GDI Lecture: Where do we go from here? Navigating power inequalities between development NGOs in the aid system
| Dates: | 17 April 2024 |
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| Times: | 15:00 - 16:30 |
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| What is it: | Lecture |
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| Organiser: | Global Development Institute |
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| Who is it for: | University staff, External researchers, Alumni, Current University students, General public |
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With speakers Nicola Banks, Badru Bukenya (Makarere University), Willem Elbers (Radboud University), Emmanuel Kumi (University of Ghana), Margit van Wessel (Wageningen University), Thomas Yeboah (University of Ghana), Innocent Kamya (Makarere University), and Lau Schulpen (Radboud University)
In a context in which localisation, locally-led development and ‘shift the power’ are amongst the most frequently and heatedly discussed topics in development cooperation, how far are we progressing when it comes to reducing power imbalances between development NGOs in the Global North and South? Based on recent mixed methods research, including a large-scale survey, it comes as no surprise that most NGOs, whether from the Global North or South, believe that there is a significant power imbalance between NNGOs and SNGOs, with both sides reporting that their own partnerships are performing ‘better’ regarding power imbalances. Also on both sides, organisations see ‘the bigger system’ as problematic. This research reveals a shared understanding of and frustration around a global aid system founded on colonial legacies of inequality that raise serious questions about whether it is fit for purpose. Global agendas and priorities are seen as dominated by Northern actors and interests, with funding systems maintaining this hierarchy. Across all actors, funding is considered the primary source of power imbalances and dominates the priorities of NGOs in the North and South. This raises the question of how to progress towards more equitable relationships between SNGOs and NNGOs (and the processes and outcomes in policies, programmes and funding within these) while simultaneously balancing this with the need for deeper systemic change.
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Humanities Bridgeford Street
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