ENDOGENOUS DEVELOPMENT: SOME ISSUES OF CONCERN

Abstract

The desire of my students in the University for Development Studies - Ghana, for knowledge and information, and some practical guide to practitioner conduct motivated me to do this paper. 1 start by giving a theoretical exposition to the concept of endogenous develop- ment and link it up with current issues of globalisation and poverty. I briefly dis- cuss ongoing work on among European institutions and professors that suggest shifts in Europe from exogenous to endogenous development. Encouraged by such developments, 1 then make a case for a paradigm shift, which I call 'an Afri- can alternative' to modernisation and development - endogenous development. I bring to light the experiences with endogenous development in two NGGs - CE- CIK (Ghana) and AZTREC (Zimbabwe) in order to locate theory in practice (praxis). I conclude my write-up by providing some empirical pre-requisite for conducting endogenous development with rural communities, which demonstrates one way of conducting experimentation or testing with farmers within the context of endoge- nous development.