USAID DEC
Final performance evaluation of the USAID municipal competitiveness project in El Salvador
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Final performance evaluation of the USAID municipal competitiveness project in El Salvador
The USAID Municipal Competitiveness Project (MCP) in El Salvador is a $11.2 million project which was designed to improve the competitiveness of Salvadoran municipalities through the development of a unique model with several inter-related components designed to: (1) enhance municipal effectiveness and efficiency; (2) measure the local business climate; (3) encourage private-public and inter-jurisdictional engagement and dialogue; and (4) provide incentive funds to encourage municipalities to mobilize financial resource for improving economic development and security.
Midling, Michael|Molina, Francisco · 2014
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Abstract
The purpose of this final performance evaluation of the MCP is to document the effectiveness of the project from its inception in October 2010 through September 2013 and to inform USAID and other stakeholders of opportunities for additional investments. The primary objectives of the evaluation are to: (1) document successes and shortcomings of the MCP approaches in order to determine their effectiveness in promoting municipal competitiveness and business enabling environments; (2) make recommendations for priority activities to ensure sustainability and increased private sector participation and improve competitiveness at the municipal level; (3) identify the level of success of the Domestic Finance for Development (DF4D) component in promoting Municipal Competitiveness Committee (MCC) participation in community crime prevention activities; (4) make recommendations on MCP approaches to encourage increased municipal revenues; and (5) offer suggestions on measuring municipal level investment in the country. The overall conclusion of this evaluation is that MCP is highly innovative and has made a significant contribution to municipal development in El Salvador. Clearly, developing a business-enabling environment within which local areas develop a culture of competitiveness is a long-term process, and it is a process that will likely require sustained interventions on the part of USAID and other development partners. Although the gains described in this report are still tentative in many MCP municipalities, the experiences accrued by the project have a potential to serve as a model for municipal development internationally for those countries that are pursuing municipal or other subnational development strategies that require some degree of decentralization. (Excerpt, modified)
