*NGOs are under fire for being "unaccountable" to anyone; this is the first book to tackle fully the politics, pitfalls, and benefits of NGO accountability

* Offers principles and innovative solutions for assessing and developing viable accountability

*Input and cases studies from NGOs such as Action Aid, and from every part of the globe including China, Indonesia, Latin America, and Africa

As the fastest growing segment of civil society, as well as featuring prominently in the global political arena, NGOs are under fire for being "unaccountable." But who do NGOs actually represent? Who should they be accountable to and how? This book provides the first comprehensive examination of the issues and politics of NGO accountability and governance across all sectors internationally. It offers an assessment of the key technical tools available including legal accountability, certification, and donor-based accountability regimes, and questions whether these are appropriate and viable options or attempts to "rollback" NGOs to a more one-dimensional function as organizers of national and global charity. In the spirit of moving towards greater, real accountability the book looks in detail at innovations that have developed from within NGOs and offers new approaches and flexible frameworks that enable accountability to become a reality for all parties worldwide.

Table of Contents:

Introduction * Part I: Key Questions and Concepts in the Current Global Context * Rights, Responsibilities and the Political Landscape of NGOs * NGO Accountability and Global Governance * Representation, Accountability and Civil Society * Part II: Legal Accountability, Certification and Donor Regimes * The World Bank Handbookon NGO Laws * NGO Law in Uganda * NGO Accountability in the Philippines * Promoting Rights While Offsetting Risks * A Donor Accountability Agenda * Part III: The Flip Side * Why Accountability is Desirable * NGOs Governance in China * Indonesia: Challenges in a Newly Democratizing Country * Accountability in Costa Rica and Nicaragua * Part IV: Innovations * Pushing the Frontiers of Accountability * Is it Possible to Establish a Framework of Universal Principles of Accountability? Linking Learning with Increased Accountability * Accountability and the Humanitarian Accountability Partnership * Creating Legitimacy in International Advocacy Campaigning