Evaluating the impact of aid to Africa: lessons from the Millennium Villages
Speakers:
IN LONDON
Dr Michael Clemens - Senior Fellow, Centre for Global Development (CGD)
IN NAIROBI
Dr Belay Ejigu Begashaw - Director, MDG Centre for East and Southern Africa and the Columbia Global Center in Africa and former Minister of Agriculture, The Ethiopia Government
Chair:
Dr Alison Evans - Director, ODI
Description
Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University, in partnership with the United Nations, during 2004-2006, established integrated rural development projects, known as Millennium Villages in ten African countries. When they came to be evaluated in 2011, an intense row broke out between development experts about their impact and sustainability.
ODI and the Royal Africa Society are delighted to host Michael Clemens who will argue that aid projects in Africa need much more careful impact evaluations that are transparent, rigorous, and cost-effective. Our panel of experts will also discuss the Millenium Villages project within the wider context of international aid to Africa, analysing other development models and questioning the impact of each one.