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A Critical Look at Northern Models of Aid to Education in the South

Tue, March 27, 1:15 to 2:45pm, Hilton Reforma, Floor: 2nd Floor, Don Diego 2

Group Submission Type: Panel Session

Proposal

For over half a century, the countries of the global North have provided financial and technical assistance to countries of the global South to help strengthen the operation and outcomes of their education systems. Characteristic of the dominant assistance model are short-term projects in individual countries which target one or just a few aspects of the overall education and training domain and implemented under the leadership of foreign organizations which report primarily to an international funder. The choice of technical focus for a project commonly results from a dialogue between the funding agency and the host country authority, though the power balance in this relationship seems usually to favor the funder.

The largely disappointing results of this model of education development suggest that a critical review may be worthwhile. Many factors beyond the control and influence of the classic technical assistance model undoubtedly also help explain the unsatisfactory progress in improving education quality worldwide. Still, delving into the core concepts and workings of the major international development partners in education, and in development more broadly, should reveal important explanatory aspects which might warrant adjustment.

We are proposing an unconventional panel, designed not to present findings or experiences but to raise questions and to provoke reflection and discussion by the session attendees. Specifically, we propose a panel of 6 to 8 persons, representing the main actors in the education development dynamic, including: multi- and bi-lateral funders; international and national implementing organizations; and host country authorities. Each will speak just 4 to 5 minutes to raise critical perspectives and questions concerning the classic approach to education development, featuring such aspects as:

• The power dynamics across the key project/program stakeholders;

• The technical and operational (in)coherence between a donor-funded project/program and national priorities, plans, organization, and strategies (conjuring the Paris Declaration);

• The occurrence of “fads,” or trends, in education development and their impact on programming, and the factor of time;

• Key areas which international funding overlooks;

• Implications for sustainability and scaling; and others.

After these quick comments, we will invite the session attendees to group themselves by 5 or 6 to reflect together for about 30 minutes on what they have heard. We will seed their discussions with the following questions but invite them to let their conversations evolve as they find most interesting:

1. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the classic education development assistance model?

2. What useful variations exist; e.g., between bilateral, private, and NGO approaches and between grants and loans?

3. What would you propose either to strengthen the classic model or as innovation?

4. How do you assess the motivations and practices of the donors / the host country stakeholders / international and national implementers in this relationship, and what would you recommend?

We will end with 20-30 minutes of sharing, hoping especially for concrete recommendations.

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