Economic Advisory Group Receives Indonesian Grant

Harvard's Development Advisory Service has been awarded a Ford Foundation grant of $425,000 to finance a recently contracted research project in Indonesia. The project, which will cooperate with the National Institute of Economic and Social Research in Djakarta, is part of a large extension of DAS programs planned for the coming year.

The DAS is also negotiating with the governments of both Argentina and Colombia on the terms of three proposed projects in those countries. One of these, a project in cooperation with the Di Tella research institute in Argentina should be approved within one or two weeks.

Under the terms of the Indonesian contract, an advisory team will work with the state-financed National Institute for a period of six years, after which the contract will be subject to reconsideration.

For the first few months of the project, two American professors will advise the National Institute on the training of economics students. After this initial period, the Ford grant will also provide fellowships for Indonesian students to study in the United States and several European countries. Under these fellowships, an attempt will be made to acquaint the students with the problems of economic development.

If the contracts for all three South American projects are successfully completed before the end of the year, the DAS will have five full field groups operating in underdeveloped countries. Under its present plans, the Service may terminate its program in Pakistan at the beginning of next year. The Pakistan project, which was initiated in 1954, has been partially responsible for the development of the Five-Year plan which has helped boost the Middle-Eastern country's economy.

The proposed project with the Argentine and Colombian governments will be modeled after the Pakistan field project. The contracts call for teams of economic experts to work with the governments in formulating development plans. According to Gustav F. Papanek, assistant director of the DAS, the plans for development are designed for the needs of each particular country.

Under the terms of the contracts, the DAS retains a free hand to advise without regard to political considerations. In each case, the financial grants are made respective of the success or nature of the advice given.