Capacity development strategies

Key issues

Capacity development is a complex theme, which touches upon a wide
range of issues: from the usefulness of training to the functioning
of ministries, from the effectiveness of civil service reform to the
unexpected effects of incentives.

The debates around capacity development are at times controversial and on four such controversial issues the linkages hereunder provide more insights:

• When capacities of public authorities and of civil service staff are very weak, states are threatened by fragility. In such contexts, capacity development is a necessity, but there may be more urgent priorities related for instance to security, to physical reconstruction or to emergency relief. How can a capacity development strategy at the same time strengthen national systems and address the wide range of priorities? More >>
  
  
• Improving the performance of civil servants demands a varied set of strategies which civil service reforms have attempted to implement, though not always with much success. One intricate question is how to develop an incentive system that promotes effectiveness, while paying attention to transparency and fairness.  More >>
  
  
• Ministries of education can be complex organizations, characterized by challenges of coordination, leadership and the need for a shared vision. Capacity development strategies need to take into account this diversity of challenges in order to be successful. More  >>
  
  
• Training individuals is an indispensable part of capacity development, but such training has not always translated into better performance in the workplace. Why not and how can this be overcome? More >>