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NGOs' Role in Poverty Reduction Growing, Agrees Landmark Conference

BEIJING, PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA (30 October 2001) - Nongovernment organizations (NGOs) are emerging as important contributors to poverty reduction in the People's Republic of China (PRC), according to participants at the International Conference on NGO Poverty Reduction Policy being held from 28 to 30 October 2001 in Beijing.

The milestone conference - the first of its kind in PRC - is hosted by the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation and sponsored by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Ford Foundation, Mercy Corps, the United Nations Development Programme and the World Bank.

"The Government recognizes that NGOs can play an important role in the country's development by bringing specialized knowledge, technical expertise, research capacities, local contacts and community support to the process," said Rolf Zelius, Chief of ADB's Office of Environment and Social Development today. The unit headed by Mr. Zelius includes a recently established NGO Center.

"We firmly believe that with an increased involvement of NGOs and other civil society groups, we will be able to improve the quality of our assistance. Therefore, ADB supports the Government's efforts to strengthen its partnership with NGOs and to create the conditions in which NGOs can maximize their contribution to poverty alleviation, " added Mr. Zelius.

NGOs in the PRC are implementing programs to increase agricultural productivity, expand economic and social opportunities for women, provide health care, build schools and training centers, protect the environment and increase access by the poor to financial resources through microcredit.

In a significant policy development, the Government has recognized a key role for NGOs in its 10-Year Poverty Reduction Strategy, approved earlier this year. ADB is supporting the Government in realizing this strategy, and has approved a technical assistance (TA) project to analyze poverty issues, including the role of NGOs in poverty reduction. The TA funds are being used to organize the conference.

The gathering has brought together more than 200 representatives of local and international NGOs, bilateral and multilateral donors, universities and government institutions. Participants have discussed NGO experiences with poverty reduction in the PRC over the past two decades, the challenges confronting NGOs, and NGOs' internal management and capacity building.

Between 20 percent to 35 percent of the substantive work in the PRC's poverty reduction between 1995 and 2000 can be attributed to NGOs. Nevertheless, NGO participants at the conference cited several factors limiting their effectiveness. These include a lack of funding, inadequate training, an incomplete legal framework for NGOs, difficulties in registering international NGOs, and problems in recruiting and retaining qualified staff.

To address these and other concerns, they advocated better information sharing to identify potential partnerships, direct funding from the Government and international agencies, and adoption of laws that give local NGOs clear legal standing to raise funds, cooperate with foreign organizations, and carry out their activities. They also called for giving a greater voice to the poor, more research on the requirements of the poor in different regions, and greater support from international NGOs and donors in skills transfer and development of human resources.

ADB's sponsorship of the Beijing conference reflects its commitment to involve NGOs in the projects it supports throughout the Asia and Pacific region. ADB's NGO Center aims to integrate NGO knowledge and experience into ADB operations, engage NGOs in a continuing dialogue and improve ADB's institutional capacity to interact proactively with NGOs. The Center also coordinates a cooperation network of staff responsible for NGO issues across ADB's operational departments and other offices, including the ADB Resident Mission in Beijing.

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