Localizing the NGO Delivery of Health from the Outside In

Abstract

Abstract International health nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) can provide the necessary assistance and expertise to save lives in times of crisis. Health NGOs often bring innovation, expertise, and resources to those in need. However, many commentators have questioned whether the involvement of health NGOs impedes a country's ability to rebuild its own health sector in ways that do not depend on foreign actors. Building on the results of our survey of almost one thousand public health NGOs in the summer of 2021, we find that health NGOs may be a unique set of organizations that allow for more local decision-making and employ local staff more often than other populations of NGOs. Health NGOs also have a comparatively greater focus on peace than NGOs from other sectors. The essay examines the pathways by which some health NGOs can both alleviate short-term suffering and help foster long-term localized health delivery.