Abstract
In late 1988 and 1989, the author led a seven country study of NGO activities for the Asian Development Bank. Almost twenty consultants from eight different organizations were involved in the project, the purpose of which was to identify NGOs that were able to contribute to Bank financed projects, and the ways in which any collaboration could take place. The willingness of governments to support the projects was an important aspect of the assessment. During the course of the study, a number of features of NGO operations were identified which are not often reviewed in the literature. These issues, discussed in this paper, relate to the mutual benefits that would flow from greater levels of co‐operation between large donors and NGOs. The paper also discusses some of the difficulties that stand in the way.