Abstract
From my experiences doing my practicum with World Learning in Bosnia and Herzegovina I developed my research question: How can NGO's in Bosnia and Herzegovina build their capacity and succeed as a sector in an unstable political and economic environment? The sub-questions that aided me in answering the research question were: What activities do current Bosnian NGO's engage in to build their capacity and increase their chance at survival? What barriers exist in Bosnia that threaten or hinder the survival and success of NGO's? In researching NGO's and the third sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina, I used both a qualitative and quantitative approach. I performed interviews of NGO managers and organizations, and conducted a survey of local NGO's based on a 1998 survey conducted by NVO Fondacija, an organization I worked closely with during my time in Bosnia. The themes of the study centered on financial viability current organizational capacity, cooperation with other NGO's and government, and future outlook of the sector. The conclusions drawn include a more realistic attitude of NGO's today in assessing their sustainability, a greater understand of which areas NGO's are lacking training in and that by gaining these competencies it will help them better achieve their objectives, and thirdly, the awareness that international funding is not a sustainable and lasting financial resource. NGO's must coordinate their projects and efforts in development if they intend to survive past the eventual withdrawal of the international community.
Recommended Citation
Wahl, Lillian C., "NGO capacity-building in Bosnia and Herzegovina" (2003). Capstone Collection. 139.
https://digitalcollections.sit.edu/capstones/139