Why Tr-Ac-Net is concerned about development

Dear Colleagues

Tr-Ac-Net is concerned about development because the accomplishments are so small compared to the potential.

At the time when independence from European colonial administrations ended, it was naively assumed that there would be great progress ... the colonial yoke had been removed ... but what, in fact, has been achieved?

In total ... rather little. The amount of poverty was huge, and remains huge. Many problems seem to have become bigger, rather than diminishing.

While in the past fifty years there has been enormous progress in science and technology ... exponentially accelerating discovery year after year after year ... Moore's Law in IT, and similar progress in all sorts of scientific areas. Meanwhile the corporate world, the political world and society as a whole struggles on ... and while some have become wealthy, many more have become poorer.

Within the relief and development sector, there are outstanding examples of amazing success ... many example ... but in aggregate the result has been poor. Tr-Ac-Net has concluded, as have others, that there is a systemic component within development that makes it difficult for hard working people to escape poverty.

If there is a systemic component ... then what is it? Or perhaps, more likely, what are they?

My experience suggests that data, especially accounting data, are one area where there is systemic weakness ... and instead of being used to optimize performance, it has been used in all sorts of ways that have facilitated funding without assuring results. There is no good reason for this.

I have been working for some time on the development of a framework for Social Benefit Accountancy which helps in a systematic way to address the impact of all sorts of economic activity on society ... this work is long overdue ... and should be helpful in sorting out what are the systemic weaknesses in development that have to be addressed.

Sincerely

Peter Burgess