Abstract This article examines micro‐enterprise development (MED) programmes of non‐government organisations (NGOs) in two developing countries, Bangladesh and Indonesia, to explore understandings of success from the perspectives NGO managers and beneficiaries. Interviews were conducted with managers from 20 MED NGOs, and individuals and groups of beneficiaries from four of the NGOs. A review of the NGOs' publicly available documents was also undertaken and compared with interview data. The findings reveal NGOs' understandings of success at the organisational ‐ level‐emphasised organisational development. However, NGOs' interpretations of success at the programme level focused primarily on short‐term outputs rather than long‐term outcomes and impacts, with limited follow‐up by NGOs. Implications include potential misconceptions regarding understandings of success from an internal (NGO) versus external perspective, and the need for long‐term monitoring to understand how sustainable NGOs' programme outcomes actually are.
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