Development Partnerships


The success of building self-reliant states is directly tied to the effective management of complex development partnerships. ISE’s work on development and foreign aid focuses on how those partnerships can be maximized, taking into account lessons from past cases. ISE’s work draws on the experiences of practitioners in the field as well as policy experts to redefine development partnerships that build capacity, leverage existing assets, foster context-specific policies, and support country-led strategies. Additionally, our Development Practice Note series presents new and innovative practitioner-focused ideas across a variety of fields in development.

Re-examining the Terms of Aid


Over the past twenty years, the international community has agreed again and again that traditional aid effectiveness practices – which often drain local capacity, fragment projects, and spurn national strategies – are not working, but have made little progress at improvements. ISE’s Re-examining the Terms of Aid (RTOA) project is reviewing components to develop an operating model to more effectively implement these commitments. ISE is taking stock of its own experience and research, conducting interviews in Rwanda, Colombia, Afghanistan, and Somalia, along with engaging host governments, donor agencies, civil society, and the security sector to examine best practices, analyze incentive structures, and bridge the gap between country-level implementation and international frameworks. Read the full report here.

Knowledge for Resilience

Knowledge ecosystems can strengthen resilience in fragile states but these contexts are often some of the most difficult for such ecosystems to operate and thrive. Harnessing interviews with over 30 experts representing 22 unique research…

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From Diagnostics to Decision-Making: Strengthening the Link Between Governance Analysis and IDA Strategy

Weaknesses in core government functioning remain a critical impediment to long-term development and reinforce cycles of fragility and poverty. While development portfolios have continued to grow in scope and ambition, the centrality of good governance…

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