Hiding Behind the Mirage: How Ngos Are More Destructive Than Thought

Ever since President Truman created the Third World by proclaiming that some countries were more developed than others there have been world-wide organizations, both a part and separate from governments, which have looked to help those countries come out of the past. Although many developing countries and their citizens are wary of other governments looking to help them out, non-government organizations (NGOs) have often been able to fly under the radar and continue aiding Third World countries, at times with similar motives as their respective governments. There have been many examples over the past 60 years of the mistreatment and exploitation of development aid, which have not only been enshrined in the systems themselves, but also the modes of implementation. It should, therefore, be just as important to consider and be vigilant of the role NGOs, in particular Northern ones, play in the development of the Third World as those of Western governments.

The roles NGOs play are numerous, simply because each one represents different values, backgrounds, goals and expectations. While religious forms of non-governmental organizations have existed for many centuries, as can be witnessed by the missionaries and Christian schools set up in the European colonies , in the last 60 or so years, many other types have also been added to the list, such as human rights, research, economic development, disaster relief, and most recently environmentally based issues. In addition, NGOs have recently been classified as Northern NGOs (NNGOs), based in the “Global North” or developed world, or Southern NGOs (SNGOs), hailing from the “Global South”, or those countries still trying to catch up . Because of the origins of these separate groups, NNGOs are often assumed to have more devastating effects on the whole than SNGOs, simply because the latter arise from the developing populations and are aware of the most effective means of development . While both types of NGOs have historically had different impacts when aiding countries, in many cases, they have also worked together on collaborative projects. This paper will, for the most part, concentrate on how and why certain NNGOs have and continue to have negative impacts on the regions that they claim to aspire to aid, though some conclusions can be inclusive of all types of NGOs.

In recent years, innumerable NGOs have arisen, all with differing intentions, goals and