Dollars for Making Mistakes?

Any development projects have their costs. The funds can be used to facilitate project implementation, avoiding making mistakes. They can also be used to walk through the process of making mistakes in the course of project. The former generates project results more quickly. The latter, however, accompanies more “learning” of the community people, by the community people. And this learning is what makes projects more sustainable. Which is a wiser way of spending?

We (the donors) do not generally think in terms of how much mistakes we want project beneficiaries to make. We think in terms of the positive results that projects would entail.

The response to the above question would depend on the type of donors, projects, and the socio-cultural environment of the beneficiary society/community (i.e., if they have culture of learning through mistakes). But this kind of question seems to be sort of “out of question” that doesn’t even get to be discussed in humongous international organizations.


失敗のための資金？

当然のことながら、開発プロジェクトにはお金がかかっている。失敗をしないための調整に資金を使うか、わざわざ失敗するためのプロセスに資金を使うか。前者のほうが、プロジェクトの結果は出易い。でも後者に、住民による「学び・気づき」が多い。そしてこの学びや気づきが、開発プロジェクトに持続性をもたせる。どちらがより賢いお金の使い方か。