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The challenges faced by communities in developing contexts around the world are anything but simple. Climate change, protracted conflict, gender issues, food scarcity, natural resource management… these and the hundreds of other topics that development professionals work on everyday are complex by their very nature. Working effectively within these complex system requires an integrated approach that considers the many factors affecting a community, all at the same time. As one, off the cuff example, adequate health care systems require educational support, which requires funding and facilities, which need a sound foundation of infrastructure and policy. And, that’s just looking at if from a practical “how to” perspective – adding in cultural, environmental and unsavory factors, such as conflict, weaves a web that is difficult to untangle. My guest for the 139th episode of the Terms of Reference Podcast, Patrick Fine, sees the creation of an evidence base for integrated development as a critical success factor for the future of our sector. As the CEO of FHI360, Patrick oversees a truly global development operation – one that not only implements programming, but also seeks to create new knowledge from which everyone can benefit. I have no doubt you’ll enjoy this wide ranging conversation about how FHI360 is positioning themselves for the future of development. Patrick is also a fellow podcaster! He is the host of A Deeper Look. Listen here. You can connect with Patrick here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-fine-66213172/ https://twitter.com/PfineFine
IN TOR 139 YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT
- Integrated Development. What it is, and how Patrick and FHI 360 have employed it to break the specialists’ silos so often found in aid delivery.
- FHI 360’s massive effort to bring evidence into the field, generate new knowledge, and make sure lessons learned are shared and put into practice
- The importance of both awareness channels (social media) and those that ensure the quality and value of the information (peer-reviewed journals)
- The current level of the discussion about standards and QA versus iterative approaches to aid delivery
- The “Aid R&D crisis”, where the funding system does not have the incentives to promote or fund new ideas (with one key exception)
- On dealing with 4 years worth of uncertainty
- Approaches considered obsolete may still have a place in economically stunted places
OUR CONVERSATION FEATURES THE FOLLOWING
Names:
- FHI 360
- FHI 360 Integrators Network
- USAID, Global Development Lab
- Unicef
- Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
- Gayle Smith and Ann Mei Chang (fmr USAID leaders)
- Michael Bzdak, Executive Director of Corporate Contributions, Johnson & Johnson
- Dr. Muhammad Ali Pate, fmr Nigeria Minister of Health, Executive Director of BigWing Philanthropy
Topics:
- Integrated Development, Synergy
- Peer-reviewed journals
- Replication
- Evidence-based interventions
- Research and Development (R&D) in Aid and International Development
- Culture, of innovation
- Iterative Management
- Innovation, New knowledge generation, Learning organization
- Fintech (Financial Technologies)
- Mobile money
- Stunting, child nutrition
- Inequality, international, Development rate inequality, chasms
- National security, national interests, value of engagement with the world
Places
EPISODE CRIB NOTES
“We’ve been investing in our own research, we’ve been developing tools and different models to help inform how do you go about taking an integrated approach to development that is effective” Durham, North Carolina February 2016 02:26 FHI 360 CEO by day, World Traveler also by day- Our purpose: improving lives
- “We bring evidence and knowledge” “to address human development problems”
- FHI is a complex, 70+ country platform
- Education, economy, youth, gender, technology
- FHI uses knowledge already existing in the communities “and apply it in smart ways”
- “We put a lot of emphasis on up-front design” prior to the intervention
- “We generate new knowledge” through innovation, past experiences
- Thoughtful, systematic, open. “We’re a learning organization, trying to share with the rest of the world”
- In 2016 FHI published 183 peer-reviewed journal articles
- “We share value on what works and what does not. We need to learn from both”
- Different audiences have different outlets
- Journals are the only medium that guarantees the traceability of the research so it can support interventions that involve basic and applied science.
- “The only way to advance knowledge and innovation is through peer-reviewed journals”
- FHI showcased research on the relationship between level of education and conflict, supported by UNICEF. It produced an available dataset.
- “We do have a very robust effort” through social media, both from central level (Durham) and regional offices and project offices across 40 countries
- All of the offices are involved on local initiatives and interact with local and sector leaders
- “To be honest, we’re involved in so many sectors and have so many particular examples of our deep impact in the world or our communities”
- “One example is mobile money. We use it a lot”
- In West and East Africa, FHI uses it heavily. They use it to pay teachers in Liberia, which is correlated to quality of education and transparency
- Mobile money to pay nurses, health and social workers has been one game changing innovation. “It’s gaining momentum. We and USAID have been instrumental in pushing it forward”
- Across sectors, nutrition. Stunting is a national development constraint in many places. Nutrition in the first 30 days is critical. FHI works with Gates Foundation in India, Ethiopia, Vietnam, on nutritional practices at the household level
- “When you describe a problem well, budgets change”
- People are interested about iteration, adaptiveness
- Applying new management methods to common problems
- How to balance iterative approaches with accountability?
- There are agreed upon standards, often hard to reconcile with iterative intervention
- “It’s a challenge not yet resolved”
- Some new contract include provisions for periodic evaluations and room for adjustment
- “It still takes a lot of work” but it’s a way forward worth trying out further
- There is a difference on approach depending on the source of funding, private or public
- Stephen: You last spoke about peaceful, inclusive societies, conflict resolution, community resilience.
- In humanitarian crisis response, relief space, there is acknowledgement about the need to constantly adjust “because circumstances are changing quickly on the ground”
- There is a lot of pressure on measuring results. Adaptive management should come as the natural next step
- There’s still, however, friction. “People who want more rigorous approaches want adaptive or iterative methods”. It’s the nature of today’s issue.
- Replication in iterative management programs is a complex issue.
- How to solve methodological challenges? “I think it is possible. It takes investing in research and development.” Which is challenging, as R&D presents a funding gap
- “A fundamental need in the development community is a conversation about financing”
- The share of R&D funding in corporate or the military sector dwarfs that of development
- Progress in development is the ability to balance a table with a host of issues, and finding good methods
- Experience is converted into R&D practice. “That is difficult”, as it is often seen as a luxury and resources are not prioritized
- Health would be an exception “due to Gates and other mega-foundations”
- The rest of the sector faces founder unwillingness towards R&D
- FHI took their own resources to explore “Integrated Development”
- How to overcome silos when overcoming challenges
- Research is ongoing. But the base is still feeble
- A shareable body of useful evidence to inform practice “is not really there”
- FHI is investing, developing tools and models, “primarily with our own resources”
- The baseline is “a culture that promotes innovation”
- Encourage people try new things, push the envelope, create incentives
- Incorporate it into the structure
- FHI’s “Catalyst Fund” allows for a small grant to internal innovation
- “It’s a kind of R&D funding” that helps fill a funding gap
- Results can be built into FHI programming, “it gives us a competitive edge”
- Example: South East Asia, a mobile tutoring app helps secondary school kids rendering an exam. It’s called REACH
- FHI provided some seed funding
- Integrated Development is an area where internal FHI investment have rendered results
- FHI has technical areas of expertise and specialization. “We discovered we do not have a lot of synergy” among areas
- Integrated Development works from within FHI, also reaches out
- The Integrators Network (FHI self-funded)
- Some lessons learned from USAID, namely Global Development Lab
- FHI’s Integrated Network helps people from all over the world collaborate, “focus on synergies across geographies and technical sectors”
- “I’m proud. But it’s not something lot of people are willing to fund”
- Stephen: A lot of unknowns. No USAID head as of now
- There is a great deal of uncertainty, about budget allocation and directions
- “Trying to read the tea leaves”
- Considering the people already appointed, the transition team, Patrick is optimistic about the administration’s interest in global dialog and humanitarian priorities. Also, national interests
- “The only way we can serve the national interests is by remaining fully engaged internationally and addressing human development challenges”
- Comments during appointment hearings look good, but uncertainty remains
- “At the end of the day, it comes down to ‘how much value you are adding’”
- On a larger geopolitical scale, there is a question about the value of a US that’s engaged with the world
- Answers are very positive as they are refer to prosperity, path to development. “They are clear”
- Other levels of disruption: growing inequality among and within nations. “Almost two worlds”
- Bangkok is a modern city, works well. 40 mins away, there a whole different world
- Growing standards of living are not improving uniformly. “We need to take advantage of the momentum”
- Nudge the engines of growth to cover also “poverty traps”
- In the industrialized world, “disruption” is visible with examples of fast, positive change
- Not all places can say the same. In many places “I don’t see much disruption”
- Perhaps there it’s better to try what has worked, sound approaches
- There is a chasm, it grows as some places develop fast while others not at all
- Low income countries that do not attract investment, the middle class does not develop
- “I’m not sure what is the right approaches”. Economically stunted countries might require more research
- “Some of the old approaches that we know obsolete, may still be worth trying in those places”. Patrick was in Central African Republic, where “there is no governance”
- “A lot of people across many, many sectors”
- “There is so much that it’s overwhelming”
- Gayle Smith (fmr USAID administrator)
- Michael Bzdak, Executive Director of Corporate Contributions, Johnson & Johnson
- Ann Mei Chang (fmr USAID Global Development Lab)
- Dr. Muhammad Ali Pate, fmr Nigeria Minister of Health, Executive Director of BigWing Philanthropy
- Integrated Development, baby
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