NGOS and the formation of the public

Grey practices and accountability

Bibliographic Data

ID6024759
AuthorsLaura Routley (0000-0002-4895-815X, corresponding author)
Year2012
Volume111
Issue442
Pages116-134
Publication date2012-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAfrican Affairs (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0001-9909 • E-ISSN: 1468-2621
PublisherOxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1093/afraf/adr079
OpenAlexW1999440738
LanguageEN
Citations received5

This article examines the formation of 'the public' or 'the people' as negotiated by a small number of national NGOs in eastern Nigeria. The ways in which these NGOs conceive of 'the people' or 'the public' and the actions they undertake are often at odds with conceptions of 'the public interest' implicit in much development policy. At the same time, their actions do not conform to a moral economy governed by obligations to primordial groups. Instead, this article argues that the NGOs are seeking a particular kind of accountability from the state, and concludes that the forms of accountability pursued by NGO workers provide important insights into how the Nigerian state is perceived and ultimately produced. © The Author 2011. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Royal African Society. All rights reserved.

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