Background

When public funds are allocated to development activities, an ongoing assessment is required of which channels are most suitable at any given time in order to reach the development policy goals defined in Report No. 35 to the Storting (2003-2004) Fighting Poverty Together. The increasing volume and the complexity of the assistance channelled through NGOs require that at least as much attention is paid to the quality of this assistance and the principles guiding it as in other types of Norwegian development assistance.

There is broad political consensus for continuing to involve a wide variety of organisations in Norway’s development policy. In Recommendation S. No. 3 (2003-2004), the Norwegian parliament, the Storting, called for a discussion of the criteria and guidelines for allocations to NGOs involved in Norwegian development assistance. The government is of the opinion that many aspects of NGOs involvement in development co-operation need to be explored in more depth. In Fighting Poverty Together the government therefore proposes the establishment of a committee for the evaluation of the results achieved in development assistance channelled through NGOs and of their future role in Norway’s development co-operation.

Following the deliberations on Fighting Poverty Together, cf. Recommendation S. No. 93 (2004-2005), the Storting approved the establishment of such a committee, underlining that the ongoing efforts to reform development assistance both nationally and internationally will necessarily affect NGOs as well. It also emphasised that the aim must be to ensure the quality of the assistance and of the results achieved in the recipient countries. Furthermore, the Storting specifically stated that the commiwould be charged with “assessing the consequences of NGOs’ financial dependence on the government, particularly with a view to assessing to what degree this has affected their freedom of action”.

Objective

The main objective of the committee is to evaluate Norwegian NGOs as a channel in development co-operation, based on a representative selettee ction of activities and forms of co-operation that Norwegian NGOs are engaged in. The committee is to evaluate the organisations’ role and effectiveness as development actors in developing countries.

When assessing the NGOs’ humanitarian efforts and their long-term development co-operation, the committee must take account of both common features and differences in the types of activities. The committee must bear in mind that humanitarian funds, transitional aid and long-term assistance are allocated according to different principles. Providing services and building civil society are two main types of activity. They require different approaches and assessments, but they are also closely linked, and most Norwegian NGOs are involved in both these forms of development assistance. The evaluations are to be made on a comparative basis. Where relevant, the use of NGOs shall be evaluated by comparing it with alternative channels: state-to-state assistance, assistance through multilateral organisations, and assistance provided through co-operation with the private sector.

Information and public awareness activities in Norway are a very important part of the NGOs’ work. They are, however, not considered to be central in the evaluation of the NGOs function as a channel in development co-operation. Furthermore, this aspect of their activity was recently the subject of an extensive external evaluation. For these reasons, and due to the limited time the committee has at its disposal, NGOs that only receive support for information activities in Norway are not covered by the mandate.

In its work, the committee shall evaluate in particular:

• the role of NGOs and their results

The committee shall look at various existing forms of co-operation and network-building Norwegian NGOs/civil society actors and partners in developing countries. The results are to be evaluated both in light of the goals and the nature of the organisations concerned and in light of the overriding goals of Norway’s development co-operation set out in Fighting Poverty Together. Results are defined as sustainable effects of projects and programmes, taking account of any strengthening or limiting factors in the given local and national context Particular attention should be paid to the effects of the NGOs’ efforts to strengthen civil society in developing countries, provide basic services and improve the situation of vulnerable groups. The degree to which the NGOs’ own goals are in line with the overriding goals shall be evaluated.

• NGOs’ efforts with respect to the goals of national ownership, donor co-ordination, harmonisation and coherence in development assistance

The Norwegian authorities require that assistance is in line with national and local authorities’ development plans and that it must build local capacity to provide services. Such requirements will, however, vary according to the nature of the assistance, key characteristics of the form of government in the country in question, and basic human rights concerns. On this basis, the committee shall assess to what degree new forms of co-operation and the above-mentioned challenges are reflected in the NGOs’ efforts to combat poverty.

• cost effectiveness

The committee shall evaluate how effective the organisations are in reaching their goals, including the administrative costs related to their project and programme activities. It shall also consider how efficient the channel is according to the OECD/DAC’s definition of efficiency (cf. DAC Criteria for Evaluating Development Assistance).

• organisation, relevance and competitive advantages

The committee shall assess the added value of the NGOs’ activities compared with other forms of assistance, and whether it varies in accordance with theme, priority area and country. The scope of this assistance compared with that provided through other channels should be assessed focusing on areas where the contribution of other channels is comparable to that of the NGOs.

• suitability of the current allocation procedures and budget structure

The committee shall evaluate whether the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ and Norad’s rules and budget structures support the goal of co-ordinating emergency relief, transitional aid and long-term assistance and also whether there are any other aspects of the current structure that impede efficiency and goal attainment in assistance administered by NGOs.

• framework conditions of the NGOs’ activities, criteria for support (rules)

The criteria for support shall be reviewed. In line with Recommendation S. No. 93 (2004-2005) the degree of dependence on government funds and other sources of funding and the consequences this has for the organisations’ autonomy and freedom of action shall be evaluated. The local population’s sense of ownership and the role this plays in development co-operation shall be assessed in the context of various different and changing organisational forms.

Based on its evaluation the committee shall make recommendations, which will form part of the basis for the government’s deliberations on the channelling of development assistance through NGOs.

Working method

The committee

• is an external committee that will serve for one year and receive secretariat support;
• will have the opportunity to engage in dialogue with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other ministries;
• will draw on Norwegian and international expertise, particularly on co-operation partners and other resources in the South;
• will produce a final report with recommendations by the end of May 2006.

The chairman of the committee and, if appropriate, other committee members will be available to participate in the debate following the presentation of the committee’s report.

A budget will be prepared for the committee’s work.