Planning and doing something are two aspects of the same goal. Planning is needed to do something and a job is incomplete until it is done. There are two distinct and separate ways of achieving the goal. One needs to be synchronised with the other to reach the goal. Besides, success of a plan also depends on how realistic it is. A plan may apparently look very effective, but it may turn out to be less implemental due to the prevailing situation. Ability to identify the most effective process is the first pre-requisite for achieving a goal.
The government took some steps recently to amend the process of monitoring activities of non-governmental organisations (NGO). Substantial funds are routed through to NGOs by foreign donors every year. The success rate of fund utilisation by the NGOs is very impressive and in some cases better than that of the government organisations. This is one of the reasons behind the continuous and gradual increase in the flow of fund from the donors. Some NGOs of Bangladesh have excelled in formulating ideas, mobilising resources and implementing plans in a way that has earned laurels for them from abroad and are being emulated by others around the world.
Though foreign funds pumped through NGOs are used mainly in supporting activities related to social services like poverty alleviation, reduction of child and infant mortality, improvement of health and nutrition, family planning etc., there is an allegation that these funds are being laundered and used in terror financing in developing countries. None of these ways of utilising the donors' money is acceptable and must be stopped at any cost. But the point that needs to be highlighted is that before implementation it must be ensured that the process chosen to tackle the problems is sound and the organisations entrusted to perform the task, are fully equipped. Otherwise, money, time and energy will be simply wasted and nothing will be achieved in the end.
NGO Affairs Bureau is presently entrusted with the task of overseeing NGO activities, including approval of projects, release of fund, transfer of fund from mother account to project account, follow-up of audit reports on the projects etc. In the proposed amendment some additional functions like inspection and audit, power of appointing administrators, evaluation of the projects etc. have been incorporated.
According to a source, present sanctioned strength of the NGO Bureau is 84. The existing manpower is 64 out of which 12 are officers. The approved manpower of NGO Affairs Bureau is inadequate to discharge its present responsibilities. NGOs have reservations about the work speed of the bureau. New responsibilities like auditing, reviewing projects etc. are by no means easy tasks. Lot of training is to be imparted to the staff to equip them with knowledge required to perform their jobs properly. Sufficient time is also required. If additional work is given without additional manpower and proper training, the bureau will not be able to carry out its responsibilities satisfactorily. In that case, there will be delay in fund release and other activities. One of the main reasons for the success of NGOs is their ability to take quick decisions and implement those promptly which is rare in many government organisations. Too much government involvement in the day-to-day affairs of NGOs will affect their present efficiency and may turn these into de-facto semi-government organisations.
Deterring money laundering and terror financing are undoubtedly very important, but to accomplish these, there should not be witch-hunting. This can be effectively controlled by strengthening the activities of Police, RAB, and secret services. Entrusting this additional burden to the NGO Bureau without sufficient capacity building, will affect its efficiency and in the end it might become a defaulter while trying to find defaulters. This situation is least desirable and should be avoided.
So, before awarding additional responsibilities to NGO Bureau, its capacity building in terms of manpower, training and other logistics support should be ensured first. Otherwise, it will be like putting the cart before the horse and the NGOs, playing an important role in socio-economic development of the economy, will be the main sufferers.
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The writer is a retired Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General (Senior), Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of Bangladesh.
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