Challenges of Faith-Based NGO Intervention in Community Development: a Case Study in Bangladesh
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Challenges of Faith-Based NGO Intervention in Community Development: a Case Study in Bangladesh Shofiqur Rahman Chowdhury 1,2
&
M. Rezaul Islam 3 & Haris Abd Wahab 4
# Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
Abstract The intervention of faith-based non-governmental organizations in the development area is no more an ignored topic due to their comprehensive coverage in humanitarian assistance, rise of global identity politics, and the changing ideological view of development donors and policymakers. However, such engagements are prone to criticisms. This paper aims to report the qualitative findings highlighting the strengths and challenges of faith-based non-governmental organizations in community development, based on a broader convergent parallel mixed-method study of the first author’s PhD work. The study was conducted in the north-western region of Bangladesh, where Islamic Relief Worldwide, a faith-based international nongovernmental organization implemented the Action for Peoples’ Rights and Livelihood (APRIL) project for community development. Using a qualitative approach, this study gathered data from in-depth interviews of 11 participants, five focus groups, and 10 key informants. Results showed that faith-based non-governmental organizations made significant contributions in providing services to the ultra-poor without discrimination, offering flexible “pressure-free” loans, and developing a sense of community ownership. Within this spectrum, this study found a number of challenges in the community development efforts. These include (a) continuation of the provision of interest-free loans, (b) sustaining community-based organizations, (c) labeling of proselytization, and (d) deficient implementation mechanisms. Although this paper focuses on a faith-based non-governmental organization in Bangladesh, the findings have global implications, especially addressing the knowledge gap in the existing literature. Keywords Bangladesh . Islamic Relief Worldwide . Faith-based non-governmental organizations . Community development . Community empowerment
Introduction Faith-based non-governmental organizations (FBNGOs) have emerged over the recent years as key contributors in
* Shofiqur Rahman Chowdhury [email protected] M. Rezaul Islam [email protected] Haris Abd Wahab [email protected] 1
Department of Social Administration and Justice, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
2
Department of Social Work, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet, Bangladesh
3
Institute of Social Welfare and Research, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh
4
Department of Social Administration and Justice, University of Malaya, Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
development discourse. Their large-scale presence around the world has been consistently rising; for example, 40% of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Canada are faithbased (Davis 2019). Changing of policies over international donors and development organizations (Haynes 2013 in Chowdhury and Wahab 2019), FBNGOs’ increasing visibility in h
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