Prof David Lewis of the London School of Economics and Political Science’s South Asia Centre discussed the role of some renowned local NGOs in the development of rural people in Bangladesh and the causes behind a decline in their activities.

He said these NGOs such as Proshika, Gonoshahajjo Sangstha, and Samata, who were at their peak during the 1990s and early 2000s, now have faded from view, or evolved into organisations primarily engaged in microcredit delivery work.
The reasons for their decline included difficult political environment, disruptive practices of some foreign donors, which either neglected them in favour of more mainstream NGOs, or else over-funded them creating rapid expansion that damaged them, and weaknesses with their leadership and management systems, he opined.

Prof Lewis concluded by saying: “We need to learn lessons from the decline of the radical NGO sub-sector. A diverse civil society is an important part of any society. It is where new ideas are generated, where alternative new political leaders may emerge, and where government and business can be held more accountable.”