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Commentary Dear Dr. Neidecker Your report has the following quote from Ban Ki-Moon in Malawi in 2010
“ Millennium Villages throughout Africa are showcasing… how effective an integrated strategy for health care, education, agriculture, and small business can be. We are seeing how to make the most of new technologies. And we are seeing how empowering women can empower whole societies… If other countries do all that you are doing, we can–and we will–achieve the Millennium Development Goals.” I worked in Malawi in the 1980s and watched all sorts of opportunities being missed because few of the experts had the appropriate experience. I was also in the Horn of Africa in the 1980s' famine and again many of the experts had an agenda that was at odds with what was most needed. What is so wrong that 30 years later Somalis are again faced with a famine of epic proportions? Dr. Sachs has argued for 10 times as much development assistance. I argue for development assistance that is 10 times as effective. 5 years ago (or more) I was hoping that the Millennium Villages Project (MVP) would be able to address the question of development performance in a fairly rigorous way, but I get the impression that the MVP is rich in data but poor in performance metrics. What a shame! Why is this? Usually (based on my history as an auditor and later a corporate CFO) lack of performance data is an indication that these metrics are reflecting something responsible managers do not want to make public ... or it might be that the people concerned do not actually know how to do it. A few years back a big airline was asked to use its computer data to work out how much it cost to move a bag through the baggage handling in Atlanta ... after 3 months they gave up. I could have done something perfectly useful in about a couple of hours and access to some of the basic accounting vouchers of the organization. I was told some time back that MVP had several million data-points. Big deal! How does this inform decision makers about the effectiveness of the MFP program? You have an important job ... and I do not know how it can be done unless there is a sea-change in the framework of performance metrics being used by all the elements of the society. Peter Burgess @truevaluemetric
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I have tried to open a dialog with MVP several times over the past five years but progress \
has been almost impossible. There is no structure in their operation that is interested in
interacting with outsiders ... a feature of most modern organizations whether they are
Government institutions, Academic Institutions or just regular businesses or NGOs. My
impression is that as a wealthy donor, I would find a way to be welcomed ... but as an
activist critic of development performance, better keep the doors closed and the performance
data locked up!
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Mr Peter Neidecker has recently joined Millennium Promise Dear Friends of Millennium Promise, As you may know, Millennium Promise successfully reached a series of major program milestones in the Millennium Villages Project this summer, including the completion of the Project's first 5-year phase and the launch of its second phase to 2015. In just a few weeks our team will be releasing a new report on the Project, including the latest strategy updates and some of the most recent accomplishments that have been taking shape throughout the initiative. Having had the tremendous honor to work closely with colleagues and partners around the world in supporting the Project's remarkable results to date, and having had the privilege to work intensively on so many rewarding aspects of the Millennium Development Goals for more than a decade, I have decided this is a natural moment for me to move on to new professional challenges and to hand over the Millennium Promise CEO role to a new leader for its next phase of success. To that end, I am delighted to share the news that Mr Peter Neidecker has recently joined Millennium Promise and has now taken on the role of CEO, with overarching responsibility for all of the organization's activities. Peter is already working very closely with Jeffrey Sachs and our African regional leaders Belay Begashaw and Amadou Niang to advance the next phase of operational and strategic priorities for the Millennium Villages Project. For my part, I will continue to serve as Senior Advisor through to the end of the year, helping to ensure an ongoing smooth transition. I am also very pleased to inform you that the Millennium Promise Board this month elected Ms. Jacquie Corbelli as its new Board Chair, following the incredible contributions of Jeffrey Walker's term as Chair over nearly four years. I can only underscore how delighted I am that we have such a formidable leadership team in Jeff, Jacquie, Peter, Amadou and Belay to guide the next chapter of Millennium Villages Project achievements. Everyone at Millennium Promise is excited to continue working with all of our partners around the world in advancing the next wave of breakthroughs in the fight against extreme poverty. Thank you for your wonderful ongoing support. Together we are all part of an inspired community that shares a deep commitment to advancing human justice alongside a profound sense of excellence and professionalism. I am looking forward to collaborating with this community on many forms of these ongoing challenges for many years to come.
With gratitude and best wishes, From Peter W. Neidecker Dear Friends, As my first communication to you in my role as CEO of Millennium Promise, I am extremely proud to share our new publication, The Millennium Villages Project: The Next Five Years: 2011-2015. This report was done in partnership with the Earth Institute at Columbia University. Please click here for a PDF version. The Next Five Years represents a milestone in our history as an organization, as it provides details on the many gains we made in the first five years, and looks ahead to 2015. During this second five-year phase of the Millennium Villages Project (MVP), we will focus on four distinct goals.
1 — Support Business Development Due in no small part to your generosity and commitment, Millennium Promise is poised to continue making strides so that by 2015, the 500,000 people living in the Millennium Villages will have achieved the Millennium Development Goals. Please take some time to review the report and know that none of this could have been possible without your support. I hope that this report will make you proud of your involvement with Millennium Promise. I welcome your thoughts and comments on our past achievements and future plans for the Millennium Villages. Please feel free to contact me directly with your feedback at: peter.w.neidecker@millenniumpromise.org. With gratitude and best wishes, Peter W. Neidecker From the 2010 Annual Report
“ Millennium Villages throughout Africa are showcasing… how effective an integrated strategy
for health care, education, agriculture, and small business can be. We are seeing how to
make the most of new technologies. And we are seeing how empowering women can empower
whole societies… If other countries do all that you are doing, we can–and we will–achieve the
Millennium Development Goals.” IMAGE UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visiting the Millennium Village of Mwandama (Malawi), May 2010 |
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| The text being discussed is available at |