This paper focuses on the dynamics of frontline organisational practice and examines how non-governmental organisations (NGOs) act as an intermediary between people and the state. It explores how workers in NGOs in the Pearl River Delta are responding to the needs of local migrant populations including rural-to-urban migrants and foreigners within mainland China, cross-border ‘new arrival’ Chinese and ethnic minorities in Hong Kong. We examine how government policy imperatives that relate to (im)migrants within the wider region are operationalised in strategic and direct practice, drawing on the theory of street-level bureaucracy to guide the analysis of primary data collected in two cities (Hong Kong and Guangzhou) during 2014. Key findings provide evidence of discretionary agency in both locations although the broader scope for an agency is evident in Hong Kong than Guangzhou. Implications for future practice are discussed within the context of increasingly restrictive political and social environment within the region.

本論文聚焦於前線組織性實踐的動態，並探討非政府組織如何成為人民與國家間的中介。文章探究珠三角地區非政府組織工人如何回應本地移民群體的需要，包括農村到城市的移民、中國大陸的外國人、香港跨境「新來」的大陸人及少數族裔。借鑑基層官僚理論去分析於2014年在香港及廣州兩個城市的初步數據，我們探討政府關於更寬區域的移民政策如何在策略及直接服務上運用。對比廣州，主要發現證明兩地的全權中介，香港的中介具有更廣的發揮空間。文章還討論未來的實踐面臨著區內日益增加限制的政治及社會環境而受到影響。

Available online and in print.

Mode of access: Internet.