Unpacking the Value of Locally Led Humanitarian Action

The Start Network has been working to better understand what it means to be locally led. This article consolidates evidence and learning based on interviews, which gathered people’s perceptions and lived experiences related to the value and challenges of having local actors lead on decision-making and action within the humanitarian system.

In two recent evaluations in Pakistan and Guatemala people have been asked about the differences they saw between local non-governmental organisations (LNGOs) and international NGOs (INGOs). The open-ended questions were: What is the major difference between local NGOs and INGOs? What is the added value of LNGOs? What are the risks?