Vetting Organizations in Other Countries

To find credible international volunteer, sponsorship or donation opportunities, your safest bet is to go through an internationally-recognized, well-known organization in your own country that is networked with organizations in other countries. International mission-based organizations, also known as international non-governmental organizations, or INGOs, have a tremendous amount of experience in other countries, and work with credible local organizations. INGOs can connect you with official volunteering or donation programs to help local organizations in other countries, particularly those in the developing world.

Trying to give directly to an organization in the developing world can present various problems, namely: establishing whether or not a local organization is credible, and ensuring that your donation funds programs that help people, rather than such going to bribes or an individual.

If you absolutely cannot find an organization in your own country that can connect you with local organizations in other countries, then here are tips for vetting local organizations in other countries on your own (and you should undertake all of these activities -- don't rely on just one source):

• Some countries have web sites that list all non-profit organizations who are officially registered with the federal government. These countries include the USA, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand and Australia. There is, however, no guarantee that an organization that is listed on such a database is well-run, but organizations listed do meet certain minimum financial management and infrastructure requirements. Here is a list of such official web sites:

  USA
  Guidestar

  U.K.
  U.K. Register of Charities

  Canada
  Canadian Registry of NGOs

  Australia

  ATO Search
  Australian Business Register
  auscharity.org
  

  New Zealand
  legal status of organisations.

  If you know of a country not listed above that has a web site of government-listed nonprofit organizations, please send me the URL for such. Please do not say, "I think such-and-such has a web site like that", but not provide the URL.

   
  

• There are some web sites that, while not sponsored by the government, do list local non-governmental organizations, or NGOs, in a particular country or region. Check such web sites to see how NGOs are evaluated for inclusion. If no criteria is listed, write the web site directly and ask. Some examples of such web sites:
  Black Sea NGO Network (Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine)

  Network of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) active in Central and Eastern Europe.

  Southern African NGO Network

  Varieties of bodies coordinating nongovernmental action. Selected from the Yearbook of International Organizations maintained by the Union of International Associations.

  Non Governmental Organizations in Latin America. Compiled by the Latin American Network Information Center (LANIC), affiliated with the Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies (LLILAS) at the University of Texas at Austin.

   
  

• The International Council of Voluntary Agencies (ICVA), founded in 1962, is a global network that brings together established humanitarian and human rights NGOs together in an "advocacy alliance for humanitarian action." ICVA provides a means for the collective body of its members to work together to effect change, and also assists members to improve their own work through access to initiatives and tools that help to increase quality and accountability. Membership in ICVA is a pretty good sign that an organization is credible.

• Use the Internet to find online references to the organizations by other organizations or media. For instance, if an organization is referenced in a paper by the World Food Programme, a credible organization. Use Google to search for the organization's name. Also research the names of employees at the organization.

  In addition to finding official references to an organization and staff via this method, you may also find unofficial references, positive and negative, via personal blogs. Write the organization directly for clarification of any negative references you read online.

   
  

• Look for references in academic journals to the organization. Your local public library, or nearest university library, can help you look for such. That an organization has made itself available for research is a good sign that it's probably credible.

   
  

• Ask the organization for copies of the organization's official documentation: government registration papers, brochures, press releases, etc. Consider how the organization responds to this request -- if it's not quick or complete to respond, then how much support do you think you could expect as a volunteer for such an organization? Or, if you are looking to donate, how well do you think they can use your funds if they can't provide such basic information promptly and completely? Also, do not rely only on this paper work to establish credibility; some countries allow individuals to simply pay a fee to "found" a nonprofit organization and receive grants, regardless of whether they actually provide any services.

   
  

• Local offices in developing countries of the United Nations Development Programme, OneWorld, Save the Children, Oxfam, World Vision, and other INGOs, as well as nearby universities, may provide references for local organizations. They may be able to at least confirm that a local NGO you are researching actually exists.

   
  

• Not every organization has a web site. But if the organization does, check it out. Is the mission statement clearly stated? Are their collaborating organizations noted on the site that you could contact? How complete is the information? What kind of message does the web site promote? Does it perpetuate stereotypes or messages, that run counter to the principles and charter of the United Nations? Minor spelling errors are not a good indication of the credibility of an organization, as so many are staffed by people for whom English is not their native language -- but if a site is so full of errors that you have trouble understanding what is being said, you might want to reconsider supporting the organization.

   
  

• Ask the organization itself for INGO references, and contact these references yourself to verify that the organization exists, that it is credible, etc.

• Ask the organization to put you in contact with previous international volunteers, so you can interview them yourself about their experience.

 
Volunteering On Your Own Internationally

I do not advise, under any circumstances, for a person to volunteer entirely on his or her own in a foreign country, outside of the official affiliation of an official international organization. Volunteering through an established international organization is not only safer, but also, it offers you a way to network your volunteer contributions with those of others, so that your volunteering doesn't happen in a vacuum. Volunteering on your own can incur many unintended consequences: for instance, what happens if the family you are helping accuses you of stealing, or of doing something inappropriate with one of their children? Or, what if there is a coup, or a natural disaster -- who will be responsible for evacuating you? Volunteering through an official organization helps protect you from many possible hazards and dangerous circumstances.

That said, I also know that more and more local organizations in developing countries are posting requests for volunteers directly to online groups, in order to directly reach potential volunteers, rather than going through INGOs. But even if a local organization in another country clears all of the above vetting criteria, consider that, if you pack your bags and head off to help such an organization, rather than going through an established international volunteering program, you will be doing this entirely on your own, as an individual, and therefore, there will be no organization officially responsible for your security and safety.

Before you volunteer onsite in another country, outside of an established international volunteering agency, you should get all of the following information in detail and in writing, and you should do this in addition to all of the aforementioned vetting activities:

• detailed information from this organization about where you will be housed while you volunteer. Not just a statement that the organization will house you, but where, and what the conditions will be -- Will it be with a family and, if so, what are their names? Will you have your own room? Will there be locks on the windows and doors? Will it be within walking distance of the volunteering assignment? How available is electricity and hot water?

• detailed information on how the organization will support you during arrival and departure. Will there be someone at the airport from the organization to help you through the entry process? Will the organization provide transport from the airport to its location? Will the organization provide transportation assistance and help with customs and other officials when you leave the country?

• detailed information about the nearest health care facilities (individual doctor, clinic and hospital), and how the organization will or will not help to get you to such if needed.

• detailed lists of what costs you would be expected to pay yourself (airfare, housing, bedding, food, transportation, security, etc.)

• detailed information about the tasks you will be expected to complete, the resources that will be available to you and the time frame for such.

• detailed information about your work environment. Will you have a desk? daily access to a phone? computer access? a bicycle? Will you need to have a security escort when traveling from your housing to your volunteer assignment, or in any other situations?

• confirmation regarding translators. Will a translator accompany you during your work? What percentage of the people you will work with speak English?

You would also need to, on your own:

• get medical insurance to cover you while you are there.

• get trip cancellation insurance, in case something happens before you leave and you need to cancel your airline tickets (which are usually non-refundable).

• contact your country's embassy in the destination country/ies, to find out if there are any restrictions on your travel to/within the country.

• design and confirm your own evacuation plan, in case of natural disaster or a man-made crisis. What assistance will the local organization guarantee in such an event? What help will your country's embassy give in such an event? Again, get all such information in writing.

• check your country's foreign affairs office web site for online information about the country you want to visit. For instance, for US citizens, the US State Department has two different web sites profiling each country, one providing overviews of the political and economic situation in the country, and the other providing information specific to travelers (a bit alarmist at times, but a must read).

• buy a copy of Lonely Planet or The Rough Guide for the country you will be visiting, to learn about the culture and key travel points.

 
Organizations -- do you want to host international volunteers through a credible international organization? Here is a bit of advice to help organizations gain access to volunteers from other countries.

 
Also see my Lonely Planet Blue List: Doing Good On Vacation in a Developing Country. Please rate it (I hope highly)!

 
Return to my volunteer-related resources

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