Description
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the structural inequities and governance gaps in global and national health systems. Within this context, the paper critically examines the role of global non-governmental actors, specifically that of international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) and philanthropic foundations, in shaping India’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper looks at their involvement in the Indian health sector within the broader context of neoliberal globalisation, which has transformed the global health governance (GHG) landscape since the late twentieth century. It employs Robert Cox’s Gramscian concept of hegemony as its theoretical framework to understand how neoliberalism has impacted global health governance and how, as a result, global non-governmental actors have consolidated market-centric logics and technocratic practices within the health sector. The study tries to explore how these actors have influenced India’s pandemic management through advocacy, service delivery, and agenda-setting. Using the qualitative case-study approach, the research analyses primary and secondary data from INGOs, philanthropic organisations, and policy documents, as well as semi-structured interviews. It argues that while these actors have provided vital support during the crisis, their growing influence has also reflected and consolidated the neoliberal restructuring of India’s healthcare system. The study will contribute to the discourse on global health governance, neoliberalism, and global political economy. It will further offer insights into the implications of privatisation and philanthropic models of health governance in the Global South and during public health crises.
