Gervin Chanase

// DISSERTATION PROJECT

Critical Local Partners or Proxies: A Case Study of Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) Participation in Decentralized (Agricultural) Governance in Northern Ghana.

The purpose of this study is to question and understand the relationship between international donors and local non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and how this relationship impacts their role as critical actors within the complex space of decentralized governance in Northern Ghana. As NGOs assert their roles as vehicles for citizen-led participation in decentralized governance, the study examines how power asymmetries impact their programming, performance, legitimacy, accountability, and representativeness. By evoking resource dependence and post-colonial theories, the exploration of the agency will facilitate a comprehensive understanding of how NGOs navigate and balance competing interests in this evolving and complex space of decentralized governance, as well as assess how donor the donor-NGO relationship impacts behavior and the effect on institutionalized citizen-state engagement in decentralized agricultural governance. This study will contribute to a theoretical and empirical understanding of NGO agency in local governance through in-depth case-specific research.  A new perspective will be shed on the 'actorness' of NGOs in local government because of this study. Through a multiple-method approach leaning mostly on qualitative techniques, this study will analyze and problematize existing institutional arrangements for the participation of NGOs in local governance.

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// ACADEMIC BACKGROUND   

Education

since 2023
Doctoral Member at Bamberg Graduate School of Social Studies

2011 – 2013
Master of Arts in Global Studies, Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Programme, the University of Leipzig (Germany), University of Vienna (Austria), University of California, Santa Barbara (USA)

2010 – 2011
Master of Arts in Development and Governance, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany

2004 – 2008
Bachelor's Degree in Geography & Resource Development and Political Science, University of Ghana

Awards / Academic Achievements and Scholarships

since 2023
German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Graduate School Scholarship Programme (GSSP)
Bamberg Graduate School of Social Sciences, 2023- date

2011 - 2013
Erasmus Mundus Master in Global Studies (EMGS), Joint Master Degree (EMJMD)

2010 - 2011
German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Helmut Schmidt Program (Public Policy and Good Governance, PPGG)

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// PUBLICATIONS
 

Gervin. C & Charles K.V (2022): “The Value of Social Capital in Resourcing Community Development in Africa,”  WACSeries, Issue Paper, Vol. 8, Issue 1.

Greijn et al. (2022): “Shift the power - How to Work Towards a More Equal and Just International Development Cooperation System.” Partos

Chanase, G. (2021). Shift the Power - Ghanaian NGOs at the Crossroads of Relinquishing Power to Local Communities, WACSeries, Issue Paper, Vol. 7, Issue 9.

Chanase, G. (2021): “Applying New Public Management Principles Towards the Strengthening of the Non-Profit Sector in Africa,”  WACSeries, Issue Paper, Vol. 7, Issue 8-August 2021.

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// EXPERIENCE

2018 - 2022
Programme Officer, Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning- West Africa Institute for Civil Society (WACSI)

2016 - 2017
Civil Society & Advocacy Coordinator, USAID Northern Ghana Governance Activity, SEND Ghana

2014 - 2016
Rural Advocacy Specialist, USAID Agricultural Development and Value Chain Enhancement (ADVANCE) Project

2013 - 2014
Intern, Hanns Seidel Stiftung, West Africa Office

2009 - 2010
National Service Person, Office of Parliament Ghana

Professional Affiliations

Member of the International Programme for Development Evaluation (IPDET), Switzerland

Member of the Knowledge Network of the United Nations Office of the Special Advisor to Africa

Change the Game Academy Master Trainer, Wilde Ganzen, Netherlands

Trainee Candidate,United States Institute of Peace Conflict Management Training for Peacekeepers Program

Certified Online Learning Facilitator (COLF), United Kingdom

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Image Credits: © Bamberg Graduate School of Social Sciences