Non-governmental organizations and security governance : a case study of Uganda

Abstract

The operations of Non-governmental Organizations have received a large amount of attention in both international governance relations and the scholarly arenas. Yet few studies have interrogated the relationship between NGO operations and national security. They have focused mainly on human security aspects such as humanitarian aid, environmental concerns, education and health support, provided by NGOs. However, given the globalization trends vis-a-vis the efforts by state to uphold their sovereignty and self-determination, the relationship between NGOs and National security is hard to neglect. Much as NGOs are generally viewed as irresistible actors in International relations, their activities are heavily donor driven findings indicate that, they would rather execute the objectives of the donors as opposed to the interest of the target community. Therefore, their objectives, funding, supervision and monitoring should be of interest to nation states. This paper draws from literature about Non-governmental organisations and national security and it obtains that actions of NGOs affect national security. It was established that their unchecked interactions with communities in Uganda may aid them to further interests of powers that are deliberate to extend their political influence and further their foreign policies.