MattAndrews

Unlocking the secrets of great governments: Sergio Fajardo and the Miracle of Medellin

I am working on a new book as well. The topic is great government. Yes, some may think governments are problems but they ignore the fact that governments all over the world have been centrally engaged in making great things happen.

One example is the city of Medellin, in Colombia. In 2001 it had one of the highest murder rate in the world (at around 130 per 100,000 people). Some called it "Fallujah before Fallujah was Fallujah". By 2007 the murder rate was down to about 25 per 100,000. Wow.

Great government is credited with this, and the Mayor Sergio Fajardo is commonly seen as the central figure the story. It has been called  a miracle (or at least half miracle) in the Washington Post (http://www.concordmonitor.com/article/medellins-urban-miracle?page=full) and by people like Frank Fukuyama (http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/04/25/half_a_miracle).

Today I met briefly with Fajardo (currently the Governor of Antioquia) to ask how this happened. He is a really interesting man and was overly generous with his time. I am really excited to see how the story unfolds as I learn more. (below is a photo of the Governor and I at Harvard's Center for International Development).

I am interested in readers sharing the 'miracles' they have seen governments engaged in...

 

Finally: My book is available on pre-order

So, after a long wait I finally see what my forthcoming book will look like. It brings together many of the ideas I discuss on this blog...and you will hear more about the ideas when it is out in January. In the meantime, here is the cover and web address for the book, titled 

"The Limits of Institutional Reform in Development." http://www.cambridge.org/aus/catalogue/catalogue.asp?isbn=9781107016330

Building State Capability at Harvard’s Kennedy School

The Center for International Development at Harvard's Kennedy School has just launched its program on Building State Capability. This is some shameless self promotion of that initiative, but if you are interested in these blog postings it is a good place for you to visit.

http://www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/cid/programs/building_state_capability

In particular, you might be interested in looking at our new paper, Escaping Capability Traps.
http://www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/cid/publications/faculty-working-papers/cid-working-paper-no.-240

One of the arguments we make is related to the discussion I have been having about complex contexts. We propose that the best way of introducing reforms into complex contexts is not to do loads of ex ante studies, but rather to

• enter the context through problems people care about, and then
• progress iteratively with small interventions that flush contextual impediments out, build capability and confidence and political support, and
• allow constant feedback…ultimately fostering the emergence of new hybrids.

In a sense, this is like saying that you need to muddle through the sea of icebergs in your context, ensuring that every step helps you navigate better in future.

Note how different this is to the way institutional reforms are commonly done: They are pre-designed as solutions, pre-planned over years, with limited opportunity for feedback and learning.