W Cape will fund fewer NGOs

2010-02-08 21:32

Cape Town - The department of social development in the Western Cape will fund fewer NGOs and non-profit organisations (NPOs) in the coming financial year, MEC Ivan Meyer said on Monday.

One-thousand-eight-hundred NGOs and NPOs had been audited to determine which of them had provided the best quality service to people in the province, he said.

"Given that our current economic circumstances force us to do more with less, this government intends to empower the best NGO and NPO bodies to further improve and expand their services to the people of this province," the MEC said.

The department had asked for proposals from service providers in each of its eight programmes which had resulted in several hundred applications from NGOs and NPOs.

The applications would be screened by an independent panel of experts and recommendations would be made for funding, the MEC said.

This was necessary because national government had cut its budget allocation following the recession.

The NGO and NPO sector had said that not enough funds had been allocated to them so the department of social development would channel funds into those who were providing the best quality service, Meyer said.

There needed to be a clampdown on wasteful expenditure, he said.

- SAPA