I recently received information from a 2022 graduate of the Master’s in International Management program at LCC International University, Emad Al-Qasm, who is now working for an INGO in Ukraine. With Emad’s permission, I shared his news in a LinkedIn post, and I am sharing it in this newsletter for the benefit of those who do not read LinkedIn posts.

“My name is Emad Al-Qasm, humanitarian aid worker. I am an alumnus of LCC International University, MA IM, with a Master of Arts degree in International Management, 2022. This program helped advance my career by helping me learn different skills and techniques in business management, leadership, and understanding economics.

Now, I am in Ukraine to help the war-affected people. I am working as Head of Project for livelihood and economic recovery with Deutsche Welthungerhilfe INGO in the east and west of Ukraine. Through our projects, we aim to increase the resilience of war-affected people and institutions to conflict-related economic and social stresses by supporting small and medium entrepreneurs (SMEs), microbusinesses, technical and vocational educational training (TVET), and TVET institutions, and also helping to increase access to labor market systems and services.”

Emad and many of our students have experienced unrest and war in their home countries, just as Ukraine is currently experiencing. I am tremendously moved by the desire of Emad and other students to help those who are now experiencing similar situations that are traumatic and will affect the rest of their lives. Emad and these students are “paying it forward” which is a critical part of recovery for the giver as well as the receiver.

NGOs play a crucial role in helping people and countries recover. Although NGOs have existed for decades, many people are not familiar with the term NGO. Questions I have received recently are “What is an NGO?” - What’s the role of an NGO?” - “How is an NGO different from other types of organizations?”

First of all, a little about the definition of NGOs and the history of NGOs can also explain the purpose, the role of NGOs. The term NGO, nongovernmental organization, was first used by the United Nations in 1945, although these types of organizations that supported social issues existed in the 13th century with Chinese humanitarian associations. In the 14th and 15th  centuries, Islamic communities provided social welfare functions, and when colonialism began to spread in the 16th and 17th centuries, secret societies and missionary organizations began to support social issues (Tutumlu & Muradyan, 2022).

An NGO is usually established by individuals who are concerned with the public, social, or political good of a nation or the world, to provide services or to promote a public policy (Folger, 2023). For example, some provide emergency relief, international health education, address human rights, women’s rights, children’s rights, economic development, environmental advocacy, disaster preparation. Many have been established to address the effects of war such as needed medical care or other types of supplies, caring for children. An NGO might be able to get certain types of funding from a government, however, governments are not involved in an NGO’s decisions or operations.

There are a few NGO classifications, International NGO (INGO) and Environmental NGO (ENGO). Some INGO names that you will recognize are Amnesty International, BRAC International, CARE International, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Save the Children.  The World Wildlife Fund and Greenpeace are ENGOs and also INGOs (Karns, 2023).  There are many small NGOs that operate in a single country and provide critical support to people.

In future newsletters, we will discuss more about NGOs and their operations.

Author: Donna Falloon, PhD, MA IM Program Director at LCC International University

References:

Karns, M. P. (2023, November 16). nongovernmental organization. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/nongovernmental-organization

Tutumlu A PhD, Muradyan OCs. Nongovernmental organization (NGO). Salem Press Encyclopedia. 2022. Accessed November 18, 2023. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=shib&db=ers&AN=87998424&site=eds-live&scope=site