Oxfam: sex scandal or governance failure?

Abstract

The apparent failure of Oxfam to take appropriate actions against ongoing sexual predation by its aid workers is tragic, infuriating, and concerning. It is also ironic, given that Oxfam is considered a bastion of good governance, ethics, and human rights.1Rowlands J Making the impossible possible: an overview of governance programming in fragile contexts. Oxfam GB, Oxford2014Google Scholar Indeed, Oxfam's policy and practice arm has no less than 577 publications on promoting good governance and a further 455 on human rights.2OxfamPolicy and practice.https://policy-practice.oxfam.org.uk/publicationsGoogle Scholar As a health policy and systems researcher who studies the dynamics between international agencies and domestic policy makers in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), I believe it is critical to reflect on what the “Oxfam scandal” is not. It is not surprising. Anybody working in humanitarian settings will testify that moral boundaries are routinely blurred, and evidence of sexual exploitation by humanitarian workers, including UN peacekeepers, has been well documented for decades.3Naik A Protecting children from the protectors: lessons from West Africa.Forced Migr Rev. 2002; 15: 16-19Google Scholar Surprising is the colossal failure of internal and external authorities with responsibility for preventing such incidents to fulfil their mandates. For example, the UK Charities Commission, whose role is to investigate misconduct by charities, did not independently investigate allegations about sexual exploitation at Oxfam that were brought to its notice in 2011. Instead, it relied on information based on Oxfam's own investigation indicating that there was no cause for concern.4Grierson J Charities watchdog demands answers from Oxfam over Haiti scandal.The Guardian (London). Feb 10, 2018; (accessed Feb 19, 2018).https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/feb/09/oxfam-pressed-over-claims-haiti-aid-workers-used-prostitutesGoogle Scholar Therefore, I would argue that the issue here is not only about sexual exploitation or weeding out individuals unfit for international development work. It is about systems for accountability and governance that should have functioned to surface inappropriate actions of individuals or organisations working in LMICs. Without effective structures for monitoring, evaluation, and accountability, in addition to sexual misconduct, corruption and unintended consequences of programmes implemented can also be concealed.5Alesina A Dollar D Who gives foreign aid to whom and why?.J Econ Growth. 2000; 5: 33-63Crossref Scopus (1358) Google Scholar Here the positioning of international development agencies as holders of superior knowledge and values with respect to development often results in their authority being difficult to challenge.6Khan MS Meghani A Liverani M Roychowdhury I Pankhurst J How do external donors influence national health policy processes? Experiences of domestic policy actors in Cambodia and Pakistan.Health Policy Plan. 2017; 33: 215-223Crossref Scopus (50) Google Scholar But questions must now be asked about all organisations—charities, funding bodies, and research institutes—that claim to be supporting better governance and human rights in LMICs. Do these organisations practise what they preach in terms of investing in good governance? Do they operate under the watchful eye of a strong, independent watchdog allowing anyone to whistle blow without personal consequences? Looking ahead, the solution is not to weaken international development agencies by cutting funding but instead to fix them. To do this will require a massive change in perspective. Development funding has largely focused on addressing weaknesses in institutions in LMICs. It is now time that international agencies consider how their own governance structures can function better and acknowledge their role in contributing to exploitation of vulnerable populations. The Oxfam “sex scandal” is certainly highlighting the latter, but for real impact the former is a critical issue. I declare no competing interests.