NGOs asked to scramble for local resources for sustainable development
As development partners are pulling out, Non-Governmental Organization Regulatory Authority (NGORA) has urged Civil Society Organizations to switch to local resources mobilization to sustain their work.
Chief Executive Officer for NGORA Edward Chileka Banda told Nyasa Times on Monday that it hard to secure funding for majority of local Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in the country as most donors are pulling out hence need for NGOs to change their mindset and focus on local resource mobilization.
“It’s our message to the NGOs that they must change their way of thinking of dependency on development partners and start looking for local revenues to sustain their work despite the pooling out of donors as they have a role to play to transform the lives of the society.
Banda also announced that this year’s NGO day will be held in Mzuzu on 29th August under a theme “Harnessing local resources for sustainable development,” where His Excellence President Dr Lazarus Chakwera will dress the occasion and preside over awards to some NGOs that have emerged winners in various categories.
He said the choice of Mzuzu venue is to give space to NGOs in the north to showcase their work as most of them do not manage to travel to the Southern and Central regions where this day has been commemorated for the past years.
In terms of compliance Banda expressed satisfaction that a number of NGOs at the meantime are coming forth with their reports to the authority unlike in the past.
Reacting on the matter, Executive Director for Youth Watch Society (YOWSO) Mateyo Mkhuta Banda one of the local NGO in the North commended NGORA for scheduling NGO day commemorations to Mzuzu saying it will give an opportunity for CSOs in the region to share knowledge with government and development partners how they are operating with limited resources.
He conquered with NGORA that it is doable for CSOs to mobilize resources locally and perform their roles in the society
“We have seen commercial banks and private companies announcing that they have accumulated a lot of millions as profit which they are supposed to pay back to the public and we believe NGOs can tap from them and use it for sustainable development for the public,” he said.
Through report reviews, surveys, and verifying that NGOs follow the law and ethical standards, NGORA plays a critical role in promoting accountability and openness within the NGO sector in Malawi.
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