Capacity Development in Conflict Scenarios: Assessing Donor Support Strategies to Local NGOs in Burundi

NGOs have come to occupy center stage in emergency relief and development work in the past twenty years. This study looks at the efforts made by international actors-both official donors and international NGOs- in developing the capacities of local organizations in Burundi during the decade of civil strife since 1993. While the needs of democratization set the agenda for most peace building programs, the priorities of donors in conflict afflicted countries may not always lead to financial commitments, nor match the needs of emerging civil society organizations. Using field interviews and document analysis, this study analyzes the development and the challenges of civil organizations in Burundi, which are marked by the political developments distinctive to the country. Donor programs, including work in critical peacebuilding sectors of media, human rights, gender and basic education are examined in detail, and aid donors are shown to have had particular difficulty encouraging the organizational autonomy that is required for Burundian civil society organizations to become effective civic and political actors