What we do

OPM provides consulting services in the following areas:

• Advice that clarifies policy and strategy options
• Applied research on policy alternatives
• Support for policy implementation
• Evaluations and impact assessments
• Training in aspects of public policy

We provide development agencies, and the governments with whom they work, with solutions to some of the most complex and intractable international development problems.

Most of our projects involve relationships with both a funder, typically an international development agency which directly or indirectly provides funding for our services, and a recipient, typically a government department or public agency in a developing country. Recent funders include DFID, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the EC, Irish Aid, Danida, SIDA, FINNIDA, Norad, GTZ, SECO, FAO, UNICEF and UNDP.

Our approach involves both evidence-based policy advice and implementation support, frequently underpinned by applied research. We build on a clear understanding of the relationships between political and institutional processes and policy reform, and especially the links between policies, budgets and organisational change.

Our work aims, directly or indirectly, to reduce poverty through:

• More effective macroeconomic management and sector policies and programmes
• Improving access to and the efficiency of key services for the poor (including health, education, and social protection)
• Better management of public expenditure
• Governance reforms of public institutions

We bring our values to bear on the way we approach our work:

• We work throughout the policy process: we guide the agenda for change, influence and support decision-makers, help make change happen, and evaluate its impact.
• We strengthen policy and its implementation by drawing on international knowledge and best practice, as well as on our practical experience in the countries where we work. We work with our clients to develop appropriate solutions tailored to their specific needs and constraints. We combine a readiness to challenge conventional wisdom with a sound understanding of risks and practical limitations.
• We help to strengthen the capacity of organisations and individuals in the countries where we work through assistance with organisational development and reform and the provision of technical advice and training. We believe this is important to ensure the sustainability of the outcomes of what we do.
• We are responsive to the needs of our clients and the circumstances of the individual countries where we work, but we value and foster the objectivity, analytical rigour and independence of our work.
• We aim to contribute to, as well as draw from, the global body of knowledge that informs our work. Wherever possible, we share and publicise findings and methods that are of wider relevance. We participate in policy dialogue at international as well as national levels.