Hand-over Models
In civil society development, several strategies have been tried to support the growth of sustainable local NGOs. In this series of posts I would like to address pros and cons of several hand-over models that you can find in development cooperation and in NGO peacebuilding.
I draw from my own experience in the Balkans, so my examples and criticism may turn out very differently in other regions of the world. If you have any examples, or counterexamples, you’re highly invited to post an answer.
Strategies
Several attempts to support emerging civil society organizations are:
- The local copy, in which the local staff of an international NGO decided to continue to set up a new organization along the lines of the old one after the the international organization has left.
- A long-term twinning between an international NGO and a local NGO by cooperating on the basis of shared ideas but without sharing personnel.
- The partner organization with a long-term international consultant that works within the context of an already existing organization.
- An independent international consultant networking between local organizations and linking them on the basis of common interests.
The first is a common strategy in the sector of development cooperation. The second strategy is central in the programs of the Dutch ministery of development cooperation (e.g. the MATRA fund). The third and fourth strategies can be found in the German context of civil peace service.
Organization Development
From an organization development point of view, these different ways of building sustainable structures have different characteristics related to the following organizational dimensions:
- clarification of the organization’s identity and developing a fitting strategy,
- changes in the organizational structure, the people that make up the organization and their functions,
- clarification of work implementation processes,
- the effective adaptation to financial and material means available.
A sound development of any organization would mean that all these aspects are addressed simultaneously. The different attempts to support sustainable structures have different characteristics and dangers.
Enhancing support to civil society organizations?
Most of the focus in local NGOs goes to finding the money for the things they do. But it’s only part of the picture. By comparing the strategies I want to focus on finding a good match between organizational identity and their working structures – a good match makes them much more viable to survive. Identity gives actions a direction and it is clearer for other local and international actors to see with what organization they actually deal with. When identity matches working structure and experience, it will be easier to access funding that is needed.
Current practice of international support to local organizations focuses mostly on ways to help organizations implement projects, bring organizations into contact with donors and train fundraising. To me, it seems that being able to write up project proposals, having experienced people for implementing projects is not enough. Let’s find a way to support local NGOs running the risk to become an NGO with a body without a head.
