NGOs and Aid Fragmentation: The Belgian Case

Aid fragmentation is considered a burden for recipient countries. NGOs as important channellers of official development assistance can contribute significantly to this fragmentation. This article is a first attempt to conceptualize and measure NGO aid fragmentation while identifying the complex set of (contradictory) incentive structures. The Belgian case, with its multi-ethnic, multi-linguistic setting, and multi-layered government structures is a crucial case for showing the possible variety of factors which may influence fragmentation. The research finds that fighting aid fragmentation may prove a lot more difficult than suggested because, in the Belgian case, with its multiple incentive structures, fragmentation actually pays off for NGOs.