Role of Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in Social Development in Developing Nations

Abstract

Lack of social development is a very common feature in many countries of the world those in the developing world being the most affected. Such is taking place in the backdrop of most government efforts to ensure maximum social development. It is in the light of this that NGOs have emerged to complement government efforts in order to realize lasting social development for the benefit of the people. The present study set out to establish the contribution of Non Governmental Organisations in social development in Unguja island of Zanzibar through education support. The study employed a cross-sectional survey design in which systematic sampling was used to get a sample size of 126 people out of the universe population of 773234. Respondents included NonGovernmental Organisation officers, local leaders in unguja, government officials and ordinary people. Random sampling was also used at the time of data collection. The questionnaire for the interview was prepared in two phases. In the first phase, unstructured in-depth interviews were conducted to create the initial interview (the instrument). Further expert opinions on the questionnaire were collected and improvements were made on it. This necessitated some improvements in the final version. In the second phase, a pilot survey was conducted with some respondents to gauge how well the questionnaire was understood and also to test alternative wordings of the question and alternative response options to determine whether some other response option should be provided. Some questionnaires were emailed to those respondents who were well known by the researchers, whereas other questionnaires were administered by field assistants who later handed over the filled questionnaires to the researchers for analysis. Findings showed that most respondents were satisfied with the contribution played by Non Governmental Organisations in social development in unguja Island by supporting various schools. In conclusion, while the government of Zanzibar has a big role to play as a single entity, it is imperative to join hands with Non Governmental Organisations to realize even better results by addressing the various social development challenges as a team and not as single entity. As a matter of policy, this study is a wake-up call to all actors- in the government, academia, industry, private sector, the civil society, and the international community -that the contribution played by Non-Governmental Organisations in promoting social development in Unguja Island is indisputable. Specifically, it will create awareness among the concerned actors and other stakeholders of the important role played by Non Governmental Organisations in the education sec tor thereby prompting them to embrace Non Governmental Organisations as equal partners in development.