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Opportunity 3: Utilize advanced organizational development modalities such as embedded
technical advisors/mentors and practical application of skills, rather than basic trainings.
Workshop participants expressed interest in moving past common forms of training, such as
short-term seminars, to more sophisticated forms of knowledge transfer. Lamenting the
difficulty of accessing international forums, many still hoped to find ways to learn from other
countries about how civil society functions elsewhere. Some offered the suggestion of
embedding technical advisors within individual organizations to provide more hands-on
assistance tailored to on-the-job environments. Pairing financial support with on-site technical
assistance would enable advisors to work side-by-side with staff to raise the level of skills
necessary for effective implementation. The cultivation of mentoring relationships, which
would continue after on-site assistance (for example, through email or Skype), would help
ensure the sustainability of these skills and provide an ongoing resource for advice and
consultation.
Opportunity 4: Provide longer-term grants to local civil society organizations that have
proven themselves to be reliable partners.
Short-term, project-based funding complicates the ability of civil society organizations to
cultivate and maintain staff and remain responsive to needs that fall outside of standard funding
cycles or agendas. Local organizations that have proven themselves as solid, ongoing partners
of international organizations should be considered for longer-term, institutional support that
would allow them to shift their attention from continual fundraising to strategic planning. Such
support should be accompanied by targeted technical assistance specific to each individual
recipient to enable them to use the funding ethically and effectively, including meeting audit
requirements, setting and achieving benchmarks and conducting performance monitoring.
Opportunity 5: Support initiatives that encourage the ability of civil society organizations
to generate income through diverse means.
Given reasonable concerns for sustainability, civil society could significantly benefit from
widening the base of funding for the sector. Despite a challenging operational context, the
environment also offers a fairly diverse array of possibilities for generating additional income,
including social entrepreneurship, for-fee services, diaspora philanthropy and private-sector
support. International donors can encourage the development of these areas by showcasing
models, supplying seed funding, offering matching incentives and providing specialized
technical assistance. Such technical assistance should include how outreach strategies and
reporting systems would need to shift along with funding patterns, as organizations learn the
importance of being accountable to the public, rather than donors.
Opportunity 6: Encourage programming for civil society that strengthens citizen
engagement.
Existing literature, workshop input and stakeholder interviews provided little insight into the
relationship between civil society and the larger public. Though the vision of civil society
developed by workshop participants referenced “the capacity to engage and effectively
