Since the 1990s, most African economies and public spheres have been liberalised, and new civil society actors have emerged. As mapped out by Marie Nathalie LeBlanc and Louis Audet Gosselin, in West Africa Christian and Muslim organisations have come to dominate the field of humanitarian assistance.
Moving beyond mainstream development theory, Faith and Charity brings out the crucial role of religion in the development process and the interplay of moral and political ideologies. From faith-based NGOs to individual local activists, the authors explore how each group makes sense of, and contributes to, the wider process of social development in the neoliberal era.

Based on extensive research and deploying a sophisticated and original frame of analysis, Faith and Charity will make an important contribution to the existing literature on development anthropology and the anthropology of religion in Africa.

Series Preface

Acknowledgements

List of Acronyms

1. Introduction: Faith, Charity and the Ethics of Volunteerism in West Africa - Marie Nathalie LeBlanc and Louis Audet Gosselin

Part I: Religion, Politics and Development: NGO-isation and Religious Influence in the Twenty-First Century

2. Reflections on the Socio-Political Roles of Islamic NGOs in West Africa: Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire and Burkina Faso - Mathias Savadogo, Muriel Gomez-Perez and Marie Nathalie LeBlanc

3. Muslim NGOs in Côte d'Ivoire: Towards an Islamic Culture of Charity - Issouf Binaté

4. Catholic NGOs in Burkina Faso and Côte d'Ivoire: A Case Apart? - Louis Audet Gosselin and Boris Koenig

Part II: Religious Actors and the Making of NGOs

5. Precarious Agency in the Face of 'Good Governance': The NGO-isation of Muslim Women's Associations in Côte d'Ivoire - Marie Nathalie LeBlanc

6. Leaders of National and Transnational Muslim NGOs in Burkina Faso: Diverse Forms and Experiences of Islamic Civic Engagement - Kathéry Couillard, Frédérick Madore and Muriel Gomez-Perez

7. Private Evangelical Assistance to Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Burkina Faso: Religious Voluntarism and the Road to Success - Louis Audet Gosselin

8. From Local to Transnational Challenges: Religious Leaders and Muslim NGOs in Burkina Faso - Mara Vitale

9. Christian Citizenship, Evangelical NGOs and the Ethics of Holistic Rehabilitation among Socially Marginalised Groups in Côte d'Ivoire - Boris Koenig

10. Conclusion - Louis Audet Gosselin and Marie Nathalie LeBlanc

Notes

Bibliography

Notes on Contributors

Index