Institute for State Effectiveness

The Institute for State Effectiveness (ISE) works to enable more responsive, inclusive, and accountable governance as the bedrock of better outcomes for citizens. Over the coming 24 months, this grant will renew support to ISE’s work in Africa and its efforts to advance new solutions to help strengthen the relationships and accountabilities among citizens, states, and markets. ISE will bring to bear its decades of expertise and lessons learned from a range of countries and experiences, in its support to governance transformations and improved equity and social inclusion in development. This includes national strategies and evidence-informed planning; the design of effective accountability systems, tools, and capacity for implementation; collaborative leadership and management approaches supported by consistent analysis and foresight; the deployment of innovative community-driven models for solutions to difficult development challenges; and the delivery of tools for improved development partnerships and global governance solutions.

The Institute for State Effectiveness (ISE) works to advance more responsive, accountable, and inclusive governance as the bedrock of better outcomes for citizens. ISE believes the root cause of poor development outcomes is a governance gap between the ability of governments to respond through their core functions of the state, the expectation and needs of people in that territory, and the ability of development partners to respond in support in equitable and effective ways. As its ultimate outcome, ISE aims to close this governance gap. Over the coming 18 months, this grant will renew support to ISE’s Africa program in particular. Through policies and institutions that are responsive to citizens, it will seek to support the capacities of African countries to deliver — and development partners to support — results that will enhance the accountability of core systems of governance across all levels. Tools and approaches will include applying practical country-level diagnostic, design, and implementation support; convening networks to deepen insights; contributing to education and training; and consolidating and advancing new tools and approaches — including the use of ISE’s flagship reform sequencing tracker. (Strategy: Evidence-Informed Policymaking)

The Institute for State Effectiveness (ISE) brings policy and governance expertise to the process of state-building. Founded by former Afghan finance minister Ashraf Ghani, it has close relationships in Afghanistan and is a leading player in building the institutions needed to enable that nation's stability. The Government of Afghanistan has asked for support from the ISE team to support the definition of its near, medium, and long-term objectives and support consensus-building among Afghan and international actors on both these objectives and the mechanisms through which they are to be realized.