Nonprofit landscape in ArgentinaThis is a featured page

San Juan - SantiagoFrom what the word "volunteer" means to the laws around starting your own nonprofit, drop all knowledge here.



First Impressions from a New Arrival: Argentina's Nonprofit Sector
(compiled by Talia Krevsky from Idealist.org)


Introduction
Welcome to the world of Argentine nonprofits! You're probably reading this because you're looking to get involved with a nonprofit organization (NGO) in Argentina, as a volunteer or otherwise. Before digging in, its important to get a feel for what the word "nonprofit" means here. Sure, there's the basic understanding that NGOs keep excess earnings within the organization itself, but the other nuances are harder to gauge.Upon beginning to work in this sector in Argentina, this informal overview can help give you a better idea about the unique landscape.


Argentina's Social Sector: Established yet Fledgling
Argentina's non-profit sector is vibrant and thriving, with organizations providing services in the fields of health, education, human rights, environment, housing, and poverty, to name a few. Yet, the legal definition of the term is super broad, with 32.5% of the sector encompassing sports leagues alone. As a whole, the huge sector is still shaping itself and has a lot to learn. Democracy returned to Argentina less than three decades ago, and as with any developing field, young and growing Argentine NGOs have a lot of adjusting to do.
Current Culture
Between the past military dictatorship, the Dirty War, and a rough transition back to democracy, the nonprofit sector has gone through waves of suffering and success. Below are some identifiable trends that have been more or less consistent throughout:
  • The Perón presidency (1946-1955) is still used as reference point for an ideal example of a welfare state
    • 1948 Fundación de Eva Perón emerged
      • provided social activities funded by the state as opposed to the private sector
      • created a national health and education system
  • A humanitarian rift between citizenry and state under the military dictatorship of the 70's, an economic crisis, and resulting unemployment jointly led to alignment with the church
    • Around 70% NGOs are affiliated with the Catholic Church in some capacity
      • Religious leaders provided funding when the state didn't
      • Religious organizations required much less paperwork and bureaucracy
  • Today religious support is waning as many humanists channel their energy directly into the nonprofit sector
    • Religious leaders tend to be less result-oriented, more focused on goodwill
      • often results in disorganization and lack of focus
  • Great disparity between rich and poor, urban and suburban
    • Vast majority of state funding is invested in Argentina's cities; primarily Buenos Aires, but also Cordoba, Rosario, and Mendoza
      • this unequal focus creates both a geographic and socioeconomic rift
  • Activism spikes during socioeconomic crises
    • Made manifest by volunteerism, for example:
      • diminished to about 17% by 2008, but is rising with the recent inflation

Volunteerism

What does it mean to volunteer in Argentina?
Any activity that a person decides to do freely for an organization devoted to public good, with no economic incentive or any tangible perks or benefits provided by the organization.

Some statistics for context:
  • 100,000 registered non-profits with up to 2.5 million volunteers
    • An estimated additional 1 million non-registered organizations
      • most likely in avoidance of dealing with bureaucratic red-tape
      • important to note that legal affirmation is no indicator of effectivity, many on-ground local groups provide more aid than registered NGOs
  • Most active volunteer demographics (according to the 2008 GALLUP Poll):
    • Women: 56%
      • Historically, one of the first philanthropic aid organizations, the Sociedad de Damas Beneficia, was founded by a group of older Catholic women, marking what is often considered the "feminization of help"
    • People aged 35-49: 60%
    • Residents of Capital Federal: 70%
    • Middle-class: 50%
    • Full-time Employees: 65%
  • Non-volunteers
    • 30% Argentines are interested in volunteering but don't know where to begin
    • 70% are uninterested
      • common hypotheses attribute this lack of involvement to:
        • a sense of paranoia bred post-dictatorship
        • general lack of knowledge about volunteer world

Volunteer Law 285855 of 2004:
  • State establishment and endorsement of volunteerism
    • Requires an up-to-date signed volunteer agreement at all times
  • Guidelines of legal conduct for the organization and volunteers respectively
    • Prevents exploitation and mistreatment
  • Differentiates between good actions and volunteering
    • Volunteering should be work associated with an established non-profit
    • Despite the existence of the document, many non-profits do not know about it, abide by it, or simply have yet to formalize their volunteer policy, often to the detriment of the volunteer and the organization
  • Ultimately, law provides a desirable safety net for NGO's that work with volunteers, but falls short when it comes to promoting volunteerism

While it's useful to know that the law exists, don't necessarily expect others to share this knowledge. Many NGOs are still getting familiar with the nonprofit lingo let alone the legal landscape. It's rare to find a volunteer coordinator or a volunteer policy. The volunteer world may actually be the most informal aspect of the sector. Don't be afraid to refer to the law for guidance; your host NGO may even thank you for the heads up.

Technology

You might be wondering why you can't find many Argentine NGOs by doing a simple Google search. Non-profit organizations are still "professionalizing", meaning, still concretizing missions and establishing policies, let alone creating websites and expanding networks. Technology is viewed as one of the key tools that can be used to expedite the formalization process.
Current state:
  • Internet accessibility: ~35%
    • Connection will rise to an estimated 80% within the decade thanks to locutorios (internet hubs)
  • Cell-phones: 100% + penetration
    • Indicates that some Argentines have more than one cell-phone
    • Despite the overwhelming use of this mode of connection, nonprofits are yet to utilize SMS technology
      • Twitter, with a user-base of ~1,000,000, is almost non-existent here
  • 10% Nonprofits are web-based, with at least one staffer responsible for communicaiton

Technology is still penetrating the nonprofit sector in Argentina. With over 100,000 nonprofits, 7,653 are currently registered on Idealistas.org, which comprises the largest updated database in the country.
The small fraction of web use can be attributed to a few factors:
  • Approximately 1/2 of the 100,000 nonprofits work on ground with local populations and claim no need for a website
  • Time-consuming online interactions are seen as distractions from the heart of the work which takes place face-to-face
  • Many older NPOs already have a sustainable funding and support network
    • Technology is a large part of the younger non-profit culture
  • Many simply don't see the advantage of technological use
Funding
Most nonprofits do not have sustainable models for providing finances for services, thus the reason why you might come across a general lack of resources in NGO's you encounter. This is primarily a result of the legal framework, yet secondarily due to a general lack of economic-know-how.
  • Accruing funds
    • State Funding
      • covers 14% of the budget
    • Private investors
      • Argentina is less likely to receive donations from international corporations as it is considered more "developed" relative to other Latin American countries
      • State provides no incentive for private companies to donate money because there are no tax refunds and a lot of paperwork
  • Institutional effects
    • NGOs have extremely short-term projects, as life-span is dubious
    • Shift in organizational mentality
      • more concern about sustainability than about provision of services
  • Most sustainable financial strategy (prided by Greenpeace Argentina):
    • Top 10% large private investors
    • Middle 30% medium private investors
    • Bottom 70% monthly incremental member
      • this large portion is acquired and maintained through e-mail campaigns, marketing, canvassing, and bonuses for joining (e.g.mug, hat, t-shirt)
Future steps
One benefit of the recent global economic crisis is that it has served to catalyze many organizations to collaborate and people to volunteer. Outside of the Idealistas database, nonprofits in AR are not well connected, and often compete with one another rather than merge forces.
A promising volunteer network is the newly founded Comisión de Voluntariado that maintains a goal to increase volunteer exchange between non-profits and even countries. This base is just a start with plans for future outreach and expansion, including engaging citizenry through the education system. Each new contributor helps along the ever-evolving process, both in terms of improving the sector and understanding it better. Current members include:
Conclusion
As you delve into this sector, I hope these observations help give you a better feel for what to expect, or not to expect. Please feel free to add to this document with your own insights, as the nonprofit sector is continually changing, and each pair of eyes provides a valuable perspective. Though this sector is still fleshing itself out, there are plenty of opportunities for involvement, and I hope you find your niche in supporting it in your own way.

Thanks and good luck : )



Cellyham
Cellyham 		Latest page update: made by Cellyham , Aug 25 2009, 4:24 PM EDT (about this update About This Update Cellyham Edited by Cellyham


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