BOND's Statement of Principles
BOND is a network of over 340 UK-based voluntary organisations working in international development and development education. This statement outlines the uniting principles of the network.
All BOND members aspire to live up to these principles in the ways in which they undertake their day-to-day work. The network recognises that the different experiences of members will lead to different interpretations of the principles for different circumstances, and commits itself to continuing to develop its understanding of the principles on the basis of members' experience.
BOND will use these principles as the basis of its learning, training and advocacy work, ensuring that all of its activities as a network are consistent with them, and enabling members to achieve this aspiration.
For the purposes of this statement, "South" and "southern" includes Africa, Asia, the Arab world, Central and South America, East and Central Europe, the Caribbean and the Pacific islands.
BOND members believe in the following values:
- Social justice, equity and respect for human rights.
- The participation of the people with whom they are working.
- The centrality of civil society in development co-operation.
- Working with southern organisations - aiming for common development goals.
- Equality of opportunity.
BOND Members believe in the following approach to development co-operation:
- Taking a professional approach to their work.
- Supporting southern partners to strengthen their capacities.
- Supporting the empowerment of particularly disadvantaged groups.
- Working to reduce gender inequalities.
- Using responsible fundraising methods.
- Ensuring that the results of their actions are sustainable.
- Engaging in development education, awareness raising and advocacy in the North.
- Using their bridging capacity to link different sectors of society.
BOND Members:
- Are rooted in civil society, in the UK and internationally.
- Have a non-profit making aim.
- Are legal entities.
- Are based in the UK.
- Are not individuals.
- Are independent to pursue their own development objectives.
- Have a board which is representative of the organisation's constituency and independent in its actions.
- Seek to diversify sources of funding.
- Are publicly accountable and transparent.
A) BOND Members believe in the following values
A1) Social justice, equity and respect for human rights.
BOND members believe that all people should enjoy the rights they hold under international law and conventions to economic, social, cultural, religious and political freedoms and safeguards, including the basic survival rights (food, shelter, health, education, life) and rights not to be discriminated against, persecuted, tortured, subjected to abuse and cruel and degrading treatment. The international community should support and protect the efforts of all people to make their rights a reality. BOND members believe that these efforts should be based on social justice, the eradication of poverty, and more equitable distribution of wealth and the earth's resources. BOND members believe that all people should have the power to determine their own values and priorities and to organise themselves to act on these.
A2) The participation of the people with whom they are working.
BOND members believe in the importance of acting in solidarity with the goals of the people, organisations and communities they work with, according to the priorities the latter identify for themselves. They believe that this should be done through popular participation in the development process. They believe that women and men, girls and boys of participating communities should, to the greatest extent possible, be responsible for the conception, design, implementation and evaluation of projects and programmes and be involved in the formation of policy in the North.
A3) The centrality of civil society in development co-operation.
BOND members believe that the public have both a responsibility and a right to be involved in development cooperation BOND and the attainment of social justice. For this reason they invite and encourage direct and indirect public support in their work. They believe this support should be based on the public's understanding of the motivations and aims of their work. To this end they are involved in dialogue with their supporters.
A4) Working with southern organisations - aiming for common development goals.
BOND members, when working with organisations in the south, believe in co-operation on the basis of shared values and vision. They believe that both parties should learn from each other's values, experience and approaches, and that this should lead to increasingly close partnership for change. They recognise that such partnership is often not based on equal degrees of power in the relationship; that usually greater power rests with the northern party; but that the partnership should be based on an equal commitment to shared goals and that inequality of power should be redressed by both parties through practical action.
A5) Equality of opportunity.
BOND members believe in the establishment and development of equality of opportunity in policy and practice, both in their own practice and that of organisations with which they are developing partnership. As a network, BOND aims to adhere to its own equal opportunities statement (see page four).
B) BOND members believe in the following approach to development co-operation
B1) Taking a professional approach to their work.
BOND members believe that being as efficient and effective as possible is a responsibility to all of their stakeholders. They continually strive to develop their capacity to implement and be true to their mission statement and values. They aim to be learning organisations which are flexible and responsive to the needs of their stakeholders. They believe that planning, management, monitoring, evaluation and follow-up studies which reflect good practice and stakeholder priorities are essential elements of responsible work.
B2) Supporting southern partners to strengthen their capacities.
BOND members believe that southern and northern organisations (whether government, civil society or private sector bodies) working together must redress the inequality of power in their relationships. In doing so, BOND members work to support their southern partners' development of their own structures, knowledge and expertise. Where local structures do not exist, BOND members encourage their creation. BOND members recognise their southern partners' own identities and resources, work for a two-way learning process between northern and southern partners, support their partners in learning from the experience of other southern organisations, and aim to ensure the availability of adequate financial, management and technological resources.
B3) Supporting the empowerment of particularly disadvantaged groups.
BOND members believe that addressing the exclusion from power of particularly disadvantaged groups is an essential element of development. They pay specific attention to disadvantaged groups within the communities they work with. BOND members work to ensure the full and equal involvement of people in the events and decisions that affect their lives.
B4) Working to reduce gender inequalities.
BOND members believe, and aim to ensure, that women and men, girls and boys should benefit from, and participate in, development equally, and recognise that gender inequalities are an impediment to development. BOND members support measures to reduce discrimination against women and girls. BOND members prioritise understanding of women's and men's, girls' and boys' roles in developing countries in order to make informed decisions about support. Working with their southern partners, they actively promote the participation of women and girls in decision-making activities.
B5) Using responsible fundraising methods.
In their fundraising activities, BOND members aim to portray the realities and complexities of the situations with which they are involved, as inappropriate methods, simplistic images and messages can undo the positive impact of their work. BOND members recognise that the stereotypical image of southern people and countries held by many in the UK is often simplistic and potentially damaging; BOND members' fundraising publicity aims to avoid exploiting and reinforcing these stereotypes, and aims where possible to challenge them. BOND members aim to control all fundraising activities carried out on their behalf.
B6) Ensuring that the results of their actions are sustainable.
BOND members aim to provide support that foster sustainable solutions as it builds on, reinforces and supports structures and practices that have long term sustainability. They aim to ensure that the improvement of social, political, economic and environmental conditions are in balance and will not jeopardise opportunities for the more disadvantaged or for future generations. In short-term relief situations BOND members aim to ensure that existing institutions are sustained and able to rehabilitate and develop after the crisis.
B7) Engaging in development education, awareness raising and advocacy in the North.
BOND members believe that northern public opinion and policy influence can be an important contributor to development. BOND members aim to make use of the experience of their partners in the South, and their own knowledge of the North, to influence public opinion; or to lobby Northern, Southern and international institutions and fora, which affect the conditions in which the most disadvantaged people live. BOND members aim to support their southern partners' capacity to undertake awareness raising and advocacy activity themselves.
B8) Using their bridging capacity to link different sectors of society.
BOND members recognise that many different segments of UK and European civil society have links with the South, and can influence conditions for the disadvantaged in the South and public opinion in the North. BOND members aim to forge links with these institutions and groups, including southerners resident in the UK, to build a more coherent and sustainable influence on development by civil society in the North.
C) BOND Members
C1) Are rooted in civil society, in the UK and internationally.
BOND members have direct or indirect public support in the sector of civil society in which they are based. They aim for real participation by the supporters of their work, based on supporters' understanding of the motivations and aims of the organisation. They aim to achieve this through constant dialogue with their supporters.
C2) Have a non-profit making aim.
BOND members are not-for-profit organisations. Any income arising from their work will benefit the same people as their programmes, or be directly reinvested in the organisation's work.
C3) Are legal entities.
Each BOND member is legally recognised as an organisation according to UK laws.
C4) Are based in the UK.
BOND members are legally based in the UK. Control of spending and policy decisions rests in the UK, but BOND members strive to be genuinely international in their outlook and, where possible, their governance.
C5) Are not individuals.
BOND members are organisations governed by a group of people, and are not representative of the interests of a single individual.
C6) Are independent to pursue their own development objectives.
BOND members are free of state control and steering by government and multilateral institutions or by other bodies with aims which are contrary to these principles. They aim to learn from their interactions with other bodies, including governments, but retain control over the decisions taken as a result of this learning. This does not exclude a BOND member from being funded by government or other organisations, or from working in cooperation with them, but requires that a BOND member is free to pursue its own development aims without undue influence from an outside body.
C7) Have a board which is representative of the organisation's constituency and independent in its actions.
BOND members are governed by boards that represent those supporting their mission statements. They aim for a system of election or appointment of board members that is open and transparent. BOND members aim to ensure reflection of the views of their stakeholders through board membership. They believe that non-executive board members should not receive any gain, financial or otherwise, from being part of the board.
C8) Seek to diversify sources of funding.
BOND members aim to diversify sources of funding, in order to maintain financial independence from one donor.
C9) Are publicly accountable and transparent.
BOND members aim to be open to public scrutiny and debate about their policies and management practices. They believe in transparency in management towards their donors, their supporters, and their partners,beneficiaries or clients.