The memory of development? There’s no such thing!

In May 2015, we had a meeting with the director of the Madagascar office of a bilateral development agency. Our interlocutor was an acknowledged specialist and expert in evaluation who had worked in multilateral organisations and published numerous reference works and scientific articles on the impact and effects of aid. After we had explained our research topic – the memory of development – he offered a frank reaction: “That’s a very sad topic you have there. You’re working on something that...