Downward accountability of NGOs in community project planning in Ghana

This article examines the downward accountability of NGOs in community project planning in Ghana. It is based on primary data collected through in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with NGO officials, local government officials and representatives, chiefs, women leaders, and other community members. The findings reveal that although community members were engaged in project planning processes in many respects, these engagements were limited to endorsing pre-prepared plans, decisions, and mundane aspects of the project. The engagements were largely tokenistic, rhetorical, and to garnish legitimacy, and lacked the key elements of empowerment which promoted downward accountability.     

Coordinating post-disaster humanitarian response: lessons from the 2005 Kashmir earthquake,India

This article is based on a field study carried out in Indian-administered Kashmir after the 2005 earthquake. In this analysis of how non-governmental development organisations (NGDOs) engage and coordinate with one another and with other disaster response agencies during post-disaster relief and rehabilitation operations, it can be concluded that NGDO coordination was ineffective. The research points out that, even though there is coordination among the international and national NGDOs, local NGDOs are seldom engaged in the overall coordination processes. The paper advocates developing coordination among the humanitarian agencies as a pre-disaster initiative for a more effective collaborative humanitarian disaster response.     

Language,NGOs and inclusion: the donor perspective

Listening to communities is valued by UK’s Department of International Development (DFID) for contributing to “beneficiary” empowerment and programme efficiency. This article is based on interviews with elite DFID officials to explore their understandings on how they expect NGOs to engage with local languages and the role of language intermediaries. It uncovers their perceptions of the ways that languages and cultural knowledge shape NGO relationships with communities. It finds that the officials assume that listening is unproblematic for NGOs, and ask few questions about translation and interpretation. The article concludes by reflecting on policy implications and directions for further research.     

Irish newspaper coverage of NGOs,legitimacy and accountability: what relevance for NGOs?

Based on a quantitative content analysis of Irish Times newspaper articles, this study investigates how Irish relief and development NGOs were linked with the concepts of legitimacy and accountability in newspaper coverage between 1994 and 2009. Key findings included that NGO accountability received more coverage than NGO legitimacy, and “principal-agent” approaches to NGO accountability received more coverage than “stakeholder” approaches. Employing the media theories of agenda-setting and priming, one can infer that Irish Times readers might be more likely to evaluate Irish NGOs in terms of accountability than legitimacy and to consider NGO accountability in principal-agent rather than stakeholder terms.     

“I know! I live here”: poor women and the work of empowerment

To trace the effects of empowerment programmes in the Global South, attention needs to be focused on the everyday practices of frontline staff, or fieldworkers, who convey empowerment ideas and practices at the grassroots. This is especially critical when fieldworkers work in the marginalised communities where they also live. Instead of looking outward towards a programme’s outcomes, this article turns inward to examine the impact of women fieldworkers’ dual experiences of development on their decisions and practices in the field. The ethnography of women fieldworkers in a government-led women’s empowerment programme for the poor in Delhi, India reveals the uneasy relationship of women’s empowerment to the larger contradictory development paradigm that they work within. Fieldworkers used their experiences as poor women to meet programme quotas, while also side-lining social change in favour of shielding clients from ineffective programme activities.     

Determinants of people's participation: a study of rural West Bengal,India

This article considers the determinants of people's participation in local level decision-making spaces in rural West Bengal, India. It defines participation from the perspectives of attending meetings, raising issues, making complaints, and making contributions. The results from a sampled household survey in East Midnapore district of West Bengal indicate that better awareness, increase in land holdings, organisational membership, and political affiliation tend to improve participation. Households showing livelihood dependency and entitlement, and belonging to socially and economically weaker sections are more likely to participate. However, the results point towards the possibility of ‘elite capture’ and ‘clientelism’ in participatory spaces.     

Measuring the effectiveness of social audits: experiences from Sikkim,India

India has devolved development funds totalling US$46 billion to 240,000 village self-governments. Social audits are emerging as the main tool to ensure their accountability. This article reports on research that analysed panel data of social audits from 2013 to 2015, along with the evolving policy framework. The research found that irregularities were only in the material component and had declined from 1.74% to 0.40% of expenditure, and that works were being completed at 80% of the sanctioned cost. The article proposes a results framework to measure the effectiveness of social audits that covers their punitive as well as preventive role.     

Reflections of an evaluator navigating between community development and welfare paradigms

This practical note discusses some of the challenges evaluators face when their values clash with those of their employer. A case example where the author was commissioned to complete an evaluation for a community development project within a welfare-minded NGO highlights evaluation issues for welfare-minded NGOs attempting to deliver community development programmes. A fundamental issue is the differing interpretation of key terms including evaluation, participation, and empowerment. The note discusses how the author attempted to navigate between maintaining community development principles in the evaluation process while at the same time fulfilling quantitative evaluation requirements mandated by the organisation and funders.     

Improved learning for greater effectiveness in development NGOs

Learning is a critical component of organisational effectiveness, particularly in the complex world of development NGOs. Drawing from the literature on organisational learning, this article highlights the key dynamics of a strong learning organisation and proposes an integrated ‘leverage-learning’ model adapted to the NGO context. This model integrates learning domains that are critical for greater effectiveness, or leverage. The model is then applied to evaluate the effectiveness of the learning culture and commitment of a specific development NGO, World Vision Burundi. The model shows promise as an heuristic tool to evaluate NGOs and help them become more effective in aid delivery.

Amélioration de l'apprentissage pour parvenir à une efficacité accrue dans les ONG de développement

L'apprentissage est un élément crucial de l'efficacité organisationnelle, en particulier dans le monde complexe des ONG de développement. En s'inspirant des écrits portant sur l'apprentissage organisationnel, cet article met en relief la dynamique clé d'une organisation apprenante robuste et propose un modèle intégré d'« apprentissage par effet de levier » adapté au contexte des ONG. Ce modèle intègre les domaines d'apprentissage qui sont cruciaux pour une efficacité accrue, ou pour parvenir à l'effet de levier. Ce modèle est ensuite appliqué pour évaluer l'efficacité de la culture d'apprentissage et l'engagement d'une ONG de développement précise, World Vision Burundi. C'est un modèle prometteur comme outil heuristique pour évaluer les ONG et les aider à devenir plus efficaces dans la prestation d'aide.

Mejorando el aprendizaje para lograr mayor eficacia entre las ong de desarrollo

El aprendizaje constituye un componente clave de la eficacia organizacional, particularmente en el complejo mundo de las ong de desarrollo. Apoyándose en los conocimientos existentes en torno al aprendizaje organizacional, el presente artículo pone de relieve las dinámicas más importantes de una fuerte organización de aprendizaje, presentando un modelo integrado de “aprendizaje-apalancado” que ha sido adaptado para el contexto de las ong. Dicho modelo incorpora los ámbitos de aprendizaje que se consideran vitales para lograr mayor eficacia o apalancamiento. El modelo se utilizó para evaluar la eficacia de la cultura de aprendizaje y el compromiso de una ong de desarrollo específica, Visión Mundial en Burundi, demostrando tener posibilidades como método heurístico orientado a evaluar a las ong y a apoyarlas en su esfuerzo por ser más eficaces en la entrega de ayuda humanitaria.

Um melhor aprendizado para uma maior efetividade nas ONGs de desenvolvimento

O aprendizado é um componente crítico para a efetividade organizacional, particularmente em um mundo complexo das ONGs de desenvolvimento. Baseando-se na literatura sobre aprendizado organizacional, este artigo destaca as dinâmicas essenciais da organização de um aprendizado sólido e propõe um modelo integrado de “alavanca de aprendizado” adaptado para o contexto das ONGs. Este modelo integra os setores que são cruciais para uma maior efetividade, ou alavanca. O modelo é, então, aplicado para avaliar a efetividade da cultura do aprendizado e compromisso de uma ONG de desenvolvimento específica, a World Vision Burundi. O modelo mostra um compromisso de ferramenta heurística para avaliar ONGs e ajuda essas ONGs a tornarem-se mais efetivas na implementação da ajuda.     

Toward purposeful individual capacity strengthening: alternative considerations for Western NGOs

The international donor community continues to emphasise country-led development strategies designed to equitably engage public and civil society agents in managing development assistance. Similarly donors who fund Western NGOs to implement development programmes on their behalf in recipient countries are increasingly pushing for cost-effective programme implementation that actively engages local actors. This article proposes an alternative theoretically grounded model for individual capacity strengthening to responsive and mission-driven Western NGOs that claim to be committed to ideals of capacity strengthening and indigenisation of programme leadership.     

The face of development aid: volunteers and their hosts in southern Israel

The current scholarship on development aid has asserted that a “transformation” of development, one that “puts people first”, is presently taking place in the particular form of volunteer aid. In southern Israel, this claim is evident in recent attempts to “strengthen” depressed “development town” communities through a movement that combines Zionist settlement with the volunteer aid of university students. Based on ethnographic work in the development town of Yeruham, this article problematises this claim by investigating the daily encounter of volunteers with members of their multiply marginalised host community. It challenges such claims of “transformation” and exposes the complex social reality of what it means to “develop” and “empower” a population routinely framed as disadvantaged and targeted for aid.     

Commitments and challenges in participatory development: a Korean NGO working in Cambodia

Despite their growing significance in the development field, academic research regarding development NGOs from emerging donors, such as South Korea, is almost non-existent. This study is based on a case study of LotusWorld, a Korean NGO, and its two recent projects conducted in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Based on interviews with Korean staff and with a group of villagers in the local community, the article examines how LotusWorld’s vision and practices of participation have evolved from the first project to the second, as well as the challenges that they faced. Suggestions for further community participation are made for key actors.     

“Nobody helps us”: insights from ultra-poor Bangladeshi women on being beyond reach

This paper documents the exclusion from formal assistance of 43 Bangladeshi ultra-poor female heads of household, which forces women to rely on overstretched forms of informal assistance that are not culturally prescribed and are often experienced as shameful. Experiences of helplessness reinforced by dominant views of the ultra-poor as going nowhere discourage women from seeking out formal assistance. In order to overcome the effects of being deemed “beyond reach”, scholars and providers of aid must attend to persistent forms of neglect and exclusion in formal aid programmes, including the false assumption that the ultra-poor easily access prescribed informal social supports.

« Personne ne nous vient en aide » : points de vue de femmes bangladaises ultra-pauvres sur le fait qu'elles sont « hors de portée »

Cet article documente l'exclusion de toute assistance formelle de 43 Bangladaises chefs de famille ultra-pauvres, exclusion qui contraint ces femmes à dépendre de formes d'assistance informelle déjà insuffisantes qui ne sont pas culturellement prescrites et sont souvent vécues comme honteuses. Les expériences d'impuissance, renforcées par le fait que les ultra-pauvres sont le plus souvent perçus comme condamnés à leur condition, dissuadent les femmes de demander une assistance formelle. Afin de surmonter les effets qu'a sur elles le fait d'être considérées comme « hors de portée », les théoriciens et les fournisseurs d'aide doivent remédier à des formes persistantes d'abandon et d'exclusion dans les programmes formels d'aide, y compris la fausse hypothèse selon laquelle les ultra-pauvres peuvent facilement accéder à des réseaux de soutien social informels.

“Nadie nos ayuda”: hallazgos obtenidos entre mujeres en situación de extrema pobreza de Bangladesh respecto a su percepción de estar fuera del alcance de toda ayuda

Este artículo documenta las condiciones en que se encuentran 43 mujeres cabezas de familia de Bangladesh en situación de extrema pobreza, quienes han sido excluidas del sistema de asistencia formal. Tal exclusión obliga a las mujeres a depender de la escasa asistencia informal, no sancionada culturalmente. Por ello, a menudo experimentan vergüenza a la hora de recibirla. Al buscar ayuda formal las mujeres enfrentan las dificultades generadas por la sensación de impotencia que las invade, la cual se ve reforzada por la opinión existente a nivel general de que las personas que padecen extrema pobreza nunca podrán salir de esta situación. Para superar los efectos producidos por la percepción de estar “fuera del alcance de toda ayuda”, los académicos y los proveedores de asistencia deberán enfrentar las persistentes formas de abandono y de exclusión derivadas de los programas de ayuda formales, incluyendo la suposición falsa de que las personas en situación de extrema pobreza pueden obtener ayuda social informal con facilidad.

“Ninguém nos ajuda”: ideias de mulheres bengalesas que vivem em pobreza extrema sobre estarem fora de alcance

Este artigo documenta a exclusão, da assistência formal, de 43 mulheres bengalesas chefes de família que vivem em pobreza extrema, o que as força a dependerem de formas sobrecarregadas de assistência informal que não são culturalmente indicadas e que são frequentemente vivenciadas como humilhantes. Experiências de desamparo reforçadas por visões dominantes sobre as pessoas que vivem em pobreza extrema não conseguirem ir a lugar algum desincentivam as mulheres a buscar assistência formal. Para superar os efeitos de se ser considerado “fora de alcance”, acadêmicos e provedores de ajuda humanitária devem abordar as formas persistentes de negligência e exclusão de programas de ajuda formal, incluindo o falso pressuposto de que os que vivem em extrema pobreza têm acesso facilmente a apoio social informal adequado.     

NGOs as intermediaries in post-disaster rural reconstruction: findings from research in India

Drawing upon research conducted in Gujarat, India, this article identifies the potential and limitations for NGOs to serve as intermediaries (between beneficiaries, governments, and international relief/development organisations) on post-disaster rural reconstruction projects. Findings reveal that NGOs can play important roles in facilitating the design and construction of high-quality, culturally appropriate housing; revitalising and diversifying livelihoods; and reducing physical and social vulnerability to future disasters. NGOs should have clearly defined roles, responsibilities, and accountability measures in post-disaster reconstruction projects, but they also need a certain amount of autonomy to protect their organisational philosophies and flexibility to make day-to-day decisions.     

‘Cracking collaboration’ between NGOs and academics in development research

This note argues that NGOs and academics are increasingly being pushed to collaborate by their respective ‘impact’ agendas. And a growing number of individuals who traverse both worlds are advocates for a much closer relationship to facilitate the theory-data interaction that lies at the heart of knowledge creation in international development. But different cultures and institutional constraints create challenges in making this collaboration work. A number of practical pointers are outlined for overcoming these obstacles, arguing that keeping the ultimate beneficiaries in focus is the best foundation for constructing a shared agenda in development research.

« Résoudre la collaboration » entre les ONG et les universitaires dans la recherche en matière de développement

Cette note soutient que les ONG et les universitaires sont de plus en plus incités à collaborer par leurs ordres du jour liés à l'« impact » respectifs. Et un nombre croissant d'individus qui appartiennent aux deux milieux préconisent une relation beaucoup plus étroite afin de faciliter l'interaction théorie-données qui est au centre même de la création de connaissances dans le développement international. Mais les cultures différentes et les contraintes institutionnelles engendrent des difficultés au moment d'assurer le bon fonctionnement de cette collaboration. Un certain nombre de conseils pratiques sont proposés pour surmonter ces obstacles, et on soutient que la meilleure fondation pour la construction d'un ordre du jour commun dans la recherche pour le développement consiste à garder en tête qui sont les bénéficiaires.

Resolviendo las dificultades a nivel de la colaboración entre ong y académicos en la investigación para el desarrollo

La presente nota sostiene que, cada vez más, las ong y los académicos son impulsados a colaborar entre ellos debido a sus respectivas agendas de “impacto”. Asimismo, un creciente grupo de personas que conoce ambos ámbitos aboga por el establecimiento de una relación aún más estrecha, a fin de facilitar la interacción entre teoría y realidad, meollo de la creación de conocimientos en el ámbito del desarrollo internacional. Sin embargo, las diferentes culturas y las limitantes institucionales generan impedimentos para el funcionamiento de dicha colaboración. El artículo establece un bosquejo de ayudas prácticas que posibilitarían eliminar dichos impedimentos, sosteniendo que mantener presentes a los beneficiarios últimos constituye el mejor cimiento para la construcción de una agenda compartida en el ámbito de la investigación para el desarrollo.

“Colaboração com fissuras” entre ONGs e acadêmicos na pesquisa sobre desenvolvimento

Esta nota argumenta que as ONGs e os acadêmicos estão cada vez mais sendo pressionados para colaborar através de suas respectivas agendas de “impacto”. E um número crescente de indivíduos que atravessam ambos os mundos são defensores de uma relação muito mais próxima para promover a interação entre teoria-dados que permanece no centro da criação de conhecimento no desenvolvimento internacional. Mas diferentes culturas e restrições institucionais criam desafios para a realização desse trabalho de colaboração. Vários indicadores práticos são apresentados para se superar esses obstáculos, argumentando que manter em foco os beneficiários finais é a melhor base para construirmos uma agenda compartilhada na pesquisa sobre desenvolvimento.     

In the name of ‘underdeveloped’ Adibashi: the politics of NGOs and the Munda in Bangladesh

This paper aims to unpack the politics of NGO activism with the Munda – a minority Adibashi group in Bangladesh. In addition to offering microcredit, NGOs launched educational and awareness building programmes for the Adibashi. Most notably, the Munda are not content to blindly follow the instructions of NGOs – namely, to get educated, find a white-collar job, and develop identity politics – to improve their socio-economic and political positions. Rather, there is growing awareness among the Munda to gather knowledge, which helps them to consciously educate themselves to undertake new activities to improve their condition by interacting with wider society.

Au nom des Adibashis « sous-développés » : les dimensions politiques des ONG et des Mundas au Bangladesh

Cet article cherche à analyser les dimensions politiques de l'activisme des ONG auprès des Mundas – un groupe minoritaire d'Adibashis au Bangladesh. En plus de proposer des microcrédits, les ONG ont lancé des programmes éducatifs et de sensibilisation destinés aux Adibashis. L'aspect le plus remarquable est que les Mundas ne veulent pas suivre aveuglément les instructions des ONG – à savoir suivre une éducation, trouver un emploi dans un bureau et développer des convictions politiques auxquelles s'identifier – afin d'améliorer leur situation socio-économique et politique. Au lieu de cela, on observe une prise de conscience croissante parmi les Mundas qui les pousse à rassembler des connaissances, ce qui les aide à s'éduquer consciemment afin de pouvoir entreprendre de nouvelles activités leur permettant d'améliorer leur condition en entrant en interaction avec la société dans son ensemble.

En nombre de los adibashi “subdesarrollados”: las políticas de las ONG y los munda en Bangladesh

El presente artículo pretende desmenuzar las políticas que sustentan las acciones llevadas a cabo por las ong con los munda –un grupo minoritario de adibashi en Bangladesh. Además de ofrecer esquemas de microcrédito, las ong impulsaron programas educacionales y de concientización para los adibshi. Sin embargo, cabe hacer notar que los munda no se conforman con seguir ciegamente las instrucciones de las ong –centradas en la educación, en encontrar un empleo de “cuello blanco” y en desarrollar políticas de identidad– para mejorar su situación socioeconómica y política. Por el contrario, entre los munda existe una creciente conciencia acerca de la necesidad de acumular conocimientos que les ayuden a educarse conscientemente, lo que les permitirá emprender nuevas actividades que mejoren su situación relacionándose con la sociedad más amplia.

Em nome da comunidade “subdesenvolvida” de Adibashi: as políticas de ONGs e do Munda de Bangladesh

Este artigo visa examinar as políticas do ativismo de ONGs com o Munda – grupo minoritário Adibashi em Bangladesh. Além de oferecer microcrédito, as ONGs lançaram programas educacionais e de conscientização dos Adibashi. Sobretudo, o Munda não está disposto a seguir cegamente as instruções das ONGs – isto é, estudar, encontrar um emprego administrativo e desenvolver políticas de identidade – para melhorar suas posições sócio-econômicas e políticas. Em vez disto, há uma conscientização crescente entre os participantes do Munda para obter conhecimento, que os ajude a ensiná-los conscientemente para que realizem novas atividades para melhorar suas condições através de uma interação com a sociedade mais geral.     

A positive notion of power for citizen voice and state accountability

This article explores the notion of power within citizen–state relations. A positive notion of power is presented as an addition to evolving development discourse which has predominantly defined power as a finite resource transferred from state to citizen in a process of ‘‘changing the balance of power’’. A positive notion of power is concerned with maximising and connecting citizen power and affirming state power, for synergistic change. The article draws on development discourse and practical examples to outline a positive notion of power, prioritising relational dialogue and joint citizen state action for development outcomes.     

Developing urban space: the changing role of NGOs in Bangladesh

Rapid urbanisation has been an emerging issue in recent decades, particularly for developing countries such as Bangladesh. As one of world’s largest international NGOs, BRAC, based in Bangladesh, is transiting towards a more integrated approach for alleviating urban poverty. This article presents BRAC’s current journey for eradicating urban poverty and outlines the characteristics of urban poverty, key issues faced by the urban poor, and learning that BRAC has accumulated through its urban interventions. Introducing the concept of “coproduction”, the article identifies BRAC’s priorities to eradicate urban poverty within the context of an overall urban strategy.     

NGO workers’ internalisation of the human rights-based approach in Bangladesh

The Western origin of human rights raises the question of how the human rights-based approach to development (HRBA) is understood in non-Western countries. This article explores individual practitioners’ perceptions of the HRBA in an NGO working in Bangladesh, drawing on interviews with its workers. The data suggest that participants accept the universal values of human rights and make sense of the HRBA influenced by their organisational and national contexts. Conceptualising this process as “internalisation”, this article argues that the organisational support and workers’ field experience are critical for incorporating contextual consideration into their interpretation and practice of the HRBA.     

Obstacles to NGOs’ accountability to intended beneficiaries: the case of ActionAid

While NGO accountability is widely discussed in the literature, there has been little work done on how accountability systems operate in practice. This article aims to address this gap by using qualitative empirical data to provide a case study of one NGO’s initiative in this area. ActionAid has made substantial, high-profile efforts to improve its downward accountability since 2000. Using data from fieldwork conducted in Uganda and internationally, the article reveals the operational obstacles which have hindered ActionAid in its attempts to strengthen its accountability to intended beneficiaries at the community level, and reviews ActionAid’s ongoing commitment to this goal.