NewsBreak Original

Where I grew up, we ignore charities and don't donate our money to help an organization. It's simply not something we do. When I immigrated to North America, I learned the importance of non-profit and realized how important these organizations can be in our lives. Several of them helped me with my immigration, others how to successfully find a job, and even to find friends! I became more indulgent with non-profits and the people who run them.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban has further stifled women's rights by banning them from working at non-governmental organizations (NGOs). In a letter sent by the Ministry of Economy, the administration has ordered NGOs to prevent female staff members from coming to work. Failure to comply with the ruling would result in the organizations getting their licenses revoked.

A Netherlands-based research and advocacy organization called Advocacy Unified Network has recently announced plans to launch its very first chapter in Africa. The aim of promoting South-South cooperation to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals is something that they have taken upon themselves, with a team visiting Durban in June. It is not just an NGO in South Africa but across all Africa. So, it will probably be one of South Africa’s best International NGOs in public policy research and advocacy. In addition to engaging directly with Members of Parliament and Government Officials, it will also conduct public policy research using public opinion surveys, focus groups, and surveys. However, it lacks members from some local communities but wishes to work with these people to assist them by providing them with information on how to lobby for their interests. It is hoped that many more African countries will follow suit and soon join forces to offer a South-South collaboration for sustainability goals. They are not stopping at just getting more countries involved; existing organizations are being encouraged to become members, including CSOs who wish to do similar work. The Africa chapter will consist of the stakeholders from all the countries of Africa. The aim is to promote South-South cooperation to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by linking Non-Governmental Organizations in South Africa and developing countries on a more formal basis.