Capacity Development for the MDGs: Research, Experiences, Resources, Tools
Full Review

Reviewed by: Meg Wirth, MPA, International Public Health Consultant, USA
Review posted 25 January 2005
Review No. 32

CD-ROM Information

Content: This is a rich, practical resource on capacity development. It traces the concept's evolution in theory and practice over the last decade and includes a treasure trove of tools and case studies.
Publication Date: 1 September 2003
Audience: The CD-ROM is accessible to novices and specialists alike. Policy-makers, practitioners, donor technical cooperation specialists, and graduate students could find this a useful resource. It is suitable for anyone looking for critical analysis on the concept of ‘capacity development,’ practical examples on applying the concept and an overview of the recent evolution of development theory and practice.

Size: 150 MB
Price: Free
Manual needed: No
How to order:

Order by mail:
Capacity Development Group:
Bureau for Development Policy
United Nations Development Programme
1 UN Plaza, New York
NY 10017 U.S.A.

Order by e-mail:
E-mail: capacity@undp.org

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Full Review

In this CD ROM, UNDP's Capacity Development Group compiles the key UNDP documents and experiences related to capacity development, providing an informative, thoughtful resource on operationalizing this core necessity for sustainable development.

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Users

The broad range of content available in this CD-ROM makes it accessible to novices and specialists alike. This CD-ROM would be an excellent starting place for anyone looking for critical analysis on the concept of capacity development and an overview of the recent evolution of development theory and practice in one place.

The range of case studies presented make the CD-ROM a resource for specialists looking for examples of capacity building programs in a specific country or a particular field (environment, health, decentralization, etc.) In addition, developing country policy-makers and practitioners and donor technical cooperation specialists alike would be advised to consult this resource for a range of tools related to operationalizing capacity development.

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Content

This resource contains a mix of program descriptions related to UNDP's efforts to mainstream new thinking on capacity development, case studies documenting in-country efforts around the globe, and key papers that provide the theoretical analysis underpinning UNDP's approach to capacity development. The authors and perspectives represented in these publications form a good mix of perspectives from policy-makers, academics, and practitioners.

Capacity development is defined (and refined as a concept) throughout the document. The importance of all three levels of capacity development is stressed: individual, organization, and society. The content, as a whole, takes a critical approach to analyzing the history of technical cooperation and the role of donors in both promoting and eroding capacity development. The asymmetry of donor-recipient relationship is confronted head on but practical examples from the case studies keep the tone of the content forward-looking and positive.

The CD-ROM covers the four main programs that have defined UNDP's contribution to capacity development over the last decade:

1. Capacity 2015: Documents and links associated with UNDP's new Capacity 2015 platform for countries and donors alike to coordinate capacity development efforts in order to advance toward the MDGs and achieve sustainable development.
2. Reforming Technical Cooperation (RTC) for Capacity Development: This section is really the heart of the material in the CD-ROM. The RTC project (2001—2003) was a UNDP initiative that involved thousands of researchers and practitioners. Three major products from this effort: Capacity for Development: new solutions to old problems (2002), Developing Capacity through Technical Cooperation: Country Experiences (2002) and finally, Ownership, Leadership and Transformation: Can we do better for Capacity Development? (2003). This section also includes three special issues of the Development Policy Journal as well as summaries of key roundtables and symposia. The document Rethinking Technical Cooperation (2003), the seminal work that spawned much of the debate and rethinking on technical cooperation and capacity building, is also included.
3. Capacity 21: UNDP’s program for meeting the goals of the 1992 Earth Summit, the precursor to Capacity 2015, is presented in this section. The ten-year initiative was underpinned by Agenda 21, a set of 27 principles which guide the process of sustainable development. The documents in this section include a special issue of Development Policy Journal on Capacity for Sustainable Development, the Global Evaluation of Capacity 21, case studies in the 'Approaches to Sustainability' series.
4. Public-Private Partnerships for the Urban Environment (PPP-UE): UNDP's initiative in support of alleviating poverty through public private partnerships in poor cities throughout the developing world. The core goal of the program is to increase the urban poor's access to basic urban services such as water, sanitation, solid waste management, and energy by promoting inclusive partnerships between local government, business, and communities. The section includes a rich set of case studies, project profiles, and working papers that summarize the empirical findings of the PPP-UE.

Concrete information on the scope and nature of each of these UNDP programs is complemented by a treasure trove of interesting articles and publications that emerged from each initiative. It is fascinating to see the evolution of thinking and practice within a UN agency over the course of a decade—particularly on a subject so fundamental to development.

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User Friendliness

The site map provides a ready overview of the topics and publications covered on the site. The case study index that allows quick access to the numerous country examples and experiences found throughout the CD-ROM is particularly useful. Although useful tools and matrices can be found within many of the publications, there is not a quick way to find these tools. In the future, a 'toolkit' index would be a useful addition to a CD-ROM of this type.

There are numerous links to websites in both the documents and title pages of the CD-ROM. The 'About' link connects the reader to each of the UNDP divisions or programmes referenced throughout the CD-ROM.

The search engine provides a way to target specific information. For example, a search for 'Indonesia' yielded references to more than a dozen places in the CD-ROM while a search for 'health' yielded over 70 entries. The search engine appears to be thorough, though rather slow, and leads the user to the section in which the keyword is mentioned, but not the exact place in that section.

It would be useful to have slightly more user guidance, perhaps a single page entitled 'instructions for users.' This page could guide the specific types of users to different points in the CD-ROM. For example, those looking for general advice on capacity development would be pointed to one set of sources, those looking for academic analysis of development theory pointed to another, and those looking for specific tools pointed elsewhere. Such a page might also include a brief timeline showing the dates landmark UNDP publications and roundtables, time frame of key programs, etc.

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Navigability

It is easy to move between different sections and documents, and between the CD-ROM and live websites linked to the CD-ROM. There is not a clear order in which a novice user is instructed to review the materials, meaning that serendipitous discoveries can make research exciting, yet perhaps more guidance for different types of users would be beneficial. The real strength of the CD-ROM is the ready access to case study materials that complement the more academic or policy-related pieces.

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Interactive Facilities

The CD-ROM is not intended to be interactive. In the future, it might be useful to include an interactive worksheet or matrix for operationalizing capacity development for those practitioners interested in immediately applying the rich range of tools and approaches covered in the documents contained in this CD-ROM.

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Distribution

It is not clear how to order the CD-ROM. This should be made explicit on both the UNDP—capacity.org website under Resources and Tools as well as on the contact information of the CD-ROM itself.

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Sustainability

The CD-ROM sums up a decade's worth of UNDP experiences in a critical field at a key juncture in the evolution of development thinking.

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