Xiao Zheng is a college graduate with a major in English. Last
year he started work with the China Charity Federation the largest
charity organization in the country. He says he has enjoyed the job
so far but is not so sure about the future.
Zheng's sentiments echo those of many other talented members of
staff in China's welfare sector. Organizations in the field are
becoming worried.
Bai Chengyu has been engaged in the field of poverty relief
since 1988. He is currently working to establish a new public
welfare organization, the China Rural Development Association.
Speaking at a high-level forum held in Beijing on the theme
'multinationals and public welfare,' Bai said that many public
welfare organizations are in urgent need of new talent. Few people
are willing to commit themselves to a career in the
non-governmental organization (NGO) sector. The legislative
framework is in need of improvement and employment prospects are
uncertain. Willing people do continue to come forward but high
staff turnover is a problem. The resulting shortage of talent has
become a pressing matter.
Huang Haoming is a director on the board of the China
Association for NGO Cooperation. Huang spoke of five challenges
facing China's public welfare organizations. They relate to
weaknesses in:
·?long-term prospects
·?clarity of organizational aims
·?market awareness
·?resources-management systems
·?mechanisms to stimulate activity
China's welfare sector has boomed since the country introduced
its policies of reform and opening-up. This was especially true in
the late 1990s. Now there are more organizations. Their impact is
greater and they are becoming involved in more and more fields.
Statistics from the Ministry of Civil Affairs show that by the
end of 2002, China had as many as 130,000 organizations engaged in
social work. The number includes welfare organizations operated by
the public sector and 1,268 foundations engaged in the fields of
poverty alleviation, education, environmental protection and in the
provision of legal aid. The China Charity Federation confirms that
the country now has over 1,000 organizations devoted to public
welfare.
Some grass-roots public welfare organizations have been finding
it difficult to keep up their momentum as they pursue the missions
devolved to them by government. According to Dr. Deng Guosheng of
the NGOs Research Institute of Qsinghua University, there is a
tendency for a loss of impetus after they have seen the successful
completion of a major headline project.
Minister Li Xueju of the Ministry of Civil Affairs said the
Chinese government is stepping up its efforts to develop NGOs. It
will encourage both domestic and foreign enterprises in their
welfare efforts. They will be supported by government policy. He
added that China will create a sound environment for those engaging
in good works in the field of public welfare.
There are many voices offering suggestions on how to quicken the
pace of welfare work in China.
Huang Haoming suggested that China's public welfare
organizations should strengthen their cooperation with the relevant
governmental departments and increase their interaction with
interested enterprises. They should become more transparent in
their policymaking, intensify staff training, make better use of
information technology and step up their mutual cooperation.
A report from China's Non-profit Organization (NPO) Information
Consultation Center proposed that NPOs including NGOs should
assimilate successful experience from the developed countries and
also from certain Asia-Pacific countries. They should bring in
self-regulatory mechanisms and they also need to improve their
exchanges and cooperation with the press and media.
(China.org.cn by Guo Xiaohong December 1, 2003)