Chapter 13 Chapter Summary

This chapter explores the notion of “civil society.” In the 1990s the term “civil society” was incorporated into development discourse as it sought to alleviate poverty and to effect social change and “development” in the societies of the Global South on the periphery of the world capitalist system. In this discourse, “civil society,” a complex of non-governmental organizations, appears as a fundamental agency of social change, replacing the state in this regard. The NGOs, which make up part of “civil society” and work within it, have become a major object of debate. Some see them as agencies of democracy and participatory development in the struggle for progressive social change. Others, however, see them as agents of the World Bank and other international organizations (as well as of governments in the Global North), engaged in the project of “international co-operation” for the purpose of economic and social development as defined by these major proponents of globalization. At the same time, grassroots social movements in the Global South, such as the MST in Brazil, have entered the discourse to work for a different, and more equitable, world.