French NGOs in the Global Era: Professionalization “Without Borders”?

Abstract

This article asks whether French NGOs have fallen into line with the wider trend towards professionalization that has marked the Northern nonprofit sector, most notably Anglo-American NGOs, over the last two decades or so. It shows how French NGOs, particularly those engaged in longer term development work, were characterized by militancy over the early post-colonial decades. It then demonstrates how, over the global era, the French state has encouraged developmental NGOs (NGDOs) to undertake bureaucratic forms of professionalization. Next, it looks at how these organizations have, in response, adapted their staffing, structures, and procedures, whilst stopping short of overly standardized forms of development. Finally, it shows how French NGDOs have, in eschewing ''technical professionalism'', been acting in line with resource dependence theory and responding to the demands of their critical resource, which is not the French state but the donor public and their grassroots supporters.Résumé Cet article examine si les ONG (organisations non gouvernementales) françaises se sont alignées sur la tendance générale vers la professionalisation qui a marqué ces deux dernières décennies le secteur à but non-lucratif de l'hémisphère du Nord et, plus particulièrement, les ONG anglo-américaines. Il affirme que les ONG françaises, et plus précisément celles engagées dans le travail de développement de long terme, étaient caractérisées par le militantisme au cours des premières décennies post-coloniales. Il démontre comment, à l'ère de la globalisation, l'état français a encouragé les organisations non gouvernementales de développement (ONGD) à subir des formes bureaucratiques de professionalisation. Il explore ensuite comment ces organisations ont, en réponse, adapté leurs effectifs, structures et procédures, sans aller qu'à sur-standardiser leurs modes de fonctionnement. Enfin, il constate comment les ONGD françaises, en cherchant à éviter le ''professionalisme technique'' ont agi conformément à la théorie de ''Resource Dependence'' et comment elles se sont pliées aux exigences de leur resource essentielle, qui n'est pas issue de l'état français mais des donateurs publics et de leurs militants de base.Zusammenfassung Der Artikel untersucht, inwieweit sich die französischen NGOs dem breiteren Trend zur Professionalisierung angeschlossen haben, der den gemeinnützigen Sektor des Nordens, insbesondere die anglo-amerikanischen NGOs, seit ca. zwei Jahrzehnten kennzeichnet. Der Artikel zeigt, in welchem Ausmaß die französischen NGOs, insbesondere jene, die sich in längerfristiger Entwicklungsarbeit engagierten, während der frühen post-kolonialen Jahzehnte durch Militanz geprägt waren. Daran anknüpfend wird erörtert, wie der französische Staat im Zeitalter der Globalisierung die bürokratische Professionalisierung der nichtstaaflichen Entwicklungsorganisationen (NGDOs) angeregt hat. Im Anschluß daran geht der Artikel darauf ein, wie diese Organisationen daraufhin ihre Belegschaft, Strukturen und Vorgehenweisen angepasst haben, ohne j...

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