Challenges facing non-governmental organizations in the attainment of financial sustainability in Busia County,Kenya

Abstract

One of the main factors impacting the effective management and sustainability of Non governmental organizations in developing countries like Kenya is the nature of their dependability on donor funding. Financial sustainability of NOOs has long been of interest to NOO leaders, current and potential funders, and the community that the NOOs serve. However, NOOs face a myriad of challenges in establishing and maintaining financial sustainability leading to several NOOs ceasing operations within a short time after being formed. The purpose of this study therefore, was to determine the challenges facing NOOs in the attainment of financial sustainability with a specific focus on NOOs operating in Busia, Kenya. Specifically, the research sought to establish to what extent does focus on the mission statement, NOO leadership, networking with other organizations and, client and community participation in NOO activities affect the NOOs' ability to attain financial sustainability. The descriptive design approach was employed to investigate the challenges facing NOOs in the attainment of financial sustainability in Busia, Kenya. The study was based on 241NOOs selected from registered NOOs operating in Busia County using the systematic random sampling strategy. Once, the participating NOOs had been selected, a sample of the Chief Executive Officers was purposively selected from each of the 241 NOOs making a total of 241 respondents. The list of the NOOs operating in Busia County was obtained from the NOO Coordination Board in Nairobi. Self-administered questionnaires were hand delivered to the respondents for primary data collection. Data analysis was done using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software. To give a clear picture of the results of the study, the study findings were presented in the form of tables and narratives. The research was carried out between the months of June 2013 and August 2013. The research findings should enhance the frontier of knowledge in Nongovernmental Organizations' financial sustainability by establishing the challenges facing the Non governmental organizations in their attainment of financial sustainability and making recommendations on how to overcome those challenges. The study found out that focus on the mission statement, NOO leadership, Networking with other organizations with similar objectives and client and community participation are challenges facing non governmental organizations in the attainment of financial sustainability. The study recommends that in order to achieve financial sustainability, the non governmental organizations should be guided by their mission statements in fundraising activities, leaders should be transparent and accountable to various stakeholders, should have strategic alliances and take client and community participation seriously through empowerment programme