A critical approach to co-producing knowledge for development

Motivation: The concept of co-production has gained currency in development policy as an approach for collaboration and/or stakeholder participation to improve development outcomes. Co-production implies bringing together different knowledges to create something new, acknowledging that knowledge is both plural and partial; there are multiple ways of knowing and no one way represents truth. Yet existing literature on co-production tends to focus mostly on strategies for engagement rather than reckoning with structural forces and practical problems to realizing co-production. Purpose: This article asks how the implementation of the co-production concept can account for relations of power. It develops a conceptual framework and practical guidance for co-producing knowledge for development. Approach and Methods: The study provides an overview of the theory and practice of co-production and assesses its use in existing development policy. It draws on insights from political ecology literature to construct a conceptual framework and set of practical strategies for implementing co-production. Findings: This article advances an approach to the co-production of knowledge that integrates political economy, reflexivity, and participatory methodologies to guide collaboration. This approach accounts for historical marginalization and unequal power relations to guide development interventions and/or policy. Policy Implications: The article warns against uncritical adoption of co-production and highlights practical measures to examine power relations in order to understand challenges and enact equitable sustainable development in diverse settings.