npos

In 1995 the answer was nine when asked how many planets our solar system contained. Twenty years later, we have a different answer. Similarly, 10 years ago we were told that the client is king. Today, I guess you hear that the content is.

Operating and living in the same space, the context and knowledge have tremendously changed. The art to communicate, plead for or against a cause, as well as support or recommend a position has been taking in different techniques and canvas.

Nonprofit organisations (NPOs), who depend on public and private donations to fund their work, will need to be innovative and creative in order to survive in an increasingly challenging economic environment.
 
“With the decrease in international funding, lottery grants as rare as hens teeth and corporate donations stagnating or allocated to own projects,  nonprofits need to look at diversified income streams,” says Ann Bown, who will be presenting a workshop on “Fundraising Trends in 2015 and beyond” at a Durban conference next month.
 

Devastation and despair is the message coming out of the nonprofit sector after months of postal strikes and non-delivery of mail.
 
According to the Southern Africa Institute of Fundraising (SAIF) thousands of good causes and charities are experiencing deep financial difficulties as the strike impacts severely on the sector that relies heavily on public generosity to support their work through direct mail.
 
Providers of vital services to thousands of beneficiaries will have to cut-back on programmes and prepare for a Bah! Humbug! Christmas. 
 

Knowledge management practices are typically concerned with the creation, capture, handling and transfer (sharing) of knowledge held by individuals within the organisation (Dalkir, 2005). These activities provide added value to the organisation in addition to its core functions, and would require involvement from an organisational wide perspective to truly deliver universal benefits.

1. Defining the constitution 

South African nonprofit organisations (NPOs) can essentially be established through one of three structures, being; voluntary associations, nonprofit trusts and nonprofit companies. Each of these NPOs have different founding documents, namely: constitution for the voluntary association, trust deed for the nonprofit trust and memorandum of incorporation for the nonprofit company. The definition of ‘constitution’ in the Nonprofit Organisations Act includes a trust deed and memorandum of incorporation.   

Nonprofit organisations (NPOs) feature large in the lives of many South Africans. There are the multitudes on the receiving end, such as those benefiting from our charities. But there are probably just as many givers: donors, which range from large corporations to anyone dropping a few coins in a collection tin, and the many who give of their time and expertise to run these organisations - and who form the backbone of the NPO sector.

The fifth draft of the Draft NPO Policy Framework on the Amendments of the Nonprofit Organisations Act 71 of 1997 was issued to nonprofit organisations (NPOs) ahead of a consultative meeting in Johannesburg at the end of March 2014. The Nonprofit Organisations Directorate has clearly taken pains to address the concerns of civil society with this version of the framework, which recognises the valuable contribution and role of NPOs in building South Africa’s economy.