The COVID-19 pandemic has been a time of significant reflection for many, and the development sector is no exception. The crisis forced huge demands on NGO programs, as organizations simultaneously adapted to new working practices and took care of employees who were themselves dealing with the impacts of COVID-19. Midway through 2020, the Black Lives Matter movement reverberated around the world, and organizations in the United Kingdom also entered a full blown political and funding crisis.
The development sector — like the rest of society — will not look the same after the pandemic recedes. And with vaccination programs gathering momentum in the global north, NGOs are tentatively looking to the future. Experts expect the “post-pandemic NGO” — a phrase coined by Bond, a membership organization for U.K. NGOs — to embrace changes in its approach to funding, work, and well-being.
“Necessity is the mother of invention,” said Stephanie Draper, chief executive at Bond. “We think this is a moment of change and there are things we could do differently and better as a sector, and we should take that opportunity. … We have to look differently about how we organize and how we deliver our work.”