EVALUATION OF THE AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL

THE EVALUATION CONDUCTED AS A JOINT WORKSHOP WITH ADC AND AID, DETERMINED THAT THE ADC HAD PERFORMED WELL UNDER THE EXISTING GRANT AND THAT THE PROJECT WAS ACHIEVING ITS PURPOSE. AID CONTRIBUTED APPROXIMATELY 60% OF THE COSTS OF THE ADC EXPANDED FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM. DURING THE PERIOD OF THE AID GRANT A TOTAL OF 81 INDIVIDUALS HAVE RECEIVED ADC FELLOWSHIPS. THE BREAKDOWN BY DEGREE IS AS FOLLOWS: 72 PHD, 6 MS AND 3 NON-DEGREE. OF THE GROUP, 51 HAVE RETURNED HOME, 3 ARE IN THE US UNDER OTHER AUSPICES AND 27 ARE CURRENTLY IN TRAINING. EVALUATION ALSO CONCLUDED THAT WHILE THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF OVERSEAS TRAINING SPONSORED BY THE ADC IS NOT SIGNIFICANT IN TERMS OF THE DEMAND FOR THIS TRAINING, IT IS HIGHLY SIGNIFICANT IN TERMS OF THE SUPPLY OF FIRST CLASS RESEARCHERS AND POLICY THINKERS. WHILE AID RECOMMENDS THAT THE PROPOSED FINAL CONTRIBUTTIN OF $300,000 FOR THE PROJECT BE APPROVED, THE AGENCY WILL NOT SUPPORT A SUCCESSOR PROJECT FOCUSED ON PHD TRAINING AT US INSTITUTIONS. THIS NON-SUPPORT IS PRECIPITATED BY THE AID POLICY REQUIREMENT TO LINK TRAINING MORE CLOSELY TO THE NEEDS OF THE POOREST MAJORITY, AND THE AVAILABILITY OF GENERAL PARTICIPANT TRAINING PROJECTS AT FIELD MISSIONS. IN ADDITION, IT IS FELT THAT GIVEN THE HUMAN RIGHTS CONCERNS EXPRESSED ABOUT MOST ASIAN AID COUNTRIES, A FOLLOW-ON PROJECT WOULD HAVE TO DEMONSTRATE BENEFITS ACCRUING TO THE POOR MAJORITY DURING THE LIFE OF THE PROJECT, SEVERAL SUGGESTED ALTERNATIVES TO A FOLLOW-ON PROJECT INCLUDE: 1) GENERAL SUPPORT TO THE ADC; 2) SPECIFIC SUPPORT GRANT FOR COUNTRY PROGRAMS WHICH INSTITUTIONALIZED COUNTRY-DIFFERENTIATED 5-YEAR SUPPORT STRATEGIES; SPECIFIC SUPPORT GRANT FOR RESIDENT ASSOCIATE PROGRAM; 4) SPECIFIC SUPPORT GRANT FOR NON-DEGREE ONE-YEAR TRAINING PROGRAMS IN THE US; 5) SHIFT TO BILATERAL CONTRACTS TO EXPAND SPECIFIC IN-COUNTRY PROGRAMS. FINAL 2 PAGES CONTAIN A LIST OF AID AND ADC DOCUMENTS USED DURING THE EVALUATION.