Aid practitioners are cautiously raising concerns about the civil society partnership review, released by the U.K. Department for International Development on Friday after more than a year delay. The review, which lays out parameters for the more than 1.2 billion pounds ($1.5 billion) of aid spent annually through NGOs, streamlines grants into four main channels and introduces a new funding stream, U.K. Aid Connect.
The 16-page document which took 18 months to complete has left many nongovernmental organizations with more questions than answers about how they can seek funding from DfID.
Despite new opportunities for small and medium-sized NGOs, as well as a few priority sectors, aid groups told Devex the new plans could leave them short on funds for months or longer while they adapt. U.K. Aid Connect hasn’t been fully explained and it’s unclear what scale of resources it will offer.
About the author
Molly Andersmollyanders_dev
Molly Anders is a former U.K. correspondent for Devex. Based in London, she reports on development finance trends with a focus on British and European institutions. She is especially interested in evidence-based development and women’s economic empowerment, as well as innovative financing for the protection of migrants and refugees. Molly is a former Fulbright Scholar and studied Arabic in Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Morocco.
