Policy Practice Brief 2 - Making the New Political Economy Perspective more operationally relevant for development agencies

The New Political Economy Perspective has been adopted as an analytical tool by several development agencies, a notable example being DFID’s Drivers of Change studies. This has brought about increased awareness and understanding of the importance of political processes in developing countries in shaping and determining development outcomes. However, the new insights have so far resulted in only limited changes in donor assistance strategies. This Policy Brief, the second in a series prepared by The Policy Practice, discusses how the New Political Economy Perspective can be made more operational. The issues it raises are central to debates about improving aid effectiveness, and are particularly pressing in the context of commitments by rich countries to increase substantially their aid flows to Africa in the face of challenging governance conditions.