In the summer of 2024, MSc International Development student Charlotte Springham carried out research into the current funding climate for iNGOs in Scotland, through a decolonial, feminist lens. She shares her findings with us here.
This research was conducted from May to August 2024 and focused on answering two main questions: how has the current economic climate affected the ability of NGOs to deliver in Scotland? And subsequently, what does this mean for the sectors’ commitment to ‘shift power’ and how might an organisation like SIDA best respond?
This research was conducted using a mixed methods approach. An analysis of secondary research on iNGOs and the current economic climate was conducted. This was followed by a digital survey, sent to SIDA’s members, which received 12 responses. This was followed up with the researcher completing interviews with 7 individuals from a range of iNGOs. This research revealed a few key insights as discussed below.
Firstly, although there was disparity between differing organisations, revenue has overwhelmingly decreased or stayed the same for iNGOs, as seen in the table above. Secondly, because of these changes in revenue, organisations have taken a range of measures, as can be seen in the table below:
This was confirmed during the interviews, where many organisations spoke of reducing staff numbers and not emphasising future planning to cope with these changes. However, it is key to acknowledge that these changes and subsequent impacts differed depending on the size of the organisation being interviewed. Larger organisations interviewed have been less affected by the current economic climate compared to their smaller counterparts.
There is no denying that the economic climate of the past few years has been a challenging one, and this is true for iNGOs as well. Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent cost of living crisis have all had detrimental economic impacts. This has been confirmed in secondary research, listed throughout the paper. Organisations confirmed that there have been significant challenges due to the current economic crisis, as outlined below:
The critical finding of this research was that many issues that iNGOs are facing with funding were present before the current economic situation, however, this current climate has exacerbated and highlighted these issues. Furthermore, these issues are more evident in smaller organisations. The key issues facing these organisations are:
- smaller organisations are struggling with funding bids
- funding models are outdated, relying on individual donations from retired individuals, which is a shrinking group
- funding is increasingly domestically focused
- funding is not available for capacity-building of partner organisations
- sustainability and future planning as resources are not available for this
The paper addresses the issues raised above and analyses these using a decolonial feminist lens. The paper explores potential alternative visions for the future of iNGO funding, including an increased emphasis on unrestricted funding and a modification of iNGO accountability systems to allow greater self-determination to the communities that iNGOs work with. For more information about this paper, its methodology and its findings, please contact the researcher Charlotte Springham at – charlottespringham@gmail.com.
Finally, thank you to SIDA for welcoming me into your organisation and assisting me with this research. Their support and partnership underline this paper. Thank you also to all the individuals from SIDA’s membership who completed the survey and graciously spent time with me discussing these issues. I am grateful for your openness and honesty.