Local Organizations in Decentralized Development in India

1. Local Organizations in Decentralized Development in India

2. Research Study • 3 sectors: drinking water supply and sanitation; women’s development and empowerment; watershed development • 3 states: Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Uttaranchal • Mixed methodology: 7 questionnaires, over 3,000 in household survey; range of participatory techniques

3. 5 research questions • Which organizations? • What are they mandated to do? • What do they do in practice? • How well do they do it? • What associates with different levels of performance?

4. Conceptual Framework Organizational Attributes Organizational Performance Assets Effectiveness Processes Equity Linkages Sustainability Context

5. 2 Key Typologies I. Organizational Typology 4 main types of organization, 26 sub-types • Government organizations (administrative and elected) • Project management organizations • Private organizations • Community based organizations

6. 2 Key Typologies • Functional Typology Financing -- mobilizing and securing of funds Staffing -- provision of staff to form or support groups Provisioning -- facilitating access to services, resources and local assets. Community-based action -- physical construction and mobilization of village resources Capacity building -- facilitation or direct provision of training programs. Coordination -- coordination with other organizations M & E -- tracking organizational inputs, outputs, and performance. Conflict resolution and accountability – prevention, mediation and adjudication. Information sharing and dissemination -- sharing information within and between local organizations.

7. Mandated Functions • Interventions diversified design of organizational landscape – functions mandated for a wide range of organizations • Aministrative government (LDs) mandated functions that keep them deeply involved at all levels • Elected government (PRIs) roles limited • No functions for Block Panchayats • only in DWS are GPs mandated a role apart from conflict resolution and M&E • NGOs have contractually limited functions • Virtually no private sector involvement

8. Sector Findings WDE: functions mandated to administrative government at all levels for capacity building and information WSS: reverse pattern functions mandated to administrative government at all levels in the areas of resource allocation (financing, staffing, provisioning). WSD admin. Gov. have no mandated responsibilities below the state level. Project organizations mandated functions at all levels, although their limited at the village level. Overall: wide spread of mandates, considerable duplication in all sectors, particularly at the state and district levels and at block and village levels in the watershed development sector.

9. Actual Functions • Most functions mandated to local organizations are undertaken—but at a lower frequency than envisaged in design. • Many organizations undertake functions for which they have no mandate • Project organizations and project-initiated CBOs perform mandated functions more frequently than other types of local organizations, regardless of sector • State differences in the frequency with which organizations perform functions, but these differences are not as regular or as significant

10. Subsidiarity, Transfer and Duplication • Subsidiarity most commonly found where CBOs undertake functions mandated to support organizations • Transfer of functions most common where line departments regularly undertake functions not mandated to them but to gram panchayats. • Duplication only a problem in found in the water/sanitation sector in Karnataka, where different interventions supported a range of local organizational actors, each responsible for a different water source.

11. Issues • Organizations deviating most from their mandated roles are those closest to the interface of intervention and beneficiary. • Failure to undertake mandated functions not necessarily an indication of poor performance -- projects need flexibility in development of organizational mandates and to ensure that project monitoring, accountability, and contractual structures allow for evolution of roles.

12. Quality of Performance – Effectiveness of Functions • Adequate in basic functions of organizational administration and management (financing, staffing, provisioning, monitoring and evaluation, and conflict resolution) but poor in development-oriented functions (community-based action, capacity building, coordination, and information sharing). • Project organizations and project-initiated CBOs highest-quality performers • Gram panchayats generally poorest performers, particularly in relation to development functions.

13. Assets and Performance of Functions Assets • 3 in 10 : inadequate human assets • 6 in 10 : inadequate material assets • 7 in 10 : inadequate financial assets Association of Assets with performance • Human assets : inconclusive • Material assets : • WSS -- little effect • WDE -- negative association with development functions • WSD -- negative association with most functions • Financial assets: significant association with performance

14. Processes and Performance of Functions Processes 1. Organizational Rules • Representatives: 50% aware of some rules; 20% unaware • Members : 33% WDE, 25% DWSS and WSD unaware 2. Transparency • Minutes read in 40% organizations • Minutes not available: 60% PRIs/Line depts.; 40-50% CBOs 3. Decision Making (I. selection of reps. II.key decisions) • WDE: high member involvement I and II • WSS: 66% I; 75% II • WSD: high member involvement I; high SO involvement

15. Association of Processes with performance • members’ awareness of governance rules generally associated with good performance, particularly of collective action and coordination • At present, availability of minutes not associated with performance • Patterns in sectors differ, particularly WSD, indicating need for processes to be benefit/sector specific

16. Linkages and Performance of Functions

17. Association of Linkages with performance 1.Administrative Government • WDE - negative; WSS - mixed; WSD - positive 2. Elected Government • WDE - mixed; WSS - negative; WSD - negative 3. Other organizations • WDE positive; WSS – positive; WSD negative

18. Village Attributes and Performance of Functions

19. Membership Attributes and Performance of Functions

20. Delivery of Development Benefits WDE • 50% received loans • 33% received more than 2 loans • 33 % thought loan provision from group poor; 75% poor loan provision from Banks WSS • 73% access to DW improved • 27% access to sanitary facilities improved • 46% access to clothes washing facilities improved WSD • 68% soil erosion improved • 42% agricultural production improved

21. Equity -- Development Benefits WDE • good equity in the distribution of loans • repeat loans are taken more by disadvantaged and poorer—but not the very poorest—households. WSS • dissatisfaction with provision of sanitary and washing facilities equally distributed across poverty groups • access to clean drinking water biased in favor of wealthier households. WSD • No association between social groups and soil erosion/water loss • Landless, marginal and small cultivators and poorest had the lowest assessments of benefit delivery

22. Sustainability

23. Summary of organizations and roles I Admin. Government • no longer singularly responsible but remain involved to village level and control budgets and activities • often perform roles mandated to PRIs PRIs • limited at district level • block level – no role • only in DWS GPs mandated to play substantial role -- not a good fit between mandated and actual roles for GPs. • GPs worst village level organization in performing mandated functions • Little chance to influence behavior of LD staff as do not control budgets or write annual performance appraisals

24. Summary of organizations and roles II NGOs • usually operating as contractors within a project, essentially project organizations with little chance of independent action • financial dependency and contractual arrangements capacity to use their learning or management skills Coordination Committees • Rarely included more than admin government and project offices • Used for monitoring rather than coordination of activities or strategic guidance

25. Summary of organizations and roles III Project Organizations • Operating, but concerned less concerned with strategy, learning from action or development outside of input and output targets than administering the project • Performed administrative activities well • Organizations working within Bank aided interventions performed no better than those with alternative sources of funding other than in WDE Support Organizations • Have major influence on quality of perform of village level organization but quality of support varies • Often(apart from LDs) undertake non-mandated roles • Only focus on first level project tasks not broader development functions

26. Summary of organizations and roles IV CBOs • Huge increase in numbers as a result of projects • Negligible amount of locally evolved or pre-existing or NGO initiated CBOs in sectors studied (1% -- 3% of 583) • Project initiated CBOs more likely than other types of village level organization to undertake mandated functions and perform them well • Most likely to deviate from mandated roles, to be responsive to needs of local context and to perform functions of support organization • Unlikely to be sustainable – high dependency on support organizations in 2 sectors (exception W&S 75% operating independently) • Indicators of functioning as democratic entities not good

27. Roles envisaged by design • no where near fully reflected in practice • roles not performed particularly well • functions of basic administration and management reasonable, broader development functions poorly performed • sustainability very questionable • all types of organizations play roles – gravitate towards particular functions despite mandates • PRIs are regarded as important but histories of distrust between administrative and elected government undermine true devolution as does the battle over resources.

28. Operational Implications I • Expectations of LOs should be more realistic • Organizations need good quality human resources and adequate financial resources • If sufficient resources assets unavailable need: (i) more appropriate time frames and focused investments: (ii) less ambitious about the scale of interventions • Role allocation should take into account short, mid or long term delivery of benefits and evolution of organizational entities • Where important to have long term organizational presence invest in: (i) the quality of functioning; (ii) in capacity building of members/functionaries -- including recruitment and HR approaches; (iii) establishing useful linkages between organizations

29. Operational Implications II • where entry point activities used to bring together group members, planners need to be sensitive to what an organization will be able to achieve in terms of moving on to other functions (e.g. SHGs – savings on to broader dev activities) • support organizations – in particular NGOs -- need more flexible contractual arrangements allowing those that can seize the opportunity to operate in a creative and independent manner • greater efforts are needed to frame effective relations with private sector providers, without dependency on intermediaries in the mid to long term

30. Operational Implications III • roles of PRIs need to be systemically addressed in design. They need provision of, and control over, adequate resources • the mechanisms for multi-stakeholder interaction either need to be avoided, or to have their functions clearly defined, monitored and reviewed • questions of the sustainability of organizations and the benefits, including equity aspect • poor record of functioning as democratic entities. More investment required in the processes of organizations if they are to function as sustainable entities capable of long term, equitable functioning and management of development benefits.

31. Operational Implications: Overall • Organizational design of interventions requires greater attention -- current tendency to echo current trends of language and patterns of development • Tailor design to the development benefit in question • Monitor organizational performance and link that information to on-going decision making • Provide incentives for those involved in the design and monitoring of institutions and organizational mechanisms and the setting of more rational targets, activities, budgets and time frames in design and implementation.