Listen First: a pilot system for managing downward accountability in NGOs

This article reports on a research project intended to develop systematic ways of managing downward accountability in an international NGO. Innovative tools were developed and trialled in six countries. The tools comprised a framework, defining downward accountability in practical terms, and three management processes. They were successfully used to (a) encourage staff to improve downward accountability in ways relevant to their context; (b) hear beneficiaries' assessments of the level of accountability achieved and the value of the NGO's work; and (c) generate quantified performance summaries for managers. Taken together, they form a coherent draft management system. Areas for further research are identified.     

Structures,values, and interaction in field-level partnerships: the case of UNHCR and NGOs

This article discusses the process of transforming partnership from a conceptual framework into a practical, operational framework for field-level interaction among humanitarian organisations. The authors approach this transformation from the perspective of the core values of the partnership concept and the ability of field workers to behave in ways that are consistent with these core values, illustrated by an empirical study of the relationships between the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and NGOs in a refugee-assistance programme in northern Uganda. The authors connect inter-organisational structures with the role of people charged with making partnership work, concluding that the structures and context in which individuals operate make it impossible for them to ‘act out’ the core values of partnership. By identifying the major challenges to creating field-level, operational partnerships, the authors offer lessons for current and future partnership-building initiatives, such as the Global Humanitarian Platform.     

‘Communities of practice’: prospects for theory and action in participatory development

‘The myth of community’ permeates both the understanding and the practice of participatory development. Yet the idea that communities exist as coherent units of people who inhabit bounded geographic spaces and are ready to be mobilised for development restricts the very agency that participation promises. This article offers an alternative model of community: one that is more compatible with the ideal of people-centred, participatory development. Using Etienne Wenger's concept of ‘communities of practice’, and drawing on narrative theory and cognitive approaches to policy analysis, the article argues that community should be created and sustained around shared meanings.     

Increasing strategic accountability: a framework for international NGOs

The accountability of international development NGOs (INGOs) has attracted a great deal of interest from academics and development practitioners. INGO accountability falls into two categories: practical accountability (for the use of inputs, the way activities are performed, and outputs) and strategic accountability for INGOs' performance in relation to their mission. This article presents a conceptual framework for exploring INGO accountability. It is based on information collected through a literature review and semi-structured interviews with representatives from 20 UK-based INGOs. The research found that INGOs tend to use a number of quality-assurance mechanisms to achieve ‘practical’ accountability. However, it is suggested that this kind of accountability will not necessarily enable INGOs to achieve their missions to alleviate poverty and eliminate injustice. Furthermore, the predominant use of practical accountability has led to a number of gaps in INGO accountability. It is suggested that, like the term ‘participation’ before it, accountability has been co-opted for its instrumental benefits to INGO project performance and management. It is argued that if INGOs are to achieve their missions, this will require more ‘strategic’ forms of accountability, geared towards fundamentally changing those social, economic, and political structures that promote poverty.     

Towards an era of official (involuntary) accountability of NGOs in India

In the recent past, governance reforms in India have resulted in the government and corporate sectors making serious efforts to enhance and showcase their accountability to their principals, namely citizens and shareholders. Similarly, NGOs have been pushed to demonstrate their accountability to multiple stakeholders, namely donors, communities and most importantly, the state. This viewpoint highlights this transition and also reflects on the changing contours of NGO accountability debates in India.     

‘Humanicrats’: the social production of compassion,indifference, and hostility in long-term camps

Why do front-line workers not always display humanitarian compassion towards people living in camps? In seeking an answer, this article conceptualises the ‘humanicrat’: a front-line worker who is part humanitarian and part bureaucrat, each with typological emotions. Case studies from NGO teams in long-term camps in northern Ugandan illustrate the social production of emotions. The two teams work in differing contexts of organisational arrangements and discourses: conditions which result in predominant emotions of compassion and indifference in one team, and hostility in another. The article ends by asking what, if anything, can be done to curb the ill-treatment of displaced people.     

Money,power, and donor–NGO partnerships

The term ‘partnership’ can be considered something of a Trojan Horse, disguising the reality of the complex relationships in imbalances of power and inequality, often expressed through the control of one ‘partner’ over the other. With particular reference to the experience of a small, UK-based NGO working in Uganda (Hives Save Lives – Africa), this article highlights how power is manifest within donor–NGO partnerships through the control and flow of money; and illustrates that NGOs pursuing funding from donors face many challenges that reinforce this imbalance of power.     

Community sustainable-development indicators: a useful participatory technique or another dead end?

This article undertakes a critical re-evaluation of a DFID-funded project in South Africa which ran between 1998 and 2001. The evaluation sought to test whether the development of community-led indicators would improve governance. Since the project ended, a series of papers have been published that are critical of such participatory methods, arguing particularly that they are apolitical and adopt a technocratic approach. In the light of these criticisms, this article re-assesses the DFID project, following on from the initial evaluation carried out by the author in 2001. Sobantu, a black township in Pietermaritzburg, was one of the original project sites. It was chosen as the subject for research because the local implementing agency was a politically astute, well-connected institution that understood the political nature of the process required to develop the indicators. Although the project achieved some positive outcomes, the long-term commitment to the indicators has since been compromised. This was in large part due to the inability of community members to engage meaningfully with key municipal service providers. However, recent changes to the South African planning regime might provide opportunities for the indicators to become more useful again.     

Integrating learning into organisational capacity development of Cambodian NGOs

A holistic learning approach to organisational capacity building with Cambodian NGOs produced impressive results in some organisations and important learning about blocks to change in others. The approach clearly demonstrates that moving beyond traditional training and organisational development interventions and into processes that promote learning and its integration into everyday work practices has positive and lasting impacts. Organisations willing to engage with the learning approach found that both individuals and the whole organisation were able to function more effectively, and that this contributed to sustainability and resilience. The approach also produced important lessons about organisational readiness to embrace learning and change.

Intégrer l'apprentissage dans le développement des capacités organisationnelles des ONG cambodgiennes

Une approche holistique (globale) de l'apprentissage en matière de développement des capacités organisationnelles avec des ONG cambodgiennes a produit des résultats impressionnants dans certaines organisations et donné lieu à d'importantes leçons sur les entraves aux changements dans d'autres. Cette approche démontre clairement que le fait d'aller au-delà des interventions traditionnelles de formation et de développement organisationnel pour entreprendre des processus qui promeuvent l'apprentissage et son intégration dans les pratiques de travail quotidiennes a des impacts positifs et durables. Les organisations disposées à adopter l'approche d'apprentissage ont constaté que tant les individus que l'organisation dans son ensemble étaient en mesure de fonctionner plus efficacement et que cela contribuait à la durabilité et à la résilience. Cette approche a aussi produit des enseignements importants sur la bonne disposition des organisations à embrasser l'apprentissage et les changements.

Integrando aprendizado no desenvolvimento da capacidade organizacional de ONGs cambojanas

Uma abordagem de aprendizado holística para a capacitação organizacional com ONGs cambojanas produziu resultados surpreendentes em algumas organizações e um importante aprendizado sobre obstáculos a serem superados em outras. A abordagem demonstra claramente que ir além dos tradicionais treinamentos e intervenções para o desenvolvimento organizacional e incorporar processos que promovam o aprendizado e sua integração em práticas de trabalho diárias promovem impactos positivos e duradouros. Organizações que desejavam engajar-se com a abordagem de aprendizado constataram que tanto os indivíduos quanto a organização como um todo eram capazes de atuar mais efetivamente e que isto contribuía para a sustentabilidade e resiliência. A abordagem também extraiu lições importantes sobre a preparação organizacional para incorporar aprendizado e mudança.

Incorporar nuevos aprendizajes al desarrollo de capacidades organizacionales en ONG de Camboya

En Camboya se aplicó un método de aprendizaje integral para la construcción de capacidades institucionales en ONG que produjo importantes resultados en algunas organizaciones y proporcionó datos relevantes sobre los obstáculos que impiden los avances en otras. Este método muestra con claridad que si se va más allá de las acciones habituales de capacitación y de desarrollo institucional y se abordan procesos que promuevan el aprendizaje integrándolos en el trabajo cotidiano, se pueden obtener resultados positivos y duraderos. Las organizaciones que se mostraron dispuestas a incorporar este método de aprendizaje consiguieron mejores resultados en el trabajo tanto de los individuos como de la organización y aumentó su sustentabilidad y flexibilidad. El método también generó importantes datos sobre la predisposición de las organizaciones a incorporar el aprendizaje y el cambio.     

Why can't development be managed more like a funeral? Challenging participatory practices

The adoption of techniques to elicit community participation in development practice is an important step forward. The question remains whether this is sufficient for development outcomes that accord with the aspirations of ‘participants’. Community perceptions are somewhat different, as our own conclusions demonstrate. We have developed a ‘methodology of inclusiveness’, based on community institutions which embed collective social action in everyday life. We use the analogy of funerals as collective action in which activities are planned, roles are demarcated, responsibilities are assigned, and desired outcomes are realised. We ask the question: why can't development be managed more like a funeral?     

The Paung Ku model: encouraging change through learning

It is well known within international development practice that the terms “capacity building” or “capacity development” are often used but infrequently (and inconsistently) defined; whether in funding applications, program strategies, staff training programmes, or field work. This article outlines the way in which one development organisation working in Burma/Myanmar wrestled with the issue of meaning, and practice, in relation to capacity development; it also reports on the resulting “Paung Ku model: encouraging change through learning.”     

Identifying and understanding African norms and values that support endogenous development in Africa

Contemporary development issues are not new. All groups of people, based on their worldviews and contexts, found ways of addressing these societal problems. By their nature, solutions were relevant, legitimate, and sustainable in their contexts. A prerequisite for effective development practice is to understand and respect the roots of African culture. There needs to be a “rootedness” to change and development. Exogenous ideas and practices of potential benefit to Africa must build from the inside out, not outside-in, as an imposition. This article illustrates how African societies have viewed and dealt with these socio-political issues from within.     

Whose lives are worth more? Politicising research safety in developing countries

This article develops the ‘safety–emotion–power’ nexus and highlights the role of emotion in research by politicising the unequal power relationships between researchers and NGO staff members in defining danger and negotiating safety in their fieldwork. Drawing on the author's research experiences in Bangladesh and Ghana, it argues that research touching on emotion-laden topics can inflict stress and pain on NGO staff members and their families. The ‘right to safety’ of NGO staff members is often compromised by researchers' ‘right to know’. The norms of conflict-avoidance also deter NGO staff members from negotiating safety. In addressing these issues, the article suggests three principles for taking account of emotional aspects of safety in research ethics.     

Making aid effective at the community level: the AMREF experience

Effective use of donor aid is critical in achieving the sixth Millennium Development Goal –reversing the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2015. The Paris Declaration of 2005 identified five key principles for aid effectiveness: ownership, alignment, harmonisation, mutual accountability and managing for results. As civil society organisations play a critical role in implementing HIV/AIDS interventions, it is important that they adhere to these principles. Often, however, they fail to implement interventions conforming with the principles, leading to duplication and inefficiency. Two case studies from AMREF in Kenya demonstrate how the principles of aid effectiveness can be applied to increase the impact of HIV/AIDS interventions.

Rendre l'aide efficace au niveau communautaire : l'expérience d'AMREF

L'utilisation efficace de l'aide apportée par les bailleurs de fonds est cruciale pour atteindre le sixième Objectif du Millénaire pour le développement – inverser l'épidémie du VIH/sida d'ici à 2015. La Déclaration de Paris de 2005 a identifié cinq principes clés pour l'efficacité de l'aide : l'appropriation, l'alignement, l'harmonisation, la redevabilité mutuelle et la gestion en vue de résultats. Comme les organisations de la société civile jouent un rôle crucial dans la mise en ?uvre des interventions en matière de VIH/sida, il est important qu'elles adhèrent à ces principes. Cependant, souvent, elles échouent à mettre en ?uvre des interventions conformes aux principes, ce qui aboutit à des doublons et à l'inefficacité. Deux études de cas d'AMREF au Kenya démontrent la manière dont les principes de l'efficacité de l'aide peuvent être appliqués pour accroître l'impact des interventions de lutte contre le VIH/sida.

Tornando a Ajuda Efetiva no Âmbito da Comunidade: A experiência da AMREF

O uso efetivo da ajuda dos doadores é crucial para se alcançar o sexto Objetivo de Desenvolvimento do Milênio – reverter a epidemia do HIV/AIDS até 2015. A Declaração de Paris de 2005 identificou cinco princípios-chave para a efetividade da ajuda: apropriação, alinhamento, harmonização, responsabilidade mútua e gerenciamento para resultados. Como as organizações da sociedade civil desempenham um papel crucial na implementação de intervenções relativas ao HIV/AIDS, é importante que elas tenham adesão a estes princípios. Frequentemente, porém, elas falham na implementação das intervenções de acordo com os princípios, levando à duplicação e ineficiência. Dois estudos de caso da AMREF no Quênia mostram como os princípios da efetividade da ajuda podem ser aplicados para aumentar o impacto das intervenções relativas ao HIV/AIDS.

Una ayuda más eficiente a nivel comunitario: la experiencia AMREF

Para alcanzar los Objetivos de Desarrollo del Milenio y conseguir que la epidemia del VIH/SIDA retroceda para el 2015, es de vital importancia que la ayuda de los donantes se utilice con más eficiencia. La Declaración de París de 2005 enunció cinco principios clave para que la ayuda sea eficaz: apropiación, alineación, armonización, rendición de cuentas mutua y gestión basada en los resultados. Debido a que las organizaciones de la sociedad civil desempeñan un papel fundamental en la lucha contra el VIH/SIDA, es necesario que éstas respeten los cinco principios. Sin embargo, a menudo éstos no se aplican en la práctica ocasionando duplicidades y falta de eficiencia. Dos estudios de caso de AMREF (siglas en inglés de la Fundación Africana de Medicina e Investigación) en Kenia muestran cómo estos principios de eficacia en la ayuda son útiles para aumentar el impacto de la lucha contra el VIH/SIDA.     

Wiki approaches to wicked problems: considering African traditions in innovative collaborative approaches

Wicked problems are complex problems that are seemingly impossible to solve. However, an analysis of selected traditional African philosophies provides insight into how certain traditions may be applied in a practical sense to address social and environmental problems. Further, many newer collaborative and ‘wiki’-based solutions provide a natural way for Africans and other global actors to participate in lessening the impact of global wicked problems. Ushahidi and the Geo-Wiki Project serve as examples of organisations that have provided a platform for this type of open development.     

Endogenous development: naïve romanticism or practical route to sustainable African development?

Development theory and practice in developing countries are dominated by the power of Western ideas, worldviews, actors, tools, models, and frameworks. Consequently, the resulting development interventions may too rarely be locally rooted, locally driven, or resonant with local context. Another reality is that theories and practice from developing countries rarely travel to the Western agencies dominating development, undermining the possibility of a beneficial synergy that could be obtained from the best of the two worlds: West and developing countries. There are many reasons why the experience of locally driven development is not communicated back to global development actors, including but not limited to the marginal role of Southern voices in global fora. Perhaps the greatest unwelcome and unintended outcome is that by trying to create, or perhaps better said, “clone” development in developing countries in the image of Western “development”, development efforts defeat their own purpose through undermining their own relevance, legitimacy, and sustainability.     

The human organisation: challenges in NGOs and development programmes

It is frequently contended that NGOs and the wider context of development are intrinsically different from other organisational settings within which Human Resource Development (HRD) is believed to play an important role. The author outlines the basic concepts underpinning human development within organisations, and organisational development, and sets out the arguments for greater investment in people. While this can raise ethical and practical issues in organisations that depend on external funds rather than generating their own income, the failure to develop the staff on whom a development organisation ultimately depends carries far greater risks. Management and specifically HRD are not desk-bound activities that can be pursued through the application of protocols and sanctions, but require vision, leadership, and hands-on engagement.     

The success of Afghan NGOs

During the 1990s, and as part of a broader drive towards the “Afghanisation” of humanitarian assistance in Pakistan, Afghan NGOs became key implementing agencies supporting refugee-related and reconstruction activities in Afghanistan. This paper provides a detailed account of their emergence and consolidation, with a twofold objective. First, it complements and contributes to recent studies on Afghan NGOs and Afghan civil society, by providing historical insights on their trajectory. Second, it assesses such trajectory as a way of engaging with broader discussions on the role of NGOs within humanitarian operations.

Le succès des ONG afghanes

Durant les années 1990, et dans le cadre d'une initiative plus générale vers l’« afghanisation » de l'assistance humanitaire au Pakistan, les ONG afghanes sont devenues des agences clés de mise en ?uvre soutenant des activités de reconstruction et d'aide aux réfugiés en Afghanistan. Cet article propose un compte rendu détaillé de leur apparition et de leur consolidation, dans un double objectif. En premier lieu il complète et contribue à des études récentes sur les ONG afghanes et la société civile afghane, en donnant un aperçu historique de leur trajectoire. En second lieu, il évalue cette trajectoire dans le but de prendre part à des discussions plus larges sur le rôle des ONG dans les opérations humanitaires.

El éxito de las ong afganas

Como parte de un esfuerzo dirigido a “afganizar” la asistencia humanitaria en Pakistán durante los años noventa, las ong afganas se volvieron agencias operativas clave para el apoyo de actividades vinculadas a los refugiados y a la reconstrucción en Afganistán. El presente artículo proporciona una historia detallada de su aparición y de su consolidación y tiene dos objetivos. En primer lugar, complementar y contribuir a los estudios recientes respecto a las ong afganas y a la sociedad civil afgana, esclareciendo su trayectoria histórica. En segundo lugar, realizar una valoración de dicha trayectoria como una manera de participar en el debate más amplio en torno al rol jugado por las ong en el ámbito de las operaciones humanitarias.

O sucesso de ONGs afegãs

Durante a década de 1990, como parte de uma orientação mais geral para a “Afeganização” da assistência humanitária no Paquistão, ONGs afegãs tornaram-se agências implementadoras cruciais que apoiam atividades relacionadas a refugiados e à reconstrução no Afeganistão. Este artigo oferece um relato detalhado sobre o seu surgimento e consolidação, com um duplo objetivo. Primeiramente, ele complementa e contribui para estudos recentes sobre ONGs afegãs e a sociedade civil afegã, fornecendo informações históricas sobre sua trajetória. Em segundo lugar, ele avalia tal trajetória como forma de engajamento com discussões mais gerais sobre o papel de ONGs dentro de operações humanitárias.     

Reaching the Millennium Development Goals: equality and justice as well as results

Though less than expected, resources are available for simple, cheap interventions that can accelerate progress towards the Millennium Development Goals. Results-based management has been the key to increasing access to education and health care, but it does little to change the political, social, and economic conditions that make people poor. Unless there is a better balance between the drive to achieve measurable impact, investments in long-term poverty-eradication measures, and the creation of space where poor people can discuss and develop strategies for achieving equality and social justice, it will not be as easy to make poverty history as many people think.     

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.