ABSTRACT
Like most international aid agencies, Britain's Overseas Development Ad-
ministration (ODA) has developed policies that emphasize capacity build-
ing in partner countries. This is particularly true of ODA's approach to edu-
cational aid. The Education Policy Paper (ODA, 1994:2) lists six major
dimensions to the agency's educational aid program-promoting human
resource development, promoting economic reform and growth, promoting
good government, reducing poverty, addressing gender issues and tackling
environmental problems. All these objectives are couched in the language
of assisting partner countries to develop local capacity to achieve progress
in the selected areas. In line with this broad objective, in 1988 a Link Project
was established by ODA between the curriculum bureaux of the Ministry
of Education in Pakistan and the School of Education of the University of
Bristol. The British Council also played a role in the project, facilitating the
overseas training aspects of the link. The aim of the link was to form a part-
nership that would contribute to curriculum development in Pakistan in the
broadest sense. Components of the project included in-country and overseas
training, the provision of books and equipment-in particular, computer
equipment and training for each bureau-and the development of joint re-
search projects. Pakistani researchers were invited to spend six week peri-
ods at the University of Bristol preparing research proposals, searching the
literature and seeking research partners from among the Bristol staff before
returning to Pakistan to carry out small research projects. It was from such
a short visit that the joint research project analyzed below was initiated. An
additional component in the original project design was a plan to cluster
schools to promote local curriculum development. This activity proved im-
possible to implement, despite agreement from both ODA and the govern-
ment of Pakistan in the original project documentation. After some nego-
tiation, the resources originally committed to this component were redirected
to fund the joint research project. ODA's flexibility in responding to the re-
quest from the university and the curriculum bureaux reflects well upon the
agency, and in evaluating the impact of the overall initiative the outcome of
the joint research project counts as a significant achievement.
