In the Gregorian 21st century Nepal, there have been many interesting debates-whether or not we need cell-phones, Internet, how useful is democracy after all, and whether or not we actually need development assistance.

The current government has been defiantly telling donors to shove it. While critics say it is politically motivated, this Beed agrees with many others who say this is as good an opportunity as any to discuss the efficacy of foreign aid. After all, billions of dollars from donor taxpayers have been funnelled to Nepal in the past 40 years. And some would have it that it has just been a way to take from the poor in rich countries and give it to the rich in poor countries.

Two issues are of importance-has the assistance-driven economy gone too far in making development activities a mechanism that is driven by the whims and fancies of 'parachute consultants'? And, has the development sector weaned away our best and brightest over the past two decades and turned them into international civil servants in other countries? For example, isn't there a way to keep Nepali micro-credit experts in Nepal instead of exporting them to Cambodia? We need our efficient administrators here, not in Afghanistan.

Accountability of aid has been minimal because in many cases the objective is to be able to spend more rather than spend effectively. Results are guided by mission activities that are short-term and the vision of chiefs whose tenure is also short-term. Projects reports hop from proposal to appraisal to monitoring, making Nepal one of the highest per-capita in the sheer volume of reports we churn out.

Assistance themes are fragmented making duplication inevitable. In the quest to make their own tenures exciting, 'experts' push lots of ideas and put a few into action. The apathy towards the private sector has found many areas of potential partnerships untouched. Government officials are 'adopted' either through topping up of salaries or sponsored junkets to create a class that knows how to demand but not perform.

This breed of home-grown consultants who have learned to earn more without being accountable for their performance has suddenly led to the growth of generally complacent, highly-paid non-competing professionals who are more than happy to sing to the tune of their masters. Unfortunately, the gifted among us have entered this sector, making us role models for others.

The phenomenon is not unique to Nepal. The talented and brilliant are wooed the world over by the corporate world. Trouble is that in Nepal, they are taken away by the development world, lured by better financial deals and jobs that are not linked with performance. In the past decade, we have seen brilliant Nepalis vegetate after being brain-drained into the development whirlpool.

The Beed is not for stopping development assistance. But let's streamline it, make it work towards making itself redundant and not prolong dependency.