The Rise and Fall of the Department for International Development

Examines the impact and eventual dissolution of DFID, offering insights into its successes, struggles, and lessons for future international development efforts.

When Boris Johnson announced the creation of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in June 2020, he signalled the dissolution of the UK's Department for International Development (DFID) after nearly 25 years. DFID had a stellar international reputation, a respected body of expertise, and an impressive record improving lives. The Rise and Fall of the Department for International Development traces DFID's trajectory from its origins to its unravelling, distilling timely lessons for government aid institutions in the UK and beyond.

DFID's lifespan coincided with a period of remarkable progress in human well-being. Rise and Fall describes DFID's role in securing these gains through an unwavering focus on its mandate to reduce poverty, under Conservative and Labour governments alike. It explains how the capture of the Conservative Party by its right-wing factions led to DFID's closure, a move now widely viewed as a mistake, and offers proposals for the next government as it defines the UK's position in a complex international landscape.

Informed by the authors' own experiences at DFID as well as interviews with more than a hundred former DFID ministers and staff, The Rise and Fall of the Department for International Development offers an insider's view into the successes, struggles, and lessons of a unique government department. As leaders worldwide consider the future of international development, the book provides critical insights into the institutional structures that work best to deliver results.

Mark Lowcock worked for the UK's Department for International Development (and its predecessor organisation) for more than 30 years, including as Permanent Secretary from 2011 to 2017. He was United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator from May 2017 to June 2021. He is now a Senior Fellow at the Center for Global Development and a Visiting Professor of Practice in the Department of International Development at the London School of Economics. He has contributed opinion pieces to the Washington Post, the Financial Times, the Guardian, the Times, Le Monde, and others and is the author of Relief Chief: A Manifesto for Saving Lives in Dire Times.

Ranil Dissanayake served in senior advisory roles in the UK's Department for International Development from 2011 to 2020, including as a Senior Economic Adviser to successive Chief Economists. He also served as a senior adviser to the governments of Malawi and Tanzania, focusing on aid management and debt sustainability. He holds a DPhil in public policy from the University of Oxford and is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Global Development.