Transcript NGOs in Development

NGOs in Development
Adam Walker
Laura Williamson
NGOs in Development
Agenda
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Introduction
Overview of NGOs
Categories and Types of NGOs
Trends and Scale of the NGO sector
Reasons for NGO growth
The Downside to NGOs
Amnesty International Overview
A.I Main Practices
Amnesty International Analysis
Overview
A non-governmental organization, (NGO), is any nonprofit, voluntary citizens' group, which is organized on a
local, national or international level.
NGOs provide analysis and expertise, serve as early
warning mechanisms, dispense aid, and help monitor and
implement international agreements
NGOs are typically value-based organizations, which
depend, in whole or in part, on charitable donations and
voluntary service
Categories of NGOs
The term NGO is very broad and encompasses many different types of
organizations
The main Categories of NGOs include;
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i) operational NGOs
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ii) advocacy NGOs
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whose primary purpose is the design and implementation of developmentrelated projects (Centre for Development & Population Activities)
whose primary purpose is to defend or promote a specific cause and who seek
to influence the policies and practices of countries (Amnesty International)
iii) humanitarian NGOs
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whose primary purpose is to provide aid in disaster areas, and alleviate
suffering from poverty and disease (e.g. red cross)
Types of NGOs
Individual NGOs vary enormously according to their
purpose, philosophy, sector expertise and scope of
activities
Some are also affiliated with world bodes or companies
E.g. World Bank, UN
NGOs can be classified by whether;
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they are more relief or development-oriented
they are religious or secular
they stress service delivery or participation
they are more public or private-oriented
Impact of the NGO sector
It is now estimated that over 15 percent of total overseas
development aid is channelled through NGOs (World
Bank)
Total NGO numbers are hard to pin down for good reason;
Current estimates put the number of NGOs around;
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6,000 and 30,000 national NGOs in developing countries
29,000 approximate international NGOs
Community based organizations across the developing and
developed world that number in the hundreds of thousands
(World Bank, Economist)
Trends in the NGO sector
Over the past several decades, NGOs have become major players in
the field of international development
Since the mid-1970s, the NGO sector in both developed and
developing countries has experienced exponential growth
According to the World Bank, from 1970 to 1985 total development
aid disbursed by international NGOs increased ten-fold
This trend peaked in 1992 with $7.6 billion dollars being distributed
by NGOs to developing countries
Reasons for NGO growth
NGO growth has resulted primarily from Governments
increasingly using them to dispense their aid
Not a matter of charity, but privatization
(e.g. Between 1990-1994 the EU’s relief aid channelled
through NGOs rose from 47% to 67%)
Governments have realized that NGOs provide a number
of advantages that government sponsored programs don’t
have
Advantages
Can go places and undertake missions in areas
where governments can’t go
More cost efficient than governments
Strong grassroots links
Field-based development expertise
The ability to innovate and adapt
Participatory methodologies and tools
Long-term commitment and emphasis on
sustainability
Limitations of NGOs
limited financial and management expertise
limited institutional capacity
low levels of self-sustainability
isolation/lack of inter-organizational communication
and/or coordination
small scale interventions
lack of understanding of the broader social or economic
context
Some dangerous practices
When NGOs can do harm!
If under scrutinized, groups can become wasteful.
(Therefore, not necessarily more efficient than government
programs)
Some aid groups are used to propagate western values, as
Christian missionaries did in the 19th century. ( i.e.
disruptive to local cultures/customs)
Some projects may not clearly be in the interests of the
countries. (e.g. buying slaves in order to free them)
Dangerous Practices Continued
Can cause resentment among locals if NGOs employees
come with western living standards and divert money from
local governments
Can complicate foreign policy as NGOs also get involved
in situations where their presence may prolong or
complicate wars by unintentionally feeding armies,
sheltering hostages or serving as cover for warring parties
Amnesty International
Analysis of a Large, International
NGO
Organization Structure and
History (I)
Amnesty International has around one
million members and supporters in 162
countries and territories.
The organization is celebrating its 40th
birthday this year
Organization Structure and
History (II)
Amnesty International is a democratic
movement self-governed by a nine-member
International Executive Committee (IEC).
eight volunteer members, elected every two
years by an International Council comprising
representatives of the worldwide movement
 an elected member of the International
Secretariat.
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Main Practices, Goals and Initiatives
(I)
*Statute of Amnesty International:
As amended by the 25th International Council, meeting in Dakar, Senegal, 17 to
25 August 2001
VISION AND MISSION:
“Amnesty International's vision is of a world in which every
person enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights and other international human
rights standards. In pursuit of this vision, Amnesty
International's mission is to undertake research and action
focused on preventing and ending grave abuses of the rights to
physical and mental integrity, freedom of conscience and
expression, and freedom from discrimination, within the context
of its work to promote all human rights”
Main Practices, Goals and Initiatives
(II)
CORE VALUES:
“Amnesty International forms a global community of
human rights defenders with the principles of international
solidarity, effective action for the individual victim, global
coverage, the universality and indivisibility of human
rights, impartiality and independence, and democracy and
mutual respect.”
Main Practices, Goals and Initiatives
(III)
METHODS:
Public Demonstrations
Letter writing
Human Rights Education
Fundraising
Individual Appeals
International Campaigns
Main Practices, Goals and Initiatives
(IV)
CURRENT INITIATIVES:
“Stop the Torture”
“True Cost of Diamonds”
“Child Soldiers”
A.I and ‘Sins of the Secular
Missionaries’
NGO and Government
Interdependence (I)
THE MONEY:
“Amnesty International's funding reflects the
movement's independence and its reliance on broad
public support. No funds are sought or accepted from
governments for Amnesty International's work
investigating and campaigning against human rights
violations. The hundreds of thousands of donations
that sustain this work come from the pockets of it's
members and the public and organisations such as
trusts, foundations and companies.”
NGO and Government
Interdependence (II)
THE MONEY: (continued)
Yearly Audit with detailed accounting of
spending
Provision in the AI Statute the prohibits
employees or volunteers from receiving
dividends, bonuses, etc.
NGO and Forced ‘Help’
June 1999: AI verses the Government of Togo
The case was sparked by a recent Amnesty
International report which accused the
Togolese government of the disappearance
of some 100 people, whose bodies were
thrown into the Atlantic Ocean, only
to resurface later.
NGO and Forced ‘Help’
Government Reaction:
"Mr. Sane, as the head of Amnesty International, has spread
false information with the explicit goal of fomenting unrest,
creating a state of permanent insecurity, and creating the
general feeling that the government in Togo is illegitimate.
It's a sinister plot."
NGO and Forced ‘Help’
Amnesty International’s Reaction:
"Amnesty International has no political agenda. We're a
totally impartial and autonomous organization. Our
objective in Togo is to ensure better protection
for most Togolese and foreigners who live in Togo."
NGO and Forced ‘Help’
Results:
The Commission recommended the nomination of
a UN Special Rapporteur on
Togo; the nomination of a team of experts to
exhume the bodies buried in Togo and
Benin, and financial help from the international
community to set up a mechanism to monitor and
protect witnesses and the nomination of a judicial
commission of enquiry.