Most major development NGOs dedicate significant resources to advocacy. Many also work to inform and shape public opinion, whether through advertising or fundraising or through education programmes. They argue that fundamental change is not achieved until the policy environment is right and cannot be sustained without a groundswell of support for reform. In recent years, however, advocacy work has come under increasing criticism. NGOs are challenged on the grounds of: Legitimacy - Whom do they represent, and to whom are they accountable? Effectiveness - What practical impact does high-level advocacies have on the lives of people living in poverty and who is to judge this? Role - Should NGOs try to combine funding and advocacy or do these demand different kinds of South-North relationship? Strategy - Are NGOs seduced by agencies like the World Bank or by the corporate sector to readily? When does constructive engagement with these powerful bodies turn into co-option by them? As international grassroots advocacy is becoming more vocal thanks to new communication technologies; what is the appropriate role for Northern NGOs?

Contributors
Preface
Deborah Eade
Development and advocacy
Maria Teresa Diokno-Pacual
NGOs and advocacy: how well are the poor represented
Warren Nyamugasira
The international anti-debt campaign: a Southern activist view for activists in "the North" and "the South"
Dot Keet
Human rights and religious backlash: the experience of a Bangladeshi NGO
Mohammad Rafi and A.M.R. Chowdhury
Disaster without memory: Oxfam's drought programme in Zambia
K. Pushpanath; Campaigning: a fashion or the best way to change the global agenda?
Gerd Leipold
Northern NGO advocacy: perceptions, reality and the challenge
Ian Anderson
"Does the doormat influence the boot?" critical thoughts on UK NGOs and international advocacy
Michale Edwards
The effectiveness of NGO campaigning: lessons from practice
Jennifer Chapman and Thomas Fisher
Heroism and ambiguity: NGO advocacy in international policy
Paul Nelson
Northern words, Southern readings
Carmen Marcuello and Chaime Marcuello
Menchu Tum,Stoll, and martyrs of solidarity
Larry Reid
The People's Communication Charter
Cees J.Hamelink
Annotated bibliography
Organisations
Addresses of publishers