In our latest Humanitarian Leadership edition, Dipankar Datta authors ‘Decolonisation deferred: How accountability regimes centralised power in INGOs‘, a commentary piece examining the tension between accountability and power in the humanitarian sector. Datta argues that frameworks such as HAP and CHS Alliance, while important for safeguarding and accountability, have also contributed to the recentralisation of authority within INGOs, reducing the operational autonomy of frontline leaders.
"If INGOs genuinely aim for localisation and decolonisation, they need to face some difficult questions. Why is headquarters’ accountability less scrutinised than field operations? Why are frontline leaders blamed for failures but lack authority over systems and resources? Why does trust in institutions decline as leadership becomes more local? And why do accountability systems focus mainly on disciplining the field rather than examining the entire organisational power structure?"
The article highlights how frontline leaders increasingly carry operational and reputational risks, while strategic control remains concentrated at headquarters. It challenges humanitarian organisations to reflect on whether current systems genuinely advance localisation and decolonisation, or unintentionally reproduce unequal power structures. Datta advocates for a more balanced leadership model that combines strong accountability mechanisms with trust, contextual decision-making, and meaningful empowerment of frontline leadership, encouraging humanitarian actors to critically examine organisational culture, power relations, and institutional practices shaping humanitarian leadership today.
