Contribution short abstract:

Using empirical data from Bangladesh, this study seeks to initiate a discourse on the influence of various development agencies at multiple levels and locations in perpetuating oppressive systems that conflict with localization and decolonization agendas.

Contribution long abstract:

One core mission of development is to empower and activate the individual and collective agency of people to combat all forms of injustice, violence, and oppression that hinder opportunities for a dignified life. Relying on decolonial and postcolonial perspectives, this paper critically explores the current localized practices of NGOs in Bangladesh that engage the most marginalized.

The ongoing research draws on primary data collected through one-to-one interviews, informal group exchanges and focus group discussions with the older adults, disabled and the santals, a plainland indigenous group. Data has been collected in a semi-ethnographic manner yielding in a bottom-up perspective of people’s everyday experience of engaging with development agencies and interventions.

The findings suggests that NGO operation in Bangladesh rather exemplifies what Paulo Freire termed ‘false generosity,’ where NGOs in the name of supporting the marginalized, subscribe to and perpetuate existing oppressive power structures. NGOs routinely engage with powerful bureaucrats, local elites and political leaders with the intention of smooth operation of their activities than challenging the status quo. NGOs are also seen as elite organizations with unbounded accountability to the communities they serve. This makes the NGOs operate in a ‘crisis of confidence’ (Cullen et al., 2022) despite their continuous presence and survival. Further research is required to understand the consequences of such legitimacy crisis and the future of development.