Up and Down, and Inside Out: Where do We Stand on NGO Accountability?

Hyman Zyl () and Frederik Claeyé ()
Additional contact information
Hyman Zyl: AidIt
Frederik Claeyé: LEM UMR CNRS 9221 and Lille Catholic University, Faculty of Management, Economics and Sciences

The European Journal of Development Research, 2019, vol. 31, issue 3, No 12, 604-619

Abstract: Abstract This paper brings a review of the literature on accountability in development NGOs with a view to highlighting where we stand. There has been a shift from top-down approaches focussing on upward accountability mechanisms towards a growing literature that theorises and empirically investigates downward accountability mechanisms. This literature theorises a link between ownership of the development process and aid effectiveness. However, little attention has been paid to potential differences in the accountability mechanisms used in locally- and non-locally-owned NGOs. Considering that the members of locally-owned NGOs come from the same culture as the beneficiaries they serve, understanding how local NGOs’ implementation of accountability differs from other organisations would shed light on how to secure the trust of the beneficiaries. Such knowledge would assist NGOs globally to overcome the challenges of downward accountability and to enhance aid delivery.

Keywords: Development NGOs; NGO accountability; Literature review; Local NGOs; Downward accountability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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Working Paper: Up and Down, and Inside Out: Where do We Stand on NGO Accountability? (2018)
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DOI: 10.1057/s41287-018-0170-3

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