By Marc Gunther
From the article:
In Matinza, a village in eastern Rwanda, Esther Nyirabazungu, a 63-year-old widow, lives with her son, daughter and two grandchildren in a hut with a dirt floor and no electricity or running water. Her life is hard, but not as hard as it was before she received six monthly cash donations worth about $100 each, with no strings attached, from a United States government trial program.
...
In a report on the agency, Sarah Rose and Amanda Glassman of the Center for Global Development wrote: “U.S.A.I.D. talks a lot about its results, but much of what it highlights are outputs. Much less is said about actual outcomes or development impact, even though understanding these is critical.”
In an interview, Ms. Glassman said that “most programs and policies are not being evaluated rigorously.”
Read the full article here.
