🌍 A must-read for anyone working in humanitarian aid and development. Everyone says they support locally-led aid. But what does it actually look like when a local organisation controls the budget, sets the agenda, and defines what success means, without having to justify it to a donor in Geneva or Washington? The gap between claiming locally-led and practising it shows up in the details: who signs the contracts, who designs the indicators, who gets to say when the work is done. This report from NEAR doesn't just describe the problem, it brings the voices of Global South civil society to name what genuine local leadership feels like from the inside, and what still gets in the way. "Building More Locally-Led Aid Ecosystems" , is a powerful synthesis of insights from Global South civil society organisations on the daily realities, challenges, and opportunities of transforming how aid works. The report doesn't shy away from complexity. It looks both within the dominant international system and outside it: exploring what it truly means to shift power, resources, and decision-making to local and national actors. Key themes include: 📌 The lived experiences of local & national CSOs navigating the current aid system 📌 Barriers to genuine localization and how they're being overcome 📌 Pathways toward more equitable, community-rooted aid ecosystems This is the kind of grounded, Southern-led evidence base our sector needs right now. 👉 Read the full report here: https://near.ngo/resources/building-more-locally-led-aid-ecosystems/ (Also available in French, Spanish & Arabic)