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The co-construction of NGO accountability

Author

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  • Brendan O'Dwyer
  • Roel Boomsma

Abstract

Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to deepen and advance the understanding of the construction of accountability within the relationship between government funders and development non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Design/methodology/approach - – The paper presents a case study examining the process through which an influential Dutch development NGO, Oxfam Novib, constructed its own accountability while simultaneously seeking to influence shifts in government funder accountability requirements. It enrols a combination of comprehensive archival data on the Dutch government’s financing scheme for NGOs from 1965 to 2012 and in-depth interviews with Oxfam Novib managers and Dutch government officials. The co-evolution in accountability within Oxfam Novib and the government funding scheme is conceptualised using the notions of imposed, felt and adaptive accountability Findings - – The case unveils the dynamics through which accountability within a major government funding scheme for NGOs was co-constructed by Oxfam Novib and the Dutch government’s development aid department. In particular, it reveals how this process was influenced by an internal evolution in Oxfam Novib’s organisational approach to accountability and an institutional context characterised by consensus-based economic and social policy making. The case also unveils the process through which Oxfam Novib’s influence declined as more demanding, narrowly focused government accountability requirements emerged in a setting that was increasingly critical of NGOs. Originality/value - – The paper presents a rare example of a context where development NGOs have proactively sought and secured influence over the accountability demands of a key donor. It is unique in combining consideration of the internal evolution of accountability within an individual NGO (conceptualised as an evolution from felt to adaptive accountability) with a progression in the form of accountability required by governmental funders. The paper unveils the conditions under which NGO-preferred conceptions of accountability may gain (and lose) influence among key funders.

Suggested Citation

  • Brendan O'Dwyer & Roel Boomsma, 2015. "The co-construction of NGO accountability," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 28(1), pages 36-68, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:eme:aaajpp:v:28:y:2015:i:1:p:36-68
    DOI: 10.1108/AAAJ-10-2013-1488
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Yasmin, Sofia & Ghafran, Chaudhry, 2019. "The problematics of accountability: Internal responses to external pressures in exposed organisations," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    2. Kuruppu, Sanjaya Chinthana & Lodhia, Sumit, 2019. "Disruption and transformation: The organisational evolution of an NGO," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(6).
    3. O’Leary, Susan & Smith, David, 2020. "Moments of resistance: An internally persuasive view of performance and impact reports in non-governmental organizations," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    4. Ikenna Elias Asogwa & Maria Estela Varua & Peter Humphreys & Rina Datt, 2021. "Understanding Sustainability Reporting in Non-Governmental Organisations: A Systematic Review of Reporting Practices, Drivers, Barriers and Paths for Future Research," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-26, September.
    5. Yang, Cherrie & Northcott, Deryl, 2018. "Unveiling the role of identity accountability in shaping charity outcome measurement practices," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(2), pages 214-226.
    6. Min Young Kim & Hyo Joo Lee & Kyoung Ryoul Min, 2021. "Mechanisms of perceived accountability in Korean NPOs: activating the dynamics of NPM-driven and confucian-driven cultures," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 55(6), pages 1917-1944, December.
    7. Yasmin, Sofia & Ghafran, Chaudhry & Haniffa, Roszaini, 2018. "Exploring de-facto accountability regimes in Muslim NGOs," Accounting forum, Elsevier, vol. 42(3), pages 235-247.
    8. Urquía-Grande, Elena & Lorain, Marie-Anne & Rautiainen, Antti Ilmari & Cano-Montero, Elisa Isabel, 2021. "Balance with logic-measuring the performance and sustainable development efforts of an NPO in rural Ethiopia," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    9. Chynoweth, Sarah K. & Zwi, Anthony B. & Whelan, Anna K., 2018. "Socializing accountability in humanitarian settings: A proposed framework," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 149-162.
    10. Frey-Heger, Corinna & Barrett, Michael, 2021. "Possibilities and limits of social accountability: The consequences of visibility as recognition and exposure in refugee crises," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    11. Boomsma, Roel & O'Dwyer, Brendan, 2019. "Constituting the governable NGO: The correlation between conduct and counter-conduct in the evolution of funder-NGO accountability relations," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 1-20.
    12. Seyla Rizky Amelia & Miranti Kartika Dewi, 2021. "How a nonprofit organization delivers online accountability through social media," International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, Springer;International Association of Public and Non-Profit Marketing, vol. 18(3), pages 317-334, September.
    13. Muhammad Nadeem, 2021. "Corporate Governance and Supplemental Environmental Projects: A Restorative Justice Approach," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 173(2), pages 261-280, October.
    14. Dewi, Miranti Kartika & Manochin, Melina & Belal, Ataur, 2021. "Towards a conceptual framework of beneficiary accountability by NGOs: An Indonesian case study," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    15. O’Leary, Susan, 2017. "Grassroots accountability promises in rights-based approaches to development: The role of transformative monitoring and evaluation in NGOs," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 21-41.
    16. Amanda Keddie, 2021. "NGOs working for gender justice with boys and men: Exploring challenges of accountability," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(4), pages 1461-1474, July.
    17. Goncharenko, Galina & Khadaroo, Iqbal, 2020. "Disciplining human rights organisations through an accounting regulation: A case of the ‘foreign agents’ law in Russia," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    18. Cuckston, Thomas, 2022. "Accounts of NGO performance as calculative spaces: Wild Animals, wildlife restoration and strategic agency," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    19. Giacomo Boesso & Fabrizio Cerbioni & Marco Ghitti, 2022. "Strong planners versus weak planners: An analysis of nonprofit organizations," MANAGEMENT CONTROL, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2022(2 Suppl.), pages 143-166.
    20. Bruno Cazenave, 2016. "Les manifestations des mécanismes de transparence dans les ONG humanitaires françaises – Le cas de Handicap International," Post-Print hal-01901232, HAL.
    21. Hall, Matthew & O'Dwyer, Brendan, 2017. "Accounting, non-governmental organizations and civil society: The importance of nonprofit organizations to understanding accounting, organizations and society," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 1-5.
    22. Clerkin, Brendan & Quinn, Martin, 2021. "Institutional agents missing in action?: Management accounting at non-governmental organisations," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).

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