The Provincial Development Assistance Project: Technocratic Strategies and Unintended Consequences

Abstract

"The Provincial Development Assistance Project of the Philippines (PDAP) in many ways exemplifies the frustration s and successes of bilateral development programming. Created in 1968 as a joint USAID-GOP project to begin direct development assistance to rural and agricultural areas, it was not atypical of the 'institution building,' technocratic approach to administration and government then in vogue. What was unusual, however, was it s emphasis on subnational government. It defined itself as: an agency of the Philippine Government devoted to upgrading the capability of local governments to plan, coordinate, and implement their development projects by developing and field-testing systems, techniques, and procedures that best improve the management of local governments. PDAP was basically a technical assistance program which sought to upgrade the capacity of provincial government by developing, systematizing and disseminating sophisticated, technocratic,management, planning and decision-making systems. For a period of time PDAP was also an 'operational' or implementing agency which supervised provincial implementation of several infrastructure programs and performed miscellaneous support tasks intended to help maintain that infrastructure."