NGO Resource Centre (A Project of Aga Khan Foundation) VI pHoo Directory of Intermediary NGOs in Pakistan NGO Resource Centre (A Project of Aga Khan Foundation) Copyrights © NGO Resource Centre, 2000 NGO Resource Centre (A project of Aga Khan Foundation) D-114, Block 5, Clifton, Karachi-75600, Pakistan Tel:92-21-586 5501, 586 5502 Fax:92-21-586 5503 Email: [email protected], [email protected] LIBRARY JBCGUE to Contents Preface Introduction i Background Methodology Limitations Criteria Typology Sectoral Analysis v How to use this directory x Abbreviations xi Thematic Preference Matrix xiv List of Intermediary NGOs xxi Directory 1 Annex A: NGOs - Thematic Area wise 147 Annex B: NGOs - Operation Area wise 156 Annex C: List of NGOs Contacted 162 Annex D: List of NGOs Not Included 165 Annex E: Questionnaire 166 Preface Forming the pivotal second-tier of the citizen-sector, mid-level or intermediary NGOs are increasingly being recognized as the lifeline of citizens-led development initiatives. Distinct from small grass-root or community based organizations, these mid-level groups are managed and run by professional paid staff to provide development related services and resources in their area of operation which is invariably sizeable-up to country, province or at least district level. Regrettably, however, the understanding of the citizen sector in Pakistan continues to be confused as a rule. This can partly be attributed to the acute dearth of reliable data and information about civil society institutions. Much of the available information is sketchy and generalized and does not take into account the inter-sectoral diversities and gradations. Though by no means exhaustive, this directory is a modest attempt to document various aspects of intermediary NGOs working in Pakistan including organizational and governance structure, volunteerism, thematic interests, demographic and regional focus, programme activities, publications and major projects undertaken. We would like to thank representatives of all those NGOs who responded to our request for information. We realize the questionnaire was detailed and therefore time consuming. We would also like to acknowledge and express regrets to those NGOs that responded to our requests but could not included, as they did not fulfill our criteria for selection. A list of all such NGOs is attached (see Annexures). I would like to put on record good work undertaken by the staff of the NGO Resource Centre particularly Ms Rabia B. Baig, Manager Information and Azhar Hussain Ghumro, Secretary. I hope the NGO community, Government and Donors find this humble effort of NGO Resource Centre useful and relevant. We are optimistic that this effort will go a long way in promoting productive relationship between civil society and other institutions for sustainable development in Pakistan. Qadeer Baig Programme Manager/Office Incharge September 2000 Introduction Intermediary NGOs often buttress grass-root initiatives by facilitating linkages with donors and apex citizen groups. Additionally, they are mandated to enhance the capacity and sustainability of smaller citizen groups through organizational development, training, networking, information collection and dissemination. As civil society comes of age in Pakistan, such support institutions in the form of Intermediary NGOs are all set to play key roles in the process of socio-economic transformation. The objectives of developing a directory of intermediary organisations operating in Pakistan are to: 1. Estimate the size and status of the sub-sector and gauge the canvas of development activities, support and services provided by the sub-sector 2. Share this information with stakeholders: the community, CBOs, apex citizen groups, the government, the corporate sector and the media. This directory uses the term Intermediary NGOs for those citizen organisations that are not managed by the beneficiaries themselves (i.e. organisations not categorised as Community Based Organisations), but are managed and run by professional paid staff to provide development related services and resources in their area of operation. These organisations often play a role of intermediaries between donor organisations (and the government), and CBOs. Note that International Development Organisations operating in Pakistan and other such projects are not included in this directory. It is our earnest hope that the present document will precipitate linkages between the intermediary NGOs, the government and the donors besides opening up new vistas of research and development interventions. Methodology Conceptualised in 1998, the work on this directory got off the ground in late 1998 when a draft questionnaire (primary survey instrument) and a list of organisations were prepared. In March-April 1999 pre-testing was conducted, and both the questionnaire and the list were modified. The first phase of data collection was completed between July and September 1999, and the second phase was undertaken between December 1999 and February 2000. The data collectors engaged at provincial level were provided with copies of questionnaire (See Annexure), a preliminary list of organisations in their area, and criteria for selection (see next section). An introductory letter from NGORC was sent to introduce the directory and data collectors. Data collectors also added NGOs fulfilling the selection criteria to the original list. After the data collection, the data was cleaned and checked for accuracy. Some organisations out of the selection criteria were dropped from the directory. At this time there were 83 mid-level NGOs included. In mid 2000 a careful review of the directory disclosed that certain significant NGOs were missing from the list (due to a variety of reasons) and few other had some information gaps. The publishing of the directory was therefore stalled until all possible gaps were plugged. In the second phase, an additional 62 intermediary NGOs were approached for providing their data for inclusion in the directory. As a result of intensive follow- up, 28 intermediary NGOs were added to the original directory. Simultaneously, 83 NGOs included in the first phase were sent their templates to correct or update their information if required. Half the NGOs responded by August 21, 2000. Data of 40 or so NGOs could not be updated as on August 2000 as concerned organisations did not respond despite repeated queries on NGORC's part. A list of those organisations that were invited to participate in directory is also included in the Annexures. This process was concluded by end August 2000. Limitations As the directory was envisaged to embrace all the provinces and federally administered tribal areas, identification of organisations and collection of data proved to be colossal and complicated tasks. Several discrepancies and inconsistencies were observed during the scrutiny of data entries. Clearing up of anomalies entailed a rigorous and time-consuming follow-up exercise. Since data collectors were also required to conduct a physical search for intermediary NGOs in their allotted geographic areas, the lack of clear definition of the term 'intermediary NGOs' and its selection criteria, posed certain problems as ineligible NGOs were inadvertently provided forms to fill. Similarly, certain questions in the form remained rather subjective (e.g., the question regarding Volunteers) due to lack of clear-cut definition of the term. Whereas all effort was expended to ensure accuracy in data, minor discrepancies may still have occurred and we would like to apologize for those. Selection Criteria The criteria that were used for the inclusion of organisations in the directory are out-lined below. 1. The organisations must be registered before June 1, 1997 under any of the following: • The Societies Registration Act, 1860 • The Trust Act, 1882 • The Voluntary Social Welfare Agencies (R&C) Ordinance, 1961 • The Companies Ordinance, 1984 2. The organisation must have a proper legal set-up such as constitution, provision for membership, office bearers, etc 3. The organisation should be engaged in socio-economic development. Pure charity and welfare organisations shall not be considered for inclusion in this directory. 4. A branch of the organisation, irrespective of its attributes, will not be considered as an NGO unless it is registered separately (having registration other than the registration of head office as an NGO) and fulfills all other criteria mentioned. 5. Its net annual budget should have been more than Rs. 500,000 for the recent past 3 years. As evidence the organisation must provide copies of financial/annual audit reports. 6. The organisation should have a formal office and own office furniture and basic office equipment. Some of the entries did not meet each and every criterion but made it to the list because they came up to the basic definition of Intermediary NGO. Furthermore, since International Development Organisations operating in Pakistan are beyond the scope of this particular directory, certain International Development Organisations operating in Pakistan through Projects had to be excluded (see Annexure). in Sectoral Analysis This section presents some basic statistics to help in profiling the "Intermediary NGOs". Small note is accompanied with self-explanatory statistical tables. Geographical Focus A large number (82%) of organisations work for the social and economic development of rural areas as shown in the table. Not only do majority of people in Pakistan live in the rural areas, but