Abstract
Since their advent until now, the international development agencies and their discourses have earned appreciation and scorn around their engagements in Nepali, Kenyan, and Ugandan development context. On the one hand, their centrality in mainstream development has received praise, while, on the other, their promotion of Western, hegemonic, and colonial development paradigms has been widely criticized within the contexts from which this chapter is written. Following the White savior mentality, the charity-narrative has masked the ongoing neocolonialism that communities continue to experience. Hence, drawing on a post-, alternative-decolonized development perspective, this chapter will explore how the idea of development led by the international development agencies itself is dead. The chapter will examine the persistence of West-to-the rest thinking that has perpetuated the continued imposition of Western models and agendas, ignoring indigenous models of responding and preventing social problems. While doing so, it will also suggest how the idea of development can be revived alternatively that withers away from the international development agencies.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Angucia M, Katusiimeh MW (2015) The politics of promoting social protection in Uganda: a case of the cash transfer scheme for elderly people. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5971b3a9ed915d0baf0001fb/The-Politics-of-Promoting-Social-Protection-in-Uganda_A-Case-of-the-Cash-Transfer-Scheme-for-Elderly-People.pdf
Association of International NGOs (2014) AIN membership report 2014. AIN, Kathmandu
Becker B (2020) Colonial legacies in international aid: policy priorities and actor constellations. In: Schmitt C (ed) From colonialism to international aid: external actors and social protection in the global South. Palgrave Macmillan
Bell T (2014) Kathmandu. Random House India, New Delhi
Bulhan AH (2015) Stages of colonialism in Africa: from occupation of land to occupation of being. J Soc Polit Psychol 3(1):239–256
Chilisa B (2022) Decolonising research and evaluation methodologies ASWNET. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHDD7ujJFyc
Collier MJ (2013) Dancing with development: UN and INGO community engagement in Nepal. In: Collier MJ (ed) Community engagement and intercultural praxis: dancing with difference in diverse contexts. Peter Lang, Bern, pp 31–61
Fujikura T (2001) Discourse of awareness: notes for a criticism of development in Nepal. Stud Nepali Hist Soc 6(2):271–313
Gatwiri K (2019) Afrocentric social work. In: Tascon S, Ife J (eds) Disrupting whiteness in social work. Routledge, New York
Gatwiri K, Tusasiirwe S (2022) Afrocentric feminism and Ubuntu-led social work practice in an African context. In: Rethinking feminist theories for social work practice. Springer, New York, pp 123–139
Government of Nepal and United Nations Nepal (2013) Nepal Millennium Development Goals: progress report 2013. NPC and United Nations Country Team Nepal, Kathmandu
Government of Nepal and United Nations Development Program (2014) Nepal human development report 2014: beyond geography, unlocking human potential. Kathmandu, Nepal: NPC and UNDP
Gray M, Kreitzer L, Mupedziswa R (2014) The enduring relevance of indigenisation in African social work: a critical reflection on ASWEA’s legacy. Ethics Soc Welf 8(2):101–116. https://doi.org/10.1080/17496535.2014.895397
Hickey S, BuKenya B (2016) The politics of promoting social cash transfers in Uganda. WIDER working paper no. 2016/118, issue. http://www.effective-states.org/wp-content/uploads/working_papers/final-pdfs/esid_wp_69_hickey_buKenya.pdf
Higgins M (2016) Reflections on methodology for a qualitative cross-cultural study of human rights. Africa: Moving the Boundaries, The University of Western, Australia
Jablonski RS (2014) How aid targets votes: the impact of electoral incentives on foreign aid distribution. World Polit 66(2):293–330. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0043887114000045
Lawoti M (2009) Evolution and growth of the Maoist insurgency in Nepal. In: Lawoti M, Pahari AK (eds) The Maoist insurgency in Nepal: revolution in the twenty-first century. Taylor and Francis, Hoboken, pp 3–30
Manji FM, O’Coill C (2002) The missionary position: NGOs and development in Africa. Int Aff 78:567–583
Mishra C (2007) Foreign aid and social structure: notes on the intrastate relationship. In: Mishra C (ed) Essays on the sociology of Nepal. Fine Print Books, Kathmandu, pp 163–174
Mosse D (ed) (2011) Adventures in aidland: the anthropology of professionals in international development. Berghahn Books, New York
Moyo D (2009) Dead aid: why aid is not working and how there is a better way for Africa. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York
Muasya IW (2012) The impact of structural adjustment programmes (SAPs) on education in Kenya. Int J Arts Commer 1(3):1–22
Niyonkuru F (2016) Failure of foreign aid in developing countries: a quest for alternatives. Bus Econ J 7(3):1–9
OECD (2018) Development aid at glance: statistics by region. https://www.oecd.org/dac/financing-sustainable-development/development-finance-data/africa-Development-Aid-at-a-Glance-2018.pdf
OECD (2022) ODA levels in 2021: preliminary data. https://www.oecd.org/dac/financing-sustainable-development/development-finance-standards/ODA-2021-summary.pdf
Okuonzi S (2004) Dying for economic growth? Evidence of a flawed economic policy in Uganda. Lancet 364(9445):1632–1637. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(04)17320-0
Panday DR (1999) Nepal’s failed development: reflections on the mission and the maladies. Nepal South Asia Centre, Kathmandu
Panday DR (2011) Looking at development and donors: essays from Nepal. Martin Chautari, Kathmandu
Panday DR (2012) The legacy of Nepal’s failed development. In: von Einsiedel S, Malone DM, Pradhan S (eds) Nepal in transition: from people’s war to fragile peace. Cambridge University Press, New Delhi, pp 81–99
Pigg SL (1992) Inventing social categories through place: social representations and development in Nepal. Comp Stud South Asia Afr Middle East 34(3):491–513
Pigg SL (1993) Unintended consequences: the ideological impact of development in Nepal. Comp Stud South Asia Afr Middle East 13(1–2):45–47
Rupiny D (2015) Government takes over implementation of SAGE programme. Uganda Radio Network. https://Ugandaradionetwork.com/story/government-takes-over-running-of-sage-programme
Sewpaul V (2014) Social work and poverty reduction in Africa: the indelible reality. In: Spitzer H, Twikirize MJ, Wairire GG (eds) Professional social work in East Africa: towards social development, poverty reduction and gender equality. Fountain Publishers, Kampala
Shrestha N (1995) Becoming a development category. In: Crush J (ed) Power of development. Routledge, London, pp 266–277
Shrestha NR (1997) In the name of development: a reflection on Nepal. University Press of America, New York
Social Welfare Council (2015a) List of INGOs working under agreement with Social Welfare Council. Retrieved on 7 December 2015, from http://www.swc.org.np/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/List-of-INGOs-2071_72.pdf
Social Welfare Council (2015b) NGOs affiliated with Social Welfare Council. Retrieved on 7 December 2015, from http://www.swc.org.np/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/SWC_NGOs_2034_071-asadh.pdf
Swamy G (1994) Kenya: patchy, intermittent. In: Husain I, Faruqee R (eds) Adjustment in Africa: lessons from country case studies. World Bank Publications, Washington, DC, p 193
Tandon Y (2008) Ending aid dependence. Fahamu/Pambazuka, Nairobi
Tusasiirwe S (2019) Stories from the margins to the centre: decolonising social work based on experiences of older women and social workers in Uganda. Western Sydney University, Penrith
Twikirize MJ (2017) Social work practice in the NGO sector in Uganda and Kenya: opportunities and challenges. In: Gray M (ed) The handbook of social work and social development in Africa. Routledge, London
United Nations Development Programme (2016) Human Development Report 2016: human development for everyone. United Nations Development Programme, New York
Vikala R (2000) A leaf in a begging bowl: modern Nepali stories (trans: Thapa M). Mandala Book Point, Kathmandu.
Wright GW (2012) NGOs and Western hegemony: causes for concern and ideas for change. Dev Pract 22(1):123–134
Yadav R (2019) Decolonised and developmental social work: a model from Nepal. Routledge, London
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Section Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2023 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
About this entry
Cite this entry
Yadav, R., Tusasiirwe, S., Gatwiri, K. (2023). Dead Aid: The Cases of International Development Agencies in Uganda, Kenya, and Nepal. In: Ravulo, J., Olcoń, K., Dune, T., Workman, A., Liamputtong, P. (eds) Handbook of Critical Whiteness. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-1612-0_43-1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-1612-0_43-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-19-1612-0
Online ISBN: 978-981-19-1612-0
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Social SciencesReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences