Particularities of Non-governmental Organizations’ Financing.The Case of Romania

Abstract

Abstract Nongovernmental non-profit organizations (NGOs) are becoming more and more prominent social actors in today's world. This coagulation and development of the nongovernmental sector, as an alternative to the market and public institutions, prompts the need for an analysis of the functionalities and eventual non-functionalities featuring their financing process. Our research method consisted of a combination of library and Internet searches for relevant materials, analysis of relevant information and of case study about Romanian situation. The results of our research described in this paper are the following, first an inventory of the main financial resource categories available to Romanian NGOs today. Second, we present an overview of the sources of financing accessible to these NGOs, including brief details of potential problems that might be encountered. Where relevant, we have included examples and data reflecting the current situation of these organizations in Romania, as the main country we have focused on. We have formulated the following conclusions referring to NGO's financing in relation to the assumed social task and their role in terms of coverage of social needs: first, though the need for funding, often they do not give enough importance to financial preparation of the proposed activities; second, NGOs have access to specific funding sources available just for NGOs. However, as in the case of public institutions or for profit companies, available resources are not sufficient to cover the assumed organizational task; third, they can address financing issues by specific methods, but methods used are not always adequate to pursue their funding objectives; fourth, NGOs act often in a rather emotional, intuitive manner, at the expense of a systematic planning process; fifth, they need a certain expertise in handling activities efficiently and effectively. However, we have identified that most of the time NGO's do not have sufficient internal resources or do not pay enough attention to developing necessary expertise by training their staff.