Since a declaration in Paris in 2005 and a major agreement in Accra last year, the relationship between those who provide aid and those who receive it has started to change. It’s all part of a process to make every pound or dollar of global aid deliver the maximum benefit for poor people. Martin Leach in Rwanda says the early signs are promising.

Let’s have the score for the UK then… “12 out of a maximum 18.” That may be better than “Nul points”, but it still sounds bad. Yet, it’s the best in the entire group. This was the session at the Rwanda development partners forum held in March, where the Rwandan government and the donors got together to review progress against a range of targets on aid effectiveness.

The government team displayed the performance of all the partners, showing whether they had stuck to their commitments on each of 18 indicators – like giving all the money they had committed at the start of the year, ensuring that aid was recorded in the national budget, and doing joint analysis to cut down unnecessary work for busy staff.

Since the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness in 2005, and last year’s Accra Agenda for Action, there has been real, tangible progress on making the aid system work much better in Rwanda. Most programmes funded by the Department for International Development (DFID) operate jointly with a group of other donors, where possible, using Rwandan government procurement systems and a single reporting mechanism. For example, in our support to education, we operate a ‘basket fund’ (a joint-funding programme) on behalf of other donors, and in our good governance programme we work jointly with UNDP, who administer DFID’s funds which support a range of agencies. On broader issues, such as the composition of the national budget, instead of having lots of one-to-one sessions, using up the valuable time of government ministers, we have a single coordinated discussion.

Does all this benefit the Rwandan people? The short answer is, ‘yes’. Streamlining the aid process, reducing the money and time spent on administration, and having a more open and equal relationship between all the players, has ensured that the needs of the country are both better understood and given the right priorities. For example, in our land tenure regularisation programme, where DFID is supporting the government to formalise title to 7.9m land holdings, we will put money into a multi-donor basket fund, and work with the World Bank to make sure Rwandan land owners benefit.

The atmosphere and attitudes between those who provide aid and those who receive it are shifting in the right direction. It’s not a cosy, non-critical relationship, but one where all parties can say what they want, and get results for poor people. And, ultimately, that’s what we’re here for.

Martin Leach is head of DFID’s Africa conflict and humanitarian unit. Read Martin’s blog at:
http://blogs.dfid.gov.uk