Between a Rock and a Hard Place: International NGOs and the Dual Pressures of Donors and Host GovernmentsThe Taming of Democracy Assistance: Why Democracy Promotion Does Not Confront Dictators. By Sarah Sunn Bush. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015.Help or Harm: The Human Security Effects of International NGOs. By Amanda Murdie. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2014.Civil Society under Authoritarianism: The China Model. By Jessica C. Teets. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014.

2017 ◽  
Vol 79 (2) ◽  
pp. 732-741 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Heiss ◽  
Judith Kelley
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Human Security ◽  
Democracy Promotion ◽  
Stanford University ◽  
Cambridge University ◽  
Democracy Assistance ◽  
International Ngos ◽  
China Model ◽  
Hard Place

scholarly journals Between a Rock and a Hard Place: International NGOs and the Dual Pressures of Donors and Host Governments

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Heiss ◽  
Judith G. Kelley
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Human Security ◽  
Democracy Promotion ◽  
Stanford University ◽  
Cambridge University ◽  
Democracy Assistance ◽  
International Ngos ◽  
China Model ◽  
Hard Place

Review of:- The Taming of Democracy Assistance: Why Democracy Promotion Does Not Confront Dictators. By Sarah Sunn Bush. (Cambridge University Press, 2015.)- Help or Harm: The Human Security Effects of International NGOs. By Amanda Murdie. (Stanford University Press, 2014.)- Civil Society under Authoritarianism: The China Model. By Jessica C. Teets. (Cambridge University Press, 2014.)

Promoting Democracy

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manal A. Jamal
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Democracy Promotion ◽  
General Level ◽  
Political Transitions ◽  
Systematic Analysis ◽  
Palestinian Territories ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Democracy Assistance ◽  
Donor Agencies ◽  
The Impact

Democracy aid has grown considerably since the end of the Cold War. In the late 1980s, less than US$1 billion a year went to democracy assistance; by 2015, the estimated total was more than $10 billion. Despite this overwhelming commitment to spreading democracy abroad, the results have been mixed, and in some cases, this aid has in fact undermined the longer-term prospects for democratic development. What factors account for these different outcomes? Why are democracy promotion efforts far more successful in some cases as opposed to others? Promoting Democracy answers these questions while also providing an often overlooked perspective - the perspective of those most directly affected by the impact of this assistance. By examining two primary conflicttopeace transition cases- the Palestinian territories and El Salvador- and drawing from over 150 interviews with grassroots activists, political leaders, heads of NGOs, and directors of donor agencies, Manal A. Jamal investigates how democracy assistance shaped the re-constitution of political and civic life. She examines these developments at a more macro, general level in terms of democratic outcomes and then at the level of civil society by tracing transformations in one social movement sector--the women’s sector--in each case. She argues that ultimately the pervading political settlements determined the different outcomes, and that democracy assistance mediated these processes. The book then expands the temporal and geographic aperture of the study by examining developments in the Palestinian territories following Ḥamas’ 2006 election victory, and then by investigating the impact of political settlements and the mediating role of democracy assistance in Iraq and South Africa during the start of their political transitions. Jamal challenges more simple accounts that rely on NGO professionalization to explain civil society outcomes and illustrates how pervading political settlements that govern political relations in these contexts ultimately determined the different outcomes. By providing a systematic analysis of how democracy assistance impacts civil society and broader democratic outcomes, she provides new ways of understanding the relationship between foreign aid and domestic political contexts and resolves key debates about the limits of democracy promotion in non-inclusive political contexts.

Democratizing dictators? Non-democratic regime conditions and the allocation of US democracy assistance, 1975–2010

2019 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 436-450 ◽  
Author(s):  
James M Scott ◽  
Ralph G Carter
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
International Development ◽  
Regime Type ◽  
Democracy Promotion ◽  
Democratic Regime ◽  
Democracy Assistance ◽  
Agency For International Development ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Usa

As the USA initiated strategies of democracy promotion to support the spread of democracy, a key element involved democracy assistance. However, some states receive substantial commitments of US democracy aid while other states receive little or none, and the mix of democracy assistance varies in allocation between civil society and institutional channels. This study examines democracy aid allocation, focusing on the role of regime conditions on the targeting and composition of the aid. We disaggregate regime type to differentiate among non-democratic governments and argue that such differences affect both the amount of democracy aid and whether aid packages target government institutions or civil society channels. We theorize how these regime conditions shape allocations, controlling for donor interests and recipient features, and test our argument against US democracy aid allocations by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) from 1975 to 2010. We conclude with discussion of the implications of these findings.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document