Hard times for Kenyan NGOs as funds dry up and controls tighten

A member of Kirambach Women Group in Baringo County tends their tomato crop. Fundraising has become increasingly difficult for small NGOs. PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA 

By JAVINCE OCHIENG

In Summary

• A new business model which targets profits and social impact is set to dislodge the entities as drivers of social change.

Every time we turn on a TV set, computer, or mobile phone we are inundated by troubling news from around the globe.

While the world faces mounting and critical issues such as global warming, discrimination, war, terrorism, and poverty, the need for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) seems greater than ever.

However, NGOs in Kenya and much of the world face a seven-fold crisis.

First, austerity measures in much of the traditional donor world have taken their toll on official development assistance to the developing world.
The reduction in steady predictable donor funding has led in recent years to wide unpredictability of NGO contracts.

Meanwhile China, an upcoming global powerhouse, does not use the traditional NGO structures but rather funds projects directly through its nationals’ firms.

While many NGOs focus on the most vulnerable among society, some NGO officials turn to self-preservation in uncertain times and spend inordinate amounts of time on contract extensions, job applications, and add-on programmes with less concern for communities.

In Kenya, the top three industries highly prized by job seekers are the Government, banks and NGOs. Given the present volatility, NGOs risk losing their allure as coveted employers.

Secondly, NGOs rely on donors from around the world for funding. These days fundraising has become increasingly difficult for them as better informed fundraisers search for and receive information from multiple online media sources, TVs, radios, billboards, etc.

As a result, NGOs are increasingly finding it difficult to stand above the crowd and garner support from donors in developed countries.

Third, Kenya’s new classification as a middle income country has led to multiple donors pulling out and focusing their interventions on poorer countries. As a result, Kenya receives a smaller percentage of an already shrinking pie.

Fourth, large private charities have, over the last 10 years, became increasingly aware of impact and how to measure it effectively.

Such organisations now want NGOs to quantify the impact of their interventions and whether it made any difference in the lives of beneficiaries when compared to control groups.

As a result, many programmes end prematurely when NGOs fail to meet impact standards.

Fifth, NGOs have turned into an industry where executives can amass considerable personal wealth. When a boss can, for instance, take home over Sh1.2 million per month in salary and benefits he loses sight of the poor he is meant to serve.

Sixth, the emergence of a new type of business model which targets profits, social impact (people), and environmental impact is poised to dislodge NGOs as drivers of social change due to the magnitude of what profit brings to sustainability.