Quality Standards Links
Below is a list of links from initiatives mentioned in the BOND Approach to Quality in NGOs report (in alphabetical order) to meet the request in the report that BOND should "provide a knowledge resource about existing standards that helps members understand the different options on offer."
AccountAbility AA1000 Framework
The AA1000 Series is a set of standards, guidelines and user notes based on observed and achievable practice, and intended to provide the basis for improving the sustainability performance of organisations. Underlying the AA1000 Series is the principle of inclusivity, which recognises the right of stakeholders to be heard and the obligation of organisations to respond.
Accountability, Learning & Planning System (ALPS, pdf)
ALPS is a framework that sets out the key accountability requirements, guidelines, and processes in ActionAid International. Not only in terms of organisational processes for planning, monitoring, strategy formulation, learning, reviews and audit but also personal attitudes and behaviours. It emphasises accountability to all ActionAid stakeholders - but most of all to poor and excluded people, especially women and girls.
Active Learning Network for Accountability & Performance in Humanitarian Action (ALNAP)
ALNAP was established in 1997, following the multi-agency evaluation of the Rwandan genocide. It is a collective response by the humanitarian sector, dedicated to improving humanitarian performance through increased learning and accountability.
Afghanistan NGO Code of Conduct
2005 response to accusations that NGOs had misused funds allocated for post-war Afghanistan.
Alliance Extra Article: NGO Self-regulation: enforcing & balancing accountability
2005 article by the One World Trust for Alliance magazine on NGO self-regulation.
Association of Development Agencies in Bangladesh (ADAB) Code of Ethics (pdf)
ADAB is a membership organisation which adopted its Code of Ethics in 1994 as part of a wider debate concerning the role of NGOs in Bangladesh, which included government-level discussions as to how best support and regulate their actions.
Australian government initiative that aims to provide AusAID, and the Australian public, with confidence that they are funding professional, well managed, community based organisations that are capable of delivering quality development outcomes.
Australian Council for International Development (ACFID) Code of Conduct
Australian aid and development agencies operate according to the ACFID Code of Conduct, which sets out standards on how organisations are managed, how they communicate with the public, and how they spend the funds they raise. In making sure that organisations are accountable, the Code ensures that public confidence is maintained in the way funds are used overseas and in Australia.
Botswana Council of Nongovernmental Organisations' (BOCONGO) Code of Conduct
The NGO movement in Botswana saw the need to improve its transparency and accountability mechanisms in order to win the confidence of other development partners. Bocongo and its members thus recognized the need to develop a selfregulating mechanism to guide and monitor their behaviour.
Centre for Global Development (CGD): When will we ever learn? Closing the evaluation gap
The Evaluation Gap Working Group was convened to understand the reasons for the lack of good impact evaluation and the possible ways to make significant progress toward solving the problem. After a year of research and deliberation and further consultation among a broad set of interested parties, the group reached a recommendation for what the international community must do to close the 'evaluation gap': take individual action to reinforce existing efforts, and make a major advance through a collective endeavor.
Charities' Statement of Recommended Practice (Charities' SORP)
The SORP provides recommendations for the format and content of charity reports and accounts and a mechanism to enable charities to meet legal accounting requirements, as well as recommendations for annual reporting.
Code of Conduct for NGOs in Ethiopia
The Code of Conduct for NGOs in Ethiopia was developed collectively by various NGOs in Ethiopia in 1998 and endorsed by almost all NGOs that are operational in the country.
The Code of Conduct for The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Relief was developed and agreed upon by eight of the world's largest disaster response agencies in the summer of 1994 and represents a huge leap forward in setting standards for disaster response. It is being used by the International Federation to monitor its own standards of relief delivery and to encourage other agencies to set similar standards.
Code of Good Practice for NGOs Responding to HIV/AIDS
Launched on World AIDS Day in 2004, the code was designed to address the multiple challenges HIV/AIDS presents to NGOs in terms of accountability and quality programming. It aims to build wider commitment to principles and practices; improve the quality and cohesiveness of HIV/AIDS work; increase accountability to partners and beneficiaries; foster collaboration between NGOs working in HIV/AIDS; and commit NGOs to a shared vision of good practive in programming and advocacy.
Emergency Capacity Building Project (ECB)
The Emergency Capacity Building Project (ECB) is a collaborative effort of seven humanitarian agencies that are jointly tackling common problems in emergency response and preparedness. Over a two-year period, these agencies and their strategic partners are addressing issues pertaining to staff capacity, accountability (primarily to affected populations), impact measurement, risk reduction, and the use of information and technology in emergencies. While seeking to improve the way the seven agencies respond to humanitarian crises, ECB is deeply committed to contributing to reform in the humanitarian sector as a whole. ECB will work closely with other humanitarian organisations and share findings widely.
A voluntary code developed in 2005 primarily to guard against the exploitation of organisations for the financing of terrorism.
See also:
- The BOND response to the consultation on the code
- The US Department of the Treasury's Anti-Terrorist Financing Guidelines: Voluntary Best Practices for U.S.-based Charities.
European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) Excellence Model
The EFQM Excellence Model was introduced at the beginning of 1992 as the framework for assessing organisations for the European Quality Award. It is now the most widely used organisational framework in Europe and it has become the basis for the majority of national and regional Quality Awards.
The EFQM Excellence Model is a non-prescriptive framework based on 9 criteria. Five of these are 'Enablers' (Leadership, People, Policy & Strategy, Partnerships & Resources, Processes) and four are 'Results' (People Results, Customer Results, Society Results, Key Performance Results). The 'Enabler' criteria cover what an organisation does. The 'Results' criteria cover what an organisation achieves. 'Results' are caused by 'Enablers' and 'Enablers' are improved using feedback from 'Results'.
Global Accountability Project (GAP)
The Global Accountability Project (GAP) is part of the Accountability Programme at the One World Trust which aims to generate wider commitment to the principles and values of accountability; increase the accountability of global organisations to those they affect; and strengthen the capacity of civil society to better engage in decision making processes.
GAP was developed in 2001 with the aim of enhancing the accountability of decision making processes of inter-governmental organisations (IGOs), transnational corporations (TNCs) and international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) to the individuals and communities they affect.
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
The Global Reporting Initiative's vision is that reporting on economic, environmental, and social performance by all organisations becomes as routine and comparable as financial reporting. GRI accomplishes this vision by developing, continually improving, and building capacity around the use of its Sustainability Reporting Framework. An international network of thousands from business, civil society, labor, and professional institutions create the content of the Reporting Framework in a consensus-seeking process.
Humanitarian Accountability Partnership - International (HAP-I)
The Humanitarian Accountability Partnership was founded in 2003 to promote voluntary compliance with HAP's Accountability Principles, designed to promote this vision. To achieve a reasonable degree of consistency and equity in compliance monitoring, complaints-handling and quality assurance certification it was necessary to develop a set of relevant, measurable, actionable and affordable performance benchmarks, set within an explicit framework of shared values that define the quality of humanitarian action for those seeking to comply with the HAP Accountability Principles.
Because the founding members of HAP did not incorporate a statement of humanitarian values in the Accountability Principles, the Humanitarian Accountability Covenant has been developed to provide a simple statement of the basic values against which HAP certified agencies wish to be held to account.
These are adapted from various sources including the Fundamental Principles of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, the Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Response Programmes, and the Sphere Humanitarian Charter, none of which were completely suitable in their current form for immediate application in the HAP monitoring, complaints handling and quality assurance systems.
The PVO (Private Voluntary Organisation) Standards Committee works with member organisations in promoting standards for PVOs in the areas of governance, finance, communications with the US public, management practice, human resources, programme and public policy. Compliance with the PVO Standards is a requirement for admission to InterAction. The Committee works within the InterAction network and disseminates our standard setting experience to other coalitions and audiences around the world.
International NGOs' Accountability Charter
Global accountability charter signed by eleven of the world's leading advocacy NGOs in June 2006.
International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO)
The ISO is a worldwide fedaration that has published standards covering a wide range of areas.
Organisational management & measurement tools designed to advance an organisation's performance through its people.
Joint Evaluation of Emergency Assistance in Rwanda (JEEAR)
Unprecedented evaluation of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda and NGO responses to the humanitarian catastrophe.
NGO Watch Article on Philippine Council for NGO Certification
Article charting progress of registration of Philippine NGOs since the 1990s government threat to remove tax relief unless they could demonstrate a level of accountability.
2000 survey which arose out of Oxfam's Strategic Review (completed in 1998) as one of the recommendations on governance and accountability.
Participatory Monitoring & Evaluation
- Old Participation Resource Centre site
- New Participation Resource Centre site
Both sites hold the collections of the Participation, Power and Social Change Group at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). - Monitoring & Evaluation News
Forum and news site dedicated to monitoring and evaluation issues.
People In Aid Code of Good Practice in the Management & Support of Aid Personnel
The Code is a tool to help agencies offer better development aid and disaster relief to communities in need, and is an important part of their efforts to improve standards, accountability and transparency amid the challenges of disaster, conflict and poverty. As well as building on previous guidelines, the Code reflects the growing attention of aid groups on issues of health and safety, diversity and equality, and is relevant for agencies engaged in development and advocacy as well as emergency response.
Partnership Programme Agreements (PPAs)
PPAs are agreements between DFID and influential civil society organisations in the UK which set out at a strategic level how the two partners will work together to meet the Millennium Development Goals. Strategic Funding is provided, and is linked to jointly agreed outcomes.
The Performance Hub works to help UK focussed third sector organisations (charities, voluntary organisations, community groups and social enterprises) to achieve more. It is a partnership between CES and NCVO. The Hub also publishes a quarterly magazine, Achieve More.
Practical Quality Assurance System for Small Organisations (PQASSO)
Developed by Charities' Evaluation Services, PQASSO is a voluntary self-assessment tool for small organisations, or for projects in larger organisations. It encompasses twelve areas of quality: planning; governance; management; user-centred service; staff and volunteers; training and development; managing money; managing resources; managing activities; networking and partnership; monitoring and evaluation; and results.
The Quality COMPAS is the result of a six-year research project on quality issues in the humanitarian sector. The Quality COMPAS is a Quality Assurance method which comes equipped with its own set of tools, training modules and consultancy services. These components have been designed specifically for aid agencies with the overall aim of improving services provided to crisis-affected populations.
Social Accountability International
SAI is an international non-profit human rights organisation dedicated to the ethical treatment of workers around the world. SAI's social standard, SA8000, functions as a highly effective and expedient system for delivering improved social performance to businesses and their supply chain facilities. The SA8000 solution is designed to ensure compliance with the highest ethical sourcing standards by integrating management tools that serve the needs of workers and businesses alike.
The Sphere Project was launched in 1997 by a group of humanitarian NGOs and the Red Cross and Red Crescent movement. Sphere is based on two core beliefs: first, that all possible steps should be taken to alleviate human suffering arising out of calamity and conflict, and second, that those affected by disaster have a right to life with dignity and therefore a right to assistance. Sphere is three things: a handbook, a broad process of collaboration and an expression of commitment to quality and accountability.
The Tsunami Evaluation Coalition (TEC) is an independent, learning and accountability initiative in the humanitarian sector. It was established in February 2005 in the wake of the December 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunamis. TEC evaluations represent the most intensive study of a humanitarian response since the Rwanda multi-donor evaluation in the mid-1990s.
Ugandan NGO Forum Code of Conduct
The Code of Conduct provides for the self-discipline, regulation and mechanism of restraint for NGOs and CBOs operating in Uganda
Through the power of collective action, the Global Compact seeks to promote responsible corporate citizenship so that business can be part of the solution to the challenges of globalisation. In this way, the private sector - in partnership with other social actors - can help realize the Secretary-General's vision: a more sustainable and inclusive global economy.