Course description

The call to decolonize development cooperation has become a central topic of debate in recent years, resonating across academic circles and practitioner communities. At its core, the concept of decolonization addresses the longstanding imbalance of power that has characterized international development, underscoring the critical need to rebalance this asymmetry. However, the specifics of achieving this rebalancing - the "how, to what extent, and with what means" - remain complex and contested.

Simultaneously, the vision of decolonization itself is multifaceted, ranging from reformist calls to reshape the existing system, to more revolutionary demands to dismantle it entirely and start anew. Some advocate for incremental changes within the current framework, while others argue for a complete paradigm shift.   Some argue that the development enterprise can be salvaged through concerted efforts to decenter Eurocentric epistemologies, amplify marginalized voices, and redistribute power and resources more equitably. Others contend that the very foundations of development are inherently colonial and must be rejected in favor of entirely new frameworks rooted in the self-determined priorities and worldviews of the Global South. This spectrum of perspectives reflects the profound complexities and contestations that underlie the project of decolonizing development cooperation.

This course aims to empower students to appreciate these complexities and engage critically with the multifaceted nature of the decolonization agenda. It seeks to help students understand that the task of decolonizing development is not a one-time event, but an ongoing process that requires sustained commitment, critical self-reflection, and the willingness to challenge dominant power structures and narratives. By grappling with the nuances and debates surrounding decolonization, students will be better equipped to navigate the evolving landscape of international development and contribute to the construction of more just, equitable, and inclusive models of cooperation.

The outline of the course on the decolonisation of development cooperation

A course on the decolonisation of development is made up of 4 learning units:

This course on the decolonization of development cooperation is a comprehensive exploration of the critical issues surrounding this important topic. The four learning units that make up the course provide a thorough examination of the theoretical foundations and practical implications of decolonizing development work.

The first learning unit lays the groundwork by delving into the theory of coloniality and the decolonial movement. This is essential background knowledge, as one cannot fully grasp the nuances of decolonizing development cooperation without first understanding the underlying colonial structures and power dynamics that have shaped global development paradigms. The unit also provides a thoughtful critique of the theory of coloniality, encouraging students to think critically about these complex ideas.

Building on this foundation, the second learning unit introduces the students to how the arguments for decolonization of development.   It explores the key concepts of the coloniality of being, knowledge, and power – and how these concepts are incorporated into the core arguments used by advocates of decolonizing development.

By exploring how colonial legacies have shaped understandings of personhood, epistemology, and power relations, students gain a deeper appreciation for the multifaceted nature of decolonization and the need to challenge dominant development discourses.

The third learning unit then examines the divergent visions and approaches to decolonizing development. Some call for reformist, incremental changes within the current system, while others demand a more revolutionary, deconstructive shift to entirely new paradigms.

Those who advocate for incremental, reformist changes within the current system, seeking to reshape it from within, are pursuing what is called “reconstructive approach to the decolonisation of development.”    This "reconstructive" approach is exemplified by proposals to decolonize the practices of the United Nations and other international organizations involved in development, humanitarian aid, and peacebuilding in the Global South. In contrast, the "deconstructive" approach calls for a more radical, transformative shift - a complete overhaul of the development framework and a move towards alternative, post-development models. This perspective, rooted in post-development theory, demands a fundamental rethinking and dismantling of the existing structures of power and knowledge production. 

Finally, the fourth learning unit hones in on a critical aspect of decolonizing development work: the decolonization of knowledge production.   An important aspect in the decolonization of the United Nations and other international organizations involved in development in the global south is the decolonization of how they produce knowledge that they use when designing, monitoring and evaluating development programs.   The decolonial research methodologies are an important tool for such processes.   The learning unit 4 therefore introduces students to decolonial research methodologies and how they can be applied to the design, monitoring, and evaluation of development programs. This is a crucial step in dismantling the colonial legacies embedded in the very knowledge systems employed by the UN and other international agencies operating in the Global South.

Learning objectives

Through this course, participants will:

• Become familiar with the concept of coloniality as the theoretical framework underlying the decolonization of development
• Explore the arguments for the decolonization of development
• Become familiar with the deconstructive and reconstructive approaches to the decolonization of development. 
• Learn about the use of decolonial research methodology in the knowledge production needed for the design, monitoring and evaluation of development programs.
• Describe the epistemic practices and ways in which decoloniality and decolonial thinking can improve the theory and practice of development cooperation
• Critically examine the ways in which decolonial praxis can be applied and fostered in the organizational development of UN and other international agencies working in the global south.

Summary

Table of Contents

LEARNING UNIT 1: THE THEORY BEHIND DECOLONIZATION OF INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT: DECOLONIAL THEORY

Introduction

Decolonizing International Development: Broad Concept

The Modernist Theory of Development

Dependency Theory

Neoliberalist globalization

Post-Development theory

Decolonial theory

Decolonial Theory: Background to the Movement for Decolonial Thinking and Practice

The concept of Coloniality:  A notion at the heart of Decolonial theory

Decoloniality/Coloniality as a political and epistemological movement

Three Units Of Analysis: Coloniality Of Power, Knowledge And Being

Coloniality of power

Coloniality of knowledge

Coloniality of being

How an over-emphasis on coloniality of knowledge can obscure coloniality of being

Decoloniality:  is it a theory or a project?

The Ten theses of decoloniality

Some of the Decolonial Scholars

Coloniality according to Anibal Quijano

Coloniality according to Walter D. Mignolo

Coloniality according to Nelson Maldonado-Torres

Theory of decolonial movement and post-colonial movement: Differences

Critique of Decolonial Theory

LEARNING UNIT 2:  WHY DECOLONIZE INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Arguments from the Perspective of Coloniality of Knowledge

The views of Sabelo J. Ndlovu-Gatsheni

The views of Kapoor

Sources for decolonizing knowledge

Argument from the Perspective of the Coloniality of Being

The views of Sabelo Ndlovu-Gathseni

LEARNING UNIT 3: HOW TO DECOLONIZE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Deconstructive Approach to Decolonization of Development

Post-Development Theory: Introduction

Decolonization of development as deconstruction of development

Key post-development thinkers

Post-development and its argument against the very notion of development

Development has reached its impasse

Questioning the development aid

Development is a political concept, and not an economic one

Questioning the obsession with quantitative measures of human progress and human flourishing

Sustainability: sustaining life, not Development

Criticism of modern society as being preoccupied with the pursuit of individual self-fulfillment

Questioning the elevation of economy to the central organizing principle of the society

Re-valuing diversity

Sufficiency revolution

Territoriality: “the shadow of the tree”

Re-linking production and consumption

The difference between post-development and alternative development

An example of the deconstructive approach to decolonization of development: Rutazibwa

Reconstructive approach to decolonization of development

What is a reconstructive approach to the decolonization of development

Criticisms of post development and deconstructive approach to decolonizing development

Reductionism of development

Reconstructive approach to decolonization:  examples

Kapoor and decolonization of development

How to decolonize United Nations and other international agencies for aid, peace and development

Does the South-South Cooperation give effect to the decolonization of development?

Cost Action Decolonising  Development: Three areas of decolonisation

Sabelo J. Ndlovu-Gatsheni and the four tasks in the decolonization of development

Langdon, J:  The use of critical pedagogy to decolonize development studies

Did the new international economic order represent decolonization of development?

Decolonization of humanitarian aid

The practice and theory of decolonization of international development:  gaps and limitations

Decolonising as a buzzword

Class matters

Failure to ensure epistemic shifts results in transformation in material inequalities

LEARNING UNIT 4:  DECOLONIZING KNOWLEDGE FOR THE DESIGN, MONITORING AND EVALUATION OF DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

Introduction

Decolonial research method as a tool for decolonzing knowledge for development

What is decolonial research methodology

Ways in which decolonial research methods challenges the western research practices

Shedding light on world views obscured by coloniality

Taking sides with those impacted by coloniality

Democratization of the research process

Accommodation of indigenous world views

Common themes in decolonial research methods

Constructivism and qualitative methods

Transformational agenda

Ethics and Respect

Interrogating the space in which research is undertaken

Exercising critical reflexivity

Participation , engagement and control

Reciprocity and Respect for Self-Determination

Embracing Other(ed) Ways of Knowing

Decolonial research methods:  some of the prominent scholars

Linda Tuhiwai Smith

Bagele Chilesa

Margaret Kovach

Haunani-Kay Trask

Collections of approaches to decolonial research

Norman K. Denzin, Yvonna S. Lincoln, and Linda Tuhiwai Smith

Hokowhitu and others

Qualitative research method as critical for decolonization of knowledge

What decolonization of qualitative research practice means

Tuck and Yang

Thambinathan, V., & Kinsella

Decolonizing knowledge production in the evaluation of development programs: african paradigms

Importance of decolonizing evaluation of development programs

Proverb based evaluation paradigm

Afrocentric paradigm

Postcolonial indigenous paradigm

African relational evaluation paradigm

Transformative evaluation paradigm

Culturally competent evaluation paradigm

Limitations and gaps of using decolonial evaluation methods