Re: whither IPI...Re: Talk is cheap

["A J James" <ajjames@del6.vsnl.net.in>]

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Dear IPI

I have been a silent spectator of the genesis of IPI and the India policy
debate. The reason is not just that I too, like many others, have a lot on
my plate, but I was wondering what concrete action something like the IPI
would lead to. But before I continue further, let me introduce myself.

I am an environmental economist who started off as a lecturer, wanted to do
research, did an MPhil and PhD, then did a stint as a fellow in a government
research institute. Tiring of the petty impediments in the way of meaningful
research (no paper or toner or electricity when you want to print something
urgently, reams of paperwork to complete after a field trip, administrative
responsibilities eating up 40% of your time...), I decided to move to the
private sector as a consultant, working in watershed development, poverty
alleviation, community forestry, irrigation and drinking water and
sanitation, mostly for donor agencies. This has proved much more satisfying
since what you research/write/present is taken seriously by those
responsible for implementing development projects. I see my role as a
development support professional - whose work in economic analysis of
project impacts, or in designing more participatory and effective monitoring
and evaluation systems, or better capacity building procedures, helps change
the way things happen in the development sector; not directly, but by
assisting front-line NGOs and other implementing agencies in doing their job
better. This is however true largely for the donor community. The government
sector today (fortunately) is receptive to the need for change, but stymied
by the incentive-less system which depends on individual motivation to do a
good job, and does not have any institutionalised mechanism to make/help
government servants do a better job. I have encountered scores of
well-intentioned, savvy, dedicated civil servants, doing an excellent job
given the constraints, yet making little difference on the ground (with a
few exceptions, I must confess).

Being an economist, and an environmental and natural resource economist at
that, I guess I have a hereditory claim on pessimism! It is true that ground
realities have made me cynical, and for my sanity I have had to rally around
a philosophy that says: the environment (or development...) will always be a
question of too little too late; so whatever good happens is a bonus! I have
happily found quite a few bonuses.

The way forward, as I see it, is to focus on the people, to facilitate their
awakening into a focused group demanding their right to basic amenities that
any democratic country should provide: education, health, livelihood,
opportunity, clean drinking water, basic sanitation facilities, etc. The
government needs to be mobilised into action, not from the top, but from
people demanding services from below. And, if the government is unable to
provide these services, the people - especially the poor - must have the
information, confidence and the ability, to go to the private sector and
satisfy their needs. If all else fails, they must be able to fend for
themselves.

I have seen innumerable examples in the various sectors I work in, of people
coming together to fend for themselves; poor women who form a savings group
and start saving Re. 1 a day, build up their savings over a couple of years,
take loans, redeem their husband's land from the moneylenders, ask the
husbands to register the land in their names as well, and begin a successful
onion-growing cooperative; women who, having experienced the exhilaration of
financial stability, move the local tehsildar into giving them the contract
for building a road to their village, ask for details of the material, and
supervise the entire work to completion. Or women's groups who decided to
sit on a dharna in front of a district administration officials' office till
he relented and said he would not demand the bribe....I could go on. The
point is, while many of us talk about setting things right, there are people
who are taking it upon themselves to do something about it.

But, these examples are but a drop in the ocean. There is a huge amount of
work to be done. Yet, it is far better to roll up ones sleeves and start,
rather than contemplate the vastness of the task, and the possible
constraints of ever doing something about it...or the theoretical reasons
why one should do something and how.

As I see it, an organisation like the IPI has (at least) 2 major strengths:
(1) the ability to enlist the support of a large number of people who can
effectively put in a word in the right ears to facilitate certain desirable
initiatives, whether it is to tell a senior civil servant to take notice of
some particular problem, or to publicise existing good work, or lobby
politicians to reverse an undesirable policy.

(2) the ability to facilitate sponsorships to support promising initiatives
which can be scaled up to spread the good effects further.


With these in mind, I have a few suggestions for the IPI.

1. The IPI could sponsor researchers/consultants to (1) map out the
dimensions of a particular problem (since inadequate information is usually
a major constraint in the way of clear thinking) (2) suggest what could be
done (given what is already going on and what needs to be done) and (3) get
concrete projects off the ground. By projects I mean initiatives to group
people together around an issue - be it non-working telephones, stinking
toilets, or encroachment of public areas by political thugs. Building groups
is not an easy task, and requires patience and application. But if a capable
agency is backed by public opinion and a campaign mobilising policial
support, it could work wonders. It has to start small, but once success is
demonstrated/tasted, it is much easier to scale up.

2. IPI could support existing initiatives, complete with a detailed feedback
on progress, problems encountered and help needed. For the last, again the
IPI could assist by writing to/lobbying political or bureaucratic
powers-that-be, for policy or administrative support for the initiative. A
list of such ventures could be drawn up in a couple of months time by
researchers/workers/consultants working in these sectors. Or, I am sure the
members of IPI could cast around their own backyards and come up with
promising initiatives they have seen, heard of or know about.


Lets start small. Lets list what we would like to work on, and zero in on a
few core sectors or problems. Work out an effective strategy and follow it
through successfully. That will bring a degree of satisfaction and
confidence to scale up and expand.

The point through all this I guess is, talk is certainly cheap. To get IPI
moving effectively would mean (a) virtual contributors begin making real
contributions and effort into real problems and (b) free email users put
their money where their mouths are!

I felt quite bad to read the disappointment of Sanjeev Sabhlok who conceived
of the whole enterprise. I however feel that he is justified in feeling that
way, and being a guilty party myself, I set aside the report I was writing
to put down some thoughts in the hope that it might help the IPI in future.

But I must end on the same note as Sanjeev: if the IPI is not going
anywhere, then I would rather not be a part of it.

Yours sincerely

Viju


***************
Dr. A. J. James

Environmental & Natural Resource Economist

B 9 First Floor, South Extension Part 2
New Delhi 110 049

Telefax   : (011) 651 2901
Telephone : (011) 652 0223

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