Abstract:
Over the years, Non-Governmental Organisations have evolved and won public confidence as key actors in development.
Accordingly, donors are increasingly channeling development assistant funds through NGOs to facilitate development in
deprived communities. Interestingly, this is being accompanied with a corresponding demand on NGOs for accountability on
their activities and use of resources. With limited empirical information on NGO accountability in Ghana, the study sought to
provide an understanding on how NGOs can perceive accountability and the measures they can adopt to ensure accountability.
A qualitative case study approach based on two NGOs was used for the study. This provided an in-depth understanding of the
complex phenomenon of accountability based on views from twenty key-informants and documentary evidences. The study
shows that NGOs can perceive accountability as a complex organizational activity with an aim, guiding principles and
specific actions. NGOs can account to diverse stakeholders including their donors, the state, beneficiaries, their staff and
other organisations they work closely with. The study highlighted periodic reporting, regular meetings and training, durbars
and two-way communication systems as important means of ensuring accountability. Rendering account on ideology, staff
competence for ensuring accountability, meeting beneficiaries demand for accountability, and collecting and reporting
qualitative data could be a major challenge to NGO accountability in Ghana. Based on the findings, training (in-service and
out-service) of NGOs on accountability, especially collecting and reporting qualitative information, can be a major tool for
improving NGO accountability in Ghana
