OneWorld South Asia(FEBRUARY 27, 2017)
Holland based development organization teaches Indian grassroots NGOs to become self-reliant by freeing them from dependence on foreign funds.
New Delhi:With priorities of developed nations funding various programmes in developing countries undergoing a mega shift, sustainability has become a major challenge for thousands of grassroots community-based organizations (CBOs) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in countries like India.
In a bid to stand up to this challenge, Smile Foundation, one of the leading development organizations in India, has collaborated with The Wilde Ganzen Foundation of the Netherlands to enable grassroots CBOs and NGOs to mitigate and circumvent this challenge of shrinkage in foreign funding.
Change The Game Academy (CTG Academy) founded by The Wilde Ganzen Foundation has been launched in India and Smile Foundation is the nodal agency for implementing its objectives of finding innovative local solutions for grassroots CBOs & NGOs.
The free online course that is being launched by CTG Academy will not only equip the nonprofits with skills but also provide them the necessary knowledge and toolkits.
Santanu Mishra, Co-Founder & Executive Trustee, Smile Foundation, argues that nonprofits in India do not have to depend on other countries.
According to him CBOs and NGOs can raise funds within the country and become self-sustainable. “New opportunities are getting created for them to diversify their funding sources. Change The Game Academy teaches them how to raise funds locally from diverse non-conventional sources including CSR funding to help them overcome funding constraints. It teaches them how to build effective partnerships with different stakeholders like corporates, state governments and Central government agencies among others.
“The online platform will guide the nonprofits on mobilising support and build systems like financial management system, HR manual, Board policy etc. It enables them to develop and implement an effective online and offline communications strategy, brand building. What’s more? CBOs & NGOs have the flexibility to learn directly from experts or take to web-based learning at their own pace and convenience,” Mishra said.
The online course modules have been developed by internationally acclaimed experts and adapted to suit the Indian context by Smile Foundation. Along with the modules, the portal has inspiring case studies from across the world and tips to replicate the same in Indian context with an active support of an extensive library.
Besides India, The Wilde Ganzen Foundation aims to take this initiative to many developing countries and has already launched CTG Academy in Brazil, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and South Africa. “We will take the benefits of Change The Game Academy to 30 different cities pan-India,” Mishra said.