DEMAND, SUPPLY AND INSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA

Most programmes to improve institutions in Africa have concentrated on the supply of inputs to formal organizations. Equally important, but often neglected, is the demand for institutional output. Demand is exe rcised by stakeholders (internal and external constituencies with an i nterest in an organization). This paper uses Nigeria's experience with agricultural technology organizations to examine the ineffectiveness of supply-oriented institutional development, as opposed to strategies in which demand (especially of clientele) also figures prominently. I t shows, however, that the mobilization of demand may be infeasible if the national political environment does not ease interest group activ ity.