SPECIAL FEATURE
OFQ : That’s a common story. It’s clear that many countries don’t have the capacity or even the will to accurately track their progress. UH: It’s usually not a question of will – it’s often a question of resources. Traditionally, collecting data has often been very resource intensive. You need the institutions, the personnel, the systems, the financial resources to track all this data and update it constantly. That’s a huge effort. Understandably, many poor countries have more pressing development needs than investing in data collection. The problem with not doing it, though, is then that they have less information to present their case – and show progress – when they need to attract funding to their pressing development needs. Getting relevant data amid still- existing constraints requires working with clients, be they private sector
clients or governments, to see what data they can collect to show whether our project has had the intended results. Thankfully, improved data collection is an area that is supported by many international finance institutions. The good thing is that with newer technologies, data collection can be less resource intensive and more straightforward, even in the developing world. Collecting data on what our projects have actually delivered in terms of assets and actions is just the first step. We then need to go a step further and see who has this actually benefited? How has this improved their lives? That’s harder to measure, so often it’s still not available in our projects. This is really what interests us though, because if the asset is funded and then not used it is worse than not building the asset in the first place – because you’ve invested all that money that could have gone to another cause. OFQ : How do some projects go off track? UH: There are many different ways. For assets to deliver their development benefits, there sometimes have to be accompanying investments or actions. For example, you build a power plant but then the government is in charge of building a transmission line and does not do it for lack of funding, rights-of- way issues or other reasons. Or you overplan your needed capacity, you don’t use your asset for years and by the time you get around to using it, it needs renovations or upgrading. Or you
medium and long term as far as getting better results data and insights for the feedback loop of learning and accountability. But already in the short term, I see different discussions happening at the loan and credit committees and with the project teams. Putting this on the map results in people thinking differently about what type of projects we’re looking for and what questions to ask. And that’s ultimately the goal in maximizing development impact. OFQ : So, it’s nudging or even shifting the institutional mindset, which is an incredibly powerful thing. UH: Yes, that’s one reason
build a road which is then not used by the populations we would like to benefit because tolls are not affordable. Development effectiveness is not just about building things, but about those things having the desired – and sustainable – effect.
why we’re prioritizing these aspects. In the same way that we talk about financial risks it’s also important to talk about development impacts. You just need someone to put
OFQ : We’re halfway to the 2030 SDG deadline. How
these things on the table and provide the information for a serious discussion based on sound reasoning. All that shifts the conversation to where it should be – must be – for a development institution.
quickly will we see the results of the work being put in now? UH: We’re now laying the groundwork, which we expect to pay off over the
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