Surrogates of the State looks at the role that nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) played in the implementation of the Tanzanian Ujamaa decentralization program in the 1960s and 1970s. The Ujamaa program involved “the ‘villageization’ of the nation by the large scale relocation and consolidation in the rural areas . . . coupled with social change designed to promote development along a designated path [with] a renewed emphasis upon the rural sector.” The program has been described as a coercive and violent one in implementation.

Michael Jennings analyzes the NGOs’ role in Tanzania in the program’s implementation and finds that their level of cooperation with the state in perpetuating the destruction caused by the program was questionable. NGOs such as Oxfam, Christian Aid, and Catholic Relief Services, convinced that the overarching Ujamaa objectives of equality and economic growth complemented their mission, tolerated the brutality of the program for the greater good it promised but eventually did not realize.

In particular, he finds that Oxfam favored the development of “social machinery based on traditional forms [for the] restor[ation] of the traditions of the socialist African society.” Yet Oxfam was witness to the atrocities of autocratic and forced resettlement of the Tanzanian people and claimed it had to go along because there were no other options for action available. Jennings claims that of all the NGOs, Oxfam was “probably the most aware of the political realities and events on the ground.” Planned Ujamaa villages were attractive to Oxfam and other NGOs: villages made it easier to hold planning meetings and provide services compared to scattered communities. They also hoped the villages would raise productivity and reduce inequality while giving a voice to the “traditionally marginalized.”

Jennings is not generally critical of NGOs but insists that they must take a look at their past and learn from their mistakes in order to renew their operating methods. He also looks at the historical development of NGOs and their involvement in politics and government despite their “supposed apolitical character” in carrying out their mission. He finds that the context of the country within which these NGOs work can reverse this character, creating space for irretractable alliances with governments and the political machinery.

While academic in style, this book is still relatively easy to read. Indeed it is a must-read for those interested in analyzing the evolution of the NGO, the NGO’s role in international development, early involvement of NGOs and intergovernmental organizations in developing countries, and the Ujamaa program in Tanzania.