University of Bath PHD Diversify or Die? The Response of Ghanaian Non-Governmental Development Organisations (NGDOs) to a Changing Aid Landscape Kumi, Emmanuel Award date: 2017 Awarding institution: University of Bath Link to publication Alternative formats If you require this document in an alternative format, please contact: [email protected] General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal ? Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 07. Oct. 2021 Diversify or Die? The Response of Ghanaian Non-Governmental Development Organisations (NGDOs) to a Changing Aid Landscape Emmanuel Kumi A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) University of Bath Department of Social and Policy Sciences November 2017 COPYRIGHT Attention is drawn to the fact that copyright of this thesis rests with the author. A copy of this thesis has been supplied on condition that anyone who consults it is understood to recognise that its copyright rests with the author and that they must not copy it or use material from it except as permitted by law or with the consent of the author. This thesis may be made available for consultation within the University Library and may be photocopied or lent to other libraries for the purposes of consultation with effect from……………….(date) Signed on behalf of the Faculty/School of................................... TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents ................................................................................................................................... i List of Tables ........................................................................................................................................ v List of Figures ...................................................................................................................................... vi Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................. vii Abstract .............................................................................................................................................. viii List of Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................... ix Chapter One: Introduction ................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Background of the study ................................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Research aim and questions ............................................................................................................ 2 1.3 Research methodology .................................................................................................................... 3 1.4 Definition of NNGDOs ................................................................................................................... 4 1.5 Contribution and scope of the study ............................................................................................... 4 1.6 Outline of thesis .............................................................................................................................. 5 Chapter Two: NGDOs striking the balance: Resource dependency and agency .......................... 7 2.0 Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 7 2.1 NGDOs’ conceptualisation and evolution ...................................................................................... 7 2.1.1 The rise of NGDOs in development ....................................................................................... 7 2.1.2 Critical voices against NGDOs .............................................................................................. 9 2.2. NGDOs’ resource-dependent environment.................................................................................. 11 2.3 Donor-NGDO relations: The rise of partnership and dependency ............................................... 12 2.4. Agency in NGDOs’ environment ................................................................................................ 14 2.5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................... 15 Chapter Three: Theoretical frameworks for understanding NGDOs’ dependency and agency16 3.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 16 3.1 Resource dependency theory ........................................................................................................ 18 3.1.1 Strategies for managing resource dependence...................................................................... 19 3.1.2 Criticisms of RDT ................................................................................................................ 20 3.2 Institutions and Isomorphism ........................................................................................................ 21 3.2.1 Institutional Isomorphism ..................................................................................................... 21 3.2.2 Criticisms of neo-institutional theory ................................................................................... 23 3.3 Strategic responses for managing institutional processes ............................................................. 23 3.3.1 Predictors of strategic responses .......................................................................................... 25 3.4 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 27 Chapter Four: Research Methodology ........................................................................................... 29 4.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 29 4.1. Research scope ............................................................................................................................. 29 4.1.1 Critical realist orientation of the research ............................................................................ 30 4.2 Research Design .......................................................................................................................... 33 4.2.1 Mixed methods in NGDO research ...................................................................................... 33 4.2.2 Phase one: Qualitative research ............................................................................................ 33 4.2.3 Phase two: Quantitative research.......................................................................................... 35 4.2.4. Phase three: Qualitative research ......................................................................................... 41 4.3 Reflexivity and positionality ......................................................................................................... 48 4.3.1 Ethical considerations ........................................................................................................... 50 4.4 Validity and reliability .................................................................................................................. 51 4.5 Challenges of conducting organisational research ........................................................................ 52 4.6 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 53 i Chapter Five: Non-governmental development organisations and civil society in Ghana ........ 54 5.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 54 5.1 Ghana in Context: Geographic and demographic characteristics ................................................. 54 5.1.1 Social characteristics ............................................................................................................ 54 5.1.2 Economic environment ......................................................................................................... 56 5.1.3 Political environment ........................................................................................................... 56 5.2 Ghana’s official development assistance (ODA) landscape ......................................................... 57 5.2.1 Changing aid landscape and its implications .......................................................................