The Localisation Agenda is Failing – Here’s Why
The localisation agenda is hailed as the future of global development—a shift of power, resources, and decision-making to the Global South. Yet, despite the rhetoric, it’s failing. And the reason is brutally simple: a lack of serious investment in capacity-building for leaders and organisations in the Global South.
We hear endless platitudes about equity and empowerment, but in practice, localisation is too often reduced to outsourcing implementation while maintaining power and influence in the Global North. Global South organisations are handed crumbs—short-term, project-based funding—barely enough to keep them afloat, let alone build the robust systems and infrastructure required for long-term sustainability. This isn’t localisation; it’s paternalism with a glossy rebrand.
The Hypocrisy of Localisation
Let’s be honest. If we’re serious about localisation, we must confront some uncomfortable truths.
The current system perpetuates a cycle of dependency. Organisations in the Global South are rarely treated as true equals in decision-making. Instead, they’re kept in a state of perpetual precarity, reliant on the next round of funding from the same Global North organisations that claim to be “empowering” them. This approach doesn’t just fail the localisation agenda—it undermines it.
Worse still, the capacity-building narrative is often weaponised against Global South leaders. The excuse? “They don’t have the skills or experience to manage large-scale programmes.” But whose fault is that? How can we expect leaders to thrive when they’ve been denied access to the transformative opportunities—education, mentorship, leadership training—that many of us in the Global North take for granted?
The Capacity Gap: A Manufactured Crisis
I am where I am today because I was given the opportunities that my fellow leaders in the Global South are routinely denied. I was granted access to a world-class education, mentored by industry leaders, and allowed the freedom to make mistakes and grow. It’s not that Global South leaders lack potential; they lack access to the same pipeline of opportunities that allowed me to succeed.
The Global North has systematically hoarded expertise and opportunities, leaving Global South organisations with limited resources, minimal support, and a fraction of autonomy. The result? A non-profit sector in the Global South that is perpetually dependent, unable to build the kind of home-grown leadership that can truly drive local solutions.
A Vision for Real Localisation
The localisation agenda needs a radical overhaul. If we’re serious about creating a thriving, independent sector in the Global South, we need to stop tinkering around the edges and start addressing the root causes of the problem. This means moving beyond project-based funding and investing in people.
We need a deliberate, long-term strategy to build a pipeline of home-grown leaders who can anchor themselves in their communities and drive sustainable change. This is more than technical skills; it’s about equipping leaders with the confidence, networks, and resources to set their agenda—not as passive aid recipients but as the architects of their futures.
What Needs to Change?
1. Stop Paying Lip Service: If funders truly believe in localisation, they must put their money where their mouth is. Fund capacity-building initiatives that focus on leadership development, mentorship, and infrastructure.
2. Break the Dependency Cycle: Move away from tokenistic funding that keeps organisations in survival mode. Offer unrestricted, long-term funding to allow them to build resilient institutions.
3. Decentralise Power: Stop controlling decisions from the Global North. Global South leaders need real authority over how resources are allocated, and programmes are designed.
4. Invest in Talent Pipelines: Build the same systems of mentorship and opportunity in the Global South that have produced generations of leaders in the Global North. This is a must!
A Home-Grown Agenda
The Localisation Agenda is fast becoming a dirty word. At NGM Consulting, we are committed to creating a “home-grown agenda” —not one that relies on being an implementation partner for Global North organisations, but one that builds thriving, independent institutions that respond to the needs of their communities.
This isn’t just a professional goal; it’s deeply personal. My career was built on the shoulders of mentors and opportunities that are inaccessible to too many in the Global South. My dream is to replicate those experiences for the next generation over and over again.
But let’s be clear: this won’t happen without a fight. The localisation agenda, as it stands, is failing because it was never designed to succeed. It’s a half-hearted attempt at power-sharing that avoids the hard work of dismantling the systems that maintain inequality.
If we’re serious about localisation, we need to stop pretending and start doing the hard work of building a non-profit sector in the Global South that doesn’t just survive but thrives. Anything less is a betrayal of the very communities we claim to serve.
Are we ready to stop the charade and commit to real change? Let’s have the conversation.
The author is Keith Kibirango, Chief Executive Officer of New Global Markets Consulting.