BOND's Approach to Quality and Accountability
- Introduction
- Consultation on Civil Society Organisations' Effectiveness
- Report & Links
- List and Analysis of NGOs approaches to Quality (quality standards, codes, frameworks)
- Working Group including a wiki full of resources and useful links
- Project Team
- Contact
Introduction
In 2006, BOND launched a research and consultation process with its members to research their approaches and views on quality and accountability.
The resulting report ‘A BOND Approach to Quality Standards in NGOs’ concluded that ‘the quality of an NGO’s work is primarily determined by the quality of its relationships with its intended beneficiaries’.
This definition of quality has direct implications for the management and oversight of NGO practice. To act on it, NGOs and donors need reliable mechanisms for managing and monitoring the quality of their relationships with beneficiaries. When BOND members said that relationships with beneficiaries have to come first, they also said that they have to be the priority in drawing up organisational systems. This may be challenging to BOND’s members, requiring re-consideration of existing systems and the development of new ways of working.
BOND is committed in supporting its members on issues of quality, effectiveness and accountability in the development work and currently does it mainly through the following ways:
- a working group on accountability and quality standards
- a working group on organisation learning, SMOLnet
- Action Learning Sets with an accountability focus
- providing capacity building in the fields of Monitoring and Evaluation, impact assessment, participatory practice, programme management, accountability mechanisms.
- representing the UK position on NGOs effectiveness internationally
- providing information on initiatives supporting quality
- provide a link to donors initiatives
Consultation on a new global initiative on Civil Society Organisations’ Effectiveness
BOND has run a survey with its members to take their views on a new global Civil Society Organisations' (CSOs) initiative on CSOs effectiveness. The survey was for BOND members only and closed on 20 June 2008.
Thank you all very much for your participation. We will be reporting on the results of the survey in due course.
Report & Links
- The 'A BOND Approach to Quality Standards in Non-Governmental Organisations: Putting Beneficiaries First' report was published in August 2006 and can be viewed either in its entirety or by chapter.
- Background to BOND Quality Standards in NGOs report.
- BOND commissioned Keystone and AccountAbility to survey members and produce a report on quality and accountability in the NGO sector.
- On 18 October 2006, BOND hosted a formal launch event for the report, to enable members to discuss the issues raised in the report.
- Links to other quality and accountability initiatives referred to in the report.
- Further reading on quality and accountability.
Project Team
The project is managed by the Quality and Learning Officer (supported by an Advisory Group, chaired by Alex Jacobs (BOND Board Member and Director of Mango).
Quality Standards Advisory Group
Alex Jacobs, Mango
Richard Bennett, BOND
Monica Blagescu, One World Trust
Richard Graham, Comic Relief
Mahmood Hassan, Islamic Aid
David Lewis, London School of Economics
Jonathan Potter, People in Aid
Bina Rani, independent consultant
Campbell Robb, NCVO
James Shaw-Hamilton, Charity Commission
Simon Starling, Disasters Emergency Committee
Contact
For comments or more information on the report, the consultation, information regarding the working group, joining the Quality Standards e-list and all other enquiries, please email Sofia Angidou .