Targeted support for partner organisations
22.03.2018 - 15:11 | Christian PossaIn Trogen this week, 11 employees of non-governmental organisations from Tanzania, Ethiopia, Honduras, Moldova, Serbia and Myanmar tackled the topic of fundraising. The Pestalozzi Children’s Foundation uses training such as this to promote the development of its partner organisations abroad.
Ramadhani Omari works for the Children’s Book Project in Tanzania, which was founded in 1991. This is the third time that he has taken part in the Pestalozzi Children’s Foundation’s Senior Professional Training, and he has benefited from it every time. He therefore has high hopes for the fundraising training. «I’m looking forward to a lot of exciting suggestions and inputs that I can incorporate into my work.»
Developing their own strategic emphases
The partner organisations, which are usually small, find it difficult to collect donations for their projects. «Many NGOs face fundamental distrust,» says Ramadhani. Furthermore, many potential donors are more interested in dance, music and arts than in the right to education. «And even when donors can be found, the domestic political situation really complicates things,» adds Assefa Jembere, CEO of the Ethiopian organisation Centre of Concern.
Jasna Sonne, the course leader, is aware of the various challenges facing fundraisers, and the training therefore helps the participants to find the right niche for their NGO. «It's about developing an individual strategy and selecting the appropriate tools for it.»
Fundraising techniques, strategic fundraising and research into potential national and international donors are just a few of the topics that the 11 participants from partner organisations tackle during the course of the week. Alongside theoretical lessons, group work and collective knowledge sharing, they develop fundraising strategies for their own organisations.
Long-term investment in partner organisation capacities
The Pestalozzi Children’s Foundation will hold five Senior Professional Training sessions in 2018. Capacity-building measures for partner organisations range from human resource management and report writing to project management for development cooperation. «Investing in the skills and expertise of our partner organisations doesn’t just result in a more effective implementation of our projects; it also strengthens their independence. Contributing to this long-term development is a particular focus of ours,» says Andrea Reitze, Partner Capacity-Building Manager at the Pestalozzi Children’s Foundation.
