The history of international development can be periodized in terms of shifts in development thought, policy, and practice over time. Beginning with the establishment of the Bretton Woods institutions after World War II, development programs of governments in the South and of international organizations and aid agencies in the North have navigated a constantly changing course– from an emphasis on large-scale infrastructure, industry, and agriculture in the 1950s and 1960s, to a “basic needs” focus on individuals and families in the 1970s, followed by attention to participation, sustainable development, and gender equity in the 1980s and, more recently, to issues of economic liberalization and civil society (Edwards 1994; Escobar 1995; Fisher 1998; Guhan 1988; Ruttan 1989; Sukhatme 1989). This chapter details these shifts in development “discourse” over time and demonstrates their effects on AKRSP (I) and Sadguru. It concludes with some thoughts on the broader relevance of a discourse approach to understanding NGO behavior.

As detailed in chapter 1, a discourse is a specific and historically produced way of looking at the world and is embedded within wider relations of power – power that is manifest in the scientific “expertise” of development economists, professionals, and expatriates that serve as advisors, funders, and consultants to Southern governments and NGOs. One can imagine numerous interconnected discourses in which these development experts and organizations might be located: development discourse, environmental discourse, human rights discourse, and so on.