INTRODUCTION
Melesse Zenebework
In the field of development, there is no perfect strategy
which can satisfy the needs of all the actors involved and solve the world
poverty likewise. All methodologies and approaches which have been implemented
so far have their own strength and weaknesses. However, what makes a
development strategy “best” is that it exerts potential capability to include
most of the needs and varieties of development obstacles from all sides
(donors, recipient countries and other development actors) and strive to achieve
better progress.
Various strategies were formulated
and implemented in different epoch since development became the global issue,
nevertheless, most of them failed to make happen the targeted goal in a given
period to our world. Various reasons can be raised for the failure of these
strategies, yet, their incompatibility with the nature and characteristics of
the real problems of each developing country is considered to be the main
factor. This problem still exists in the global development strategies like the
Millennium Development Goal, the High Forum for Aid Effectiveness and Poverty
Reduction Strategy Papers (which some scholars considered as the other face of
structural adjustment policies).
Typically covering a three to five-year planning horizon,
Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) have become the prime vehicle for
both providing priorities for public expenditure by the governments of
developing countries and delivering international aid for poverty reduction.
According to the World Bank, these strategy papers are primarily formulated in
order to bring about country driven (of the developing countries) development
plans with broad participation of people and civil societies. In spite of its
influential dimension and structure, the Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers have
still faced strong criticism from various individuals and development actors.
They say, the PRSPs are no different from the former Structural Adjustment
Policies in the sense that they are set by the donors and thrown on to the developing
countries so that Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPSs) must ensure the
ownership (P. Tharakan and M. McDonald, 2004, pp.8).
