Engagement of Indian CSOs in south-south cooperation: A compilation of case studies

Many Indian CSOs for decades have been implementing a wide range projects in other developing countries, with resources from INGOs, Foundations, Bilateral and Multilateral agencies. The practical knowledge and skills gained through implementing projects nationally and sub-nationally have been utilised by CSOs in other developing countries with similar development contexts. However, the current official policy and practice do not adequately recognise the existing and potential contributions of Indian CSOs in development cooperation.

In the last decade the volume and diversity of development cooperation has grown substantially. India, so far, has largely relied and engaged government and business to implement its development cooperation in other developing countries. With the change in the government, there has been a shift in focus with the government indicating that this cooperation should continue to grow through technical assistance, training, capacity building, financing, trade, and investment.

Engagement of Indian CSOs in South-South Cooperation documents the experiences of 9 Indian CSOs in implementing participatory, people-to-people development cooperation in countries of the global South as diverse as South Africa, Mozambique, Malawi, Indonesia, Cambodia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. A thoughtful, analytical introduction synthesizes the experiences and ways forward to help promote the work of Indian CSOs in order to change the policy approach and practice towards CSO engagement in India's development cooperation.