Aid, Ngos and the Realities of Women's Lives—A Perfect Storm

Aid organizations have their origins in a desire to help the world's poorest and most marginalized people - but are they reaching these people? Factors are coming together that put pressure on NGOs working in development: the economic crisis, the growing conditionality of aid, and increased competition for funding between NGOs. This creates 'a perfect storm' driven by a new language of aid, policies and procedures leaving poor women behind. This book explores how international NGOs are navigating these rapid changes that challenge their role and legitimacy, values, and overall purpose. The writers see a crisis for NGOs as they are pulled further from those they claim to work with; they also explore alternative ways of conceptualizing development, and of bringing about improvements for the most marginalized and increasingly 'unheard' women. The book calls for a re-examination of theories about change and suggests that NGOs must keep open a creative space to articulate concerns, challenge dominant norms, and work in ways that have meaning for the poor, recognizing the realities of the lives of poor women in whose name many now raise huge funds. This book is essential reading for development practitioners and those working on women's rights, as well as NGO staff, researchers, and students of development studies.