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How (Not) to Fix Problems that Matter: Assessing and Responding to Malawi's History of Institutional Reform

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dc.contributor.authorBridges, Kate
dc.contributor.authorWoolcock, Michael
dc.date.accessioned2017-12-29T15:36:13Z
dc.date.available2017-12-29T15:36:13Z
dc.date.issued2017-12
dc.description.abstractMalawi can be understood as a microcosm of institutional reform approaches in developing countries more broadly. A common feature of such approaches, whether implemented by government or donors, is reform initiatives that yield institutions that "look like" those found in higher-performing countries but rarely acquire the same underlying functionality. This paper presents a retrospective analysis of previous institutional reform projects in Malawi, as well as interviews with Malawi-based development practitioners. The paper finds a plethora of interventions that, merely by virtue of appearing to be in conformity with "best practices" elsewhere, are deemed to be successful yet fail to fix underlying problems, sometimes in contradiction to internal and public narratives of positive progress. This unhappy arrangement endures because a multitude of imperatives, incentives, and norms appear to keep governments and donors from more closely examining why such intense, earnest, and long-standing efforts at reform have, to date, yielded so few successes. This paper seeks to promote a shift in approach to institutional reform, offering some practical recommendations for reform-minded managers, project teams, and political leaders in which the focus is placed on crafting solutions to problems that Malawians themselves nominate, prioritize, and enact.en
dc.identifierhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/349361513957973588/How-not-to-fix-problems-that-matter-assessing-and-responding-to-Malawis-history-of-institutional-reform
dc.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-8289
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10986/29111
dc.languageEnglish
dc.publisherWorld Bank, Washington, DC
dc.relation.ispartofseriesPolicy Research Working Paper;No. 8289
dc.rightsCC BY 3.0 IGO
dc.rights.holderWorld Bank
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo
dc.subjectCAPACITY BUILDING
dc.subjectINSTITUTIONS
dc.subjectPUBLIC SECTOR
dc.subjectGOVERNANCE
dc.subjectREFORM
dc.subjectLEGITIMACY
dc.subjectPUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
dc.subjectCIVIL SERVICE
dc.subjectDEVELOPMENT EFFECTIVENESS
dc.titleHow (Not) to Fix Problems that Matteren
dc.title.subtitleAssessing and Responding to Malawi's History of Institutional Reformen
dc.typeWorking Paperen
dc.typeDocument de travailfr
dc.typeDocumento de trabajoes
dspace.entity.typePublication
okr.crossref.titleHow (Not) to Fix Problems That Matter: Assessing and Responding to Malawi's History of Institutional Reform
okr.date.disclosure2017-12-22
okr.doctypePublications & Research
okr.doctypePublications & Research::Policy Research Working Paper
okr.docurlhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/349361513957973588/How-not-to-fix-problems-that-matter-assessing-and-responding-to-Malawis-history-of-institutional-reform
okr.guid349361513957973588
okr.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-8289
okr.identifier.externaldocumentum090224b085494dd6_1_0
okr.identifier.internaldocumentum29303406
okr.identifier.reportWPS8289
okr.importedtrueen
okr.language.supporteden
okr.pdfurlhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/349361513957973588/pdf/WPS8289.pdfen
okr.region.administrativeAfrica
okr.region.countryMalawi
okr.statistics.combined7783
okr.statistics.dr349361513957973588
okr.statistics.drstats5936
okr.topicPublic Sector Development::Public Sector Administrative and Civil Service Reform
okr.topicPublic Sector Development::Public Sector Management and Reform
okr.topicGovernance::De Facto Governments
okr.topicGovernance::National Governance
okr.topicGovernance::Political Systems and Analysis
okr.topicMacroeconomics and Economic Growth::Development Economics & Aid Effectiveness
okr.topicMacroeconomics and Economic Growth::Economic Policy, Institutions and Governance
okr.unitPoverty and Inequality Team, Development Research Group
relation.isAuthorOfPublication308bc33f-78ef-5a29-aa2c-92ee4e71a953
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery308bc33f-78ef-5a29-aa2c-92ee4e71a953
relation.isSeriesOfPublication26e071dc-b0bf-409c-b982-df2970295c87
relation.isSeriesOfPublication.latestForDiscovery26e071dc-b0bf-409c-b982-df2970295c87
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