UNPACKING LOCALISATION A DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF ECHO'S LOCALISATION AGENDA IN YEMEN AND ITS LOCAL PERCEPTIONS
Author
Abdulaziz, Nouman
Term
4. semester
Education
Publication year
2025
Abstract
Denne afhandling undersøger, hvordan lokalisering i humanitær bistand udfolder sig i praksis, ved at analysere DG ECHOs lokaliseringsagenda i Yemen og lokale opfattelser heraf. Med udgangspunkt i en deduktiv ramme og Faircloughs kritiske diskursanalyse gennemføres et casestudie af sproglige, diskursive og samfundsmæssige praksisser, struktureret omkring tre indikatorer: (1) indramning af risiko og ansvar, (2) lokale aktørers operative versus strategiske rolle, og (3) finansiel autonomi og efterlevelsesmekanismer. Analysen viser, at ECHOs diskurs om risiko præges af et køligt, teknisk sprog uden klar afgrænsning af risikokategorier; at lokale aktører primært positioneres som implementører med operationelt ansvar frem for strategisk indflydelse; og at stram øremærkning og compliance fungerer som portvagter, der begrænser fuld finansiel autonomi. Samtidig peges der på en samskabt afhængighed, idet yemenitiske partnere delvist reproducerer ekskluderende “os-mod-dem”-rammer. Afhandlingen skærper dermed sine hypoteser: Manglende begrebsliggørelse af risiko depolitiserer problemer og gør dem til tekniske frem for politiske spørgsmål, og afhængighed bør forstås som relationelt samskabt, hvilket udvider Roepstorffs kritiske lokalisme til begge parter. Metodisk bidrager studiet med at politisere sprog og peger mod en afkolonisering af lokaliseringspraksisser før operationelle reformer. En erkendt begrænsning er, at CDA kobler diskurs og kontekst, men ikke fanger den fulde operationelle virkelighed; derfor anbefales videre forskning med etnografi eller kvalitative interviews for at indfange uformelle praksisser og styrke generaliserbarheden.
This thesis examines how localisation in humanitarian aid plays out in practice by analysing DG ECHO’s localisation agenda in Yemen alongside local perceptions. Using a deductive framework and Faircloughian Critical Discourse Analysis, it conducts a case study of linguistic, discursive, and societal practices, organised around three indicators: (1) the framing of risk and responsibility, (2) local actors’ operational versus strategic roles, and (3) financial autonomy and compliance mechanisms. The analysis finds that ECHO’s discourse on risk relies on a cool, technical language without clear definitions of risk types; that local actors are largely positioned as implementers with operational duties rather than strategic authority; and that tight earmarking and compliance operate as gatekeepers limiting full financial autonomy. It also highlights a co-constructed dependency, as Yemeni partners partly reproduce exclusionary “us versus them” frames. The thesis refines its hypotheses accordingly: weak conceptualisation of risk depoliticises issues by casting them as technical rather than political, and dependency is relationally co-produced, extending Roepstorff’s critical localism to both sides. Methodologically, it argues for politicising language and for decolonising localisation practices before operational reforms. A key limitation is that CDA links discourse to context but does not capture operational realities; thus, further research using ethnography or qualitative interviews is recommended to uncover informal practices and enhance generalisability.
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