Non-Governmental Organizations and Development

This book examines the work and roles of non-governmental organizations in development, and considers the criticisms that their increased profile and role in development have attracted. Chapter 1 discusses the difficulties in describing and analyzing NGOs, given their very large numbers and the diversity in what they are and what they do, and considers the main arguments for and against them. Chapter 2 looks at how they have developed over the last two centuries, and the diverse ways in which NGOs and ideas about them have taken shape in different parts of the world, including their rise within development. Chapter 3 considers how NGOs are located within the different theoretical perspectives within development and how they themselves have contributed to development theory – for instance, in relation to ideas about empowerment, gender equality, social capital, social movements and social exclusion. Chapter 4 focuses on the roles of NGOs in development practice over the last three decades, noting the alternative development approaches with which some NGOs were associated and also the way in which many were absorbed into more conventional neoliberal development policies. Chapter 5 reviews the many roles NGOs have taken in service provision, advocacy and innovation and how these are often combined; also the growing trend for partnerships between NGOs and government and business. Chapter 6 considers the role of NGOs within civil society and “the third sector”, while Chapter 7 considers how their work and possibilities are shaped by globalization. Chapter 8 examines their changing roles within the international aid system and how different development actors have viewed them; it also discusses development NGOs that are not part of the aid system. Chapter 9 looks at the role of NGOs in international humanitarian work.