Beyond Solutions: Capability, Development Frontiers, and the Process of Good Change

Abstract

This article conceptualizes development as a process of ‘good change’, or durable improvements achieved through adaptive problem-solving within specific social contexts. It argues that such results depend less on adopting correct policies than on building capability— the empowered ability of individuals, organizations, and societies to act effectively. Drawing on insights from development economics, organizational theory, and political economy, the article proposes that development unfolds across successive capability frontiers, where progress increasingly depends on locally embedded learning and coordination. The argument is illustrated through a process-tracing analysis of India’s reduction in maternal mortality from the 1980s to the present. The evidence shows that sustained improvements resulted from sequential expansions in system capability rather than the implementation of a single solution. The findings suggest that international development practice should prioritize strengthening capabilities rather than transferring technical interventions.