The role of NGOs has been widely recognised in eradicating poverty and creating sustainable development in communities. Governments and private corporations view them as complementary partners in enhancing the livelihoods of people. In order to survive, NGOs need to be financially sustainable to carry out their missions. Their existence is, however, threatened by the current economic and political climate. In South Africa, the recent global economic recession and the country’s recovery from the apartheid system since 1994 have both had a negative impact in funding financial flow to NGOs. Compounded by the growing demand for new NGOs, evidence shows that there is fierce competition between NGOs for the same funding and, since NGOs by nature do not produce commercial outputs, they are limited to pursue funding opportunities made available through donations. This study explored the issues of financial sustainability within local NGOs in the Gauteng Province. The aim was to build mechanisms that could be put in place to monitor organisational financial sustainability over time. The study used a qualitative methodology and the researcher adopted an exploratory design to gain insight and meaning into the issues faced by NGOs. A sample of ten members from local NGOs in the Gauteng Province was identified and data was collected through key informant interviews and questionnaires. The study found that the majority of NGOs face difficulties in achieving financial sustainability over the long-term. The results indicated that funding in the sector is shrinking, with very few NGOs surviving through endowments. Their major challenges in raising funds are due to area limitations, competition within the sector, lack of skills, staff shortage and visibility. They optimise available opportunities but also acknowledge that they are not implementing other fundraising strategies that could be effective in raising funds. Evidence also showed that these NGOs are meeting the requirements of good financial management practices, which could improve their likelihood to achieve financial sustainability. The research recommends that NGOs need to be empowered to negotiate restrictions under the grants, raise endowments through income-generating activities, manage stakeholder relationships and cost any future funding prospects for key decision making that is likely to have an impact on the structure and the strategic direction of an organisation.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:nmmu/vital:28682 |
| Date | January 2017 |
| Creators | Manzere, Bogadi Patricia |
| Publisher | Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis, Masters, MPhil |
| Format | ix, 73 leaves, pdf |
| Rights | Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University |
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