Funding for NGOs: Issues and options

Abstract

This paper explores the options available to indigenous NGOs (users and intermediaries) in securing funds for their programs. The problems with donor funding are enumerated: preference for project over program aid, the recent decreases in total amounts available, the tendency to shift funds arbitrarily, the influence and accountability often demanded by donors, and the dependency such funding creates for recipient NGOs. Options available to indigenous NGOs for generating their own funds locally include: consultancies, training, and the sale of educational materials and other publications. The author stresses the need for donors to make a serious, long-term commitment to working with the poor; funds should be allotted to NGOs for institution-building and core staff; donors should became a “market” for indigenous NGO services; less aid should be tied; and endowments should be established for indigenous NGOs which have a proven track record.