The collapse of the Soviet Union brought about the sudden expansion of the ‘developing world’, as the populations of many of the former Soviet republics were abruptly plunged into poverty and international development agencies rushed to their aid. In this account of development intervention since 1991 in Kyrgyzstan, one of these republics, Joanna Pares Hoare draws on feminist critiques to chart how concepts of gender equality, civil society, and activism came to be instrumentalised in development interventions in the post-Soviet space. Ethnographic data gathered through interviews and observation with employees and volunteers in local NGOs provides further insight into what this has meant for activists in Kyrgyzstan who are striving for progressive social change.