“Felt responsibility”: a mediator for balancing NGOs’ upward and downward accountability

Purpose - This study investigates how NGO managers balance accountability to donors and beneficiaries, and the role of felt responsibility in this process. Design/methodology/approach - Using concepts of accountability theory, practices of microenterprise development (MED) NGOs are examined in two countries - Bangladesh and Indonesia - through interviews with managers of 20 NGOs and analysis of NGOs’ publicly available data. Findings - Findings show a shift in emphasis from a vertical view (upward to donors and downward to beneficiaries) to a horizontal view of NGO accountability. Under this view, a selective approach to donors whose mission and approaches to poverty alleviation aligned with those of the NGOs played an essential role in supporting NGOs’ internal accountability. Further, felt responsibility to beneficiaries is identified as an important mediator balancing both upward and downward accountability. While accountability to donors and beneficiaries was interrelated, accountability to donors was considered a short-term objective and accountability to beneficiaries was considered a long-term and overriding objective. Originality/value - Findings contribute a further understanding of the role of felt responsibility to beneficiaries as a mediator for balancing upward and downward accountability based on the perspectives of NGO managers. Reframing accountability through a horizontal view helps to balance multiple directions of NGO accountability: to self, donors, and beneficiaries. Key words Downward accountability, felt responsibility, microenterprise, NGOs, upward accountability