is to support the construction of watersupply schemes for rural beneficiaries throughlocal support organisations (NGOs and privatesector firms).because of the broad acceptance of the UN as a universal, neutral,politically independent actor. The third example shows the potential ofsocial funds, one of the World Bank’s preferred instruments, in32 http://www.sacb.info/33 Fonsberg, B.C (May 2004).34 Armon, J., Berry, C. Duncan, D. (June 2004).This working paper is intended to stimulate public discussion. It is not necessarily DFID orUK Government policy17
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