AFRO-NETS> The State of the World's Children 2003 (2)

[Peter Burgess <Profitinafrica@aol.com>]

The State of the World's Children 2003 (2)
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Dear Colleagues

I realise that it is now the mandate of every UN specialized agency 
to publish an Annual "State of ....... " report. 

Does anyone know how much money is spent compiling the information 
and getting it printed? And how much of this is offset by actual 
sales? Does anyone know how much notice is taken of the information 
by the media, and by the public at large?

But perhaps more important does anyone notice that so much of what is 
in these reports shows that most of the critical problems have been 
with us now for decades and do not seem to be getting better very 
fast? In some cases, the data shows we are going backwards.

So the question then comes down to what is being done wrong, or al-
ternatively what needs to be done to make things right?

Because of the incredible lack of hard information, I do not believe 
that "more money" is the simple solution. My view is that the steps 
are as follows:
1. better use of money, 
2. better accounting and accountability, especially as it relates to 
   performance,
3. better oversight and analysis of performance,
4. and only then more money allocated to what works the best.

Sadly, these "State of .... " reports do not point to any "manage-
ment" information that will really help anyone do development better.

Sincerely,

Peter Burgess
ATCnet in New York
Tel: +1-212-772-6918 / 646-456-6953 
Fax: +1-707-371-7805
mailto:peterb@iitc.safe-mail.net

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