How NGOs can Keep the Balance between their Independence and their Reliance on Funding

In this blogpost, Batjargal Batkhuyag reflects on the challenges of NGOs to maintain their independence. This blog post is published in anticipation of the event UNESCO Chair Series in Comparative Education Policy with Batjargal Batkhuyag.

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been a crucial part of development in the past few decades often times acting as both think tanks and implementers of various social, economic and environmental projects. NGOs have the potential to provide significant contribution to policy and implementation; yet, there has been an on-going concern and debate about the independence of NGOs – whether NGOs are independent think tanks or merely prolonged arms of their donors. This blog explores this dual role examining how the dynamics of funding influence the activities and autonomy of NGOs.

NGOs play multiple roles in society. They are involved in advocacy, policy formulation, and implementation of development projects. As think tanks, they conduct research, provide expert analysis, and initiate discussion on critical issues in the areas that affect people’s lives and rights including poverty alleviation, healthcare and education. As implementers, they design and carry out programs that deliver essential services, often filling gaps left by government, fostering participatory approaches to development and allowing for tailored interventions.

Despite their expectations to be independent, many NGOs depend heavily on external funding, which can come from a variety of sources, including government agencies, private foundations, and international development partners. This reliance raises concerns about the extent to which NGOs maintain their autonomy in their operations and decision-making processes. Research has shown (Parks, 2008; Srinivas, 2009; Villanueva, 2020) that funding dynamics can significantly influence the priorities and strategies of NGOs, leading them to align their programs with donor interests to secure financial support, which can lead to a mismatch between local needs and the initiatives funded.

As think tanks, NGOs often engage in policy advocacy and research that challenge existing paradigms. However, their ability to function independently can be compromised by donor agendas, for instance by tailoring their research and advocacy to align with the priorities of major funders, which can dilute NGOs mission and cause. Moreover, the increasing trend of “projectization” (see for instance Parks, 2008) can further constrain their capacity to act as independent voice. It is observed that NGOs tend to focus on short-term outcomes that meet donor requirements rather than long-term, sustainable change.

As implementers, NGOs play crucial roles in delivering vital services and programs. However, this role often brings them into close alignment with donor objectives which can impose specific outcomes that reflect their own policy priorities rather than local needs. This peculiar relationship can create a much-criticized dependency cycle, where NGOs are compelled to prioritize donor-driven agendas over local, transformative initiatives.

Despite these challenges, many NGOs strive to maintain their independence and come up with innovative solutions to complex problems.  Funding is the biggest factor that leads NGOs to project implementation. NGOs need resources to pursue their cause (expressed through their visions and missions) as there is barely any funding available for pure advocacy.

Many NGOs cannot be just a think tank or an implementer– they have to be both. NGOs strive to find the right balance between these two roles. Moreover, in many instances these two cannot be separated –  when NGOs explore areas that are overlooked or underserved, they come up with (usually innovative) interventions that they pilot to see if they work and if they need fine-tuning, and then they advocate for systemic or policy change that would contribute to transforming the lives of people and society.

There are several ways NGOs can keep the balance between their independence and their reliance on funding:

• focus on sustainability and long-term solutions constantly reminding themselves of the causes and systemic changes they would like to make
• focus on equity and inclusion through including marginalized voices in decision-making and program design and ensuring their initiatives reflect the needs and perspectives of diverse communities.
• collaboration and partnerships, especially those among NGOs to maximize their advocacy efforts
• diversification of funding sources avoiding the reliance on traditional funding sources

The Author:

Batjargal Batkhuyag works as an executive director of the Mongolian Education Alliance (MEA), one of the leading NGOs in Mongolia dedicated to improving the quality of education for all children and promoting youth participation. He was previously Lecturer at Mongolia’s University of the Humanities working with student-teachers. His interests lie in promoting and advocating for access, equity and quality education with emphasis on the most marginalised groups. He has joined a number of international and comparative research studies and initiatives. He has contributed to 2017/18, 2019, 2020 and 2021 Global Education Monitoring Reports, co-authoring country background papers or compiling country profiles.