NGOs and civil society

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A non-governmental organisation — a non-profit group working for a cause, such as delivering aid or campaigning for rights.

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The web of citizens' groups, charities and movements outside government and business that act on shared concerns.

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Deliver aid and services, run development projects, advocate for fairer policies, and hold power to account — often reaching where states fail.

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They are close to the ground, flexible and mission-driven, so they can reach the poorest and most remote where states cannot or will not.

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They are unelected and accountable to donors rather than to the people they serve.

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Unlike governments, they are unelected and answer to donors and boards, so communities cannot vote them out even when priorities follow donor wishes.

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By providing services the government should provide, they can let weak governments off the hook rather than building state capacity.

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They rely on funding from donors, which can pull their priorities toward donor fashions rather than local needs.

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Lasting development needs a state that can tax, plan, provide at scale and be held accountable by its people — which NGOs cannot do.

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Partnership with the state — filling gaps, innovating, advocating and building state capacity rather than substituting for it.

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Campaigning to change policies — for debt relief, fair trade, human rights or better services — and giving voice to the marginalised.