CSO Platform

This tool of Red Argentina de Cooperacion Internacional serves civil society in Argentina to share their work and projects on the platform which can be accessed by the wider public. This creates a greater transparency of the sector.

Mechanism for Reporting and Handling Complaints

This tool from the Arab NGO Network for Development sets an example for an accountable Complaints and Reporting mechanism.

Practical Guide on Writing Annual Reports For Nonprofits

This Practical Guide was published by the Nigeria Network of NGOs and can help organisations to improve their annual reporting skills and thus be more transparent and accountable towards their primary constituents.

Selection Processes: An Opportunity to Enhance Ownership and Build Trust

This tool is a good example of transparent hiring processes within an organisation. While the tool is very organisation specific, it can easily be adapted to other organisations.

Standard of Memory and Balance of Civil Society Organizations – FECU Social

FECU Social is a transparency tool used in Chile to help NPOs fulfil their reporting duties according with Chilean laws. It aims at facilitating the interaction between the NPO and the different stakeholders involved in order to increase society's trust in the organisation's work.

Japan NPO Center’s Searchable Online Database

The NPO Hiroba Database for Japanese Nonprofit is clearly aimed at greater disclosure and visibility of NPOs in Japan, which contributes to greater accountability within the non-profit sector. It moreover helps the interested global public to acquire insights about civil society organisations operating in Japan.

Japan NPO Center’s Self-Assessment Check Sheet

The self-assessment project was aimed at local group leaders who had started their organisations after the Great East Japan Earthquake Disaster in 2011. Given the extent of the tasks they faced, many NPOs in Tohoku faced finance and human resource-related challenges due to waning interest in the disaster. Although originally created for organisations in Tohoku, the 15 capacities are relevant for any NPO in Japan.

Resilient Roots Initiative – A guide and how to close the Feedback Loop

The Resilient Roots initiative tests whether organisations who are more accountable and responsive to their primary constituents, are more resilient against external threats. CIVICUS believes that organisations which are closer to their constituents will be able to rely upon these groups to come to their defence, bridge resourcing gaps, and safeguard their long-term sustainability when it is under political or structural attack.

Obstacles and Promising Techniques in Storytelling for Transparency and Accountability

All of TAI members’ donors struggle to convey impact and how impact relates to activities and inputs.

Compelling stories are a prized tool, but compelling results can be slow to surface and murky in their evidentiary value.

If organisations collected more vivid and accessible stories, they could better harness the imaginations of decision-makers, the public, advocates, partners, and grant makers.

Self-assessment tool for the Global Standard for CSO Accountability

The self-assessment tool was developed with aim of assisting organisations hoping to work within the framework of the Global Standard to conduct a preliminary self-evaluation of their organisation.

Self-assessment tools generally help to understand an organisation’s strengths and weaknesses. Basing this self-assessment on the Global Standard commitments from the very beginning makes later alignment much easier from the start.

Developing a Code of Accountability for CSOs in Fiji

The aim of the Code of Accountability is to ensure that consistency of practices, transparency, and accountability are streamlined across all civil society organisations, in their various forms, in Fiji.

Streamlining and ensuring consistency will allow for greater mutual understanding of accountability processes and challenges as well as greater comparability across CSOs in Fiji.

CSO Comprehensive Self-Assessment Tool for Nigerian Non-Profit Organisations

The self-assessment tool aims to assist CSOs in beginning to establish an internal evaluation of their organisational procedure to identify strengths and weaknesses. Thus, the purpose of this self-assessment tool is to strengthen public trust towards CSOs in Nigeria, as well as to help CSOs to better understand and improve their operations and processes with regard to organisational accountability.

Rendir APP: A self-assessment application to improve CSOs’ accountability

In today’s fast changing environments, it is beneficial for organizations to conduct an exercise to self-evaluate their accountability practices on a regular basis. When conducted regularly, organizations can monitor as well as evaluate the progress made which helps to adapt in real-time. In light of a Dynamic Accountability approach, CSOs can only become more transparent and effective when they are ready to turn themselves inside out, including regular spaces for self-reflection and bringing more voices in. The Rendir App can support this process.

Revising Code of Conduct Policy with Indian Civil Society Organisations

The voluntary sector in India is passing through very challenging times. On one hand, there is high demand from voluntary organisations due to socio-economic realities at grass roots level, and changes in resource availability on the other. There have been numerous legal changes as well as interpretations of these laws by the enforcement agencies. Questions are also being asked about the accountability and transparency within the sector. The image of the sector plays a very important role in how people in the society think of CSOs. With new donors like corporate, government and individual resource providers becoming interested in the civil society sector, the need for more precise verifiable indicators of transparency, accountability and participation is felt right across the sector.

A Code of Conduct for West African Civil Society Actors

Civil society organisations are not only implementers. They are also an important ACTOR according to their role to complement the role of the state. At REPAOC, the reflection was made to improve this role through their effectiveness.

Building a Code of Principles, Ethics and Conducts in Mozambique

Code of Principles, Ethics and Conduct (formulated by and for Mozambican CSOs)

Global Standard for CSO Accountability

The Global Standard for CSO Accountability is an initiative of nine well-established civil society accountability networks from around the world. The overarching aim is to strengthen the effectiveness of CSOs worldwide by devising a collective Global Standard on CSO Accountability.

Accountability and Transparency Toolkit in Philanthropy and Private Social Investment

The toolkit is a result of regional consultations on Transparency and Accountability in Philanthropy and Private Social Investment held during 2012 and 2013 in Cairo, Johannesburg, and Bogota that brought together more than 100 WINGS members and partners. It is a living document. WINGS will endeavor to continue documenting experiences, tools, and best practices as members advance their practice and understanding of transparency and accountability for philanthropy.

Collective process around designing a CSO Code of Conduct in the Dominican Republic

The design of the first CSO Code of Conduct in the Dominican Republic was conceived as a collective process and methodology since its beginning in 2016 and until its formal presentation in 2017 many steps of collective thinking and feedback on the progress to elaborate the final document which has been endorsed so far by more than 100 CSOs.

Institutionalising Voluntary Self-Evaluation of Organisation Transparency in Mexico

The Accreditation in Institutionality and Transparency (AIT) operates as an institutional process of voluntary self-evaluation, verified and accredited by Cemefi, through supporting documents. It consists of ten indicators, grouped into three levels.

Mutual Accountability within the Arab Region

This guide is the result of a collective effort by the network to provide assisting tools for the civil society to play its role within the framework of accountability of the parties concerned with the developmental process, from the public sector as a key partner in the development process and its basic point of reference in the context of policy-making and ensuring the proper implementation and protection of the rights of the citizens, to the private sector as a partner who is supposed to adhere to international standards of human rights, and the donors who are committed to providing the necessary resources for the implementation of the development process and achieving the goals of civil society.

Strengthening the Capacity of Philippine Civil Society Organisations

In 2011-2014, the Caucus of Development NGO Networks (CODE-NGO) became part of a 3-year capacity building initiative called “Strengthening the Capacity of Philippine CSOs Project”.

Basis of Unity between Philippines Civil Society Organisations

CIVICUS’ Guide for Self-Regulating Initiatives

CIVICUS’ guide to self-regulation initiatives helps support civil society in coping with current reporting, monitoring and funding pressures, and demonstrates successful civil society self-regulation. This contributes to more accountable CSOs which can be seen as legitimate and credible actors in the public sphere.

Core Humanitarian Standard

The CHS places communities and people affected by crisis at the centre of humanitarian action and promotes respect for their fundamental human rights. It is underpinned by the right to life with dignity, and the right to protection and security as set forth in international law, including within the International Bill of Human Rights. As a core standard, the CHS describes the essential elements of principled, accountable and high-quality humanitarian action. Humanitarian organisations may use it as a voluntary code with which to align their own internal procedures. It can also be used as a basis for verification of performance, for which a specific framework and associated indicators have been developed to ensure relevance to different contexts and types of organisation.

Istanbul Principles for CSO Effectiveness

Guided by these Istanbul principles, CSOs are committed to take pro-active actions to improve and be fully accountable for their development practices. Equally important will be enabling policies and practices by all actors. Through actions consistent with these principles, donor and partner country governments demonstrate their Accra Agenda for Action pledge that they “share an interest in ensuring that CSO contributions to development reach their full potential”. All governments have an obligation to uphold basic human rights – among others, the right to association, the right to assembly, and the freedom of expression. Together these are pre-conditions for effective development.

Closing the Feedback Loop within Cambodian Civil Society

The objective of the NGO Governance Professional Practice (GPP) Online Feedback Form is to offer the complainants making their complaint as the evidence of misconduct by a certified NGO.

Self-Assessing Organisational Capacity in Zambia

A strong vision can bring people together. To deliver results, that vision needs to be turned into reality. Successful organisations are those that take the time and resources to build their organisation and to make their programmes strong, effective and efficient. It is used to help organizations undertake a self-assessment to determine their ability or capacity to undertake a project as well as help the granting organization make a decision as to whether to make the grant or not.

Building a Culture of Accountability in Bolivia

The UNITAS Network assumes the Istanbul Principle 5 as a means to stimulate structured reflection, deeper understanding and public accountability, that improves the effectiveness of CSOs as development actors, and incorporates self-regulatory mechanisms as part of the institutional internal regulations. Accountability, an annual public exercise at the local and national level, legitimizes the role of NGOs and shows their contribution to development to multiple actors.

NGO Good Governance and Professional Practices in Cambodia

Through a series of voluntary actions by NGOs, civil society organisations can become role models in the country, enacting policies and guidelines that follow the ethical principles and standards for NGOs in Cambodia.

A System of Transparency and Accountability with Member Organisations in Argentina

An active policy of transparency and accountability both inside the network - with a system of minutes and periodic reports sent to the members of all the activities carried out by the executive management - as well as outside of the same with the implementation of a transparency form in which the Social Organizations that apply to the Argentine Network for International Cooperation (RACI, for its Spanish acronym) membership must make public their information regarding membership, decision making body, funding sources, active projects; among other informations regarding its operation and management.

Public Social Accountability Process in Colombia

Rendir Cuentas: An Accountability Network in Latin America

Recognizing that civil society needs to protect its legitimacy by being accountable and the need for the sector to be more visible in a sometimes restrictive environment, Rendir Cuentas seeks to establish systematic practices of self-regulation, through mutual learning, and the transfer and adoption of voluntary and common standards.

Adaptive Management Brings Flexibility to Responding to Sierra Leone’s Ebola Crisis

Adaptive Management (AM) is said to be more flexible to respond to shocks and there is now a growing body of case studies of the new development planning strategy.

Strengthening Accountability and Governance within CSOs in Nepal

Exploring a new horizon to work on improvement of governance in NGOs helps to promote the Istanbul Principles of CSO Development Effectiveness in Nepal; the results of the survey are very encouraging and they give positive sign to improve the credibility and pubic trusts in society

Steps of a Closed Feedback Loop – Global

Simply collecting feedback is not enough. It is critical to close the loop by ensuring that feedback systems are properly designed and implemented, the data is analysed with the community, and the data is used by decision makers to make the desired changes that move the community as a whole towards goals and, eventually, impact.