Evaluation report : USAID development program grant and institutional support grant to the US Foundation for International Scouting to strengthen community development capability

Special evaluation covers the period 1977-1981 and is based on visits to WSB headquarters in Geneva and to 7 target countries. Helped by the A.I.D. grants, the WSB/CD staff has grown in size and competence, conducted national and regional leadership training seminars/workshops throughout the developing world, prepared a large number of CD manuals which have been translated into at least four languages, and identified and inspired 20 target country Scout associations (SA's). Not being specialists, the staff have been less successful in assisting CD projects technically. The national SA's, which for the most part accept CD as the primary Scouting activity, are producing CD plans adapted to local conditions with the support of their governments and have been wonderfully sucessful in promoting CD, broadly defined to include development training, youth education, community and employment assistance, and rural development. Scout programs have been especially helpful in serving the short- and long-term needs of unemployed youth, particularly in rural areas. Although USAID's are slightly skeptical whether the national SA's can produce enduring CD results, the evaluators judge that in this project A.I.D. has accidentally hit upon a frugal and extremely effective means of development training. In future WSB/CD activities, it is recommended that WSB/CD visit the neediest SA's to provide inspiration and put them in contact with local financial and technical resources; develop international funding sources for CD; improve communication with target countries through a newsletter; and translate the most popular training manuals into local languages, with broader circulation. For future A.I.D. support, it is recommended that a specific amount of funds be subgranted to SA's, with defined procedures for doing this; occupational training and the preparation of youth for development be made the purpose of the project; and A.I.D.'s support of WSB/CD be clearly defined and alternative funding sources developed.