Managing the Development Process and Aid:
East Asian experiences in building central economic agencies

Final report has been issued --
To download the final report, please click here. (pdf file, 1.6 MB)
　

GRIPS Development Forum conducted research from July 2005 to March 2007, focusing on Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines to examine their experiences in managing the development process and aid. Through analysis, we endeavored to draw implications for the institution building and capacity development efforts by developing countries. We conducted the analysis from developing countries’ perspectives and to come up with some concrete policy proposals that would serve as useful references for today’s developing countries including Vietnam. At the same time, we attempted to draw some policy recommendations to donors aiming for enhanced aid effectiveness.

Objectives

The proposed study aims to examine the experiences of East Asian countries in managing the development process and aid, and to draw implications for the institution building efforts by today’s development countries. The study will focus on Thailand and Malaysia, mainly in the 70s and the 80s when the current development administration system was formulated and enhanced. It will also include the analysis of the Philippines after 1986 when democratization and decentralization initiatives moved into high gear. To this end, the study will examine the role and actual functions of central economic agencies in the process of development planning, budget planning and execution, planning and implementation of priority projects or programs (including aid-financed activities), as well as its coordination mechanisms with relevant ministries.

We try to analyze not only the institutional settings of development administration but also the actual coordination features to further understand how development plans were brought to realization maintaining coherence among development priorities, budgeting, public investment planning and aid management. We also attempt to look into some critical factors that affected these actual coordination features. (In this respect, we conduct concrete case analysis of the Eastern Seaboard Development experiences in Thailand.)

We attempt to make analysis from developing countries’ perspectives and to draw lessons for the current global development debates especially capacity development and aid effectiveness issues.

Schedule and Output

Date	Activities	Sources (papers, distributed materials, etc.)
June- 2005	Literature review and interviews	- draft outline of the proposed    study  81KB
October, 2005	1st fact-finding mission (Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines)
January, 2006	2nd mission (Thailand and Malaysia)
March, 2006	3rd mission (the Philippines)
April, 2006	Analysis and writing
June, 2006	mission to Vietnam (to get feedback  from today’s developing country)	Please check VDF website!
January-February, 2007	Compilation of discussion papers (in English) and publications
March 2007	Issued the final report!!	- Final report 1.6MB

Utilization and Dissemination Strategy

• Course materials for GRIPS classes (Fall term 2006 and Spring term 2007)
• GRIPS seminar (in Tokyo) scheduled in early November 2006 (in English)
• Feedback seminars to resource persons (in Tokyo and relevant countries) and international workshops etc.

＜Seminars and workshops (updates & plans, documents distributed)＞

Some seminars are conducted in Japanese. However, when seminars are delivered in English we will put up detailed information in the matrix below.

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