This study examines linkages in the innovation system. The system produces innovations slowly, and not necessarily with substantial gains in efficiency. Research and field organisations may have links with farmers, but not with farmers’ organisations, the input suppliers, agro-industry or trade...

‘Experience capitalisation’ – the process of learning lessons from experience – has both strategic and ethical importance for NGOs that wish to become ‘learning organisations’. Based on the experiences of Handicap International and GRET, this report provides guidelines for organisations that wi...

This paper draws upon the experiences within ICCO (a Dutch NGO) and the literature on networking for development. It examines the characteristics of networks that have been successful in producing results and outcomes that contribute effectively to innovative development processes, promoting mu...

A team of development professionals and economists examine the lessons learned from recent capacity development efforts. They emphasise the importance of learning, which they describe as ‘an imperative for economic survival in today’s knowledge-based market environment … For individuals, for in...

Organisational learning is increasingly viewed as key to improving development performance and impact. However, there is still confusion about what the term means and how it translates into practice. This literature review aims to provide some insight in this area.

This paper looks at the origins of the Accountability, Learning and Planning System (ALPS), a revolutionary approach to managing the learning and relationships introduced by ActionAid, an international NGO. Starting with the origins of ALPS in the late 1990s, the paper describes the false start...

ActionAid, DFID and Sida collaborated with the Participation Group at the IDS to explore understanding of learning and to document innovative approaches. This paper offers a new perspective on how a development agency can approach learning so that its staff can examine and improve their perform...

Each year billions of dollars are spent on social programmes in the developing world, but very few benefit from studies that could determine whether or not they actually made a difference. This absence of evidence is an urgent problem. In 2004 the CGD convened the Evaluation Gap Working Group...

Do aid agencies and their counterparts learn from their experiences? Is knowledge gained fed back into improved practices? The introductory chapter deals with learning in development cooperation from the perspective of practitioners. The authors of the 16 chapters offer their personal reflectio...

This evaluation found that while most of the training financed by the World Bank has resulted in demonstrable learning, this learning frequently did not lead to real changes in workplace performance. Often the content of training is not relevant to the needs and goals of institutions, or the tr...