Canadian aid for the training of public servants in Ghana and Zimbabwe
| Author | Ian McAllister |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1002/pad.4230070305 |
| Date | 01 July 1987 |
| Published date | 01 July 1987 |
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND DEVELOPMENT,
Vol.
7. 289-307 (1987)
Canadian aid for the training of public servants in
Ghana and Zimbabwe
SUMMARY
The Canadian International Development Agency has co-sponsored a number
of
training
programmes for public servants. In this article two
of
the larger programmes are examined.
one with the Government
of
Ghana. the other with Zimbabwe. The main work with Ghana
was undertaken in that country: much
of
the work with Zimbabwe was undertaken in
Canada-for different reasons and with somewhat different results. Over
400
officials have
completed the basic courses (generally of
3
months duration). Others have attended shorter
courses. training-of-trainers projects. and a workshop for cabinet ministers. In this paper
questions are explored about the relevance
of
such training. the nature of the content and
ways
t,o
evaluate such activities. Practical issues
of
aid planning and implementation are
raised and. finally. questions
of
aid targets are examined in the light
of
the experiences
of
these programmes.
INTRODUCTION
The Canadian International Development Agency' has co-sponsored a number
of
public administration training programmes
with
the governments of developing
nations.' Two of the larger ones have been for middle-ranking public servants of
Ghana (between 1976 and 1981) and Zimbabwe (between
1980
and 1984).
In
this
paper. experiences from those two programmes are recounted. using the broad
framework of the project cycle (Baum. 1970).
CANADIAN AID TO GHANA AND ZIMBABWE
In
should be noted
at
the outset that neither
of
these training programmes was
the product of
any
'mainstream aid philosophy' that could be viewed as central
to CIDA's aid programming.
As
for most other donor nations, Canadian bilateral
aid
has
been dominated by the provision
of
goods (made
in
Canada) and
of
food
Ian
McAllister
is
Professor of Economics and Chairman
of
the Pearson Institute. Dalhousie University.
Canada
'
CIDA
was
estahlished
in
1968
under thr aegis
of
the Secretary
of
State for External Affairs.
Canadian aid experience precedes that date
hy
some
20
years. starting
with
food aid programmes
to
the
Indian
suh-continent.
'
'Drvcloping
nations'
is
used
uncornfortahly.
in
preference
to
'Third World' countries.
027
1-2075/87/030289-19$09.50
0
1987 by John Wiley
&
Sons, Ltd.
290
I.
McAllister
(grown
in
Canada). Canadian overseas development assistance (ODA) has also
been buffeted by sometimes conflicting pressures. These have included trade
promotion, humanitarian ideals, regional interests, broad security considerations,
the Commonwealth and French connections, the influence of the US neighbour
and technological ambitions (as for the sale of nuclear reactors). ‘Grand theories’
have also served as reference points. Unbalanced growth (endorsing large projects,
such as hydro-power dams that might spell markets for Canadian-made turbines),
green revolutions (with scope for Canadian farm equipment). rural self-reliance
(drawing on items such as Canadian water pumps), basic needs (requiring food
aid and medical supplies) are among the ideas that have given temporary frame-
works for the weighting of Canadian aid streams (Parliamentary Task Force
on
North-South Relations, 1980).
The story
of
Ghanaian aid from Canada (dating back
to
food aid
in
1958)
is
something
of
a microcosm
of
this broader tapestry. By the time that the training
programme for public servants was embarked upon (1976). there was an ‘aid-
fatigue’ atmosphere
in
CIDA. This resulted from a perceived lack of dramatic
results in many countries, Ghana being a prime example. Strong personal loyalties
and friendships existed between many senior CIDA officials and Ghanaians
in
numerous walks of life, but the frequency of coups and the accusations of corrup-
tion threatened longer-term Canadian aid commitments.
In the case of Zimbabwe
in
1980 the situation was different.
In
some ways
Zimbabwe’s new independence represented a chance to turn back the clock. for
Canadian aid to avoid some of the previous mistakes and overly optimistic naivet-
ies. The international promises of support for the ZIMCORD framework (Patel.
1985) were also viewed as auguring well. Thus the mood
in
CIDA was
one
of
relative excitement, tempered by recognition of the strategic location of Zimbabwe
in the unfolding drama
of
southern Africa. A strong multi-racial Zimbabwe. with
democratic institutions, could have major significance for the broad region. as
could a crumbling back to warfare and social intolerance. The Department of
External Affairs and a few senior CIDA officials saw
the
training programme as
a building block for broader Canadian-Zimbabwean relationships.
IDENTIFICATION
PHASE
The Ghana programme
The Ghanaian training programme resulted from a report by two Canadian
consultants, at the request of the Ministry
of
Economic Planning
of
Ghana
(McAllister and Sinclair, 1975). Its main findings included:
1.
Development planning in Ghana was jeopardized by an artificially inflated
exchange rate.
2.
The national budget process was not coherently integrated; in part this was
because the Ministry
of
Economic Planning was effectively responsible for
the capital budget and the Ministry
of
Finance for the current one.
3.
The Ministry
of
Economic Planning appeared
to
be widely viewed as ‘ivory
tower’. Whether speaking with public
or
private sector individuals, the
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