Capacity development strategies

While capacity development has become a very popular concept in recent years, the challenges and preoccupations are not new. There have been changes in the terminology, from “institution building” over “capacity building” to “capacity development”, but these different terms refer to similar issues. Modalities and strategies have also undergone some change and successes have been achieved, from which useful lessons can be learnt. Nevertheless, the overall record especially in the least developed countries, which are most in need of stronger capacities, remains a source of concern and points to the need for a comprehensive review.

 Against this background, UNESCO has received funds from the Norwegian authorities to work on a strategy on “capacity-development for achieving the EFA goals”.  The final objective is to prepare a policy paper on capacity-development in educational planning and management, which will guide UNESCO’s actions in this field and which will hopefully be a source of inspiration for other partners.