Results for Development Shares Tools to Support Localization in International Development
WASHINGTON, March 29, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Results for Development (R4D) — a global nonprofit working to improve health care, education and nutrition in low- and middle-income countries — has published a suite of tools and resources to help donors and other international development organizations advance their localization goals.
Localization — or locally-led development as it is sometimes referred — is increasingly being embraced on a global scale. In 2022, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) announced its localization vision, saying it would commit at least a quarter of the agency's program funds directly to local partners by the end of FY 2025.
But questions remain about how to successfully implement localization.
Some organizations, such as R4D, have been at the forefront of this movement, testing new approaches that center local change agents and partners. R4D's president and CEO, Gina Lagomarsino, said, "R4D's strategy is in direct response to what change agents have told us they want — to drive their own agenda and design their own solutions, while receiving targeted expert support as they navigate complex change processes. We play the role of connector, facilitator, coach and learning partner across country, regional and global ecosystems."
One R4D-led program, the USAID-funded African Collaborative for Health Financing Solutions (ACS), has been a model for effective localization. ACS supported six countries in sub-Saharan Africa to improve health equity, focusing on different country priorities in each case and working through local partners to co-create solutions with diverse community input.
Collaborative learning — an approach R4D pioneered — was also a central approach of the ACS program. Collaborative Learning brings together communities of policymakers and practitioners to exchange knowledge and co-develop practical solutions to common challenges. In the ACS program, R4D facilitated multidirectional learning among all partners who co-developed over 70 resources offering practical, how-to guidance in five thematic areas related to localization:
- Supporting local organizations and strengthening the ecosystem
- Supporting country level learning
- Strengthening accountability for health equity
- Supporting inclusive policy dialogue
- Harmonizing resource tracking for better health financing decision-making
The ACS experience provides valuable tools for going beyond simply working with individual local partners, and building collective engagement while strengthening the fabric of local and regional ecosystems.
About Results for Development
Results for Development (R4D) is a leading non-profit global development partner. We collaborate with change agents — government officials, civil society leaders and social innovators — supporting them as they navigate complex change processes to achieve large-scale, equitable outcomes in health, education and nutrition. We work with country leaders to diagnose challenges, co-create, innovate and implement solutions built on evidence and diverse stakeholder input, and engage in learning to adapt, iterate and improve. We also strengthen global, regional and country ecosystems to support country leaders with expertise, evidence, and innovations. R4D helps country leaders solve their immediate challenges today, while also strengthening systems and institutions to address tomorrow's challenges. And we share what we learn so others around the world can achieve results for development too. www.R4D.org
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SOURCE Results for Development
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