"This great evil": anticipating political obstacles to development

Many technically appropriate and economically effective development programmes fail because planners do not make explicit assessments of political risk. Projects face many potential opponents including village elites whose economic interests and political authority may be challenged by successful development. Several systematic methods for evaluating political risk have been devised and NGOs and development agencies have successfully utilized a number of passive and active strategies to minimize political risk. Effective programme planning should undertake systematic assessments of political risk and incorporate appropriate strategies to counter it.