Routledge Agriculture and Rural Development Planning: A Process in Transition (King's SOAS Studies in Development Geography)

This book meets the needs of teachers and students of agriculture and rural development project and programme planning, planners employed by governments in developing countries and by external financing agencies. Project planners must understand the aspirations of rural families and their local leaders, the national development and sector planning goals and policies of their governments and the development goals and policy priorities perceived by external financing agencies in relation to their countries. These areas are not always consistent and trade-offs may be required. However it is recognised that poor project planning is a major constraint to the sustainable realization of project and programme objectives and sector goals. Illustrated with case studies and logical framework matrices, this book presents well-established and relatively new practices followed in the context of agriculture and rural development project and programme planning. Although based on experiences gained in Africa, the issues described are relevant to planning problems encountered in other developing regions of the world. It addresses the main factors which affect the success of planning such as a government's ability to guarantee macro-economic stability and sound sector development policies; the shift from 'top-down', bureaucratic to 'bottom-up', participatory planning approaches and the roles played by external financing agencies. It explains key technical, financial, economic, environmental, socio-cultural, equity, gender and institutional-strengthening issues concerning planning in rural areas and reviews the planning tools and approaches available. The procurement of goods and services, the disbursement of funds and monitoring and evaluation requirements are examined in detail. Review ’...a valuable and interesting contribution to the subject of Agriculture and Rural Development Planning. The case studies illustrate, in a practical manner, the main ideas. The African Development Bank Group expects that publicity of previous experiences will lead to the avoidance of similar problems in future projects.’ African Development Bank Group ’Practical and well illustrated by examples, this book provides a clear guide to best practice for agricultural and rural development project planning. Whereas most project planning texts focus on the methods of cost benefit analysis, this fills a gap by explaining the approaches to the project cycle used by the main development agencies today. A valuable reference for students of project planning, monitoring and evaluation, and for planners employed in technical ministries in developing countries.’ Laurence E.D. Smith, Imperial College London, UK ’This book is a welcome addition to the various texts, guidelines and manuals on rural project planning in developing countries. In one volume, it attempts to cover the whole process from the identification of appropriate projects to how they are assessed, implemented and evaluated after completion. The book draws on a number of real case studies which usefully illustrate the various steps in the process.’ Cambridge University Press ’...very helpful for those who are involved in the planning process.’ Quarterly Journal of International Agriculture ’...this book provides a concise but complete view of the institutions, actors, procedures, and techniques involved in agricultural and rural development planning, going beyond a simple description of the planning cycle. After digesting this book, one should be abe to read through almost any project planning or evaluation document with a good degree of familiarity and confidence. It will serve well as an introductory or supplementary text for students of economic development and project planning. It should a About the Author H. David Akroyd is a retired agricultural economist/agriculture and rural development project planner.