Topic 1:
Development and development projects
What is a
project?
A project is a series of activities aimed at
bringing about clearly specified objectives within a defined time/period and
with a defined budget.
Development projects are a
way of clearly defining and managing investments and change processes.
Features
of development projects
o They should have a clear start and end.
o It should be a temporal institution or
organization.
o Compared to a programme it can be an individual
objective management unit.
o It comprises of complex tasks which always
require a multidisciplinary team.
o Within a project some features are given more
priority than others due to limited resources.
o They are always affected by time and costs
o They should have clear objectives
o Clearly identified stakeholders, including the
primary target group and the final beneficiaries
o Clearly defined coordination, management and financing arrangements
o A monitoring and evaluation system (to support
performance management); and
o An appropriate level of financial and economic
analysis, which indicates that the project’s benefits will exceed its costs
Why
do we need the project approach
o The presence of many professionals in project
planning and management.
o The problems today are becoming more complex hence
the need for a multidisciplinary approach in development intervention.
o There are so many uncertainties in the road to
development
o Today we have more specialists than fewer
generalists
o It has been recognised that different regions have
different problems and potentials; therefore there need to establish projects
in different localities.
The
relationship between policies, programmes and Projects
PLAN
NATIONAL
OR SECTOR POLICIES
GOVERNMENT
PROGRAMMES
PROJECTS
Differences
between projects and programmes
o Programmes are long lasting while projects are short
time organizations or institutions
o A programme has many repetitive tasks while a
project has a one time task
o Programmes are large scale, they cover big
geographical regions while projects are location specific
o Most of the programmes use the top down approach
while projects are dynamic and strategic in approach.
Similarities
between programmes and projects
o They are both goal oriented, at the end of the day
they intend to achieve certain goals
o They are formulated within the government policy
framework at national and global level. They both aim at implementing the
national policy.
Advantages
of project approach in development intervention
o Projects are goal focused and goal oriented, they
can therefore lead to the achievement of policy goals
o They are more specific and efficient organisations.
o They are more flexible compared to programmes. They
can accept some changes.
o They are multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary in
nature
Disadvantages
of the projects
o They are normally affected by financial problems
since they require large funds for effective implementation
o Most of them depend on external funds.
o They are donor dependent. They are therefore
affected by the interests of the outsiders. The funds are provided with
conditions.
o Inadequate local ownership of projects, with
negative implications for sustainability of benefits;
o Corruption to most of projects.
The
project hierarchy
Effects:
These are tangible outputs, they can easily be seen.
Impacts: Come after a long time and are not tangible not
easily seen.
Types
of projects:
o
Development projects can vary significantly in their objectives, scope
and scale. Smaller projects might involve modest financial resources and last
only a few months, whereas a large project might involve many millions of Euro
and last for many years.
o In terms of objectives and design we have. Blue
print or close projects and Adaptive projects.
§ Blue
print projects
·
These are
normally designed in advance. Most of them involve engineering projects. These
can be designed without any modification during the implementation. Examples
include Road construction projects, and house construction projects
·
They are
concerned with what was designed before in the office. No any change that can
be done in the field.
·
With these
projects people are just receptors of the projects. The planners are not
interested with the project beneficiaries. There is little or no local
community participation in the planning of these projects.
·
Planners give
less priority to the acceptability of the projects to the project
beneficiaries. They are less interested in whether the project will be accepted
or not.
Adaptive
projects (People based)
·
Different from
blue print projects they are more people centred and involve a slow process in
their planning and implementation.
·
They are
concerned with changing people adaptation, solving the local communities’
problems. Sometimes they are called social projects.
·
Before
starting the project you need to undertake a baseline survey so as to the
social economic opportunities and constraints of the local community.
THE INDICATORS OF A GOOD DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
·
The technical
description of the project: Look at the project proposal. An expert should be
able to tell whether that project is good or not. There is need to have a good
technical description of the project.
·
It should be
able to fit exactly in the content of the implementing organization.
·
It should be
clearly linked to the country’s policy frontiers and development plans.
·
A good project
should ensure active participation and influence of the Stakeholders in
planning and implementation
·
It should have
a design that is based on an holistic analysis of the needs and rights of the
project beneficiaries or proponents.
·
The logical
framework for the project should explain how a particular project will
contribute to ultimate impacts on the livelihood of the target population.
·
It should set
significant yet achievable and measurable final goals.
·
It should be
technically, environmentally, economically, politically and socially
appropriate or viable.
·
It has to be
appraised to the Environmental Impact Assessment tool.
·
It has to be
cost effective
·
It has to be
developed, implemented and evaluated by the logical framework (L.F.A)
·
A good
development project should be flexible since the society and the economic
situations are changing.
WHY DO PROJECTS
FAIL?
o At
the designing stage:
- Poor design more especially if the planning of the
goals and objectives is done poorly.
- This may be a result of the failure to identify the
target population for a particular population.
- At this stage timing of the project implementation
is also a factor for project failure
- Over ambition: You want to achieve many things than
the available resources
- Poor approaches in project design. No base line
survey, lack of local community participation.
o At
the implementation stage:
- High implementation costs in relation to the
available resources including both human and financial resources.
- The presence of ineffective project management unit.
An organisation through which the project is being implemented should be
efficient
- Externalities: These are the problems beyond the
control of the project proponents.
Topic 2:
Project framework and project environment
We can better understand the project framework and environment by looking
at the project cycle
The project cycle
IDENTIFICATION:
To identify what a project will focus on, we need to find out who should benefit
and what their needs are. A ‘needs assessment’ will give an overview of
community problems. A ‘capacity assessment’ will help identify which problem
the project should address.
DESIGN: Once it is decided to
go ahead with the project, we can start to think about the detail. This
involves carrying out further research into the people affected by a problem
and how they are affected by it. We also need to consider the risks to the
project and how we will measure the project’s performance.
IMPLEMENTATION: During the
implementation of the project it is important to monitor and review the
progress of the project and any outside changes that affect it. The project
plans should be adjusted where necessary.
EVALUATION: Evaluation should be
carried out at or after project completion. Evaluation could be carried out a
few months or years after the project has finished in order to assess its
long-term impact and sustainability.
LESSON LEARNING: While the
project cycle is a useful way of outlining the stages of a project, it has one
drawback: it makes it look as though one tool follows another. In fact, many of
the planning tools can be used at any stage of the project. They should be repeated
throughout the project’s life to ensure that any changes that might affect project
success are accounted for. Findings should also be used for organisational
learning and to improve other projects.
1.
PROJECT IDENTIFICATION
- The
first step in the project cycle is to identify an issue that a project could address.
This usually involves a ‘needs assessment’ which finds out what community needs
are and whom they affect.
- Only
when we know what people really want can we develop an effective project. The
needs assessment is followed by a ‘capacity assessment’ to see what strengths
the community has which it can use to address its problems.
- The
project should seek to make stronger any weaknesses. Some people prefer to use
‘appreciative enquiry’ instead of needs assessment and capacity assessment.
This, in effect, starts with a capacity assessment by asking community members
to identify the resources they have and then asks them how they want to use
them in the future.
o
NEEDS
ASSESSMENT
-We
might already have a good idea of local needs. They might be quite obvious, or
we might have become aware of them during a past project. On the other hand, we
might have no idea what a community’s needs are. It is important to carry out a
needs assessment before planning development work, whether we think we know
what the needs are or not.
o
Why
needs Assessment?
- By
talking to different people, we will be able to understand how problems affect people
differently. For example, poor access to clean water may affect women more than
men because women have to walk a long way to fetch water.
- Circumstances
change: There may be new people in the community. There may be new needs. Old
needs might have been addressed. Problems might be affecting people
differently.
- Needs
assessment gives people an opportunity to prioritise their needs, which leads
to a more sustainable development project.
