The crisis in Haiti shows we need a new approach to NGOs

A hybrid agency run by government and donors could better direct aid. In responding
to the Haitian earthquake, Non-Governmental Organisations are the heroes of the
hour. Even before the disaster Haiti had 10,000 of them, more per head than
anywhere else in the world. They were providing most of the country's schools and
health clinics. As the NGOs further scale-up, the already limited capacity of the state
has been decimated. Essential as the NGOs have been, this imbalance threatens to
leave the state marginalised in the core task of basic service provision.