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Challenges in the Building of Public Service Capacity in Africa

By: 
Obadan, Mike I.
Publisher: 
ACBF
Date of publication: 
2005

The concept of “capacity building” has become one of the popular phrases in the development discourse. According to InfoCotonou (Sept., 2003), a newsletter of the European Centre for Development Policy Management, “governments, non-state actors, and (foreign) donors all tend to invoke capacity problems to explain why policies fail to deliver, or why aid is not generating sustainable impacts. Reports of conferences on every possible subject generally include a host of capacity building recommendations in their conclusions. Capacity issues are omnipresent in national development plans, poverty reduction strategy papers (PRSP), and in all sorts of donor policy documents”. Economic and social conditions in Africa are such that the continent has continued to manifest glaring features of economic and social difficulties, underdevelopment, and marginalisation in the global economy. The specific features that the continent has continued to exhibit include low growth rates and declining per capita incomes, high incidence of poverty, rapid population growth, environmental degradation, external debt burden, large fiscal and external imbalances, undiversified production structures and heavy reliance on traditional and low-productivity primary product exports, and official development assistance.

Category: 
Working Papers
Thomas Kwesi Quartey

ACBF has been granted the status of a specialized agency because of the potential to transform Africa through capacity development.


H.E. Thomas Kwesi Quartey, Deputy Chairperson, AU Commission
Erastus Mwencha

The recognition of ACBF as the African Union’s Specialized Agency for Capacity Development launches the beginning of a new era for capacity building by ACBF, which will require an appropriate level of political commitment and financial support from all stakeholders.


H.E. Erastus Mwencha, Chair, ACBF Executive Board
Lamin Momodou

The remarkable achievements ACBF has registered over the past 26 years is not by accident in our opinion. They have come through hard work, dedication, commitment, purposeful leadership, support from the member countries as well as productive partnership building.


Mr. Lamin Momodou MANNEH, Director, UNDP Regional Service Centre for Africa
Goodall Gondwe

Africa needs ACBF as much, probably more now, than at the time it was created in 1991.


Hon. Goodall Gondwe, former Chair of the ACBF Board of Governors and Minister of Finance – Malawi
Ken Ofori Atta

Ghana’s partnership with ACBF is a tremendous blessing for us and therefore the opportunity for Ghana to host the 26th ACBF Board of Governors Meeting is something that we treasure.


Hon Ken Ofori Atta, Chair of the ACBF Board of Governors and Minister of Finance - Ghana
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