ECONOMIC AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT

Evaluation covers the period 9/77-2/80 and is based on an attached special outside evaluation (PD-AAG-384-C1). The project is one year behind schedule. Start-up was slow because of delays in the arrival of commodities -- especially vehicles and training materials -- and in obtaining project personnel. The training program for Government of Ghana (GOG) officials took longer than expected and was further slowed by commodity delays. GOG"s lack of policy guidelines has severely delayed the release of operational project funds. Nevertheless, and despite economic and political crises in Ghana, targeted outputs are near completion. Both a National Coordinating Committee (NCC) and a Project Secretariat (PS) have been established. Eight regional three-man training teams were formed and course materials for eight training systems were developed. The project has been accepted enthusiastically and offers a model replicable within GOG and other LDC"s. To provide the much needed national policy guidance, NCC will be reconstituted to include personnel from various GOG ministries and USAID"s Project Manager. In addition, to increase PS"s leadership role, PS will be headed by a full-time senior officer and given adequate supporting staff. Other action decisions are that PS and A.I.D. jointly review logistical support problem areas, especially in regard to transportation; that institutions be identified to offer courses in integrated rural development and in applications of appropriate technology in rural tropical environments; that GOG project allocations be transferred from the capital to the recurrent budget to ensure the timely arrival of commodities; and that ways be sought to apply training outputs more effectively to villages. Whether the project--which has 2 years to go--should be extended or whether project components should be transferred to a new project aimed at developing human resources will be decided in the next 12 months, largely depending on GOG activity.