Asianizing the Integrated Approach for Development Cooperation: Scaling-Up Dynamics of KOICA’s Peace-Development Nexus Projects in Lao PDR and Cambodia

Abstract

This study explores the significance of mainstreaming an integrated approach to development in enhancing development cooperation. It underscores the Asianization of this integrated approach by scrutinizing a unique path that harmonizes global guidelines for integrated approaches within Asia’s regional context. Serving as the focal case study, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA)’s Peace Village Development Projects in Cambodia and Lao PDR illuminate how projects can evolve into integrated programs. This evolution draws on universalist lessons within the contextualist epistemological framework for scaling up. The research establishes that comprehensive needs and capacity assessments, in conjunction with the active participation of various stakeholders, are crucial for the effective design and implementation of these projects, which engage mixed scaling-up processes. KOICA’s integrated strategy serves as a dynamic catalyst for social inclusion and the optimization of sectoral outcomes, offering a mechanism for scaling up that contributes to the formation of ‘an organically societized Asia.’