Rohingya seeking rights, and #Nziswatching petition still active. Plus fundraising, management advice and more.

+ Rohingya still without rights two years on from exodus

August 25th marked two years since nearly 740,000 Muslim-majority Rohingya fled Rakhine State for Bangladesh, bringing the total who fled to almost 1 million.

These 'citizens of nowhere' have been officially registered as 'forcibly displaced Myanmar nationals', a title which makes them more vulnerable to the denial of human rights as it denies their refugee status and any associated rights, like freedom from detention and exploitation, access to public services, education, livelihoods and freedom of movement.

However, a recent ASEAN report indicated that they are optimistic about the return of the Rohingyas, despite recent failed attempts by Myanmar officials for repatriation. The UN have pressed for a sense of urgency regarding their repatriation, considering the lack of education for Rohingya youth and other concerns. 
 

+ #NZiswatching Petition still collecting signatures

Update on the campaign this week:

Please keep circulating the petition. We need as many signatures as possible. 

You can get people to sign the petition and read the latest on the campaign here.
 

+ Save the date! CID Conference Monday 21 October 

More details to follow soon.

+ No-deal Brexit and NGOs

Former PM Theresa May's draft withdrawal agreement from the EU gives the UK — and UK civil society organisations (CSOs) — two years to adjust to the deal and agrees on a future relationship with the EU. If the UK leaves without a deal, "this agreement will no longer hold," says UK Bond.

UK NGOs will lose their voice amongst EU NGOs, and coordination will become more challenging. 

Currency fluctuation of the British pound will impact on NGO budgets.

UK NGOs won't be able to employ EU nationals easily.

And an important funding source will immediately dry up. "The UK is the second-largest recipient of EU aid to CSOs of both grants and service contracts." That will change overnight. 

 

+ NZ Human Rights Plan launched next week

On 5th September the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade will launch New Zealand’s International Human Rights Action Plan 2019-2023. The Action Plan sets out New Zealand’s focus areas for international foreign policy advocacy on human rights issues.

The Action Plan was developed following nationwide consultation, including eight public hui and discussions with over 200 high school students, as well as consultation with over 12 government agencies to ensure the Action Plan aligns with domestic priorities.
 
Under the Action Plan, the human rights priorities of New Zealand are: rights of persons with disabilities; gender equality and women’s empowerment; sexual orientation and gender identity; and abolition of the death penalty. New Zealand will also actively engage on: the rights of indigenous peoples; children and young people; freedom of expression; torture and arbitrary detention; and violence and discrimination against minorities. 

+ Fundraising - stop kicking the tyres!

"In the funding world, we will not shift paradigms by kicking the tyres on our audience segmentation, inadequate planning processes or meaningless cost/income ratios," writes UK Bond's Leesa Harwood.  

It’s time to examine our funding paradigms and transform the way we financially underwrite and even deliver our mission."

Here's a bit of fundraising history:

• The first recorded, regular giving campaign letter (circa 54AD) is  St Paul's letter to the Corinthians, asking them to set aside money on the first day of every week to support persecuted Christians in the early days of the Church.
• Fast track to 1997 - when the rock band Marillion pioneered the crowdfunding model after they used the internet to secure donations from fans to fund a US tour.

We need to think transformation again, argues Leesa. In his book, The War for Fundraising Talent, Jason Lewis describes a complacent charity sector.

"It has basked for too long in the warmth of the good times and continues to recycle the same fundraising formulas for the same audiences."

Most important piece of advice? Start thinking like an outsider.

Aneel Bhusri, CEO and co-founder of Workday, philanthropist and member of Giving Pledge  said, “Every time you see a new paradigm emerge, it’s always new vendors that lead it.  I can’t think of one case where an incumbent led a paradigm shift.”  

If anyone happens to be in the UK October 7, you can go to Bond's Fundraising Conference.

+ Ebola vaccine good news, but not a cure yet

Devex sums up the latest analysis on the Ebola outbreak, including some good news after a tough year: the world may be closer to finding a cure for Ebola. 

"Ebola patients will now have the option of receiving REGN-EB3 or mAb114, after promising preliminary data found higher survival rates with these two therapeutics compared to ZMapp and remdesivir. This means there's another potential instrument, other than the Merck vaccine, in responders' toolboxes. Soon, they may also use another investigational vaccine, that of Johnson & Johnson's, if the new DRC government allows it," writes Devex.

But the crisis is not over and a vaccine is not a panacea. "Some of the Ebola outbreak's biggest known donors have announced new sets of funding since the declaration."
 

+ Vanuatu Mapping Pilot - Who does work in Vanuatu?

This week CID and the High Commission of Vanuatu are commencing an exciting piece of research about New Zealand’s work in Vanuatu. The purpose of the study is to develop an understanding of:

1. All NZ entities (NGO, private sector, public sector, academia etc) working in Vanuatu, and their work
2. The development or social impact the entities may be contributing to, in Vanuatu
3. The opportunities for collaboration and synergies between entities.

A first step in this research is to identify all the New Zealand organisations working in Vanuatu.
 
If your organisation is working in Vanuatu, please send a quick email this week to Campbell Garrett on campbell@cid.org.nz so we can include your organisation in the study.
 
Also, if you know of any New Zealand organisations (either NGOs, businesses, public sector, or from academia) who are currently working in Vanuatu, please send the names to Campbell Garrett (again this week on campbell@cid.org.nz) so we can include them in the study. Thank you!
 
 

+ IDA achievements - by country 

The World Bank Group's International Development Association (IDA) is one of the largest sources of assistance for the world’s 75 poorest countries, reaching 1.5 billion people who live in IDA countries. 

To look at the latest results country by country,  on climate change, gender, fragility, conflict and violence, jobs and economic transformation, and governance and institutions, go here. 

+ Columbia's search for peace 

Colombia's government signed a historic peace agreement in June 2016 with the armed rebel group FARC-EP.

On the Brookings Cafeteria podcast, Ted Piccone and Vanda Felbab-Brown explain why implementation of the peace accord has stalled and discuss how the country can move forward.

+ NGO management #101

Stanford Social Innovation Review has just released its 2nd edition of 'Non-Profit Management 101.'

It's promoted as an "essential resource for nonprofit leaders, full of practical, easy-to-implement tips and tools, and featuring concrete insights from 55 leaders.

The book gathers actionable, high-value practices across seven major nonprofit management disciplines, including strategy, operations, law and finance, fundraising, and technology. They're offering a free sample chapter on fundraising events here.
 

+ 'The 1619 Project' & Modern Slavery

For many, US history starts with the arrival of 102 passengers onboard the Mayflower in 1620, but a year earlier, 20 enslaved individuals from Africa were brought to the what is now Virginia against their will.

The current '1619 Project' marks the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first slaves from Africa into America and seeks to re-frame that country’s thinking about slavery, particularly the role of slavery in nation-building and democratic thinking historically. However, the project also serves as a pertinent reminder that slavery does not remain a historical phenomenon.

The Mekong Club is a Hong Kong-based anti-slavery NGO that aims to harness the skills of the private sector to combat human trafficking and slavery. They estimate that globally there are 45.8 million people in modern slavery today, with over 30 million people living in conditions of modern slavery in Asia Pacific. The Mekong Club has some fantastic tools for learning about modern slavery; what it is, why it still exists, and how NGOs along with the private sector has the power to make an impact.