Unit-3 Issues in NGO Management

7/28/2019 Unit-3 Issues in NGO Management

1/13

UNIT 3 ISSUES IN NGO MANAGEMENTObjectivesAfter reading this Unit you w ill be able to:

understand the issues posing challenges to PTGO management;discuss the development issues; anddiscuss the relationship between poverty and development.

Structure3.1 Introduction3.2 Understand ing the Context3.3 Aid to Development3.4 Poverty and Development3.5 Poverty and Exploitation3.6 Poverty and Vulnerability3.7 Poverty and Powe rlessness3.8 Dependency to Sustainability3.9 Development Indicators3.10 Summary

3.11 Self Assessment QuestionsAppendixCase Study from Asian Development Bank (ADB)

3.1 INTRODUCTIONThis Unit will introduce you to various issues that need to b e considered in the managementof NGOs. As we have seen earlier, the NGO is different to a normal profit makingcomp any where a11 it needs to be concerned abo ut is the production process and handlingmachine s for profits to be made. It is not as simple a s this as there are a number of issuesa commercial company must face. But the NGO faces some complex issues from thesocio-econom ic and political environment outside a s well as issues from within its ownset-up.Service is the hal!mark of a NGOs performance and therefore it is normally w here suchservice is needed that NGO s will work. The poor are normally the communities NGO susually serve. The challenges that poverty present are da ting. Along with poverty areother factors that need to be understood in order to tac% the situation successfully.The re are a number of issues and helpful studies that have been undertaken and we willconsider som e of these in this Unit.


2/13

3.2 UNDERSTANDING THE CONTEXTSocial, legal, financial, environm ental, and other issues are growing increasing ly complexand offer a challenge to NGO s to m anage their organisations while keeping their missionin focus. They frequently face issues that not only require practical managem ent expertisebut also a knowledge and sensitivity to their contexts. You will hear such terms as socio-economic or even sociopolitical factors and even environmental factors. Our people livein such complex contexts and it is important for an NG O to consider them.NGOs engaged in community development do not merely deal with people in thecommunity; there are numerous related factors. Local community dynamics must bestudied, legal and local governm ental aspects should be fo llowed, environmen tal and so cio-cultural issues must be taken into consideration and now in recent years there is a growingemphasis on human rights and gender issues. NG O leaders and teams w ill need to havethe knowledge and skills necgssary to w ork amid people encountering such varied forcesin the field. The NGO manager must be able to understand these complex intertwiningissues and frequently handle ou t of the ord inary decisions.There is a crying need fo r various aspects of managem ent knowledge and skills to handlethe NGO environment while m aking decisions. You will be introduced to some of theissues.The issues we will be discussing in this unit arei) Poverty and Developmentii) Aid and Developmentiii) Dependency and Sustainabilityvi) Develop men t indicators3.3 AID TO DEVELOPMENTMost o f what we know a s "social service" in the early days was aid to help people inneed. There were feeding programs, grants of money for people in need and other suchcharitable acts. In fact these groups were some of the first NGOs. We cannot whollydismiss such agencies as there are times when there is need and the only way to he lp isto give money or material to bring relief. But development is much more.

f Gradually we saw the emergence of relief and welfare organizations. These becameactive during calamities and catastrophe s and many peo ple gave small and large donationsto help. For instance, when Banglade sh had its first major cyclone in 1974 manyinternational organizations rushed in to help Volunteers, 'brought foo d, clothing, moneyand other materials to help the suffering: W hile this was good and much needed, it bredmany ills that were hard to handle. For insrpnce, soon there was corruption with somemiddle men becoming rich and the poor not receiving what was rightfully m eant for them.Clothing, milk powder, blankets etc were so ld in the open m arket.However, you will find that many o f these o~,:anizationshave moved much further todayand involved in what is referred to as "development". Wo rldvis ion started by just helpingKorean orphans, but today has grown to handling major-development projects. Theymoved from merely relief to handling dev elopm ent. But what is the difference? As thewords imply, relief is temporary effort through immediate interventions, comp assionateand welfare activities and provision of materials and services, but development is gnongoing process.

I Let us try to understand this shift to d evelopm ent. We normally use the word "development"when we speak of improvement, growth, progress, advance etc. We speak of a child

Issues in NGManageme


3/13

ConceptsNGOs Functians

development agency which works with the poor and marginalised people of India.Our vision is a world without poverty and injustice, one in which ~ y g v mgn,man and girl and boy enjoy the right to life with dignity.We partner local organizations, who have the h~ w l e d @ efid gqperienae and sdaythe confidence of the poor and margiflplli~~dgmmunitieewewnrk wlth,Our mission is to work with poor and gxplyded wqmen, men and ~ i r l nnd beys toeradicate poverty, discrimina{i~qmd id~q{i~~:The people we work with inclu4e the &lit o r~dribalpeople, other ~ectlana f therural and urban poor, women, childrgnl and min~r i t iep? lthln theaa gmupr, ourfpcus js qn people in vulnemkle sitlrations suchmpe~pleivingwjthekonic hunger,

I . Make o list ef all the development issues they handle..................................................................... ...........................................................................................................................................................,.,.....%

developing in the s e q ~f w-ea~/ngisher stature,~ a p a ~ i t ~Fperf8rrnanaa.OimiIal+.whgn we arg eag?@$dn 486ipl action we would like tn see d@vel~pm@rttn tar~ns ff::.-Prqgress or imprvem ~nt gdvancement towards @mendependenee in their otriv;i.gf ~ rmprove!nenl t pw~dq ea~ipnablycceptable stand@~daf.livin@~ennsmlcelly; ?dswia! y.In this sense, theaim~3f ~~@lopments to h ~ l people becomemature, more self-reliant,developing their capaaities o handle their conditions and to become productive. Ultimatelythe aim is to improve the quality of life for individuals, families, communities and countriesas a whole. The indication of true development is when improvement is seen in peopleresponsible for their own food, housing, health, education, employment and abovgassured of their security.NGOs face an enormous task in bfipging a h o ~ t ev e l o p ~ ~ p tnd therefore setting t b ~process going. here are varjou, n$Qsyrpq b e i ~ g m p l ~ y g r Jpday throqph training gfindividualsarid communities@rself~helpniliatiye,s@all~s~al@,elf-reliavt devoltlpmentprojects, cooper${jyes, employple~t p p h n i t i c el@within their ow n eentQzt5. lthoughec~nomic evelopm~? ppears to he thg gnal ~fevowzl$ady3t is the ehrlnge in wttltudesthat is mast reqpired: Therefore when NQQs speak &out devalepmont it ir mere tksnjust economic devel~pment.t is a trasqhwatien sf so~ial, ~ ~ n o m i ~ ,11vi~onmenta1ndcultural conditions through changed attitudeq. Th e r ~ f ~ m ,hanwe npeak sfdeveloping acommunity it i s the process or effort of buildiqp people Broups an a l a d evel with totransform their capacities o handlg their- social re la t i~oshi~~,helr basic economy, improvetheir surroundings, and in fact overall strive for a better quality of life.


4/13

3.4 POVERTY AND DEVELOPMENTMost of us will look at poverty in terms of money, property, perhaps education etc andthat may be what you have put into your definition. Now you are ready to see some othervital aspects in the understanding of poverty.In the 1960s, the maill focus in discussions on poverty was on the level of incomes ofindividuals and families and hence it was measured in monetary terms. Even today theWorld Bank will often speak about the poverty in terms of incomes of dollars per day.But is poverty simply about the level of income obtained by households or individuals?Being convinced that it is not, practitioners look at poverty more holistically.Although poverty may basically be tied to monetary matters, the one thing that happens isthat because of the lack of money the poor do not have access to many things that thericher are able to get. Poverty is therefore "lack of access" for example to social servicesthat others enjoy. Because of lack of money, the poor are exploited. Many times theymeekly surrender to the whims of the rich bosses. Poverty is about being Powerless.Therefore, you can see how much more poverty is than merely lacking money. It is nowor political factors.Let us briefly consider how the understanding of poverty has evolved over the decades:

coming on "relative deprivation" and this helped redefine poverty: "not just as a failure tomeet minimum nutrition or subsistence, levels; but rather as a failure to keep up with theaccepted standards in a society. There are large disparties in these levels. The shiftbroadened the concept of income-poverty to a wider set of 'basic needs', including thoselack of access to health, education and other services.New perspectives were added in the 1980s. The main changes were:a) The incorporation of non-monetary aspects,b) Vulnerabilityof the poor to seasonal hazards -cyclone, drought, heavy rains.c) A broadening of the concept to speak of livelihood. Soon the term used wassustainable livelihood.d) Theoretical work by Amartya Sen, who had earlier contributed the notion of foodentitlement, or access, emphasised that income was onlyvaluable in'so far as it

increased the 'capabilities' o f individuals and thereby permitted fjunctionings '

e) Finally, in the 1980s there was a rapid increase in the study of gender. Policiesfollowed to empower women to be agents of development./.

The following terms are used to describe poverty:

Issues in NManagem


5/13

ConcepNGOs ~ t s& Functions of Income o r consumption pov ertyHuman (under)developmentSocial exclusion111- be in g(Lack 08 capability and functioningVulnerabilityLivelihood unsustainabilityLack of basic needsRelative deprivation3.5 POVERTYAND EXPLOITATION

-

Mahatma Gandhi said, as we are often reminded - "There's enough on this planet foceveryone's needs but not for everyone's greed." Greed leads to exploitat1011 nd this iswhere the poor are further victimized. With recent consumerist trcnds human greedincreases, and this widens the gap between the rich and the poor in some nations and isbringing about an imbalance on a larger scale between tlie nations i n the world. Issues ofjustice are coming into consideration.Till recently it was colnrnon to speak of the necd for economic "dcvelopmcnt" anlong"backwardy'nations. India was a poor country! The assuniptio~l ellind tl~is ang~~ageasthat Western-style industrialization was the model of progress, all


6/13

health and hygiene, basic crafts, better lifestyle and values, responsible citizenship including Issues in NG Orights and responsibilities etc. There are various existing Dalit groups through which such Managementprogrammes could be introduced. The Government has planned a number of welfareschemes for the development of the Dalit communities and NGOs could tap funds fromhere. There is a wide open door for service.

3.6 POVERTY AND VULNERABILITYThe poor, because of their poverty, are extremely vumerable and therefore get ensnaredinto ~ommercial xploitation. You will read two case studies below. One on humantrafficking and the other on organ transplant racket. Note how the poor are trapped andmany times for paltry sums of money.Millions of people are enslaved through forced labour and commercial sexual exploitationfrom which they cannot free themselves. Such slavery is referred to as human trafficking

own countries.Most instances of forced labor are linked with unscrupulous employers taking advantageof loose laws to exploit vulnerable workers. These workers are made more vulnerable

1 to forced labor practices because of unemployment, poverty, crime, discrimination,corruption, political conflict, and cultural acceptance of the practice. Immigrants areparticularly targets.The U.S. State Dept. 'Trafficking in Persons Report' stated that, the United Arab Emirates(U.A.E.) is a destination country for men, women and children trafficked primarily fromSouth and East Asia and the former Soviet Union for the purposes of sexual and labor

Although prostitution and drug related crimes are areas where such practices prevail,domestic workers may be trapped in slavery through the use of force or coercion, such asphysical (including sexual) or emotional abuse. Children are particularly vulnerable todomestic abuse which occurs in private homes, and is often unregulated by public authorities.For example, there is great demand in some wealthier countries of Asia and the PersianGulf for domestic servants who sometimes fall victim to conditions of involuntary servitude.Indian, Indonesian and Phillipino workers are in plenty.Child Labor is another area. Most international organizations and national laws indicatethat children may legally engage in light work. Bur even this allowance of "light" work isexploited with the worst forms of child labor prevailing allover the world. The sale andtrafficking of children and their exploitation in bonded and forced labor are particularly

35

Read the following News item which interlinksHIV and AIDS to human trafficking.(A W D P News item Jan 5,2008)The study, which was launched here today, has found that a large number of thoseat the risk of being trafficked in South Asia are young girls and women and theyalso run the risk of getting infected with HIV. The highest reported incidence ofthis double burden is in Nepal, Bangladesh and India, the study said. Factors suchas gender inequality, violence and lack of economic opportunities or women increasetheir risk to both trafficking and HIV.Younger girls are at higher risk of traffickingas well as HIV.According to recent studies by Harvard School of Public Health; in Murnbai onequarter of the trafficked individuals tested positive forHIV while in Nepal, it was


7/13

Weak gov ernance makes the poor vulnerable to the risk of being trafficked. Theabsence of effective legislation and policies as well a s poor Iaw enforcement andcorruption contribute to this.Trafficking happens both within and across national borders. However, nationalgovernm ents and other stakeh olders are yet to give this issue the priority it deserves,mainly because of the shortage of convincing data, the study said. "Information isavailable with regard to brothel-based sex work, but this reveals nothing abouttho se who practice sex work in other settings," the study said , add ing "researchersneed to look beyond se x work, since those wh o are trafficked for other purposesalso find themselves in situations that increase their vulnerability to HIV. Theclandestine nature oft he phe nomen on, criminal linkages and the cross-border spreadmask the scale of the problem."Titled "Human Trafficking and HIV: Exploring Vulnerabilities and Respo nses inSou th Asia," th e ana lysis in this report is based on rapid a ssessm ent studies conduc tedin Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Pakistan between 2004an d 2005. The se studies explored the links between hu man trafficking, migrationand H N AIDS in these countries and reviewed available data, the national laws,policies, strateg ies and responses.To address human trafficking and HIV/AIDS the study recommends bettercoordination in national efforts to address both issues, which are often dealt

"One of the fundamental weaknesses i l l explaining and exploring the linkagesbetween trafficking and HIV is lack of adequate data," said Ms. Caitlin Wiesen,Res io~ia lHIV/AIDS Team Leader and P rogramm e Co oridnator for Asia Pacific,L'NDP Regional HIV and Development Programm e. With Harvard Schoo l ofp ub licHe alth, the Regional Program me is initiating a three-country research study on thelinkages between human trafficking and HIV in Asia, she said.


8/13

b. What is the role ofNGO s in this sad plight of the poor? What can NG Os do tochallenge the medical and legal institutions and injustices that prevail?...................................................................................................................... \.......................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................

................................................................................................................... +.

Issqes in NGqanageme

POVERTY AND POWERLESSNESSPoverty is also defined in terms of lack of power. Power in these terms is to be sthe degree of control one has over material , human, intellectual and financial r e s o u r b . ~The rich enjoy a power or a freedom to m ake decisions. Very often, the rich tend to1unjustly exploit the poor because they have power to do so. Poverty is powerlessness. ,,In preparation for the World Developm ent Rep ort 2000/ 2001 : "Attacking Poverty", ePWorld Bank conducted a research study that brought together the e xpe rie~ic es f crver60,000 poor women and men from 60 countries around the world. The defining e x p e r i e kof poor people, the report stated, involve highly limited choices and an inability to makethemselves heard or to influence o r control what happens to them. Powerlessness resultsfrom multiple disadvantages (som e we have seen above), which in combination, make itextreme ly difficult for poor pe ople to es cap e poverty. Th e report affirmed tha t insecurityof life had increased and they have not been able to take advantage of new o pportunitiesbecau se of corruption and a lack of connec tions, assets, finance, info?mation, and sk ills.We will basically need to confront such structures in o ur social, economic and politicalsystems. NGO s wh o attempt to tackle the roots of poverty are frequently attacked b y th epowerful. These power brokers m ay be politicians who want their power because theywant control over the poor. Or they m ay be the wealthy landlords who require the poo r toprovide cheap labour. Unjust pow er relationships are systematically imposed in both richand poor countries on the basis of gender, age, caste, class or even education.Unjust power relationships also lead to deprivation of basic human rights for the poor.Human rights, according to the U nited Nations Universal Declaration of Hum an Rightsare the basic rights and freedom s to which all humans are e ntitled" Th ese include civiland po litical rights, such as the right to life and liberty, freedom oq though t and expression,and equality before the law, and social, cultural and econom ic ribhts, such as the right toparticipate in culture, the right to work, and the right to eduqation. We can see howpoverty can easily lead to the deprivation of such basic rights anh the poor become moreand more pow erless.NG O comm unities must not merely be engaged in feeding the poor or providing monetarypackages for temporary relief. The re are some revolutionary attempts like Ban gladesh'sNobel Prize winner and his microfinance programmes which have lifted women out ofpowerlessness to beco me decision makers in their comm unities. We can begin restoringpower by engaging in fblfilling the right o fth e poor to education, to good health, the rightto a clean environment etc.3.8 DEPENDENCY TO SUSTAINABILITY ,You have read above abo ut the gradual shift that NGOs have been making from sservice, welfare and reliefactivities on to developmen t. Th eN G O community has main their understanding of various issues in development. A more recent intruder intojargon has been "sustainability". We attem pt to explore the term.


9/13

7 -Concepts & Functions of lhe concept came into general use following publication of the report of the UnitedNGOs Nation's Brundtland Commission 1987. This was through the W orld Commission onEnvironment and Development or WCED . Sustainable development soon became a buzzword. World leaders were getting concerned that energy and resources w ere being over-utilized a nd would not last very long. The strain on the earth w as intensifying. Nationswere called to ado pt sustainable development m easures.Acco rding to the WC ED, sustainable development is "development that meets the needsof the present without compromising the ability of future gene ratio~ lso m eet their ownneeds." In other word s human s must not consulne the earth's resourc es as if there is anendless supply. We must think of future generations. The essence of this form ofdevelop men t is a healthy relationship between human activities and the natural resources,a relationship which considers that future generations m ust also enjoy a quality of life atleast as good a s our own. T he goal of environmen tal sustainability is to arrest environmentaldegradation, and to halt and reverse the processes leading to disaster.Sustainable development is concerned with maintaining a delicate balance between the .human need to maintain lifestyles and well-being on on e hand, but also preserving naturalresources an d ecosystems in orde r th@ future generations depend. The term refers toachieving economic and social development in ways that do not exhaust a country'snatural resources.Sustainab le development does not focus solely on environmental issues, and encompassthree general policy are as: economic, environmental and s ocial. In sup port of this, severalUnited Nation s texts, most recently the 2005 World Summ it Outco me Document, refer tothe "interdependent and mutually reinforcing pillars" of sustainable development asecono mic development, social development, and environmental protection. The UniversalDeclara tion on Cu ltural Divers ity (UN ESC O, 200 1) added another area "cultural diversity".Here development is understood not simply in terms of econom ic growth, but also as ameans t o ach ieve a more satisfactory intellectual, em otional, moral and spiritual existence.Cultural diversity is the fourth policy area of sustainable development. Therefore sustainabledevelopmen t is a holistic socio-economic-ecological process bringing about the fulfillmentof human needs while maintaining the quality of th e natural environment indefinitely forfuture generations.Environment and the Poor

In India, the majority o f the poor lives in rural areas and depen ds directly on naturalresources and ecological services for their livelihoods. Over 60 percent o f the country'sworkforce depen ds on agriculture, fisheries and forests for their I ivel ihood. The loss ofthis resource naturally leads to poverty. UND P in a doc umen t entitled "The Poverty an dEnvironment Nexus" records that there are about 100 million people in the country wholive in and around forests and another 275 m illion fo r whom fo rests constitute an importantsource o f livelihood. Gathering of fuel wood, fo dde r and non-timber fore st products fromforests is an im portant subsistence and econo mic activity, particularly for women. Similarly,on the Indian coast, the densest coastal region in the world, a large population dep,nd spr?marily on fishing for livelihood as w ell as nutrition.Over the last two decades, the availability of natural resources to rural commu nities andespecially to the poor has been affected sev erely and there could be several contributingfactors. One of these is the natural impacts we have seen in recent decades throughchang ing ecological p atterns. Apart from the cha nging patterns, there are also unexp ected,calamities like floods and drought. The tsunami that hit Asia recently has devastated thelives of millions o f poor. The already deprived are unable to cope with such shocks asJthey exist on m eager resource bases.

38


10/13

B H e u s - ~ 0 k Skkim$- faceor is t i l e exploitation of these resources by commercialpar^. ,s bilk V~;'LYd~J\ljecompensit ;o~l o tlie poor. Large and small scale co~nmercialopcr, :?;I: ba~ , , : Cavernments allti by Corporates are causing havoc to tliese people.Worn! . arc tlic piimn.j victims of deforestation and declining water tables and thesehave led to further compli.cations. With tlie cratiitional role of women in nalural resourcemanagement these v~~lnerabilit iesre boi~ntio increase. We have seen movements suclias chip ko and the Nar~nada achao AndoIan which have tried to mobilize national andinternational pressure on sucli unsc r~~pulousctions.

1 Development experts began lo study poverty systematically and "indicators" wereneeded for such studies. Indictors are basically measures. They indicate progress (orlack oil toward a goal or result. To stud) poverty, these indicators are items as salary,work, food, housing, health and education. Indicators should be used to monitor progresstowards the goals at varioi~s tages.Noarmally, development indicators are based on factors that relate to well being,economic productivity and the environmental sustainability of the resource basepopulations depend on for their livelihoods. Typical indicators are based on poverijlevels, access to basic services sucli as sanitation, water and health care, econom:~productivity, income distribution, educational levcls, and so on. These indicators ofteirvary on'tlie basis of gender, caste, community or other factors within regions.Sonie indicators are more measurable than others. For instance it is easy to measureincome levels but it is hard to measure livelihood or wellbeing. Also, we niay measiire~0i i~~mpt i011r food but tliis does not give us tlie true picture because of va r io~sfactors. How 1;1r,ci1 is tile mi~iinium o~isumption? lie intake varies with our bodies,age, gender, a c t i ~ Iarcl and environmental cooditions.- -- - -

Miller~nlitinnlECVC;G, ,LLL~~LLoalsrTlie Millennii~n.Development Goals (MDGs) were adopted in September 2000ago by tlic I J h as human developmelit indicators for building a better world. TlieMDCs represent a global partnership tliat has grown from the commit~nents ndta1gcl.s cstabiisilc.2 at tlie world summits of tlie 1990s. The MDGs are eightgoals to LC sciiiLvcd by 2015 that respond to tlie world's main developmentclialle~~gcs.'licq are drawn from tlie actions and targets c o~i~;~ i~ l cc ln tlieMillen~~ii~meclaratio~, ila! was adopted by 189 nations-and c~gnctl ,y 147heads of state and governments.Tlie eight Millcnriiil~nD ill the I 990s and represent commitments to reduce povertyand hunger, and to tackle ill-health, gender inequality, lack of education, lack ofaccess to clean water and c~ivironmentaldegradation. India has committed toattaining tlie MDGs by tlie year 201 5, but whether this is possible is anotherquestion. The MDGs are a set o f numerical and time-bound targets related tokey acliievernents in human development.

Issues in NGOManagement

As we are discussing azvelopment, it must be noted that in this context the MDGsconstitute tlie niost widely-accepted yardstick ofefforts made and policies implementedI by governments, donors, and non-governmental organizations. For a developing countrysuch as Jndia tlie MDGs provide a strong motivation as we need to be linked with theworld. Tlie attainment of these targets in India is vital not only for human development

and economic growth within tlie country, but are critical for reaching the MDGsI worldwide. 39


11/13

1 aga inst this backdrop, that the World Bank New Delhi office hosted a workshoponcepts & Functions ofNGOs entitled "Attaining the Millennium Development Goals in India: Role of Public Policyand Service Delivery" in June 2004. The objective o f this conference was to providenational and international perspectives on the challenges facing India's attainment ofthe Millennium Development Goals. The conference featured the presentation of a 'recent World Bank report entitled" 'Attaining the Millennium Development Goals inIndia' and showcased the vision of the country's key policy makers for attaining thesegoals.Th e conference also provided a glimpse of the 10th Plan roadmap to achieving the MD Gs,an overview o fth e United Nations' support to these goals, and views of key policymakersin this area. Conc rete examp les of policy interventions for achieving the MD Gs in Indiawere discussed through case studiesGoal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hungerGoal 2: Achieve universal primary educationGoal 3: Promote gender equality and empo wer womenGoal 4: R educe child mortality

bGoal 5: Improve maternal healthGoal 6: Combat HIV I AIDS , malaria and othek diseases\Goal 7: Ensure environmen tal sustainabilityGoal 8:Develop a G lobal Partnership for Developm ent

Activity 4Are NG Os able to address the MD Gs through their programmes? What kind ofassistance is required from G overnments and international agencies?.............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. .....................................................................................

SUMMARYhis unit takes into consideration the issues, whikh need to be addressed by NGOs tomake them proactive and becom e chan ge agents for the society at large. It is importantto understand th e underlying issues such as poverty, depend ency and sustainability. Th isunit ex p br es the relationship between poverty and developmen t through various case

studies in tura giving a practical undersanding of the who le concept. -ELF-ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS1. List the key development issues that in our country faces.2. Wha t socio-political and econ omic problems d o you encounter in operating as anNGO?3. Write a note on some other initiatives to tackle such issues in your co ntext.4. Wha t is your NGO able to do to become more proactive in being change agents inour country?


12/13

CASE STUDYLessons Learned from Asian Development Bank's (ADB) Change Agenda,formulated during the 2004 ADB Water Week.Globally, there are around 1.1 billion people without access to safe water supply, and2.4 without adequate sanitation. Of these, around 700 million without water supply and2 billion without adequate sanitation live in the Asia and Pacific region. The problem isparticularly grave and pressing in the rural areas where 70% of the world's poor reside.Efforts undertaken and investments made for the development of the rural water andsanitation sector in the past were either limited or plagued by various problems. ADB'sChange Agenda, formulated during the 2004 ADB Water Week, calls for increasedinvestments in the rural areas to overcome its inherent disadvantages, e.g. rural areas aredispersed and often difficult to reach as infrastructure is less developed to generate therequired economic and financial returns on investments.ADB recently announced a major new initiative that wills double its investment in theregion's water sector in 2006-20 10. Using new financing modalities, products, andprocesses, the Water Financing Program (WFP) intends to increase ADB investments inthe sector to over $2 billion annually, focusing them on three dimensions of water-ruralwater, urban water, and basin water.Under the WFP's rural water track, ADB will work on services to improve health andlivelihoods in rural communities, including investments in water supply and sanitation, andirrigation and drainage.In late 2005, ADB commissioned a study on the extent of civil society (CS) engagementin rural water supply projects.Civil society has been directly and indirectly filling some gaps in rural water supply andsanitation, using a variety of participatory tools, methodologies, and strategies to deliverthe necessary services.The study focused on different CSO-led initiatives in the region that showcase successfulproject imple~~lentationnd sustainability. Four of tl lese-one each from Bangladesh,India, Nepal, and the Philippines-help formulate possible models for civil societyengagement in rural water supply and sanitation services.Lessons.Ji.om this ca se sho w thatPartnerships arise from a deep need by the people for basic water and sanitation services.The formula for success may vary but it always involves the participation of localpartners or CSOs, empowering the community through meaningful participation,support from the government, and assistance from donor agencies.Long-term partnerships of CS organizations in local projects tend to ensure functionaland more sustainable systems.Investments in rural water supply and sanitation implemented with CS involvementpositively impact oiher poverty reduction efforts.ADB expects to use the findings from this study to strengthen the WFP's program ofaction for rural water.

Management


13/13

C o n c e p t s & Functions o f NEPALN G O sCountry Water Action: NepalMaking Rural Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Gender-Sensitive and R-o-Poor (May 2006).Nepal Water for Health (NEWAH), a national-level non-government organization, providedsafe water, improved sanitation, and better hygiene to rural areas in Nepal. NEWAtIboasts of a Gender and Poverty Approach (GAP) aimed at dissolving the disparitiesbetween women and men, and between tlie rich and the poor in Nepal's rural communities.NEWAH'S "GAP" APPROACHTo intensify the gender and poverty mainstreaming strategies of its water, sanitation, andhealth education programs, the Nepal Water for Health (NEWAH) institutionalized aGender and Poverty (GAP) approach in its .interventions in Nepal's rural communities.The GAP approach addresses existing social inequities by increasing gender equality andsocial justice in rural water supply, sanitation, and hygiene projects.Five project sites in Nepal were used to pilot-test the GAP approach. As of July 2005,1UEWAH has provided these project sites a total of 12,508 commi~nityap stands. 4 1,484domestic latrines, 181 school latrines, and 7 pitblic latrines. NEWAH has also trained14,879members ofNGOs, women credit g~o up s,nd other community organizations.NEWAH7sGAP approach was instrumental il l increasing wonien's and the poor's accessto water supply and sanitation services, awareness on health issues and hygiene educationparticipation in decision making processes and skills trainings, parliculal.ly in relation totlie design, implementation, arid operation of the water supply, sanitation and hygieneproject.NEWAH's experience showed that the richest and higher caste men domi~iated ll aspectsof access to water and sallitation delivery projects. This situation often excluded women,poor dalit (lowcaste), and indigenous peoples from any form of decision-making, training,and other benefits related to improved water and sanitation systems.Water systems predominantly controlled by male elites i n Nepal often cause uncqualaccess to safe .drinking water between the better-off and the poorest socio-economicgroups. More often than not, these male-led water projects prove to be i~nsustainable.NEWAH recognized that unless efforts are made to correct this partici~lar ituation at theorganizational and programme levels, poor women and men will continue to be deprivedof the benefits of their water and sanitation projects.

42

Unit-3 Issues in NGO Management

Documents

Transcript of Unit-3 Issues in NGO Management