The role of a communication strategy in generating donor funds for NGOs in Uganda : the case of Hope Alive!

Abstract

Non-Governmental Organisations in Uganda get funding from donor communities through fundraising, and this involves quite a number of strategies that they are using to reach the donors. A study carried out on 412 NGOs in Uganda found out that foreign governments, charities and churches were the three main sources of funding for Ugandan NGOs. This study explored the role of an NGO’s communication strategy in generating donor funds for NGOs in Uganda and focused on Hope Alive! as a case study. The study also sought to assess the effectiveness of the communication strategy channels in generating donor funds for NGOs and to analyse the communication strategy challenges faced by Hope Alive!. Finally, it recommends solutions to the challenges. The research was conducted among the donors of Hope Alive! Communication strategy specialists and Hope Alive! Fundraisers. Both qualitative and quantitative data techniques of research were used during the study and these included interviews, questionnaires and documentary reviews. For qualitative data, thematic analysis was done to arrive at the relevant themes. Then, basic descriptive analysis was done for quantitative data to supplement and corroborate the findings. First, it was discovered that 76% of the Hope Alive! donors surveyed agreed that Hope Alive!’s communication strategy was effective in encouraging them to give towards the organization. Second, personal connection, newsletters, student-donor mail coupled with the use of video and pictures stood out as the most effective in fundraising. The study also revealed some strategy challenges, like a lack of regular communication, limited resources, static website and mismatched channels, among others.