Linking projects and Development an overview (Matilda)

Projects play a vital role in management of development. Projects provide principal means which can change our world through providing immediate solutions to problems. Projects also gauge the success or failure of any programme as well as act as a rational way of allocating resources and also facilitate tangible results .Projects can also allow development agencies to focus resources and attention or effort on well defined sets of activities in order to achieve specific objectives being on specific location. Grittinger (2001) note that projects are cutting age of development .However projects can only be useful to further development if they are implemented correctly and being the rightful solution to a problem .The gist of this paper is to analyse the role of projects and see if they deliver the goals as in given examples as well analysing why some projects fail to deliver the required outcomes as the vital part of projects.

According to John Clark (1991) projects are temporary organisational units to identify long term improvements by temporary efforts, based on a high degree of freedom. Hirschman alluded that a project is a specified kind of investment which connotes purposefulness, some minimum size, specific location, introducing something qualitatively new and the expectation that the sequence of further development moves will set in motion. Akroyd (2003) describes a project as a discrete or independent package of investment designed to remove or alleviate low development contraits or development opportunities. UNDP(2004)define a project as a temporary and ever undertaken to create a unique product or service .A project has a definite end and must have unique features and non-repeated. Projects also differ in size, duration, geographical coverage as well as in complexity .A project can form a programme.

 Projects are also a rational way of allocating resources. World Bank (2004) recognizes the link between poverty and lack of social organization and empowerment (social capital), participation and voice (political capital) and environmental degradation (natural capital) and it is trying to address these issues through its financing activities. Participation of poor people at all stages of the project cycle is one major concern of the organisation, which uses special tools, such as the Participatory Poverty Assessments and the Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers, to ensure participation of the poor in decision making which is vital to development. However if the participation of the poor in such projects  is not done the project will be in vain or it will benefit the wrong people thereby reducing the purpose of a project as a rational way of allocating resources.

Projects allow agencies to focus resources and attention or effort on well defined sets of activities in order to achieve specific objectives being on a specific location. For example World Bank (2004) has also adopted another intriguing initiative called “Justice for the Poor”, which is funded by the Australian Government (AusAID) with the collaboration of other donors. This program seeks to provide both Bank project teams and client countries with support to address justice issues in development projects. It is housed in the Legal VPU which provides advisory services and disseminates knowledge through publications, a website and training courses for Bank staff. This initiative particularly focuses on the marginalized and the poor aiming at promoting access to justice and protecting their rights. This nature of projects is also transforming societies into human rights development thereby became more valuable in the management of development.

 Further, projects also provide immediate solutions to problems. For example World Vision is committed to enhancing access by the poor, especially women, to productive assets such as properties and credit; supporting commercialization of agriculture in a way that will benefit the poor; developing rural infrastructure; assisting in generating employment and fighting seasonal poverty and to encourage the participation of the poor in designing programs and projects that will benefit them. It is also committed to supporting educational, health and nutritional projects for poor and vulnerable people (Chambers 1994). By doing this a project can be said that it is eliminating poverty and provide immediate solution hence playing a vital role in management of development. However such projects may be affected by corruption and diversion of funds which may reduce the role of projects. Proper monitoring and implementation may facilitate the success of projects to deliver their role in the management of development.

 If one project is successful it gains external attention and increases expectations which are necessary in processes of development. Other projects are, then, more likely to be introduced, what makes the social network grow. In that way the technology is being tested in different environments and scales, lessons learned by the trial and error technique enhance the technology, what makes the expectations grow again (Lusting 2000). For example irrigation projects in Masvingo province specifically Mushandike and Bhuka contribute to expansion of irrigations in the province and people are benefiting much .The project is also contributing more to the development of Zimbabwe through irrigation schemes which are giving incomes to people and also supplement household food. This type of project also acts as a measure of development to different countries.

Projects facilitate tangible results which are a good measure of managing the processes of development and provide clear picture for planners and policy makers. This can be witnessed in Kenya where World Bank conducted a project of renewable energy which produces vital tangible results to the villagers. Small scale renewable energy projects in Kenya greatly improve the quality of life of the local population. Lighting alone creates benefits such as increased study time, extended hours for small businesses, and greater security (World Bank 2003, Foster 2000). Also in sector of health there was introduction of cleaner energy, income generating activities are in the form of jobs and stimulation of entrepreneurship that lead to poverty reduction, savings were made through the introduction of more efficient energy sources, and the daily productivity increased by extending working hours beyond daylight time and by lowering the time spend on collection of traditional fuels such as firewood. Indirectly, spinoffs such as for instance increased knowledge enhanced local development as well.

Projects can also gauge the success and failure of a programme or policy, for example the case of the Solar Entrepreneur project on Madagaskar, a cheaper source of lighting is offered to the poor. The baseline analysis shows that the lamps are rented out against the same price of a candle. Therefore, this does unfortunately not decrease the costs for lighting for a household, and thus it cannot contribute to reduction of extreme poverty in that manner(Valadez and Bamberge 2000). In this case failure of the project provides a gauge which calls for another measure to be implemented in order to enhance development.

More so projects are also a means of channelling resources to specific beneficiaries for example income distribution. World Vision and Care International supports indigenous women because it realizes the great untapped capacity for sustainable development intrinsic in indigenous spirituality and cosmogony. Indigenous women have a significant potential role as ‘stewards’ of national and global natural resources and biodiversity. Indigenous women are also repositories of varied and locally rooted knowledge systems that make an important contribution to the world’s heritage. They are also rich in cultural diversity, a valuable quality. Significantly, indigenous women have a key role to play in peace brokering and

conflict mitigation (Rogers etal 2001). By supporting women such projects are a means of channelling resources as well as empowering women which is a vital step in management of development. However in most developing countries such women projects are also used to manipulate women and to gain political support rather than benefiting them hence reducing the role of projects towards development.

 Another great example of project used as income distribution is in Madagaskar were the twin objectives of that project is raising the incomes of indigenous families in the hills (such as Tamang, Danuwar, Praja, Magar and Majhi) who live below the poverty line and contributing to improving the ecology of the hills – were achieved by granting blocks of degraded forest to groups of poor households through a 40 year-lease agreement. Through the training programme, most women have acquired basic literacy skills, and the group members are much more aware of their legal rights and the importance of education and adequate health, sanitation and nutrition for themselves and their families. With the acquisition of leasehold land, many women have started cultivating mulberries and vegetables for sale. The income generated by this activity is used for children’s school expenses, medicine, food, clothing and group savings (Riely etal 1995). This indicates that projects can help in income distribution and resources which is vital for development.

Projects are also a means or instrument through which policies, plans and programmes are implemented. (Rodrick 2001).For example the Women Empowerment Policy of Zimbabwe was implemented through projects such as Small to medium scale business enterprises where woman were funded to start businesses. The successfulness of such projects were not clearly seen since the projects were highly politicised which hinder projects to act as a measure of development. Also the Youth Empowerment Policy of Zimbabwe was implemented through government loans to youth. This act also failed to materialise due to lack of supervision and politics. However, projects if correctly implemented they can lead to implementation of good policies and programmes which are vital for management of development.

Projects are policy expedience, way of experimenting a policy. For example South Africa Black Empowerment Policy comes with a variety of projects for black people to participate in the economy of South Africa. Projects include loans for business start up and portions of land to develop but this was not fruitful since the benefiters showed less interest therefore led to the formation of another policy. In this case projects tested the successfulness of the policy as well as experimented the policy.(World Bank 2003)

However, projects can be used in building political capital. More recently, projects have become part of the debate on donor harmonization, alignment, and use of country systems in project implementation. A paper released in October 2004 by UNDP states that the isolation of projects from government systems as required by external funding agencies limits the positive impact of development assistance to the individual projects.(World development report 2004) In such a scenario projects can also create dependency syndrome which is not clear to measure the rate of development. Some projects are also used to manipulate people by political parties which give no room for such projects to be useful in management of development.

Projects are also privileged particles of development. They play a great role as figures of development. (World Bank 2003) For instance construction of bridges and roads are just particles of development. For example CBZ and FBC banks are building houses for people for mortgages. Such types of projects are particles of development which can also be used as a measure of development in any country.

Also projects can be used to speed up the rate of development processes through speeding up the processes of development .For example projects must seen as means to achieve larger ends. South Africa is now the number one leading nation in development and this was facilitated through projects like dams, bridges, roads construction as well as construction of infrastructure. These projects promote not only economic development but political and social development. In Malawi the government engaged in draining of swamps to clear land for agriculture which speed up the Agricultural policy of 2004 as well as contributing to its success.(world Development report 2004)

Projects are also a way of mobilising development funds. For example irrigation schemes can produce money for another development programmes .For example Gezira irrigation scheme is benefiting the country by inducing 10 percent of its profits to health sector in the country. Again projects like milling projects, cattle fattening or any manufacturing project mobilise developments funds which is vital in the management of development. (IFAD 2000)

Projects also enable the target groups to gain the knowledge necessary to solve problems as far as possible on their own / to get access to services. This can be achieved through proper management and proper implementation of such projects (Riely etal 1995). For example the Indigenisation policy of Zimbabwe was implemented through projects of which most of them are not successful because of biased implementation especially on political grounds on the funds which were given to youth and women to start up projects.

Locally adjusted solutions are identified and tested in cooperation with target groups and co-operating agencies through projects .For example dam construction in Zimbabwe offer income generation to people as well as paving way for road construction which network the country .Though the project failed to deliver the exact necessities of people, it manage to create a way of income and indicate the rate of development Zimbabwe is going through.

People (especially the poor) are in a position to make appropriate use of their resources and to get access to required services through projects. Successfully tested solutions are disseminated on all relevant subjects through projects (Rodrick 2001). However because of corruption and diversion of funds most projects are half done and they are not very effective in most countries around the globe. Levels and implementing agencies have the knowledge to implement the identified solutions but reduced their participation due to political biases that some areas are neglected because of political background which makes it hard to measure the usefulness of projects.

Projects can also deliver regular well established services if managed properly (Clay 1997). For example dam construction projects which was carried on in Zimbabwe around 1990s was suppose to offer services to the people but the constructions were half done with little supervision which failed to offer the targeted services to the people hence becomes so difficult to use projects to measure development or to establish services to the people.

An intersectional co-ordinated programme system is established and functioning through projects. (IFAD 2004) This indicates that projects give guidance and direction to management of development in an area. Successfully implemented projects  like water projects by Action firm in Zimbabwe  (Gutu district) is giving guidance to their goal of WASH .This implies that small projects are being used to achieve a goal and offer management of development as a goal.

For projects to be fruitful there should be proper monitoring and implementation. Projects must also be vital for a planned purpose and must save a purpose as well as offer guidance and solutions to a problem. However projects need to be a way of creating a road for development as well as a necessity which can be measured in the management of development.

 In conclusion projects play a vital role in the management of development. Projects are a way of channelling resources to the people, they can also be used to raise funds for development as well as offer guidance in management of development among others .To a greater extent projects are necessary in the management of development if they are well coordinated.

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