The alumni and employers of alumni interviewed in Bangladesh recognize overall identical effects for the individual participants of the Netherlands Fellowship Programme, the majority of which are overwhelmingly positive.
Value of the Fellowship
All alumni interviewed identified the NFP fellowship to be an important aspect of their education. In particular the students, who obtained a Master or PhD in the Netherlands, highlighted that the financial support was essential to their studies. It gave them sufficient economic independence to pursue their studies.
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182 Evaluation of the Netherlands Fellowship Programme (NFP) 2002 - 2010 Value of education and individual gains
In terms of the value of the education and training funded through NFP, all modalities were highly appreciated by the respondents. Particularly the practical aspect of the courses and quality of teachers were mentioned. The alumni indicated that their expectations were largely or fully met.
The alumni identified many direct and indirect benefits of their experience. All alumni have experienced gains in technical skills directly related to the execution of their profession. Most experience improvements in the quality of their work as a result of this. Alumni furthermore have experienced improvements in social skills (mainly communication skills) and personal skills (mainly motivation). Alumni employed by government and private institutions typically indicate that they have learned to better deal with technical and planning issues and the planning process in general of the institutions they work for. Also having learned to share technology and skills with colleagues is seen as a major improvement in their functioning. For most alumni career perspectives and salaries had not increased except for one person.
An example of how alumni have benefited can be found in the following box on the Bangladeshi Institute of Technology and the government engineering department in a very relevant area for Bangladesh: water management.
Bangladeshi Institute of Technology and government engineering department
Water management is one of the major areas of relevance for Bangladesh. Alumni of the BUET, the Bangladeshi Institute of Technology, involved in the study of water and land management report they have effected major innovations in this area as a result of the NFP programme. One such innovation concerns remote sensing software. Remote sensing is meant for mapping surfaces (land and water). In the course it was learned how satellite data can be processed for land and water management. By studying a crop area, for instance, an estimate can be made of how many crop a given land is producing or can produce which helps in improving food security for the country. Mapping water surfaces helps in disaster management when areas are flooded due to heavy rainfall, a situation that occurs regularly in Bangladesh. The institute offers professional courses for professionals in the field, such as those involved in rural and urban planning and the Bangladesh Water Board.
Another innovation in the water management area realized concerns hydro informatics as this is practiced by an alumnus working with the Ministry of LGRD, the engineering department of the Bangladesh
government. Hydro informatics concerns simulation software and allows one to calculate probable states of rivers and marine environments given certain interventions to control these. Using the software, the alumnus is now in a position to advise the engineering board on effective interventions in this. “I used to
receive orders from my employer, but now I tell them what to do”, as indicated our informant. Other skills learned concern the ability to build a program, basically by selecting adequate projects and adequately plan the program.
The department itself, as also indicated the employer interviewed, has gained considerably. “With the computer technology introduced here we can feed decision making processes on programs to be launched to better counter flood risks, a major threat to Bangladesh”.
Most NFP alumni of the selected organisations did return. Only one person moved to the USA.
Organisational Level (employers)
All employers interviewed mention (sometimes large) gains in technical –occupation related skills and the quality of work of the alumni. This is followed by gains in personal skills (such as increased motivation), social skills (mainly communication skills) and improvements in the functioning of the organisation / department as a whole. Especially gains in technical skills and the quality of work are
noted and appreciated by the employers visited. Examples of these gains are noted in the box below.
Employers: Agricultural organisations and NGOs
The most influential institute in Bangladesh in the agricultural area is the Agricultural Research institute BARI. The employer interviewed there indicates the institute has gained tremendously from programs as the NFP, knowledge development most notably on irrigation and effective land use is especially noted. A further important gain is the improved outlook of the scientists: They can share information on relevant subjects with everyone throughout the world. The employer notes that BARI is involved with other programs as well, such as those from the US, AUSAID and the EC so the effect cannot be solely attributed to the Dutch program.
Training for general capacity building as such in Bangladesh itself is also an important area where NFP alumni are active, in this case in UN organizations as UDIPPAN and the FORUM for Public Health. The basic skill here is organizing training and developing modules for this as well as conducting training needs assessments. In the case of UDIPPAN this concerns micro-financing initiatives and (project) management in this, the Health Forum all kind of health related issues. The preferred training mode is Training of Trainers. Many hundreds of individuals and professionals have been reached in this way and trained. The employers interviewed in these organizations indeed indicate the alumni have a certain influence over what strategy the UN follows in these areas in Bangladesh. As most effective elements of the NFP program are viewed the -proposal writing, the facilitation skills and module development skills.
The impact of the NFP programme in Bangladesh appear to be the greatest for the area of water management, the area of most relevance for Bangladesh. Alumni active in universities educate professionals active in water management and innovate this area with the newest technologies. Effective water management will help to prevent) severe’ flooding in the country and thus realize food security. Impact in the other areas is less likely.
Influencing factors and obstacles
Although the NFP programme (as well as other programs) has a clause where alumni promise to move back to their home country, this is often not the case. Especially within the department of Agriculture brain drain has reached a staggering 100 alumni not returning to Bangladesh in recent years for all capacity building programmes taken together. A simple clause evidently is not enough for alumni to comply. The impact of programme on capacity building and with that in poverty alleviation –in the Bangladesh agricultural sector at least – is this significantly diluted. The brain drain is caused by the higher living standards in the host countries and the possibility to make promotion. Most alumni having left Bangladesh have moved to the USA, Australia, and Canada.
There is marked difference in the international institutes visited (UDDIPAN, Forum for Public Health) and the Bangladeshi institutes such as the Water Board and the universities in terms of the influence alumni have on the strategy if the organization. Alumni in the former appear to have had a greater influence on the strategy of the organization than those returning to Bangladeshi ones. Promotion in the latter cases is rare, so alumni here have less chance to influence the strategy of the organization they work for. Promotions are not forthcoming as seniority, political considerations and sometimes family ties are the more important factors in getting a promotion.