Patronage or Partnership brings a new perspective to the subject of building local capacities in emergency and post-emergency situations. Many relief programs remain characterized by externality: in their funding, accountabilities, approach to management, and dependence upon expatriate staff. Strengthening local capacity is easier said than done, and there are real tradeoffs between outsiders doing something in the midst of an emergency, on the one hand, and building longer-term local skills, on the other. By critically examining the dilemma from local perspectives in case studies from Mozambique, Bosnia, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Haiti and Guatemala, this book finds real hope and possibilities amidst the prevalling rhetoric and confusion.