Dr Nilima Gulrajani (Room CON. H316)

MSc Development Management, MSc Development Studies, MSc International Development and Humanitarian Emergencies, MSc Public Policy and Administration, MSc Anthropology and Development, MPA International Development, MSc Public Management and Governance and the LSE-PKU Double Degree in Public Administration and Government.  Other MSc students can take this course, subject to programme regulations and with permission of the lecturer.

This course applies public management and organizational theory to understand dynamics in the international development industry. Analysis will concentrate within three levels, namely the domestic bureaucratic contexts within developing countries, the organizational actors working in the name of development and policy-level dynamics within the foreign aid sector. Topics covered include: Performance measurement and results-based management; Aid efficiency and effectiveness; Governance and corruption in developing countries; Accountability and regulation in aid; Professionals in aid; Organizational cultures and incentives in development bureaucracies; Social enterprises in development.

Critical understanding will be fostered of the strategies advocated to organize and improve the efficiency, effectiveness, accountability, performance and quality of collaborations within and across each of these levels. By exploring the conceptual, empirical and practical foundations of these strategies, students will be well equipped to assess the organization of development assistance.

Ten lectures and ten seminars.

Students can write one unassessed 2,000 word essay or submit a mock exam.

Ferlie, E., Lynn, L. E. & Pollitt, C. (Eds.) (2005) The Oxford handbook of public management, Oxford ; New York, Oxford University Press; Mosse, D. 2005. Cultivating Development: An Ethnography of Aid Policy and Practice, London, Pluto Press; Paton, B. (2003), Managing and Measuring Social Enterprises, London, Sage Publications; Prahalad, C. K. (2006) The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid, New Jersey, Wharton; Riddell, R. (2007) Does Foreign Aid Really Work? Oxford, Oxford University Press; Tender, J. (1998), Good Government in the Tropics, Maryland, Johns Hopkins University Press.

Two-hour examination (100% ) in the ST.