Donating can be a helpful way to get supplies and resources to those who need them, but this requires a mindful and collaborative approach with partners. Donating anything, especially to those in the global south who face the worst environmental impacts, needs careful and ethical consideration before being able to make an effective contribution. With the best of intentions, when we don’t work closely with partners and share needs, we can often send items which are unusable and ultimately end up causing more harm than good.
For example, the WHO estimates that 70% of donated medical equipment is not fit for purpose – often ending up in ‘equipment graveyards’. A survey conducted by Scotland’s Chief Medical Office found that among recipients of Scottish donations, 81% of respondents had received equipment they were not able to use. For this reason, we, SIDA, partnered with the Scottish Government to develop a best practice framework which guides potential donors through ten key steps to making more effective, sustainable, and safe medical equipment donations.
Join us online for a workshop to explore our responsibilities and learn more about how we keep ourselves accountable when it comes to making donations via global south partners, ensuring we create benefit for those we are aiming to support.
Key takeaways –
Action steps to ensure your donations are helpful, not harmful
What does it mean to be an effective partner when it comes to donations?
Considerations for ethical and responsible donating