New Funding Possibilities for NGOs Doing Research

New Funding Possibilities for NGOs Doing Research
Research-based NGOs in Southern Africa are facing a deepening funding crisis.
You can read all about the reasons why in an article by Dr. Thabo Rapoo,
executive director of the Centre for Policy Studies, entitled 'Funding Crisis
for Research NGOs Looming Larger Than Ever'. The situation, according to Rapoo,
looks pretty glum.
However, what this crisis signifies, to use Ted Hart's terminology, is a call to
action. Indeed, the way in which organisations - and the NGO landscape at large
- respond to the dearth of funding for research promises to determine the
survival of initiatives critical to civil society's ability to respond to issues
effectively and on the basis of evidence. When the funding dries up, there are
two possibilities: call of the (re)search; or intensify it. We prefer the
latter.
In collaboration with SANGONeT, Research Africa, specialist research news and
funding opportunities publisher based in Cape Town, is exploring the possibility
of developing a funding opportunities portal to support NGOs that are doing
research.
This portal would, in our thinking, provide NGO-based researchers with the tools
to search existing sponsors for opportunities, as well to be alerted to new
opportunities by discipline or subject area as they arise - all in a
web-friendly environment.

We talked to you about this idea at the recent SANGONeT online fundraising
conference, and appreciate the feedback you gave us. At this point, we're tying
up our research to move into a scoping phase - risks, costs and the like. But
we'd like to give you a last chance to give us some solid, concrete responses -
and this time, online.

Our short questionnaire on Survey Monkey has all the needs analysis-type
questions we'd be interested to have you answer. And there are only nine of them
on a one-page survey.

Is this something that might interest your NGO leadership? If the answer's yes,
we'd be grateful for a few minutes of your time and help. If no, please forward
this story along to those individuals in your network who may benefit from this
initiative.

The Research Africa Team