1 Definition
NGO (Non Governmental Organization) is defined by World Bank as ‘Private organizations that pursue activities to relieve suffering, promote the interests of the poor, protect the environment, provide basic social services or undertake community development Role of NGO in Health Sector
2 History of NGOs in India: Role of NGO in Health Sector
NGOs have a long history in India. In the past, people in this country have been found to have provided help to others in trouble.
Since centuries there exists the tradition of voluntary service to the needy and helpless in the country. In the beginning, these services were rendered by people motivated by their religious feelings.
Floods, fires, earthquakes, epidemic outbreaks and other kinds of calamities were the occasions which motivated people to voluntarily help those who were trapped in disastrous situations.
It is around the late 18th and early 19th century that associations and organizations were being formed to render such activities in a more organ
During 18th century: emergence of self help
Friend-in-Need Society (1858)
Prathana Samaj (1864)
Satya Shodhan Samaj (1873)
Arya Samaj (1875)
The National Council for Women in India (1875)
In 1916: Mahatma Gandhi’s focus on Swadeshi movement.
Voluntary action. He reinvigorated civil society in India by stressing that political freedom must be accompanied by social responsibility.
A significant growth of NGOs started after India achieved independence.
Democracy was established and people had started understanding the meaning of freedom of speech, the charm of equality and the value of humanity and brotherhood
Also, on the other hand, the government started planning for development and in this effort, launched among other things, the schemes of Community Development Programme and later on the Green Revolution.
Types of NGO
Charitable
Participatory
Service
Characteristics of NGOs:
NGOs have following characteristics:
1. Engaging in suffering relief activities
2. Promoting interest of the poor
3. Protecting the environment
4. Providing basic social services
5. Advocating community development
NGOs in Health insurance schemes in India:
• The quality of health care available to the poor population in India is unacceptable. Services available through public health care facilities, which are supposed to be free, are often charged for.
Moreover, private health care services available to the population are of poor quality.
So many non-profit NGOs operate in India to provide preventive and curative health care services to the people.
A small number of those NGOs also offer pre-payment health insurance schemes. Such non-profit community based insurers may offer the best hope of providing high quality, affordable and sustainable health care to the poor.
The need for involving NGOs in health insurance schemes i n India arises due to the f
nice