Tag Archives: Aid

The underlying particulars of aid ineffectiveness in Afghanistan

Posted in: Voices of Afghanistan's Youth | May 15, 2013 at 10:13 am , by Guest Author/s

Continuing our series 'Voices of Afghanistan's Youth', Massúod Hemmat shares three stories of aid ineffectiveness in Afghanistan. We often bemoan aid ineffectiveness, but Massoud has witnessed duplication, lack of coordination and the primacy of political priorities first-hand. ...

Let’s get jargontastic!

Posted in: Aid Effectiveness, Humour | May 8, 2013 at 10:38 am , by Weh Yeoh

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Using buzzwords in development is like removing unruly nasal hairs. We do it begrudgingly, but deep down, we hate the fact that it is necessary. In this post, Weh Yeoh takes a participatory approach in requesting stakeholder input for the most jargonistic phrases you have come across in development and...

Why your non-profit CEO needs to be the M&E officer

Posted in: Aid Effectiveness, M&E | April 11, 2013 at 9:00 am , by Emanuel Souvairan

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CEOs shouldn't just have a great smile, good business sense and a keen nose for fundraising; they need to be masters of monitoring and evaluation (M&E). Emanuel Souvairan of DevEd describes how M&E relates to NGO communications, donor relationships, and even organisational culture....

Monitoring, evaluation and the search for ‘impact’

Posted in: Aid Effectiveness, M&E | April 3, 2013 at 11:00 am , by Emanuel Souvairan

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Committed to saving lives or doing good but not yet daring enough to tackle the analysis required for monitoring and evaluation? Emanuel Souvairan, the Director of DevEd, describes the importance of good monitoring and evaluation along with some advice on how to determine what your impact is....

Good intentions are enough – to ‘nearly kill’ a local kid

Posted in: Aid Effectiveness, Ethics in development | March 25, 2013 at 9:00 am , by Guest Author/s

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Who has the right to make decisions about a child's health? An anonymous contributor describes how a situation where an NGO took responsibility for the care of an 11-year-old boy was nearly disastrous for the child, and how it raised all kinds of ethical questions about a child's care....

The silent alarm sounds… again

Posted in: Humanitarian Relief & Post-Conflict, Media | March 14, 2013 at 9:00 am , by Gregory Pellechi

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The IFRC and ECHO have just launched a campaign to raise awareness of the world's silent disasters. Gregory Pellechi discusses his experience of the silence in Cambodia on such disasters and examines the culpability of the media, governments and us....

Afghanistan’s future: living in fear of 2014

Posted in: Voices of Afghanistan's Youth | February 18, 2013 at 12:28 pm , by Guest Author/s

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This is the first post in a series entitled 'Voices of Afghanistan's Youth', which will feature the writings of Afghan university students. They are students at the American University in Afghanistan (AUAF). This unique series is both deeply personal and analytical. The students write on a range of topics from...

Bob Carr: Foreign Aid Raider

Posted in: Foreign Aid, Migration | January 21, 2013 at 8:20 pm , by Guest Author/s

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The Australian Government's so-called “aid raid”, exposed in 2012’s home stretch, has settled to little more than a blip on the radar. Olivia Rosenman doesn't think it should have slipped so easily off the radar, as it may reveal that the Australian public really doesn't care about aid....

8 things I wish I knew before I started working in development

Posted in: Career Advice, Reflection | January 9, 2013 at 12:44 pm , by Rachel Kurzyp

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To kick off the new year, and to get those of you starting out in development to think ahead, here are 8 things Rachel Kurzyp wishes she knew before she started working in development (number 9 being WhyDev of course!). ...

Brand Aid Solutions: a response to ‘Stop branding aid’

Posted in: Aid Effectiveness, Alternatives in development, Ethics in development, Foreign Aid | December 5, 2012 at 7:00 am , by Jennifer Foth

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In a recent post on WhyDev, Josie Stewart provides a sharp critique of the branding practices of aid agencies such as USAID and DfiD. Here, Jennifer responds, arguing that we need to harness the potential of branding in creating awareness and demand, particularly for smaller, national NGOs....

Self-reliance in community development projects: a mirage or an oasis?

Posted in: Aid Effectiveness, Community Development, Ethics in development | November 29, 2012 at 7:00 am , by Jessica Carter

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Britain’s recent decision to cut all aid to India by 2015 raises the question: how should we measure when a community no longer needs outside help? Is self-reliance a goal or a mirage? Jessica Carter takes a look at what self-reliance means in community development....

Welcome to the launch of our Peer Coaching Pilot Program!

Posted in: Coaching | November 21, 2012 at 7:00 am , by WhyDev Team

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WhyDev is excited to announce the launch of its Peer Coaching Pilot Program. This service will match aid workers around the world with a peer to facilitate a peer coaching partnership. There are only 400 places available in this pilot, so don't miss your chance to be part of the...

Stop branding aid

Posted in: Ethics in development, Foreign Aid | October 29, 2012 at 9:00 am , by Josie Stewart

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Credit: Candice Villarreal/US Navy/USAid

In Liberia, and elsewhere, it is impossible to miss the international aid agencies' slogans, logos and flags, plastered on buildings, along the sides of cars and on peeling signs spread out along every roadway. The branding of aid is justified by the rights of the donors to take credit and...

How Africans in the Diaspora are reshaping aid

Posted in: Aid Effectiveness, Alternatives in development, Blogs | October 10, 2012 at 5:00 am , by Solome Lemma

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Representations and discussions of Africa often focus on its socio-economic and political challenges, and paint a single narrative around those. However, Africans are working tirelessly to bring about change - creating, innovating, and building a better future. We are proud to feature a post from Solome Lemma, Co-Founder and Executive...

Celebrating 20 years of keeping AusAID accountable with Liz Barrett | AidWorks

Posted in: AidWorks | October 2, 2012 at 8:00 am , by Albion Harrison-Naish

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Sydney-based AID/WATCH celebrates their 20th anniversary this year. Albion Harrison-Naish caught up with their Campaigner, Liz Barrett to discuss the highs and lows of the last 20 years as well as what still needs to be done. ...