‘NGOs not run by angels’
Namibia Networks of Aids Service Organisations (Nanaso) executive director Sandy Tjaronda yesterday strongly opposed the idea of a regulatory body to review non-governmental organisations (NGOs) on an annual basis to get a grip on corruption.
This follows remarks by Brenda King, a member of the European Economic and Social Committee, yesterday at a press briefing during the current session of the ACP-EU joint parliamentary assembly, underway in Windhoek.
According to King, charity commissions in Europe submit reports and accounts which are reviewed and that Namibia too should explore this avenue, in order to give a bit more confidence to citizens as well as future donors outside Africa.
Funding remains a critical challenge for NGOs but their financial reporting falls far short of donor expectations, especially the level of accountability sought by European donors. Corruption in civil society reared its ugly head in 2011 when the Global Fund withdrew funding from the now defunct Lironga Eparu after it was discovered that its executive director, Emma Tuahepa, was guilty of embezzlement.
The organisation has been left without funding from donors like UNAids and HIVOS, PharmAccess and the Africa Groups of Sweden because of the alleged misuse of funds that were intended to benefit people living with HIV and Aids in Namibia.
Since then, there have been countless reports of mismanagement of donor funding at various NGOs.
However, according to Tjaronda a regulatory body cannot be imposed on NGOs although some may be found wanting.
“NGOs are not run by angels. We have some areas where capacity gaps exist and you find money has gone missing. So such a regulatory body is not fair,” he said before adding that NGOs are expected to work within the confines of the law.
He added that they are established on pillars such as accountability and should therefore act accordingly.
Rachel Coomer, who works as the public outreach manager at the Legal Assistance Centre (LAC), said reporting to ten different donors annually may become tedious.
She pointed out that NGOs already have an oversight function exercised by a board of directors.
“We (LAC) do an annual audit; we make financials public in some way this can be seen as review. One of the challenges is the administration of development funding,” she said.
According to her NGOs are a complex environment where staff are often headhunted or where they make use of volunteers.
“Imagine you have ten donors and all of them need a lot of reports - then you are stuck,” she explained.
Political pressure may also play a role in funding for various organisations. According to King, there is a need to change government’s perception that civil society is the ‘enemy’.
“There may be reluctance from the governmental officials who deal with the money to give it to those NGOs that are perceived as too critical,” she said.
JEMIMA BEUKES
This follows remarks by Brenda King, a member of the European Economic and Social Committee, yesterday at a press briefing during the current session of the ACP-EU joint parliamentary assembly, underway in Windhoek.
According to King, charity commissions in Europe submit reports and accounts which are reviewed and that Namibia too should explore this avenue, in order to give a bit more confidence to citizens as well as future donors outside Africa.
Funding remains a critical challenge for NGOs but their financial reporting falls far short of donor expectations, especially the level of accountability sought by European donors. Corruption in civil society reared its ugly head in 2011 when the Global Fund withdrew funding from the now defunct Lironga Eparu after it was discovered that its executive director, Emma Tuahepa, was guilty of embezzlement.
The organisation has been left without funding from donors like UNAids and HIVOS, PharmAccess and the Africa Groups of Sweden because of the alleged misuse of funds that were intended to benefit people living with HIV and Aids in Namibia.
Since then, there have been countless reports of mismanagement of donor funding at various NGOs.
However, according to Tjaronda a regulatory body cannot be imposed on NGOs although some may be found wanting.
“NGOs are not run by angels. We have some areas where capacity gaps exist and you find money has gone missing. So such a regulatory body is not fair,” he said before adding that NGOs are expected to work within the confines of the law.
He added that they are established on pillars such as accountability and should therefore act accordingly.
Rachel Coomer, who works as the public outreach manager at the Legal Assistance Centre (LAC), said reporting to ten different donors annually may become tedious.
She pointed out that NGOs already have an oversight function exercised by a board of directors.
“We (LAC) do an annual audit; we make financials public in some way this can be seen as review. One of the challenges is the administration of development funding,” she said.
According to her NGOs are a complex environment where staff are often headhunted or where they make use of volunteers.
“Imagine you have ten donors and all of them need a lot of reports - then you are stuck,” she explained.
Political pressure may also play a role in funding for various organisations. According to King, there is a need to change government’s perception that civil society is the ‘enemy’.
“There may be reluctance from the governmental officials who deal with the money to give it to those NGOs that are perceived as too critical,” she said.
JEMIMA BEUKES
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