How Matters / Tag Archive

Posts Tagged ‘South Africa’

May 22nd, 2012 - 9:52 pm § in Good Practice

Site Visits: The Feedback You’ve Never Heard

Leaders from four African organizations sat down to give their “real”, though too-often-unheard insights on site visits from the perspective of the ones being visited.[...]

Tags: aid effectiveness, aid partnerships, aid workers, community participation, community-based organizations, donors, Ethiopia, evaluation, foreign aid, foreign assistance, grantees, grassroots organizations, international aid, international development, Kenya, Lesotho, M&E, monitoring, organizational development, philanthropy, site visits, South Africa No Comments

October 5th, 2011 - 7:34 am § in Reflection & Rumination

What’s missing from the aid effectiveness debate? Overlooking the capacity of local organizations

Are we overlooking the capacity of local NGOs? My guest post on The Broker Online argues that rather than being the lowest common denominator of international assistance, local indigenous organizations should be regarded as the fundamental unit of effective development aid.[...]

Tags: accountability, Accra Agenda for Action, alternatives, Arab Spring, Busan, Center for Global Development, Chet Tchozewski, climate change, community participation, community-based organizations, complexity, conflict, food crisis, foreign aid, foreign assistance, funding mechanisms, GlobalGreengrants, grassroots organizations, HIV/AIDS, international aid, international development, NGOs, Oxfam, Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, poverty, power dynamics, Rajiv Shah, Robert Zoellick, social change, social movements, Somalia, South Africa, Todd Moss, USAID, WiserEarth, women’s groups, World Bank 4 Comments

March 17th, 2011 - 6:25 am § in Good Practice, Guest Bloggers

The wisdom of dlalanathi: Reflections on organizational growth

South African child-focused NGO, dlalanathi, reflects on the critical elements of their organization’s success and offers advice to other organizations in the midst of growth or change.[...]

Tags: capacity building, child development, community development, community-based organizations, dlalanathi, grassroots organizations, international development, learning organization, organizational development, organizational growth, Peter Block, play therapy, South Africa 2 Comments

November 8th, 2010 - 9:10 pm § in Good Practice, Reflection & Rumination

What’s missing from the DIY aid debate? Overlooking the Capacity of Local NGOs

Are we overlooking the capacity of local NGOs? Rather than being the lowest common denominator of international assistance, indigenous organizations should be regarded as the fundamental unit of effective development aid.[...]

Tags: accountability, aid workers, alternatives, capacity building, community participation, community-based organizations, complexity, DIY aid, foreign aid, foreign assistance, funding mechanisms, GlobalGreengrants, grassroots organizations, HIV/AIDS, international aid, international development, JLICA, Malawi, Namibia, NGOs, Nicholas Kristof, organizational development, power dynamics, Robert L. Woodson, social change, social movements, South Africa, Uganda, UNICEF, voluntourism, WiserEarth 21 Comments

October 10th, 2010 - 8:26 pm § in Guest Bloggers, Reflection & Rumination

Changing the system…from the ground up

"‘The system’ whereby foreign donors give handouts, and not sustainable initiatives that are drawn from the needs of the communities, is a problem.” ~R.F.M. community activist, Zimbabwe[...]

Tags: accountability, aid workers, alternatives, Argentina, community ownership, community participation, community-based organizations, donors, downward accountability, Ethiopia, foreign aid, foreign assistance, funding mechanisms, grassroots organizations, ideas, innovation, intermediaries, international aid, international development, Kenya, Listening Project, Malawi, Mozambique, Palestine, power dynamics, solutions, South Africa, Swaziland, Uganda, USAID, Zimbabwe 8 Comments

September 17th, 2010 - 4:21 am § in Good Practice, Guest Bloggers, Reflection & Rumination

A New Discipline for Development Practitioners

Organizational development is a discipline that needs to become more central to the practice of the development sector as a whole, not just a small professional enclave. [...]

Tags: ActionAid, aid workers, alternatives, CDRA, civil society organizations, Community Development Resource Association, community-based organizations, complexity, crisis, donors, foreign aid, foreign assistance, grassroots organizations, international aid, international development, NGOs, organizational development, organizational learning, Oxfam, partnership, power dynamics, social change, social movements, South Africa, sovereignty, The Barefoot Guide, values, VSO 4 Comments

August 18th, 2010 - 12:06 am § in Good Practice, Guest Bloggers, Reflection & Rumination

Changing the aid system: 5 more ideas from the inside

A continuing list of 5 more ideas for changes in international development policy and practice. "Development policy needs to be kept real."[...]

Tags: aid workers, alternatives, Azerbaijan, bureaucracy, community participation, community-based organizations, conditionalities, dependency, donors, DRC, foreign aid, foreign assistance, Global Fund, ideas, innovation, international aid, international development, OECD, Palestine, PEPFAR, power dynamics, Red Cross, solutions, South Africa, U.N., USAID 2 Comments

August 17th, 2010 - 12:37 am § in Good Practice, Guest Bloggers, Reflection & Rumination

Changing the aid system: 5 ideas from the inside

We all know it’s easier to identify problems and critique. Here’s a starting list of 5 ideas for changes in international development policy and practice. [...]

Tags: aid workers, alternatives, bureaucracy, cash transfers, community participation, community-based organizations, dependency, donors, foreign aid, foreign assistance, funding mechanisms, Global Fund, ideas, innovation, international aid, international development, Malawi, Mozambique, OVC, Pakistan, PEPFAR, power dynamics, Rwanda, solutions, South Africa, Swaziland, USAID, Zimbabwe 6 Comments

August 13th, 2010 - 3:08 pm § in Reflection & Rumination

Our Most Important Job

“The kids in Africa were soooo amazing and so darn cute.” And so, the smoke poured out of my ears before I could even have my morning coffee.[...]

Tags: aid workers, AIDS orphans, community participation, compassion, dependency, do no harm, foreign aid, foreign assistance, international aid, international development, J.B. MacKinnon, local leadership, orphanage, poverty, power dynamics, racism, South Africa, stoves, Uganda, voluntourism, Zimbabwe 8 Comments

July 28th, 2010 - 2:34 pm § in Guest Bloggers, Reflection & Rumination

A Heartbreaker

Yes, the paradigm of development can break our hearts. But everyday, we have a choice. Will we slump into the system? Or will we challenge the parts of it that prevent us from feeling and exhibiting compassion?[...]