LITERATURE REVIEW

Establishment of NGO`s in Kenya

NGOs are voluntary organizations that are registered under the Non-Governmental

Organizations Co-Ordination Act. According to the statutory definition, NGOs are established

solely for non-profit and non-commercial work either at a national or international level. In their

mandates, NGOs are focused on creating benefits whose focus is the public rather than private

individual entities. Markedly, the NGOs interests’ lies in promotion of research, social welfare,

or development in a number of fields ranging from health, education to agriculture as well as

other industries. NGOs are also often referred to as non-profit organizations.

In Kenya, Non-Governmental Organizations are registered by the NGO Coordination Board and

governed by the NGO Coordination Act of 1990 (Act No. 19, Laws of Kenya) and it’s

Regulations of 1992. Section 2 of the Act defines NGOs as “private voluntary groupings of

individuals or associations not operated for profit or for other commercial purposes but which

have organized themselves nationally or internationally for the benefit of the public at large and

for the promotion of social welfare, development, charity or research in the areas inclusive of,

but not restricted to, health, relief, agriculture, education, industry and the supply of amenities

and services” 9 NGOs and societies are subject to mandatory registration, at least according to

the law as written, although this has not proved problematic in practice (NGO Coordination Act,

1990). Under this NGO Coordination Act, for example, it is illegal for any person to operate an

NGO in Kenya without registration and a certificate under the NGO Coordination Act.

NGOs are crucial partners in promoting socio-economic development in developing countries

like Kenya. The services they provide include health, education, relief food and help in times of

disasters. They step in when the government is either unwilling or unable to provide these
services. As a result, they have attracted a lot of attention from (especially, international)

funding agencies driven by their closeness to the grassroots communities, especially the

marginalized, their level of efficiency and cost-effectiveness relative to governments and the

ability to promote sustainable development. The rapid growth of NGOs is also an indication of

the inability of developing countries to reduce poverty, corruption and accountability in the

governance regime. Some scholars, for example, Kameri-Mbote, are suspicious of this growth,

pointing out that information on the performance of NGOs is scanty. Others have accused

NGOs of financial impropriety and abandoning their original mission. This underscores a

genuine concern that managers and promoters of NGOs are only using this form as a cover for

the advancement of personal interests. Yet, accountability is not only a legal, but also a

constitutional, requirement.

Challenges faced by NGO`S in Kenya

Poor Governance was recognized within the sector as a whole, within the NGO Council and

within individual NGOs. Knowledge of good governance varied widely, with some regions

indicating very little understanding of why NGOs are required to have Boards or what their

roles and functions should be. Many other participants explained that it is difficult to achieve

good governance with founders who wished to own their NGOs for their own purposes.

Participants with better understanding of good governance appreciated that this is fundamental

to NGO accountability and transparency. Many NGOs mismanage their resources, quite often

with the involvement and encouragement of their Boards that eat their NGOs resources. Finding

Board members can be difficult if you are not willing to pay them or provide allowances.

NGOs are expressing difficulty in finding sufficient, appropriate and continuous funding for

their work. They find accessing donors as challenging as dealing with their funding conditions.
They perceive there to be certain cartels of individuals and NGOs that control access to donor

funds. They have limited resource mobilization skills and are often not looking for funds that

are available locally, preferring to wait for international donors to approach them. There is a

high dependency of donors and a tendency to shift interventions to match donor priorities. There

is a lack of financial, project and organizational sustainability.

The Role of Technology in Management of NGO`s in Kenya

Information and communications technology (IT) has revolutionized the way people live, learn,

work and interact (Okinawa Charter, 2000). The world has become a Global village with

Internet, mobile phones and satellite networks shrinking time and space, bringing together

computers and communications resulting in new ways of communication, processing, storing

and distributing enormous amounts of information (UNDP 2001). It improves efficiency,

accuracy, instantaneous transmission of information, increase quantity, enhance quality, and

speed up availability of information in a complex world (Okorie, 2010). Countries‟

development agenda has accelerated at a higher speed while organizations have increased

production at a higher rate than before. IT has simplified processes in all the operational

function of an organization (Ochieng, 2012).

Many NGOs are still in an early stage of IT adoption, in their organizational settings due to lack

of funding, unstable organizational structures and diversity in operations (Saeed, Rohde &

Wulf, 2010). According to World Bank‟s convention (2001), NGOs are divided into two

categories mainly; operational NGOs, whose purpose is the design and implementation of

development related projects, and advocacy NGOs whose purpose is to defend or promote a

specific cause (World Bank Operational Directive, 2001). Advocacy NGOs focus on awareness,

opinion and policy making hence eliminating field activities and thus adopting a centralized
control structure making their IT requirement a bit simpler (Saeed, Rohde & Wulf, 2010).

Several studies have showed that information and communication technologies (ITs) can

provide a valuable support to NGOs in improving their transparency level (Tapscott & Ricoll,

2003).

Most Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) in the developed world use a vast array of

technology and communications systems to manage their operations. Some use commercial off

the shelf (COTS) products and others use satellite and cell phones for communication and

networking purposes with Internet being a major driver (Barrigan, & Hemingway, 2002). The

investment in IT is heavy and most large NGOs utilize proven strategic models to drive their

business. In the developing world the story is different. Research efforts indicate that most

NGOs in the developing world lack appropriate information technologies with knowledge being

a big obstacles and most of them do not use the technology beyond e-mail and browsing internet

(Saeed, Rohde & Wulf, 2010). NGOs don’t view IT as a management tool hence they give it

less priority and managers lack appropriate 3 knowledge and skills that can recognize and apply

appropriate IT solutions with most executive board failing to link the IT investments with their

NGOs mission (Barrigan, & Hemingway 2002). Many NGOs in the developing countries are

blinded by the financial gains hence encountering many challenges including; low IT uptake

and awareness, lack of involvement in IT policy issues and very few IT NGOs; lack of funds

and affordability issues; corruption which has seen an upward trend on brief case NGOs

(Kameri-Mbote, 2002).

According to Abdel-Kader and Wadongo, (2011), NGO in Kenya range from community-based

organizations (CBO), Non-governmental organizations, associations, charitable trusts, social

enterprises, and foundations and there work has shifted overtime from initially relief to service

provision, capacity building, advocacy and networking with both government and private
sectors (Abdel-Kader & Wadongo, 2011). According to their research work most Kenyan NGOs

managers perceived performance to be; effectiveness, goals and objectives achieved, capacity of

human resource and skills, processes, activities that are used, positive change in society, budget

targets, social transformation, good public perception, sustainability and better service delivery

(Abdel-Kader & Wadongo, 2011). Abdel-Kader and Wadongo (2011) research reported that

Most Kenyan NGOs had clearly specified statements of vision, mission and with clearly written

core values that emphasizes on commitment, accountability, service to humanity, trust, good

stewardship integrity, partnership and participation (Abdel-Kader & Wadongo, 2011). Most

NGOs used „logical framework‟ to identify project indicators and set targets, however, some

NGOs did not have clear performance measurement framework in place. Most common

performance indicators among the NGOs were „output based‟ and „quantitative‟ linked to

specific NGO objectives such as „number of people trained‟, „number of students supported‟,

„number of trees planted‟, „number of computers supplied‟ „number of interventions set up‟,

and „time taken to deliver and order‟(Abdel-Kader & Wadongo, 2011).

Bell IT solutions enumerate several benefits that can accrue to the organization with the proper

implementation of Information Technology. IT helps organizations to connect, collaborate and

compete more effectively by combining information, knowledge, processes, and technology to

provide a foundation for driving efficiencies and fuelling innovation. Business performance,

productivity and profitability are improved, cost is reduced, quality becomes the focal point of

the management and customer satisfaction takes the center stage (Bell IT solutions).

Non-Governmental Management Practices

Fowler (1997) in his study findings reiterates that NGOs are not closed systems operating in

isolation but rather exists as open systems; this therefore means that these organizations are
highly dependent on resources, both human and financial, occurrences and changes especially

within their immediate environs. Management practices of these organizations are synchronized

to address community needs through improved service delivery, enhance political, social and

cultural change processes to benefit beneficiaries and also to attempt create working

relationships and synergies with other like-minded partners. These may include, public or

private corporations, state or non-state agencies and local initiatives.

NGOs are easily recognized by an ‘action-oriented’ mentality with significant amount of time

and resources always dedicated to implementing developmental and empowerment programmes

that little or no time is accorded to effective organizational management practices. Though there

is no single way or technique to evaluate the performance of NGO management, prioritization

of organizational management may be perceived to interfere with the primary activity which is

to hit the ground running and realize positive impact (Lewis, 2014). According to Korten

(1996), the origins of several NGOs are pegged on efforts of key founders’ good will, purpose,

hard work and common sense to mobilize resources and efforts to address specific challenges,

disasters or catastrophes. NGO managers are continuously involved in collating, and

synthesizing ideas and practices from

requirements and needs. This implies that NGO management practices will largely depend on

each organization’s vision, mission, objectives, values and cultural norms; external forces such

as donor demands or government regulations will also dictate on management practices.

NGO mainly rely on donor funds or foreign aids thereby exposing its management to pressure

or influence from external forces. These external influences may impact on NGO management

style and practices in one way or the other. As NGO-donor relations grow close; most of the

times, donors have required NGOs to develop parallel systems of accountability to report on

funded programmes thereby throwing ‘in-house’ project management practices into disarray.

This poses a loophole for possible oversight or fraud. Stillman (2007) warns that whatever the

size of an NGO, the road to serious mismanagement practices often starts with condoning

minor indiscretions assuming they are too small to harm the organization. He argues that for

every time a mismanagement practice is tolerated, the NGO not only accumulates wrong-

doings but also instills a culture that will lead to its own downfall.