Literature Review – Analysis Of ‘needs Assessment’ As A Development Tool

Literature Review – Analysis Of ‘needs Assessment’ As A Development Tool

INTRODUCTION

A needs assessment is a ‘process for clarifying what results must be accomplished and then assessing the potential value of numerous alternative solutions to make an informed and reasonable decision’ (Watkins, Meiers & Visser, 2012). In the context of development, the requirement to perform adequate needs assessments is heightened when the inaccurate distribution of aid and flawed projects can have sobering implications for high numbers of vulnerable people. Needs assessments may be used to inform decision-making, influence others and justify response decisions and funding appeals (Darcy, Anderson & Majid, 2007).

The theory surrounding what constitutes a ‘need’ as opposed to a ‘want’ has received considerable contention in development debate. In a neoliberal framework, ‘the idea of revealed preferences obviates the requirement for debate over what is a need and what is a want as it is the market that provides the most appropriate mechanism for satisfying both’ (McGregor et al. 2009). Bradshaw (1972) identifies four separate types of needs; normative (determined by ‘professionals’ or ‘experts’); comparative (assumed from shortfalls in resources for a particular group); expressed (articulated in order for them to be satisfied); and felt (not expressed). McGregor et al. (2009) justify the sense in Bradshaw’s approach to defining need, suggesting that if a need is ratified by both the person who is experiencing it and the experts observing their circumstance, ‘then it would be reasonable that it be accepted as a need.’ A needs assessment, therefore, is the practical approach adopted by institutions to identify needs and ‘create a solid evidence base for humanitarian decision making regarding the level and type of action required to respond to those needs’ (OCHA, 2009).

This literature review will identify the concepts to which needs assessments exist, explore significant types of needs assessments, and critically analyse different practices to facilitate a better understanding of their strengths and weaknesses.

CONCEPTS

The Sustainable Development Goals are broadly conceptualised as an agenda to meet the needs of humanity without compromising the ability of future generations and the planet (Kates, Parris & Leiserowitz, 2005). To define the concept of humanitarian need, Darcy & Hofmann (2003) allude to three different senses; 1) to describe basic human needs; 2) to describe a lack of basic human needs; 3) to describe the need for (a particular form of) relief assistance or intervention. They propose that there is a tendency to confuse these senses in humanitarian aid and needs assessments ‘tend to be conflated within the formulation of responses.’ Development institutions should act on the principle of impartiality and transparency, where intervention is chosen on the basis of need alone. Needs assessments should then be used to inform those judgments and promote objective, needs-based decision-making.

The concept of a project is the ‘mental construction’ that forms the solution to a problem or satisfies a need, and several concepts can be envisioned as alternative solutions to the same problem (Williams and Samset, 2010). Watkins, Meiers & Visser (2012) draw attention to project gaps – the missing components that determine what the project should set out to achieve. In their World Bank publication, gaps are identified as the ‘needs’ of a needs assessment. They emphasise the importance of identifying the gaps in results to then determine what actions would work best to narrow them: gaps become the foundation that guides justifiable decisions. For Watkins, Meiers & Visser (2012), justifiable decisions are best made ‘when considering and comparing a number of alternatives and when assessing combinations of activities for their ability to accomplish desired results.’ A needs assessment, therefore, becomes a tool for better decision-making to define the concept of a development project.

METHODOLOGIES

Needs assessment techniques can be identified by four categories of data collection; individual, group, rapid rural appraisal (RRA), and secondary source (MsCaslin and Tibezinda, n.d.). The tools relied upon in a needs assessment is not what makes them unique, rather it is the pre-decision perspective applied to each tool that ‘defines the value of a needs assessment’ (Watkins, Meiers & Visser, 2012).

In a review of the links between needs assessment and decision-making in response to food crises at the World Food Programme (WFP); Darcy, Anderson & Majid (2007) identify the following as key methodological improvements for better utilisation of a needs assessment; 1) th