Are NGO´S promoting development objectives? In pursuit of empirical data

As concerns persist over the effectiveness of official aid, and global partners seek better ways to promote development, donors have increasingly allocated funds through non-government organizations (NGOs) to sidestep the "capture" problem associated with public aid flows in poor countries and bring services directly to those who need them. Despite this shift, surprisingly little data is available on exactly how much money is spent by NGOs in each recipient nation. This paper explores the data gap by comparing existing measures of NGO presence and presenting a new series. The exercise raises important questions about whether NGOs are effectively promoting development.