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Part 1
“Non-governmental organization (NGO), a designation normally associated with
organizations working in the field of development, environment or human rights, are a subgroup
of the third sector organizational family” (Lewis, 2014. pg. 16). During the 1990s much
literature began to come out that celebrated the work being done by NGOs, however they were
being written by those associated with the organization or those who worked directly for them.
Although this type of organization had been around for many years, it became the trend to
associate with support, and be a part of these organizations. This sentiment rose from a
frustration felt by many with the lack of forward movement from government organizations.
People began to see these developmental NGOs as the “magic bullet that could solve
developmental problems” (Lewis, 2014. pg. 22). The discussion became the ease of access that
NGOs had to the impoverished people they sought to aid as well as their ability to respond more
quickly to local problems, and their capability to create new sets of practices for development in
these arenas.
NGOs perceived in this romantic way initially because many saw them as organizations
that held the genuine interest of those in need and helped far more than government agencies
were able to. However, critics soon arose to state that, “NGOs have simply become self-
interested ‘professional agitators’ and have also grown out of touch with many of the ordinary
people that they claim to represent” (Lewis, 2014. pg. 22). Other issues that arose were the
allegations surrounding NGOs existing to sustain political and social standings and simply
become privatized organizations with an agenda to inform their own ideologies. Even in China, a
law was passed in 2017 that placed heavy regulation on foreign NGOs. The Chinese government
speculated that some of these organizations were simply serving as fronts for foreign intelligence
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agencies and hoped to gain relevant information regarding China’s government, economic and
social standings (Kuhn, 2016). While some said these accusations were wildly unsubstantiated,
the opposition to many types of this organization are still heavily opposed throughout the globe.
One such claim is that “NGOs are the enemies of the free market and that their role in promoting
global governance challenges the established interests of governments and business” (Lewis,
2014. pg. 23). The accusation is that many NGOs that are created by governing bodies and
persons are simply developed for the government to have a further reaching arm into the free
market to create more regulation and impose their agendas in other spheres.
Part 2
In Chapter 2, Lewis ventures that while there are many different types of NGOs and each
having diverse moving parts, they all need to manage in three distinct areas. “…the organizational
domain of their internal structures and processes; the activities that they undertake in line with
their aims and vision, which may be in the form of projects or programs, campaigns or services;
and finally, their management of relationships with other institutional actors” (Lewis, 2014. pg.
28). While each of these areas of focus are distinct, they are interrelated by falling under the
domain of their environment; this is due to the fact that their environment often dictates their
efforts in each of the other three areas. If political or economic changes occur, the environment
and perhaps even the regulations within the organization shift or if the organization lends aid to a
foreign country in need, the issues that country faces may adjust their procedures due to shifting
environment. These factors may shift the organizational structure of the NGO and often the way
they conduct their business. “One set of challenges is to improve professionalism while resisting
the dangers of ‘managerialism’, defined as the unwarranted and often ideological reliance on
purely technical problem solving” (Lewis, 2014. pg. 29).
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Another sphere that is affected is the activities segment. The types of activities that NGOs
focus are implementation, partnerships, and catalysts. The role of implementation is to mobilize
resources and provide goods and services. Partnerships involves the building of connection with
possible donors, governing entities, and the building of meaningful partnerships with the private
sector to avoid dependency on one body. Finally, the catalyst role is often “contrasted with that
of implementation, and takes in advocacy, community empowerment and innovation and is
generally associated with radical or alternative development” (Lewis, 2014. pg. 29).
A significant sphere within the framework of an NGO is that of relationships. NGOs
generally have small beginnings are often at the mercy of the leaders or constituents to develop
relations for funding of projects, staffing, project realization, and budgeting. When looking at the
external factors involved in building relationship, NGOs pursue lobbying, the collaboration with
notable individuals or groups, and those who call themselves their patrons. The last segment
involved in these spheres is that of organization. “… the organizational culture that NGOs seek to
promote in their working styles, leadership and interactions with communities… managers often
choose to see themselves as ‘facilitators’, ‘organizers or ‘coordinators’” (Lewis, 2014. pg. 32).
There is a precedence set within in NGO that creates the organization and sets the tone for how
they will operate, interact, and connect with each other and the world around them. Each of these
spheres intersect to create a holistic framework developing and organization that can be seen as
more dependable and even lays groundwork for donors and collaborators to trust that their
donations and cooperative efforts are warranted.
Works Cited
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Kuhn, A. (2016, April 28). China passes law putting foreign NGOs under stricter police control.
NPR. Retrieved January 18, 2022, from
https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2016/04/28/476060206/china-passes-law-putting-
foreign-ngos-under-stricter-police-control
Lewis, D. (2007). The Management of Non-Governmental Development Organizations.
Routledge.
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