Decolonisation and locally led

Reflections from the Global Partnerships Conference on one of the biggest questions facing international development today: is power really shifting in the development and humanitarian space?

If shifting power is to mean anything, it cannot remain a phrase attached to a system in which money, risk and decision making still flow upward. So, what does a genuine shift in power mean?

An invitation and a challenge to move beyond rhetoric, confront power honestly and build an international cooperation system that reflects the world we are working towards. We hear from voices across the Global Majority ahead of the 2026 Global Partnerships Conference.

The international development sector has woken up to the need to shift power to local peers. Yet these changes often focus on programmatic work, with fundraising and communications as an afterthought. By co-creating campaigns with local peacebuilders, this is an approach we’re trying to dismantle.

Claims of locally led development often remain rhetorical unless colonial power and its patriarchal legacy are confronted. This must involve women-led initiatives which use female insight and evidence to drive policy, financial, and systems change.

We hear from people with disabilities in Bangladesh, Nepal and Kenya who are showing what locally led change means in action. How is participatory storytelling powering locally led disability rights work?