Work of NGOs in the city slows down due to strict restrictions

40 per cent dip in foreign aid

Aurangabad, April 16:

The Central Government has put various restrictions on the foreign direct aid of the non-governmental organizations (NGO) from abroad. Hence NGOs in the city, which depend on foreign funds, are facing a financial crisis. Nearly, 30 such NGOs have seen a 40 per cent dip in their funds amounting to Rs 2.5- 3 crore.

According to the new regulations of the Central government, these institutions have to disclose the exact amount of funds coming from abroad. They also have to furnish the details of utilization of these funds. The organizations that are working in real sense are still getting funds. However, those who have difficulty in keeping a thorough record are said to have a major impact on their funding.

Nonprofit NGOs should have a Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) certificate to receive foreign currency funds. For the past several years, FCRA funding has been coming from abroad to help NGOs work on healthcare, education, women empowerment, self-employment and poverty alleviation. So many were getting fellowships. Due to this fellowship, the NGOs in the district were able to get large amounts of foreign funding. However, in November 2020, the Central government urged the NGOs to provide funds directly to the poor and CSR funds to the PM Cares funds.

This affected the work of the majority of the NGOs. As a result, many social organizations are not able to provide full support to the poor. Meanwhile, over the last four years, the appropriation of foreign funds has been severely curtailed, which has had a huge impact on the funding of social organizations that have pursued selfish interests in the name of aid. On the other hand, the organizations that are working on the ground are still receiving funding, said a representative of an NGO.

Impact of social work

The impact of restrictions has affected the NGOs depending on foreign funds for social work such as the welfare of the poor, education, awareness and health related activities. At the same time, the Central government’s policy has created misconception about foreign-funded institutions and has also affected CSR assistance, said Charulata Kanchale, a social activist.