Development co-operation: New perspectives from developing countries – Introduction for special issue of Development Policy Review

The nature of development co-operation has changed rapidly in recent years. Developing countries have access to a more diverse range of financing sources, including non-traditional providers of bilateral development co-operation, new or emerging multilateral and regional institutions, philanthropic organizations and private investors. These changes raise pressing questions about how the policies and practices of external providers of development finance must evolve, both to meet changing development priorities and to ensure that the overall development assistance effort from all providers is optimal. This article introduces a special issue of Development Policy Review that presents new perspectives from developing countries on the roles that development finance should play. This introduction highlights commonalities and differences among the articles contained in the special issue, and concludes with next steps for research and policy.