The South African education system is in crisis; with low matric pass rates, high dropout rates, teacher strikes, rising pregnancy rates among teenaged learners, and assaults by learners on educators and other learners. The system is unable to cope with the multiple demands placed on it and a number of NGOs are stepping in to aid the system. This study is an evaluation of an NGO aimed at developing learners through the application of the Appreciative Inquiry approach. The Appreciative Inquiry approach is a method for generating change within an organisation by looking at what works in the organisation and facilitating active participation. The main findings from this study were that the programme seems to have positively affected learners‟ performance both academically and behaviourally; the programme was perceived to have raised the general standard of academic performance at the school. / Psychology / M.A. (Psychology)

An exploratory descriptive design was used to examine income-generating self-help groups in the rural area of Moutse, Mpumalanga, South Africa in terms of viability and ability to empower women economically. Income-generating self-help groups of women in Moutse have grown over the years with the initiative of the extension officers of the Department of Agriculture. These groups are also used by the women to enhance personal growth and family support. The success of the income-generating groups relates to abstract needs, such as the individual member's motivation, self-esteem gained through participation in decisionmaking processes and the implementation of projects. Skills are acquired in the process of participation in which abstract and concrete needs are addressed. The failures of the groups are as a result of lack of funding, unavailability of resources, lack of appropriate support and training, lack of co-operation and some unhealthy competition among groups in the area which results in the groups not being economically viable. / Social Work / M.A. (Social Science)

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of philanthropic interventions in public high schools in Mutasa district of Zimbabwe. Three research questions guided the study. The investigation focused on finding out the types of philanthropic interventions in the public high school and to evaluate their impact on the schools and students involved from an educational management perspective. The investigation was a mixed methods research using both quantitative and qualitative methods. Data was collected by questionnaire, interview and documentary sources. Principals of twenty nine high schools responded to a questionnaire. Interview data was gathered from two representatives of non-governmental organisations. One NGO also provided documents for more data. Two individual philanthropists from the district were also interviewed. The results of the study indicate that philanthropic interventions have made significant improvements to the physical infrastructure of some schools. During the 2014 study there were about 700 students from poor backgrounds on various school fees assistance programmes. School enrolment and completion rates have increased. School drop-outs have decreased. Over 6 500 former beneficiaries of fees from one donor organisation have formed an alumni association to assist other children in disadvantaged circumstances. It is strongly recommended that schools in the district and elsewhere use online social network platforms to organise alumni associations from a wider catchment area beyond national borders. Alumni associations are a potentially rich source of philanthropic revenue hardly tapped in the district. Schools should create their own websites to be exposed to a global audience of donors for possible funding of their projects. / Educational Leadership and Management / D. Ed. (Education Management)

Conflict is an inevitable occurrence in any human interaction setting and organisations are no exception. Communication is an essential an important aspect of conflict. People run organisations and without interaction through communication, organisational existence would be next to impossible. This dissertation aims to explore the role of interpersonal communication in managing peer co-worker conflict in a Non-Governmental organisation, SILC KENYA, Eldoret. This study adopted a qualitative case study. Semi-structured face-to-face interviews were conducted to collect data from fifteen employees of the same hierarchical level. The study revealed various causes of conflict amongst the peer co-workers. Exchange of resources amongst peer co-workers was seen to better interpersonal relations in the workplace and it was further noted that interpersonal communication plays an important role in conflict management. The study recommends that peer co-workers should be equipped with interpersonal communication skills through frequent teambuilding activities and training workshops to aid in conflict management. / Communication Science / M. A. (Communication Science)

Denna studie undersöker hur demokratisk organisering i det svenska civilsamhället har påverkats av den hastiga digitaliseringen i samband med covid-19. Studien är av induktiv karaktär och syftar till att studera förutsättningarna för demokratiskt deltagande under digitala årsmöten i ideella föreningar. Den empiri som ligger till grund för undersökningen är kvalitativa intervjuer samt en kvantitativ enkätstudie. Urvalsgrupperna är personer som har suttit som mötesordförande under både digitala och fysiska årsmöten samt förtroendevalda och anställda som har arrangerat eller deltagit vid årsmöten under covid-19. Studien visar att det finns ett samband mellan demokratiska förutsättningar under digitala årsmöten och den digitala kompetensen inom organisationen. Vidare att förberedelser och organisationskultur är viktigare för de demokratiska förutsättningarna än om årsmötet arrangeras via fysiska eller digitala kanaler. Resultatet visar att lärdomar från digitaliseringen av årsmöten under covid-19 kan leda till ökade förutsättningar för deltagande och jämlikt inflytande. Empirin pekar på en framtida utveckling där majoriteten av organisationerna i studien kommer återgå till fysiska årsmöten eller hybridmöten. Hybridmöten, där vissa medlemmar deltar fysiskt och andra digitalt, rekommenderas inte då de kan skapa problem gällande jämlikt deltagande och inflytande under årsmötet. / This study examines how democratic organization of operations within Swedish non-profit organizations (NPO) has been affected because of rapid digitalization following covid-19. The study is inductive in nature and aims to study the prerequisites regarding democratic participation during annual meetings. The empirical data that creates the foundation for this research is based on qualitative interviews and a quantitative survey. The selection group studied comprises persons that have acted as chairman during both digital and physical annual meetings, as well as board members and employees within NPO's that have arranged or participated in annual meetings during covid-19. The study shows that there is a correlation between democratic prerequisites during digital annual meetings and the digital competence within the organization. Furthermore, preparations are shown to be more important regarding the democratic prerequisites than whether the annual meeting is conducted via physical or digital platforms. The results indicate that knowledge gained from the digitization of annual meetings during covid-19 could lead to better possibilities regarding participation and equal influence. Empirical data points out a possible future development where the organizations participating in the study will revert to using physical and hybrid meetings when conducting annual meetings. Hybrid meetings, where some participate physically and others digitally, are not to be recommended due to problems regarding equal participation and influence during the annual meeting.

Non-governmental non-profit organisations (NGOs) constitute an important actor and partner in implementing gender equality and formulating gender-related public policies. Their functioning and thematic portfolios are for the most part influenced by existing possibilities for funding, which have been significantly transformed by the Czech Republic joining the European Union. This research project aims to determine how EU frameworks established in the area of gender-related policies and financial resources derived from them have been influencing the thematic portfolios of gender- focused NGOs in the Czech Republic. It is divided into two sections. First, it discusses the theoretical basis of the research, introducing the problematics, identifying main gender-focused themes and embedding them within the EU agenda while defining aspects of their practical implementation through mechanisms of the structural politics of the EU. Further, the research paper concentrates on describing the means through which gender-related topics have been treated on the national level, how they are being defined and how the EU setting is being translated into the national context through the offered funding opportunities. The empirical part analyses information data provided by participating NGOs and consists of interviews...

Non Governmental Organisations have been operating in Africa since the 1940’s; then, their work was heavily biased towards relief work. From the 1980s however, the role of NGOs evolved to include development; understandably, African governments were finding it increasingly difficult to provide adequate levels of basic services for their people. To this effect and initially; NGOs got involved in development as short term "gap fillers" in the provision of basic services; health and education amongst others. As Africa’s development discourse continued unabated, NGOs were recognised by donors and host governments alike, as indispensible to the provision of such services; in time however, they became the subject of criticism for allegedly failing to irreversibly ameliorate the conditions of the poor. In delivering services, NGOs work in a complex partnership characterised by power imbalances. The partnership involves donors who own the means of production which facilitate NGOs’ work and host governments who “own” the humanitarian space which NGOs need to fulfil their humanitarian mandate. While seemingly poor and powerless, the communities served wield the power to facilitate or block the success of NGO interventions through their commitment and/or lack thereof; respectively; NGOs’ contribution is their skills and humanitarian spirit. The success of NGO interventions is a function of resources, humanitarian space and the goodwill that donors, host governments and the communities served bring to the partnership table respectively. The study sought to establish why between 2001-2006; NGO post-drought rehabilitation through to development interventions failed to irreversibly reduce vulnerability against drought in communities in Machakos District and the extent to which power imbalances which characterise “partnerships for development” contributed to the failure by NGOs to fulfil their mandate. The study revealed that NGOs are unwaveringly committed to their humanitarian mandate however; the power imbalances that characterise “partnerships for development” and in particular, that between NGOs’ and donors militated against the fulfilment of their mandate in Machakos District. When NGOs fail to deliver on their mandate; they lose credibility amongst the other partners and this reinforces the power imbalances; it’s a vicious cycle. “Caught at Crossroads...” NGOs are indeed. / Development Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Development Studies)

The roles of non-profit organisations in South Africa have evolved, leaving these organisations with an increased role to play in service delivery and community development. The purpose of the current research was to assess the effectiveness of non-profit organisations in the City of Tshwane to render services to communities by evaluating the Poverty Alleviation and Sustainable Livelihood Programme for the period of 2015 to 2018. This research adopted a qualitative approach. Purposive sampling was used to identify participants in the study according to time in the programme and the number of years non-profit organisations have been receiving funding from government. Using semistructured interviews and document analysis, this study found that, despite the efforts of the Gauteng Department of Social Development to decentralise services, poverty levels in South African communities remain high. This study further found that, although national, provincial and local poverty alleviation or sustainable livelihood programmes have been established, these programmes have been insufficient in making an impact in job placements and poorly reflect poverty reduction challenging communities. While non-profit organisations still face a plethora of challenges with regard to limited funding, capacity challenges and a lack of meaningful training and support, these organisations have however shown to be effective in achieving poverty alleviation in terms of the Sustainable Livelihood Programme outcomes in addition to meeting the needs of the poor. This success has been achieved through the offering of skills development programmes to the youth, implementing government food security interventions, fostering entrepreneurship skills, and promoting access to information on social development opportunities in communities. This study recommends that, for government to see considerable results and a change in the fight against poverty alleviation, there is a need to establish one national and uniform poverty alleviation programme that could be implemented across all spheres of government. In addition, this study concluded that, in strengthening the usefulness of non-profit organisations, there is a need to extend the current role played by the NPO Directorate, not only where staff capacity is concerned but also to introduce a functional model for managing the funding of all NPOs in South Africa. / Public Administration and Management / M. Admin (Public Adminitration)

The Sustainable Development Goals SDGs were adopted in 2015. The contribution of FBOs in their achievement is however, not properly recognised owing partly to the historical perception of FBOs as peripheral rather than core development actors. Using the case study of one FBO in Kenya, this study examined the relevance of FBOs’ development work to the SDGs. Using Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) and a literature review for data collection, the study found that: FBOs possess a dual identity (faith and development). The faith identity gives them some comparative advantages over secular counterparts in engaging local faith communities; there was a direct link between the FBOs’ work and the SDGs. The case study organisation directly contributed to six of the 17 SDGs; the FBOs’ knowledge on SDGs and their engagement with SDG forums were found to be limited. The study recommends a renewed attention to FBOs work and more studies to increase evidence on the FBOs’ role and impact on SDGs. / Development Studies / M.A. (Development Studies)

This Master's thesis deals with collective bodies in non-governmental non-profit organizations in the Czech Republic. The theoretical part acquaints the reader with basic concepts such as non-profit organization and its possible legal forms in the Czech Republic, mission, fundraising, public relations, strategic planning and briefly introduces the collective bodies of foreign organizations. The practical part is then based on good practices of six organizations, whose representatives of collective bodies were willing to share their experiences. The organizations were selected on the basis of successful participation in the competition Non-Profit Organization of the Year, in which they were placed among the top three in their category (some of them even for several years). Among these organizations we can find one registered institute, two public benefit societies and three registered associations. Since these organizations aren't with the same legal form, their collective bodies are also different. During the description of good practices, it was found, however, that the degree of motivation with which the members of the collective bodies of the surveyed organizations commit themselves to their work and their active involvement in the operations of the organization does not differ. The thesis also...