Dicklitch challenges the dominant discourse of neo-liberalism which places NGOs and civil society at the forefront of democratization and development in Africa. Based on nine months of field research in Uganda, the study draws on evidence from the 'successfully' liberalizing country and shows how NGO potential for democratization and development has been subverted by state directives, structural and historical conditions, as well as the internal limitations of NGOs.
'A lucid and well-researched critique of the popular notion that NGOs, as constituent elements of a revitalized `civil society', represent a potent force for empowerment and democracy in Africa. Susan Dicktlich succumbs neither to a romanticization of civil society not to despair in their incisive evaluation.' - Professor Richard Sandbrook