Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can best be understood as part of the spectacular growth in the past few decades of "third-sector" organizations, so called because they are different from the first sector (government) and the second sector (business). Instead of being formed primarily for profit-making purposes or brought into being simply by a government decision to extend its reach, third-sector organizations reflect the organized efforts of citizens motivated by social, religious, or ideological concerns for action.

Definition and Characteristics of Ngos

This broad family of third-sector organizations is active across a vast spectrum of activities from welfare services to leisure pursuits, from political pressure groups to arts and hobby societies. Third-sector organizations have come to play a significant role in many, if not all, areas of public life. In the matters of foreign affairs and international relations, they serve as powerful nonstate actors and activists within international...