This paper presents an overview of the different definitions of and conceptual approaches to empowerment. It was produced for the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) following publication of an independent evaluation of SDC's application of empowerment approaches in its...

NGOs have moved out of the "amateur" world in which they were once confined into, in many cases, highly professional activities. This statistical analysis demonstrates that there are thousands of development NGOs in European countries with as much as $7.3 billion at their disposal. Supported by...

Donor agencies invest considerable financial and human resources to evaluate the outcome of their development activities. To derive institutional conditions conducive to an efficient use of these resources, we develop a multi-level principal-agent model focusing on the various interests of the...

Global governance refers to several pillars; one important pillar is the multilateral aid architecture. Its reform can be discussed under the perspectives of representativeness, inclusiveness, and efficiency (of aid delivery).A prerequisite for efficient aid delivery is to map the rising...

Global governance refers to several pillars; one important pillar is the multilateral aid architecture. Its reform can be discussed under the perspectives of representativeness, inclusiveness, and efficiency (of aid delivery). A prerequisite for efficient aid delivery is to map the rising...

Academic studies of aid to Africa have typically asked how "we" in the West can get "them" in Africa to adopt economic and political systems that look like our own. Suspicion of African politics has led to the assumption that governments seeking to resist the developmental models promoted by...

Development assistance has for many decades been aiming to support developing countries’ strategies to achieve more sustainable development. Yet, evidence shows that the impact of such assistance has been well below expectations. This study examines the efforts of assistance providers and...

This paper analyzes whether and to what extent non-governmental organizations (NGOs) outperform official donors by allocating aid in a way that renders effective poverty alleviation more likely. We employ Probit and Tobit models and make use of an exceptionally detailed database that allows an...