Article on Giving

I read an article by Alex Hatton (“Guilt by Association,” Charity Times, Jan-Feb 2007. http://www.charitytimes.com/pages/ct_features/jan-feb07/text_features/ct_janfeb07_supfeature3_guilt_by_association.htm.) It is an interesting discussion of how its is significantly more expensive to secure new donors than existing donors and that guilt-based appeals discourage new donors. New donors require more information about how their money is being used and how it is making an impact. They also appreciate open discussions on aims and accomplishments and a focus on hope and progress instead of despair.

Social Exchanges

I’ve read a couple recent articles from Mohammed Yunnis, in which he is calling on the development of social stock exchanges. He supports both the creation of platforms for companies that are spending resources on charitable pursuits, as well as listing civil society organizations that do “good.”

Thankfully, people have created many such social investment exchanges. In addition to GiveIndia, there are several online social investment exchanges. These groups do a phenomenal job and work longer hours than many bankers and lawyers I know to help civil society organizations. So if you are inclined to give, these are all reliable.

1. Bring Light www.bringlight.com

2. CanadaHelps: www.canadahelps.org

3. Changing the Present : www.changingthepresent.org

4. Charity Aid Foundation: www.cafonline.org

5. Conexion Colombia: www.conexioncolombia.com

6. DonorEdge www.donoredge.org

7. DonorsChoose: www.donorschoose.org

8. Give2Asia: www.give2asia.org

9. Give India: www.giveindia.org

10. GlobalGiving: www.globalgiving.com

11. Greater Good South Africa: www.greatergoodsa.co.za

12. Help Argentina: www.helpargentina.org

13. Just Give: www.justgive.org

14. Just Giving: www.justgiving.com

15. Kiva: www.kiva.org

16. Microplace: www.microplace.com

17. Modest Needs: www.modestneeds.com

18. Network for Good: www.networkforgood.org

19. Social Investment Exchange: www.sasix.co.za

20. Social Stock Exchange: www.bovespasocial.com.br

In case you didn't already distrust MPs...

It turns out that of the 425 MPs, 360 of them list social work as their primary occupation – just giving credence to the belief that many Indian NGOs are just channels to funnel political money or launder graft.

Of course, this is not true for most NGOs, but it is a concern that requires some diligence and gives support to the Credibility Alliance/GiveIndia idea that political affiliation needs to be examined thoroughly.

Beneficiary Surveys as Enforcement Mechanism

One of the problems with viewing civil society as a marketplace is that it suggests that social exchanges are like stock exchanges and encourages discussion of returns. I thinking focusing on social returns is a good idea and is a good way of explaining what "new philanthropy" is seeking. The problem is that it isn't exactly like a market because there is no enforcement mechanism. There is no penalty if you aren't listening to voices (like your beneficiaries) and it is hard for donors to know whether an NGO is listening to its beneficiary. A third party monitor is impractical and expensive. What we are toying around with is trying to put beneficiary survey information into reports and then educating donors why this information is important. If donors hold NGOs responsible for having high beneficiary feedback "scores", then there is the possibility for cheap self-regulation.

Pros and Cons of Government Involvement for Sustainable Development

Indian law requires certain types of aid to pass through the government instead of private organizations. This is most apparent when one looks at UNICEF or World Bank funding, especially for education/child care. I’ve been struggling to determine whether this is a good thing or a bad thing.

On one hand you have a completely different model in Bangladesh. There the majority of funds pass through to private groups. The result is that private development organizations are extremely powerful in Bangladesh and do not have to be reliant on government as much. I’ve read conflicting stories on whether this lessens the sting of corruption, but one could see how it does.

Also, in a country where the government would not otherwise get involved and does not develop some sort of expertise, it is probably better to turn to private organizations.

But in India, where the government has taken the time to care about addressing social issues and has developed a certain amount of expertise (though many would dispute this), the partnership with government is probably very helpful – especially for sustainable development. Lots of the problems that India faces are not regional. They occur throughout the country. But most of the groups tend to focus on regional concerns and try to solve issues regionally before expanding outwards. In such a case, the government has an important role in sharing information and providing a platform to discuss issues. Also, where large scale problems are being tackled – education, trafficking, poverty – without government involvement it is virtually impossible to make large scale meaningful change.

What I need to find out now is what portion of aid is lost in overhead costs by going through the government and what benefit is gained by having the government involved. If the overall waste is large then I may rethink my position, but as it stands now, I think that it is probably a very good thing that the government is actively involved.

Wrong About Strategies vs. Prerequisites

After doing a few more workshops, I think that my initial position on the strategy vs. prerequisites distinction was wrong. It is important to make a distinction between the two because strategies will change. They may not be successful in bringing about the necessary outcome or may have to be changed for various other reasons (e.g., resources, time, change in law). So, if a group lists a strategy instead of a prerequisite, then the map of the theory of change risks having to be changed more frequently than necessary. While the map is supposed to be a “living” document and should change, it should strive to remain as consistent as possible so that all stakeholders understand the larger picture.

Running an NGO is not your escape route from your current job...

What I am finding is that the best NGO leaders do tend to have some private/business experience before entering civil society. The difference between the good NGO leaders and the mediocre/bad ones, is that the good ones are extremely good. They were not just skilled bankers, financiers, etc., they were likely near the top of whatever organization they were at before. This makes sense – running an NGO is much harder than most private business. Not only does the NGO head have to be the organizations visionary and force it to stay consistent to its goals, he or she is often called on to give advice in everyday problems. As a result, he or she needs to manage macro and micro problems. He or she needs to be a macro-level manager, while providing micro-level input. And if the NGO is really successful, he or she will likely be called on by other NGOs to help solve their problems – which, given how much all of the NGOs need each other to tackle larger issues, means he or she can’t say no to any requests for help. If this wasn’t enough, often that NGO leader will be the only one in his or her organization that is even remotely capable to taking on this much responsibility. So, my point is that just because a person is a successful student or businessperson, does not mean he or she will be a successful NGO manager…to be one you probably need to have been an exceptional student and a phenomenal businessperson.