Equitable Partnerships

Equitable partnerships will be our default approach by 2030. National and local organisations will lead humanitarian and development efforts wherever possible. We will help them take control, and we’ll engage directly only when there isn’t enough national or local capacity to meet people’s needs.

Where there is no partnership, or we’re responding to an emergency, we’ll find ways of working with national and local organisations at the first opportunity. We’ll then support them as they take over the decision-making. Wherever we work, our broad aim is to encourage a more resilient, independent, and diverse civil society that works in real solidarity with international organizations.

INGOs competing for funds, facilities, and talent can unintentionally weaken civil society in the countries where we operate. In the years ahead, we’ll allocate more resources to help national and local organizations take the lead. We’ll work in partnership with them to make sure they benefit from our presence.

There will be more collaboration between INGOs to reduce duplication of effort when local organisations are dealing with two or more of us. This should mean a common approach to compliance and due diligence. It could also mean pooling funds and taking other steps to achieve economies of scale.

We’ll take a more collaborative approach to risk management. We’ll avoid applying stricter risk requirements to our partners than ourselves and look for ways of minimizing the compliance burden on partners.

We will share the burden of costs in ways that will make our partners stronger and more sustainable.