A.I.D.'s experience with rural development : project-specific factors affecting performance

has responded to the unpredictable, complex, and long-term nature of rural development by experimenting with alternative approaches. This report draws general lessons from these experiments. Discussion focuses on economically productive rather than social service activities and is restricted to factors within a donor agency's or project management's control, although methods of influencing external factors are also considered. The paper is organized according to four key project-related issues. (1) Project organization and management issues are examined, beginning with an assessment of various types of implementing organizations (i.e., government agencies, semiautonomous agencies, and private organizations). General recommendations are presented for effectively engaging beneficiaries in management decisions, a key aspect of successful project performance and sustainability. Management strategies are examined for addressing internal and external problems, enhancing indigenous institutional capacity, and improving financial viability. (2) Discussed next are the two main technological issues affecting rural development projects: (a) the acquisition and adoption of appropriate agronomic technical packages, and (b) the choice of appropriate rural infrastructure technologies. (3) The paper then evaluates recently developed project design techniques, focusing on the factors of flexibility, size, lifespan, complexity, and integration. (4) A final section examines project monitoring and evaluation processes, which have also been revised recently to suit the realities of rural development. The report concludes by emphasizing that rural development strategies are rarely universally applicable - the key to success is the appropriateness of project approach to local contextual conditions.