20 CSOS in Ghana Participate in Maiden CSO Sustainability Fellowship
The West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI) with support from Star-Ghana Foundation held a 3-day sustainability fellowship training for 20 selected civil society organisations (CSOs) in Accra from Wednesday 9 to Friday 11 October 2019.
The overall objective of the fellowship was to strengthen CSOs’ capacity in implementing practical actions to ensure their sustainability.
Participants expressed overwhelming satisfaction with the fellowship. They shared and learned from each other’s experiences in efforts towards becoming sustainable. They affirmed that they have learnt and identified key actions they are going to implement in their efforts towards achieving sustainability.
The Executive Director for Abundant Grace Female Foundation, Grace Commey said she has learnt a lot, especially on how to develop a financial sustainability plan, mobilising and generating income for their organisation.
She explained that she learnt about the alternative sources of funding available to CSOs in Ghana. She added that she gained new insights on how to effectively manage her team, how to assign appropriate tasks to team members based on their strengths, weaknesses and attitudes.
The Accounts Officer for Street Children Project, Ezekiel Boampong said he now understands the importance of developing a financial sustainability plan which will guide them in achieving sustainability.
Peter Kuugyire, Executive Director for NEEDNet Development Foundation, said he gained knowledge in financial sustainability planning, development, and its implementation.
Most of the participants said they are going to share the knowledge among colleagues and also use skills acquired in identifying and profiling sources of funders and potential donors.
Participants were elated to understand that Ghana has a pool of untapped fundraising opportunities which comprise of the private sector and Ghanaians of goodwill. They learned new techniques in profiling individual and corporate donors which they will apply to identify the appropriate donors who could support the causes they promote. They also learned how to develop a case for support, a technique they will use to develop projects that align with donors’ needs.
