A clause in a draft law governing non-governmental organisations (NGOs) which proposes that such entities must not exceed 20 per cent of their operating budget in programmes that are not in the interest of their beneficiaries should be clarified to avoid misinterpretation in enforcement, the civil society has said.

The emphasis on the importance of clarity was highlighted on May 2 as the lower chamber of Parliament’s Committee on Social Affairs started scrutinising the draft law.

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The government initiated the bill in order to, among other reasons, have a single law governing non-governmental organisations – both national and international ones, according to Judith Uwizeye, the Minister in the Office of the President. She pointed out that this was decided after realising that the only objective of non-governmental organisations, whether national or international, is promoting the welfare of the people and the development of the country, in general, and that it would be better to merge the two laws into a single law to ease its use.

As of now, national and international non-governmental organisations are governed by two separate laws enacted in 2012.

Uwizeye said that she does not understand why the provision caused concern among civil society organisations because it was already in the current laws.

"Not exceeding 20 per cent of operational costs, does not include salaries of staff because when there is a project, it also has [funding for] salaries] in it,” she said, pointing out that there were comments in the media that some NGOs might resort to laying off some workers for the sake of implementing the provision.

"This provision was in the already existing law and did not prevent them from working,” she reassured NGOs.

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The Chairperson of Rwanda Civil Society Platform (RCSP), Joseph Nkurunziza Ryarasa, told The New Times that though the Minister said that salaries are not included in operating budget, it is normally part of it in terms of accounting.

To carry out activities that support the people they serve, he said, NGOs need cars, fuel, and human resources, to deliver accordingly. He added that even the procurement of items to help them falls under operating expenses.

For research, advocacy and human rights-based organisations, he indicated, their operating expenses can take about 60 per cent of the budget "because it is their human resource that does the work.”

"There is a misconception of the word ‘operating’. For us, from the practitioners’ point of view, operating means running an institution. There are organisations [NGOs] that are in research, advocacy, and people-centred [activities] such as RAF [Legal Aid Forum] that offer legal support. You realise that they are providing legal aid. They are not providing goats or cows,” he said.

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Why is the provision important?

Uwizeye pointed out that the rationale for the provision was to prevent a situation where NGOs might pretend to carry out activities for the benefit of the community, with a hidden agenda to serve their own interests.

She cited a saying that has become common among the public; that "when you want to be rich, you found a religion or a non-governmental organisation,” indicating that that is why the government introduced some regulation in religions, and the same must be applied to NGOs to ensure that they serve the interests of the people they say they support, instead of being selfish.

She said that NGOs must use a larger share of their operating budget in supporting their beneficiaries rather than on travels and rent, among other expenses.

"For instance, you [NGO] have [Rwf]100 million that you are channelling to activities meant to support residents. Then you pay [Rwf]80 million on house rent. Are you still serving the people or have another business?” she wondered.

The civil society proposed that different rates should be applied to NGOs that provide advocacy and those offering services because they have different dimensions and needs.

The 2012 law governing the organisation and functioning of international non-governmental organisations provides that an international non-governmental organisation must not exceed 20 per cent of its budget "on overhead costs in programmes that are not in the interest of its beneficiaries.”

However, the 2012 law governing the organisation and the functioning of national non-governmental organisations does not have such a provision.

In the new bill, it is proposed that obligations of a non-governmental organisation include "not to exceed 20 per cent of its operating budget in activity programs that are not in the interest of its beneficiaries.”

Also, the new bill provides that an organisation intending to spend more than that share for that purpose must provide prior justification, in writing, to the Board – which is defined in the bill as the national organ in charge of governance.