This book concentrates on public action for development, 'Public action' means not only the actions of the state - central and local government - but also the activities of other bodies which influence the development process: non-governmental organizations, community organizations, political movements. One of the central objectives of the book is to try to understand state action as embedded in and influenced by these wider forms of public action.

In this, the book takes an original approach to development policy analysis: by asking not, 'what should be done?', but 'who is doing what, with what effect, and why?' Hence 'policy' is not merely a set of decisions to be implemented by bureaucracies. It is a process of interaction between different forms of public action and response, with all those forms of public action, including the internal processes of the state, a matter of relevance for policy makers.

The book is divided into five sections. Each section consists of a theory-based chapter, which is then illustrated by a case study. This structure allows the reader to see the results of theoretical ideas as applied to real countries and the lives of their people. The chapters are written by specialist authors using key questions, diagrams, tables, photographs and summaries to illustrate and clarify the text.

It will be invaluable to undergraduate and postgraduate students of development studies, geography, history, economics, anthropology or international politics, as well as to development practitioners. It will be particularly useful to those joining the staff of official development agencies or non-governmental organizations