THE CHANGING ROLES OF NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS IN THE FIELD OF EDUCATION (IN THE CONTEXT OF CHANGING RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE STATE)

Historically NGOs have played a significant role in promoting Non-Formal Education. However, in the context of Structural Adjustment Programmes NGOs are now under increasing pressure to fill in the gaps left by declining State provision in the formal education sector. In doing so, NGOs can become, often unwittingly, agents of privatisation. This paper draws on studies from four countries (El Salvador, Bangladesh, India and Uganda) to chart and review the changing roles of NGOs in the education sector (and in their relationships with Ministries of Education) and tries to identify both positive and problematic practices. The paper concludes that service delivery in the education sector is inherently problematic for NGOs and stresses the importance of NGOs as innovators who must document their work more rigorously than in the past in order to feed into policy debates and influence major players.