Civil Society Exposed: The Politics of NGOs in Egypt

by Maha M. Abdelrahman

This book examines the debate on the relevance of the concept of civil society to social and political change and the role its most well-known agents, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), play in promoting emancipatory projects. The author analyzes the empirical case of Egyptian ""civil society"" in order to ascertain whether the experience of civil society organizations, and of NGOs in particular, validates the contention prevalent in academic and policy circles that civil society is the main engine for social and political transformation. The author concludes that civil society, far from constituting this engine, is a politically contested terrain characterized by authoritarian and repressive tendencies.

240 pages, Hardcover

First published March 2, 2004

About the author

Maha M. Abdelrahman in Assistant Professor in Sociology at The American University of Cairo.