Power in Local Hands: The Pathway to Sustainable Development
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This blog has been long overdue. I wrestled with how to organise my thoughts — to capture not just what I have seen, but how it has made me feel. One theme, however, has remained constant: the unequal distribution of power in the development space. And yet, the more I engage with civil society organisations across West Africa, the more I see that real change is already happening — led by those who are closest to the challenges.
Two weeks ago, I had the privilege of serving as a panelist on a youth panel discussion following the Shift the Power Ghana Inter‑University Debate in Accra. The motion debated by the finalists was: “International partners should prioritise unrestricted funding to partners.” Sitting on that panel, I found myself reflecting on some uncomfortable truths: Why do organisations, from the Global North perspective, assume they know best? What do international partners really gain by shifting power to organisations in the Global South? Are they ready to recognise that local organisations are already shaping their communities and driving meaningful impact?
The Shift the Power model offers a framework for answering these questions. It calls on international partners to move away from seeing civil society organisations in countries and communities in the global majority (or global south as some refer to it) merely as grantees and to recognise them as co-partners in development. When local actors lead change initiatives, solutions become context-appropriate, sustainable, and truly transformative. But this raises a critical question: Who identifies the problem?
As Margaret Wheatley, author of Leadership and the New Science posit,” There is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about”. Communities themselves must define what constitutes a problem, determine its urgency, prioritise solutions, and shape the approaches to address it. Engaging communities from the outset fosters ownership and strengthens the sustainability of outcomes. When local organisations are equipped with financial resources and technical capacity, the likelihood of long-term success increases. Highly restricted funding models are no longer sufficient.
International partners must shift from a mindset of maintaining full control. This does not diminish their relevance; it redefines it. Their role becomes one of support, capacity building, and expertise, while allowing local organisations to co-create solutions and mobilise local resources and as much as possible champion the realisation of efforts to bring the solutions to life.
My own experiences bring these lessons to life. In Ghana, the Concerned Citizens of Atewa Landscape (CCAL) demonstrates how a team of only five permanent staff can influence national conversations about environmental protection. In March 2018, CCAL mobilised communities, civil society actors, and environmental advocates for the Atewa Walk for Water, a six-day march advocating for the protection of the Atewa Forest Reserve. What started with about 150 participants grew to over 500 by the time the march reached Accra, reflecting public concern for this vital ecological landscape. CCAL’s advocacy underscores key lessons: staying true to mission, investing in staff capacity, educating communities, and forming strategic partnerships with government and local leaders.
Similarly, Naabans Foundation exemplifies community-centred development. Following communications training facilitated by WACSI, the organisation invested strategically in its organisational visibility. As part of their local resource mobilisation initiative, Naabans hosted a four-day capacity building training for women in their community (Suhum, Oboadakaa) – who are into palm oil production, focusing on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), trained their community youth on improved agronomic practices, and later produced a documentary highlighting the traditional methods women use to manually process palm oil — a staple in daily food preparation. The labour-intensive process keeps prices high, limiting accessibility. Using the documentary not only as a storytelling tool but also as a fundraising strategy, Naabans attracted support to acquire palm oil processing machines. This initiative reduced women’s workload, improved efficiency, and strengthened partnerships with local stakeholders and the Suhum Municipal Assembly.
These stories illustrate the essence of Shift the Power: when local organisations are trusted with skills, resources, and autonomy, they develop solutions that directly respond to their communities’ realities.
The question is no longer whether local organisations can lead change — they already are. Across Ghana and the wider Global South, civil society organisations mobilise citizens, shape national conversations, and implement context-driven solutions — often with limited resources but deep local understanding. The real question is how quickly development systems will recognise where the power already lies. When communities lead, and local organisations are trusted, development moves beyond projects and becomes a lasting transformation.
Click the link below to read my previous article on a related topic if you missed it.
About the author
Jee‑hyea Grace Arkoi
Jee‑hyea Grace Arkoi is an early-career international development practitioner from Liberia with over five years of experience supporting community initiatives and strengthening civil society across West Africa. She focuses on advocacy, stakeholder engagement, and evidence-based communications, with a commitment to advancing inclusive, sustainable, and community-driven development.
