Faced with fierce competition for funding, dwindling U.K. aid contracts and now the impending Brexit, one organization told Devex that mergers are the best way for smaller NGOs to evolve and stay relevant.
Concern Universal announced today it will merge with sports charity International Inspiration and rebrand itself as United Purpose. The new entity’s CEO Kathryn Llewellyn told Devex she believes such partnerships are the way forward for small to medium-sized development organizations now faced with funding uncertainty in the United Kingdom and Europe.
“The world is changing rapidly, donors’ priorities are shifting, the types of contracts we were getting are now going to management consultants and much larger private sector organizations,” she said. “Coupled with that, there has to be a bit of a realization as a whole sector we haven’t evolved fast enough.”