An assessment of the concept "ownership" as a key to development cooperation: The case of Afghanistan

• Název práce v češtině: Hodnocení konceptu „vlastnictví“ jako klíče k rozvojové spolupráci: Případ Afghánistánu
• Název v anglickém jazyce: An assessment of the concept "ownership" as a key to development cooperation: The case of Afghanistan
• Klíčová slova: vlastnictví, cíle udržitelného rozvoje, Afghánistán
• Klíčová slova anglicky: Ownership, sustainable development goals, Afghanistan
• Akademický rok vypsání: 2023/2024
• Typ práce: bakalářská práce
• Jazyk práce: angličtina
• Ústav: Katedra politologie (23-KP)
• Vedoucí / školitel: Pelin Ayan Musil, Ph.D.
• Řešitel: skrytý - zadáno vedoucím/školitelem
• Datum přihlášení: 28.02.2024
• Datum zadání: 28.02.2024

Zásady pro vypracování

Potential Outline:
1. Introduction
a. Relevance of topic
b. Excluding what is not covered by this paper

2. Definitions
a. Definition of SDGs and the goal of development assistance
b. Develop working definition for the term ownership

3. Advantages of ownership in development assistance
a. Is development assistance even effective?
b. Former development assistance was imposed by outsiders
c. Ownership as new approach

4. Afghanistan as showcase for the utility of ownership
a. Foreign influence in Afghanistan and its consequences
b. Afghanistan as a very diverse and complex country
c. Afghanistan’s importance which explains why it is at focus of world politics

5. Matching Afghanistan’s characteristics with SDGs via the principle ownership
a. Social and health care system
b. Form of government
c. Banking and public finances
d. Etc.

6. Conclusions
7. References / Bibliography

Seznam odborné literatury

Barfield, T. (2010). Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History. Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt7sqkc

Edgren, Gus. (2003). Donorship, Ownership and Partnership. Issues Arising From Four Sida Studies of Donor-Recipient Relations. https://www.oecd.org/derec/sweden/35206145.pdf

Fishstein, P., & Amiryar, M. E. (2015). Afghan Economic Policy, Institutions, and Society Since 2001. US Institute of Peace. http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep12149

Flint, A., & Natrup, C. M. zu. (2014). Ownership and Participation: Toward a Development Paradigm based on Beneficiary-led Aid. Journal of Developing Societies, 30(3), 273-295. https://doi.org/10.1177/0169796X14536972

Nuscheler, F. (2008): Die umstrittene Wirksamkeit der Entwicklungszusammen-arbeit. INEF-Report, 93/2008, 1-42. https://duepublico2.uni-due.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/duepublico_derivate_00029186/report93.pdf

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development OECD. (2005). The Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness: Five Principles for Smart Aid. https://www.oecd.org/dac/effectiveness/45827300.pdf

OECD (2023). Official development assistance (ODA). https://www.oecd.org/dac/financing-sustainable-development/development-finance-standards/official-development-assistance.htm

United Nations UN. (2015). 2016 Development Cooperation Forum Policy Briefs. February 2016, No. 1. https://www.un.org/en/ecosoc/newfunct/pdf15/2016_dcf_policy_brief_no.1.pdf

UN. (2023). The 17 Goals. https://sdgs.un.org/goals

United Nations Development Group UNDG (2017). United Nations Development Assistance Framework Guidance. https://unsdg.un.org/sites/default/files/2017-UNDAF_Guidance_01-May-2017.pdf

Předběžná náplň práce v anglickém jazyce

Topic Characteristics:

My Bachelor Thesis will focus on the principle of ownership in development cooperation. I will propose a working definition of what is meant by ownership in this context using the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness (OECD, 2005) and various other scholars. As measurement of development, I will use the Sustainable Development Goals (UN, 2023). In an attempt to showcase the advantages of ownership I want to look at the case of Afghanistan. Here I will try to match characteristics of the country with SDGs using aspects of ownership. I want to perform this analysis by arguing for the benefits of ownership on a qualitative basis. Moreover, I will try to quantitively show that SDGs are most likely reached when characteristics of ownership are present, whereby I will use data from World Bank. The corresponding research question to my proposed topic would be: Why is ownership an effective principle for development cooperation? How can this be shown in the case of Afghanistan?

Relevance of the Topic:
Currently, it is highly contested whether development cooperation and development assistance is effective and has a positive impact on recipient countries (Nuscheler, 2008). There exist various principles according to which development cooperation is performed. Still, it is not clear which principles do in fact promote a positive development and which are useless or even harmful for development (Nuscheler, 2008). Moreover, it is likely that development assistance will always be of relevance in the upcoming decades. This is the case as for recipient countries it is unlikely that all SDGs are reached, especially regarding upcoming challenges such as climate change. Also, the donor countries interest in increasing their own realm of influence proposes an incentive to perform development assistance from an egoistic perspective. The question which arises is thus not asking if development cooperation will happen but rather in what form it should be performed. Therefore, it makes sense to try to identify the advantages of ownership to confirm its relevance for the field of development assistance. This would allow to give a guideline for good development cooperation. To do so Afghanistan seems to be of relevance as it is a country where the SDGs are not reached. Furthermore, the country was under strong influence from foreign parties for a long time whereby its development stagnated or even decreased. This emphasizes why the idea of ownership as means for development would be an interesting and innovative approach especially in Afghanistan as earlier attempts to increase development in this country always went the opposite way. To conclude, the relevance of showing how development assistance could have a positive impact is closely tied to a set of humanitarian questions. Including questions of how to reduce human suffering or how to approach the achievement of the SDGs. Therefore, the relevance of having a principle that leads to good development, is shown by the obvious relevance of these questions.

Brief Review of the Literature within the Field of Research:
The discussion on development cooperation is opened up by Franz Nuscheler’s Die umstrittene Wirksamkeit der Entwicklungszusammenarbeit (2008). He states that it is not clear whether development cooperation is effective and furthermore that it is not sure if it does any good (2008). Still, if one attempts to perform productive development cooperation, there is need for various principles (Nuscheler, 2008). To further clarify what principles are necessary, Nuscheler puts forward multiple policy recommendations which include characteristics of the principle of ownership (Nuscheler, 2008).
To further develop what ownership entails there are also definitions put forward by both the OECD and the UN development group (2005; 2017). On top of that, authors such as Adrian Flint and Christian Meyer zu Natrup suggest definitions in stating that ownership can be perceived as “development paradigm [which is] shaped and determined by the people affected directly by aid and assistance programs” (2014). Moreover, they put ownership led aid in context of participation and self-help via technology (2014). This elaborates on the possibility of people in developing countries getting access to information, markets, and other possibilities provided by for example the internet (Flint and Meyer zu Natrup, 2014). Hereby, development is assisted by donors’ technology and information but how these resources are used is decided by the recipients which allows them to adapt the material to their own needs and situation. Except from cases in which the recipients access know-how and technology of donors, it seems like the effectiveness of ownership is dependent on the recipient’s own know-how. Therefore, an analysis of the benefits of ownership must build upon the recipient countries characteristics which is in this case Afghanistan.

Thomas Barfield provides an extensive analysis of Afghanistan’s characteristics (2010). In his book Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History he elaborates on Afghan politics, culture and societal structure from firsthand (Barfield, 2010). What is especially valuable for my analysis is his illustration of Afghanistan’s peculiarities. He introduces the importance of tribal alliances, explains the Afghan geography and why the country was in focus of big global players so often (Barfield, 2008). Furthermore, he also elaborates on why it is difficult to control the country as a whole and how especially rural areas still have to rely on local organization (Barfield, 2008). This book thereby helps to get a first understanding of the complexity of Afghanistan which is why it serves as lever for all further inquiries regarding Afghan characteristics.
To get more into detail of the Afghan social structure and especially the economy I will use the United States Institute of Peace’s special report Afghan Economic Policy, Institutions, and Society Since 2001 (Fishstein and Amirar, 2015). This report is based on interviews to try to put the Afghan market economy in context of the country’s history, culture, and ideology (Fishstein and Amirar, 2015). Furthermore, certain recommendations are put forward, they also cover characteristics of ownership which allows to elaborate one its advantages concerning the Afghan economy (Fishstein and Amirar, 2015). Moreover, the report gives insights to the Afghan perspective which is essential for the application of the ownership principle.

Methodology:
Regarding what is meant by ownership, I want to develop my own working definition for this paper, which is constituted by definitions from the OECD, the UN, other institutions, and scholars.
To analyze the advantages of ownership I plan to elaborate on Afghanistan specific characteristics which can be helpful for reaching the SDGs. For example, with the first SDG being “no poverty” (UN, 2023), I plan to look at Afghanistan’s local and national approaches in reaching this goal. Thereby, I try to give respect to culture, geography and other factors that could influence Afghanistan’s “own” policies. I then argue why it makes sense to rely on these policies when performing development aid, which would be acting in alignment with ownership. By this method I try to cover topics like the fight against poverty, enhancement of economic growth, improvement of health and education, increase of gender equality, and social care. This analysis will solely be of a qualitative form of argumentation.
Furthermore, to back my arguments which I put forward in the first part of my analysis I will try to strengthen them by using World Bank data sets. Here I try to compare indicators that reflect the respective SDGs with indicators that are a reflection of ownership. This should furthermore argue in favor of ownership.

Important Concepts in the Thesis:
Development cooperation and assistance:
Development assistance is part of development cooperation and most commonly provided by ODA, which is defined by the OECD “as government aid that promotes and specifically targets the economic development and welfare of developing countries” (2023). This covers monetary means and is therefore measured in USD (OECD, 2023). Still development cooperation can also include capacity support such as organizational and human resources, technology cooperation, sharing policy experience (UN, 2015). Moreover, there is also the aspect of policy change which focuses on reviewing public policies and rule building (UN, 2015).

Ownership:
Ownership was set as one of five principles in the Paris declaration on aid effectiveness by the OECD (2005). It was defined as “[d]eveloping countries set[ting] their own development strategies, improv[ing] their institutions and tackle corruption” (OECD, 2005). Furthermore, the idea of what ownership means is also part of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework Guidance (UNDG, 2017). Here it is mentioned as part of the “accountability” principle in the form that national and local mechanisms should be strengthened and the engagement and participation of the active local community should be enabled (UNDG, 2017). Ownership therefore in principle means “the exercise of control and command over development activities” (Edgren, 2003).
Sustainable development goals SDGs:
The sustainable development goals SDGs were set in 2015 by member states of the United Nations. They are an all-encompassing framework defining the goals of developed and developing countries (UN, 2023). Thereby, they cover topics such as the fight against poverty, enhancement of economic growth, improvement of health and education, increase of gender equality whilst at the same time protecting the environment and facing climate change (UN, 2023). I will use them as measurement of development in my thesis. This is the case as there exists a report on their implementation for every year since their declaration which allows one to track development.

Potential Limits and Threats to the Research
This research only wants to elaborate on the advantages of ownership as principle of development cooperation. The aim is not to state that development cooperation in total is advantageous. Thereby, the discussion whether one should provide development assistance is not at the focus if the analysis. What I want to argue for is that if development aid is provided it should be done by following the principle of ownership.
Furthermore, regarding the focus on Afghanistan it is also not the aim of my paper to evaluate the current political situation in the country. Thus, I don’t want to put forward arguments on how one should treat the Taliban government. Also, the analysis of previous influences on Afghanistan from outside parties is not morally evaluated. Rather this is used to exemplify characteristics of the country as they can be seen by looking at societal and political reaction to foreign intervention.
Concerning the analysis of ownership’s advantages, it is impossible to cover all 17 SDGs. Therefore, I will focus on some of them whilst also combining SDGs which are affected by similar characteristics of Afghanistan.