STRATEGIC PLAN 2019-2024

EASTERN CAPE NGO COALITION 

STRATEGIC PLAN 

2019-2024

The strategic plan was developed with support by: 

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH 

Governance Support Programme (GSP) 

Hatfield Garden Office Park 

333 Grosvenor Street 

Pretoria - SOUTH AFRICA 

Contact: Ruan Kitshoff (ruan.kitshoff@giz.de) 

Website: www.giz.de 

We thank GIZ, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation and the National Lotteries Commission for their 

contributions to the operations and organizational development of the ECNGOC, as well as the member 

organizations for their intensive participation in the strategic planning process. 

Authors: Lesley Steele, Len Khalane, Mbumba Development Solutions, East London, lsteele@iafrica.com 

Sandra Lehmann, GIZ-GSP 

Concept development: Rooks Moodley, Director ECNGOC, rooksmoodley@ecngoc.co.za

CONTENTS 

1. Introduction to the Eastern Cape NGO Coalition and its footprint........................................................... 1 

1.1 Programmatic approach and key interventions......................................................................................... 1 

1.1.1 Promoting Active Citizenship and Asset-Based Development Orientation............................................. 1 

1.1.2 Supporting engagement on the National and Provincial Development Plan......................................... 2 

1.2. Vision and Mission Statement of the ECNGOC......................................................................................... 3 

1.3 Theory of Change and main services of the ECNGOC................................................................................ 4 

1.4 Governance System of the ECNGOC.......................................................................................................... 5 

1.5 Organisational Structure............................................................................................................................ 6 

2. Objective of the Strategic Plan............................................................................................................... 7 

3. Methodology in Developing the Strategic Plan....................................................................................... 7 

3.1 Participatory Approach.............................................................................................................................. 7 

3.2 Feedback collected from partners and stakeholders................................................................................. 8 

3.3 Review of existing strategic documents and resolutions........................................................................... 8 

3.4 Application of the Theory of Change Methodology.................................................................................. 8 

4. Analysis of the socio-economic context that informs the planning.......................................................... 9 

4.1 International Situation............................................................................................................................... 9 

4.1.1 VUCA Phenomenon................................................................................................................................ 9 

4.1.2 Sustainable Development Goals........................................................................................................... 10 

4.2 National Situation.................................................................................................................................... 11 

4.3 Provincial Situation.................................................................................................................................. 11 

5. Core Services and Interventions of the ECNGOC....................................................................................13 

6. Thematic Priority Areas.........................................................................................................................15 

6.1 Rural Development ................................................................................................................................. 17 

6.2 Civic Engagement in Local Governance................................................................................................... 19 

6.3 Human Rights.......................................................................................................................................... 21 

6.4 Education................................................................................................................................................. 22 

6.5 Health...................................................................................................................................................... 24 

7. Organisational Development Priorities..................................................................................................26 

7.1 Sustainability........................................................................................................................................... 27 

7.2 Impact-Orientation and Monitoring........................................................................................................ 27

1 

INTRODUCTION TO THE 

EASTERN CAPE NGO 

COALITION AND ITS 

FOOTPRINT 

The Eastern Cape NGO Coalition (ECNGOC) was 

established in 1995 when development NGOs of the 

Eastern Cape Province decided to establish and participate 

in an association of NGOs, through which joint action, 

representation of common interests, provision of training 

and support, information-sharing and co-ordination of 

activities could be pursued. The ECNGOC is an umbrella 

organisation that represents more than 900 CBOs, 

NPOs and FBOs across all development sectors in the 

Eastern Cape. It is recognised as the most representative 

structure of the NGO sector in the province. The ECNGOC 

implements initiatives and has representative structures 

and consultative platforms in the 6 districts and 2 metros of 

the province. It plays a significant role as a collective voice 

in many consultative stakeholder forums and governmentled 

development structures and processes, not just in the 

province, but in South Africa. 

The ECNGOC addresses its mandate through working on 

three focus areas. These are: 

• Strengthening NPO compliance and legislation 

• Strengthening NGO sustainability through capacity 

development and collective voice 

• Influencing the development trajectory through 

Asset-Based-Community-Driven Development (ABCD) 

and bottom-up accountability 

The overall objective of its interventions is to address 

South Africa’s triple challenge of poverty, unemployment 

and inequality. 

In its strategic plan the ECNGOC applies the internationally 

used terminology of civil society organisations and the 

civil society sector. According to the World Bank definition 

civil society organizations include “a wide array of nongovernmental 

and not for profit organizations that 

have a presence in public life, express the interests and 

values of their members and others, based on ethical, 

cultural, political, scientific, religious or philanthropic 

considerations”. 1 Within the civil society sector the 

ECNGOC sees itself as the main representative body of 

the NGO sector in the Eastern Cape and implement its 

interventions with special focus on serving its member 

organisations. 

In its initial phase the membership of the organisation was 

predominantly made up of established NGOs. Over the 

years the membership became more diversified and a high 

number of grassroots-community-based organisations 

(CBOs) joined the organisation. The peer learning 

between experienced and emerging organisations and the 

engagement between the provincial and the grassroots 

perspective enrich the discourse and interventions of the 

organisation. 

1.1 Programmatic approach and 

key interventions 

Since its foundation the ECNGOC focuses on pro-poor, 

people centred development in its advocacy and program 

implementation. 

Eastern Cape NGO Coalition – STRATEGIC PLAN 2019 - 2024 

1

1.1.1 Promoting Active Citizenship and Asset- 

Based Development Orientation 

Since 2009 the ECNGOC champions the application of the 

Asset-Based-Community-Development Approach (ABCD) 

in partnership with the Canadian COADY Institute and 

other like-minded organisations. The approach focuses on 

enabling citizens to shape local development processes 

by identifying and leveraging on existing assets of the 

community instead of focusing primarily on deficiencies 

and needs. 

The ABCD approach is well aligned to the longstanding 

engagement of the organisation in the field of sustainable 

rural development and local governance. 

The ECNGOC has over 10 years of experience in 

implementing local governance projects. Hereby a strong 

focus was placed on capacitating CBOs to identify their 

development priorities and constructively engage with 

government and other stakeholders to consider these in 

planning processes and address related service delivery 

and governance challenges. 

From 2015-2016 the ECNGOC, in partnership with GIZ, 

successfully implemented the project “Integration of the 

ABCD approach into Municipal planning” which triggered 

discussion and new thinking at provincial and national 

level. Another important initiative was the E-Citizenry 

Service Delivery Surveys Project (2016-2017) that was 

supported by the Making All Voices Count Programme 

(MAVC) of Hivos. Currently the ECNGOC is implementing 

a multi-sectoral leadership training on citizen engagement 

in the IDP process (2017-2019) which is supported by GIZ. 

1.1.2 Supporting engagement on the National 

and Provincial Development Plan 

The ECNGOC is a strong supporter of the National 

Development Plan (NDP) and promotes the alignment of 

government, civil society and private sector strategies to its 

principles and goals. The principles of investing in human 

capabilities as well as strengthening active citizenship and 

deepening democracy are directly speaking to the core of 

the ECNGOC’s mission statement and practical work. 

Consequently in 2015 the ECNGOC partnered with 

the Eastern Cape Socio-Economic Consultative Council 

(ECSECC) to support the broad consultation of civil society 

on the development of the Eastern Cape Development 

Plan (PDP)-Vision 2030. Whereas the ECNGOC is fully 

supportive of the principles, goals and catalytic initiatives 

of the original version of the PDP, it finds it regretful that 

not enough priority and resources were devoted to the 

implementation of specific initiatives. 

The ECNGOC therefore highly appreciates the review 

of the PDP and advocates for and plays its part in the 

engagement of civil society on the plan and its consequent 

implementation. 

1.1.3 Reacting to the sustainability crisis of the 

NPO sector in the Eastern Cape 

The last years saw a strong decline in foreign donor 

funding, as well as national funding opportunities to civil 

society. This is due to South Africa’s classification as middleincome 

country, higher priority of donors to address the 

international conflict and migration crisis, recession, as 

well as changing thematic funding patterns. In this regard 

the ECNGOC was tasked by its members and non-members 

to look into the strong funding cuts of the Department of 

Social Development (DSD) which occurred mainly in the 

child protection sector. The ECNGOC undertook a survey 

among NPOs to gain a better understanding of the issue 

and be equipped for evidence-based advocacy. The DSD 

issue was addressed through litigation-based advocacy 

which is still ongoing. 

The consequences of the sustainability crisis are quite 

visible in terms of the overall weakening of the NPO 

sector. The symptoms are fewer available platforms to 

receive information and debate on current issues, less 

organisational stability and less capacity and confidence 

of NPO leaders to advocate for their concerns. Even 

the ECNGOC itself is affected by the sustainability crisis 

and has to adjust its funding and operational model to 

the new context. The strategic planning review process 

had therefore an even strong focus on organisational 

development as on program development. 


2

1.2. Vision and Mission Statement of the ECNGOC 

The Eastern Cape NGO Coalition is guided by the following mission and vision 

statement: 

VISION 

The Eastern Cape is a transformed society where citizens exercise their rights, engage 

effectively in democratic processes and proactively contribute to development 

processes that affect their lives. 

MISSION 

The Eastern Cape NGO Coalition seeks to strengthen the sustainability, collective 

voice and coordinated action of civil society in the Eastern Cape to effect socioeconomic 

development and transformation. 

The vision and mission are based on the following values or principles: 

VALUES 

• Rights-based – because poverty is the manifestation of unfulfilled rights, 

there is a need to engage in upstream strategies to promote social change. This 

approach focuses on the realisation of second-generation rights such as shelter, 

health care, water, food and social security. 

• ABCD approach – focus on assets and capacities rather than needs and 

deficiencies. Fostering active citizen engagement, building a stronger civil 

society, and creating local economic opportunity are central to this approach. 

• Gender equity – the influence and unique circumstances relating to gender 

should be naturally considered in policies and programmes at political, economic 

and societal spheres leading to a reversal of inequality. 

• Youth Perspective – as youth constitute 37 % of the population and are 

strongly affected by poverty and unemployment, conscious efforts have to be 

made to consider the needs and interests of young people and promote intergeneral 

dialogue in the services, structures and programming of development 

organisations and institutions. 

• Pro-poor – poverty is not only an economic issue, but also impacts on the 

social, environmental and psychological spheres of individuals and communities. 

Sustainable development recognises the interconnectedness of these spheres, 

and that all must be considered in unison in any poverty-focused intervention 

that works towards equity and redistribution. 


3

1.3 Theory of Change and main services of the ECNGOC 

Strengthening the civil society sector* in the Eastern Cape to improve its services 

to communities and influence the development agenda towards people-centred 

development. 

This entails the following elements: 

Civil society organizations* provide 

better services to communities 

Civil society organizations* influence 

the development agenda towards 

people-centered development: 

Citizens are enabled to improve 

their own living conditions: 

• Civil society organizations are 

enabled to improve the living 

conditions of communities 

by providing high quality 

support services. This is based 

on strengthened governance, 

organizational development, 

access to information and 

continuous upgrading of 

thematic expertise and applied 

methods. 

• Civil society organizations 

are enabled to better analyze 

societal issues and use their 

collective voice for advocacy, 

policy input and promotion of 

new development approaches. 

• Through influencing mindsets, 

policies and practices 

development interventions 

become stronger geared towards 

promoting active citizenship, 

investing in human capabilities 

and building onto existing assets 

of the community. 

• Through access to information, 

advice and support, critical 

debate and skills development 

citizens are enabled to better 

analyse the opportunities and 

challenges that they have as 

individuum and as communities. 

They are encouraged to reflect 

on their mindsets and values. 

• As a result, citizens are 

empowered to invest into 

their personal and community 

development, initiate activities 

and build partnership to improve 

their livelihoods. 

*For an explanation on the terminology please refer to Chapter 1 on page 1 

Collective 

advocacy and 

policy input 

Promoting 

innnovative, 

people-centred 

development 

approaches 

Information 

sharing and 

communication 

Providing 

platforms for 

debate and 

stakeholder 

engagement 

MAIN SERVICES 

OF THE ECNGOC 

Capacity 

development and 

peer learning 

Advisory 

services on NPO 

management 


4

1.4 Governance System of the ECNGOC 

The Provincial Assembly is the organisation’s highest 

authority, comprising all member organisations. It meets 

bi-annually to consider and decide on strategy and to 

confirm the incoming Provincial Executive Committee (PEC) 

and alter, vary or amend the Constitution, as well as normal 

administrative business. A small Provincial Council with 

lesser powers meets in the years between the Provincial 

Assembly. 

The PEC governs the Coalition between Provincial 

Assemblies, generally meeting quarterly. Members are 

nominated to a PEC selection committee that selects and 

recommends members for approval by the outgoing PEC. 

The PEC members represent the 6 districts and 2 metros. 

Additional members can be appointed from outside the 

membership according to the expertise and knowledge 

they bring to the PEC. 

Prior to the Provincial Assembly each district holds District 

General Meetings (DGMs) for members to attend and 

discuss issues to address at the Provincial Assembly. Each 

DGM elects an honorary District Convenor who acts as the 

link between the members in that district, the PEC and the 

secretariat. 

Members of the Provincial Executive Committee (PEC), District Convening Organizations (DCOs) 

and staff members at ECNGOC’s Biennial General Meeting (BGM) 2017. 


5

1.5 Organisational Structure 

ECNGOC’s lines of authority and accountability are shown in the following organisational structure. The filling of all 

positions is a strong priority in order to further increase the capacity of the organisation and is considered in all resource 

mobilization efforts. 

MEMBERS 

PROVINCIAL 

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 

FINANCE 

COMMITTEE 

EXECUTIVE 

MANAGEMENT 

COMMITTEE 

OPERATIONAL 

MANAGEMENT TEAM 

(OMT) 

DIRECTOR 

PROGRAMME 

MANAGER 

FINANCE & ADMIN 

MANAGER 

2 PROGRAMME 

FACILITATORS 

DIRECTOR’S 

PERSONAL 

ASSISTANT 

PROGRAMMES 

ASSISTANT 

FINANCE/ADMIN/HR 

OFFICER 

RECEPTIONIST, ADMIN, 

PROGRAMME SUPPORT, 

MEMBERSHIP OFFICER 


6

2 

OBJECTIVE OF THE 


The objective of the strategic plan is to produce concepts 

on improving the impact of the ECNGOC as an umbrella 

body in strengthening the collective voice and action of 

civil society in socio-economic development. 

The recipe for success lies in adjusting to the recent 

challenges and opportunities, staying relevant and 

choosing a funding and operational model that is lean 

and effective. As the membership is growing while 

resources are limited, the ECNGOC will strategize on how 

to use modern technology to provide services and create 

information sharing platforms to all members, in both 

urban and rural areas. 

The participatory process intends to generate innovative 

ideas on keeping the ECNGOC relevant and sustainable 

over the coming years. 

The strategic plan provides strategic direction for the 

ECNGOC for the period 2019 – 2024. 

3 

METHODOLOGY IN 

DEVELOPING THE 


3.1 Participatory Approach 

The strategic plan was developed in a multi-stage, 

participatory process. For the first time in the history 

of the ECNGOC all structures of the organisations took 

part in two intensive strategic and operational planning 

workshops and a good number of member organisations 

participated in feedback sessions in all six districts and 

two metros. As local governance strongly relates to 

the priority areas of the ECNGOC, the draft strategic 

plan was presented for feedback at a Governance 

Stakeholder Workshop. The results of these sessions 

were incorporated into the final strategic planning 

document. 


7

The following graphic illustrates the different stages of the strategic planning process: 

Peparatory 

session with 

ECNGOC 

Secretariat 

on Strategic 

Planning 

Consultation 

of partners 

and donors per 

questionnaire 

2 Day 

Strategic 

Planning 

Workshop 

with PEC and 

DCOs 

Consultations 

of Member 

Organisations 

on Draft 

Strategic Plan 

in 7 Districts 

and 2 Metros 

Consultation 

of 

Governance 

Stakeholders 

on Draft 

Strategic Plan 

Prepartory 

Session of 

ECNGOC 

Secretariat 

on 

Operational 

Planning 

2 Day 

Operational 

Planning and 

Resource 

Mobilization 

Strategy 

Workshop 

with PEC and 

DCOs 

Finalisation 

of Strategic 

Plan and 

Operational 

Plan by 

ECNGOC 

Secretariat 

3.2 Feedback collected from 

partners and stakeholders 

An integral part of the strategic planning exercise was the 

collection of feedback from partners and stakeholders of 

the ECNGOC through a questionnaire. The external service 

provider, Mbumba Development Services designed the 

questionnaire in collaboration with the ECNGOC and 

implemented the collection of feedback as a neutral 

party. On the basis of a list submitted by the ECNGOC the 

service provider contacted a sample of highly relevant 

partners and stakeholders. Due to the short timeframe, 

not all contacted organisations were able to complete 

the questionnaire, but the feedback received from the 

participating organisations was immensely valuable. The 

recommendations confirmed the self-assessment by the 

ECNGOC that the organization should further enhance its 

undoubtedly strong relevance by introducing results-based 

planning and monitoring and developing a clear Theory of 

Change as a basis for its strategic planning. As illustrated in 

the following, these aspects and other recommendations 

were fully embraced as guidance for the strategic planning 

review process. 

3.3 Review of existing strategic 

documents and resolutions 

The strategic plan 2014-2017 was used as a starting point 

for the planning process since its main framework is still 

relevant and some sections only needed to be refined. 

Further documents and resolutions that were used as 

basis for the planning process are the following: Provincial 

Council Meeting Held in 2016, BGM held in November 

2017 and the issues raised by the member organisations 

during the district dialogues conducted in 2017-2018. 

3.4 Application of the Theory of 

Change Methodology 

The Theory of Change Methodology was applied to 

trigger fresh thinking, concentrate on desired results and 

strategize how different interventions could supplement 

each other in contributing to specific outcomes. 

The following text box presents the essence of the Theory 

of Change Methodology: 

The Theory of Change is a specific type of methodology for planning, participation, and 

evaluation that is used in the development sector to promote social change. The methodology 

was developed with the aim to create a critical theory that ensures a transparent distribution 

of power dynamics and aims for a process that is necessarily inclusive of many perspectives and 

participants in achieving solutions 2 . 

The most distinctive aspect of the methodology is that the planning process starts with defining 

the long-term goals of the interventions and then mapping backward to identify necessary 

preconditions and lastly plan relevant activities. 


8

The theory of change was used in the strategic planning 

process to identify the current situation (in terms of 

needs and opportunities), the intended situation and 

what needs to be done to move from one to the other. 

This helps to concentrate on impact, design more realistic 

goals, clarify accountabilities and establish a common 

understanding of the strategies to be used to achieve the 

goals 3 . 

4 

ANALYSIS OF THE SOCIO- 

ECONOMIC CONTEXT 

THAT INFORMS THE 

PLANNING 

As it has proved challenging to unlock the development potential of the Eastern Cape the province remains strongly 

affected by unemployment and poverty. 

While the historical backdrop for development and underdevelopment in the Eastern Cape remain the main cause of 

continued low rankings in terms of social and economic development, it is necessary to recognize that institutions of 

the state, private sector and civil society work in a dynamic, interconnected and fast changing environment 4 . As the 

international and national economic trends and policy decisions have a high impact on the Eastern Cape it is important 

to consider the broader international and national picture. 

4.1 International Situation 

4.1.1 VUCA Phenomenon 

Globally, the current period is characterised by growing 

divides, increasing disruptions, higher levels of distrust, 

deepening divisions and greater diversity. Technology 

development is creating major opportunities for 

innovation and efficiency, as well as new challenges for 

governance, and the labour market 5 . The challenges 

that the international community faces highlight a need 

for structural changes and a global shift towards 

more sustainable and equal economies and societies. 

Among the main challenges are climate change, an 

overexploitation of resources, as well as continuing 

poverty and inequality. The causes and effects of these 

global challenges are heavily intertwined, and no single 

actor has sufficient knowledge to solve the problems 

unilaterally 6 . In such a complex, fast changing system it 

becomes more challenging to predict socio-economic 

developments and plan accordingly. The following 

graphic 7 illustrates the VUCA phenomenon: 


9

PLANNING IN VUCA ENVIRONMENT 

COMPLEXITY 

Multiple key 

decision factors 

VOLATILITY 

Fast rate 

of change 

How well can you predict the 

outcome of your actions? 

AMBIGUITY 

Lack of clarity about 

meaning of events 

VUCA 

WORLD 

UNCERTAINTY 

Unclear about 

the present 

How much do you know about 

the situation? 

Will the traditional planning tools assist us in navigating this environment? 

4.1.2 Sustainable Development Goals 

As cooperation in complex systems becomes imperative for finding new solutions, the Sustainable Development Goals 

take cognisance of these joint responsibilities of the international community. 


10

The SDGs build on the success of the Millennium 

Development Goals (MDGs) and aim to go further to 

end all forms of poverty. The 17 Goals are unique in that 

they call for action by all countries, poor, rich and middleincome 

to promote prosperity while protecting the planet. 

They recognize that ending poverty must go hand-in-hand 

with strategies that build economic growth and address a 

range of social needs including education, health, social 

protection, and job opportunities, while tackling climate 

change and environmental protection 8 . The “leave no 

one behind principle” emphasizes that all development 

interventions have to ensure that disadvantaged and 

vulnerable groups of society are reached and enabled to 

improve their situation 9 . 

For the South African government and civil society, the 

SDGs are an important guide for strategy development 

and impact monitoring of development efforts. The 

ECNGOC acknowledges the high relevance of the SDGs 

and advocates for more civil society engagement on their 

integration into government strategies such as the PDP 

and monitoring activities. 

4.2 National Situation 

South Africa has been severely affected by prolonged 

recession, low growth and low investment levels. The 

National focus on ‘state capture’ has demonstrated that 

there is a danger of elite capture of the development 

agenda and there is a need to focus more on social 

and economic transformation for the majority of the 

population and deepening of democracy 10 . 

The Indlulamithi 2030 South Africa Scenarios argues 

that social cohesion is the key to shaping the future of 

South Africa due to risk factors stemming from continued 

stark inequalities and societal divisions. The scenarios 

argue that unless its various dimensions are addressed 

– be it through reconciliation, or addressing inequality, 

or crafting a national identity, or rural/urban divides – 

economic development strategies will not be effective 11 . 

In the light of the described challenges, the National 

Development Plan (NDP) is timelier and more relevant 

than ever in its critical analysis and holistic solutions. Its 

call for multi-stakeholder collaboration to address the 

triple challenge of unemployment, poverty and inequality 

is particularly relevant for the socio-economic profile 

of the Eastern Cape. The same goes for the emphasis 

on investing in human capabilities, active citizenship, 

deepening democracy and strengthening social cohesion. 

The ECNGOC acknowledges that these principles 

were comprehensively considered in the Eastern Cape 

Provincial Development Plan and will advocate for and 

contribute to its effective implementation. Consequently, 

the ECNGOC has strongly aligned its strategic plan to the 

NDP and PDP. 

4.3 Provincial Situation 

The Eastern Cape consists of six district municipalities 

and two Metros, namely: Alfred Nzo, Amathole, Cacadu, 

Chris Hani and Joe Gqabi District Municipalities, as well 

as Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality and Nelson 

Mandela Metropolitan Municipality. 

The Eastern Cape’s population increased from 6.6 

million people in 2011 to 7.08 million in 2017, making it 

the third most populous province in the country 12 . 

The Eastern Cape, much like the rest of South Africa, is 

undergoing a difficult economic transition as evidenced 

by long-term GDP growth. The GDP growth rate of the 

Eastern Cape economy has declined sharply over the last 

decade and stood at 0.3 % real GDP growth in 2017 13 . 

This decline is, however, in line with the national trend. 

The historical structural location of the Eastern 

Cape economy remains the main factor of under 

development. The historic absence of significant mining 

activity in the Eastern Cape, and the creation of the 

former homelands as unproductive “labour reserves” 

are the main reasons that the provincial economy has 

tended to underperform the national economy in terms 

of higher rates of poverty and unemployment 14 . 

In 2017 the Eastern Cape recorded a Human 

Development Index of 0.602 compared to the national 

total of 0.658 15 . This is the lowest result of all provinces. 

In the same year, there were 4.5 million people living 

in poverty, using the upper poverty line definition, 

across the Eastern Cape Province - this is 1.50% higher 

than the 4.44 million in 2007 16 . The unemployment 

rate in the province (based on the official definition of 

unemployment) was 30.91%, compared to 27.2 % in 

2007 17 . 

The structure of the provincial economy has not changed 

significantly over the past 25 years. The province has 


11

a comparatively large public sector and a small and slowgrowing 

private sector. Government services in the Eastern 

Cape grew faster than in the country as a whole 18 . 

For the Eastern Cape, the main demographic trends 

are the overall stagnant population, high outmigration, 

urbanisation and the continued large youth population 

that is not absorbed by the labour market. The EC has a 

much higher rate of out-migration than other provinces 

and deep rural areas are de-populating 19 . 

The natural environment provides the basis for human, 

social and economic co-existence. In this regard, it is 

important that the interaction between human beings, 

development and eco-systems is a central part of any 

development strategy. This is particularly the case as 

the province promotes development based on natural 

resource-based sectors (e.g. agriculture, ocean economy, 

alternative energy and tourism) 20 . 

The Provincial Development Plan and Provincial Strategic 

Framework (2019-2024) outline the development 

priorities for the province. The PDP was developed in 

2014 and revised in 2018. It is based on the following six 

development goals: 

Goal 6: 

Capable 

democratic 

institutions 

Goal 5: 

Environmental 

sustainability 

Goal 1: An 

innovative and 

inclusive growing 

economy 

EASTERN 

CAPE 

2030 

Goal 4: 

Improved 

human 

development 

Goal 2: An 

enabling 

infrastructure 

network 

Goal 3: Rural 

Development 

and an 

innovative and 

high-value 

agriculture 

sector 

The PDP’s Developmental Principles: 

• Understanding the context 

• Advancing social justice 

• Spatial development and justice 

• Intergenerational equity and 

sustainable development 

• Enhancing positive human agency 

• People centred development 

• Coordination of efficiencies 

• Trans-sectoral resourcing of the PDP 

The six goals are strongly interrelated. The following gives a short overview on what is intended by the six goals 21 : 

• Respond to the ongoing economic downturn by increasing funds available for provincial investment expenditure 

and addressing infrastructure spending challenges 

• Develop and implement the Provincial Spatial Development Plan to ensure better integration and agreement on 

spatial prioritisation 

• Transform the agriculture sector and practice 

• Make progress on the education seven-point plan, with a focus on the school rationalisation process 

• Improve the health care profile of the province 

• Strengthen ICT connectivity and ICT based innovation 

• Integration of government programmes and projects to meet the objective of functional local government 

The province is currently working on an implementation plan for the revised PDP. The ECNGOC advocates for stronger 

consultation with civil society on the revised plan and its implementation measures, as well as for better resourcing of 

the implementation process. 


12

5 

CORE SERVICES AND 

INTERVENTIONS OF THE 

ECNGOC 

NGOs are critical to the economic and societal 

development of civil society. This is true for the Eastern 

Cape Province. NGOs, CBOs and social movements fulfil 

important duties of checks and balances in democracies, 

they are able to influence the government and hold 

it accountable. In both resource-rich and resourcepoor 

contexts, grassroots organizations can develop an 

alternative neighbourhood or village-based voice that 

challenges prejudice and the discrimination of the poor. 

They are key to building voice, agency and capacity for 

community-led development. The networking of grassroot 

organizations improves the opportunities of community 

members to input into important political, development 

or resource decisions that directly affect their lives. 

The value add of the ECNGOC as umbrella structure 

includes capacity development and support of its 

members, ensuring coordination, collaboration and 

strengthening the collective voice (advocacy). The 

organisation keeps a database of its over 900 members 

that includes information on the regional and sectoral 

focus of the organisations. The database is used to connect 

members with stakeholders, share information about 

relevant events, learning and funding opportunities and 

promote peer-learning among members. The ECNGOC 

secretariat shares regular information on the latest 

trends, challenges and opportunities in the NGO sector 

and informs about its current initiatives and projects. 

Quarterly district dialogues are held in the 6 districts and 

2 metros of the Eastern Cape that reach a minimum of 240 

member organisations per quarter. The district dialogues 

are an important platform for information sharing, peer 

learning and forming joint advocacy positions. They help 

the ECNGOC to cascade down information and channel 

up concerns and suggestions of its members to provincial 

stakeholders and policy makers. The ECNGOC does not 

only engage on thematic issues but also advocates for 

fair and adequate regulation, administrative procedures, 

as well as support and funding mechanism in the NGO 

sector. Information gathering and surveys among 

members are utilized to develop evidence-based 

advocacy strategies. 

The ECNGOC is of the view that strengthening corporate 

governance is the foundational pillar to achieve and 

enhance NGO sustainability. Hence, it offers advice 

and implements trainings on NPO management 

and organisational development, including project 

management, financial management and board 

governance. Accredited and non-accredited training on 

Asset-Based-Community- Development (ABCD), as well 

as leadership training courses are offered for a reasonable 

price to member organisations and stakeholders from 

civil society, government and the private sector. The 

ECNGOC has identified the expansion of its training offers 

as important strategy for resource mobilization and 

popularizing people-centred, sustainable development 

approaches. In its recent resource mobilization activities 

strong efforts are made to make the high-quality training 

offers accessible to an increased number of member 

organisations. 

In its programming the ECNGOC designs project 

interventions in the five thematic priority areas defined by 

its members. Pilot projects are implemented to test new 

approaches and reach buy-in from stakeholders. Broadbased 

interventions are designed by building onto good 

practices of the ECNGOC, its member organisations and 

other stakeholders. To increase its outreach, strengthen 

its capacity and promote innovation, the ECNGOC has 

decided to work even stronger in partnerships and 

consortiums with other NGOs, government institutions, 

institutions of higher learning and the private sector. 


13

Staff members of the Secretariat of the ECNGOC. 

E-Citizenry- Service Delivery Survey Feedback at Raymond Mhlaba Municipality (2016). 


14

6 

THEMATIC PRIORITY 

AREAS 

The following graphic illustrates the five thematic priority areas of the ECNGOC that were refined in the strategic planning 

process. On the next pages the plans for each of the thematic priority areas will be presented in detail. 

• Sustainable land use 

• Access to land 

• Economic opportunities 

(focus women and youth) 

• Innovative approaches and ICT 

• Youth involvement in agriculture 

• Adaption to climate change 

• Advocacy and Information 

on access to quality 

health services and NIH 

implementation 

• Strengthening Clinic 

Committees 

• Participatory Monitoring 

• Community Awareness on 

health matters (HIV/AIDS, 

TB, diabetes etc.) 

RURAL 

DEVELOPMENT 

• Active Citizenship 

• Civic Education 

• Meaningful citizen engagement 

• ABCD in Municipal Planning 

• Bottom-up accountability 

• Service delivery monitoring 

• Community dialogues 

• Leadership Training 

HEALTH 

HUMAN 

CENTRED 

DEVELOPMENT 

CITIZEN 

ENGAGEMENT 

IN LOCAL 

GOVERNANCE 

EDUCATION 

HUMAN RIGHTS 

• Advocacy on access to quality education 

• Strengthening SGBs 

• Participatory Monitoring 

• Professionalization of Early Child Development Centers 

• Quality services for children with special needs 

• Human rights awareness and dialogues 

• Collaboration with Chapter 9 Institutions 

• Rights of vulnerable groups 

• Child rights and Child safety 

• Women’s rights and Gender 

• Socio-economic rights 

• Social cohesion 


15


16

6.1 Rural Development 

SDGs: Rural development crosscutting issue in the realization of all goals 

NDP: Chapter 7: Vibrant, equitable, sustainable rural communities contributing to food security for all 

Chapter 10: Protect and enhance our environmental assets and natural resources 

PDP: Goal 3: Rural development and an innovative and high-value agriculture sector 

Strategic Objective 3.1 Sustainable community agriculture and diversified livelihoods 

3.2 Development of agricultural value chains 

3.3 Land reform and land rehabilitation programmes 

Background: 

Given the spatial imbalance in the province and the 

persistent underdevelopment of its rural regions where 

the majority of citizens live, the PDP prioritises rural 

development as key to sustainable development. 

Even though the Eastern Cape Province remains 

predominantly rural, with over 70 percent of citizens 

living outside of the metropolitan areas, a process of 

urbanisation and settlement change is underway. The 

Eastern Cape has a much higher rate of out-migration than 

other provinces and deep rural areas are de-populating 22 . 

Rural communities suffer from unequal access to quality 

services and service monitoring and interventions are 

often insufficient in remote areas. 

The majority of the rural poor in the Eastern Cape 

Province depend primarily on agriculture for social 

progress. In this context, access to land and leveraging 

natural resources are vital for pro-poor development. It 

is therefore important that civil society advocates for and 

takes part in inclusive, constructive engagements on land 

questions. 

Due to the high levels of poverty and unemployment 

persisting in the rural areas of the Eastern Cape it 

is important to provide citizens with opportunities 

for improving their livelihoods. Key to this is skills 

development and supporting entrepreneurship with a 

focus not only on the formal economy but also on the 

informal economy. 

As the rural and economic development strategy outlined 

in the PDP is reliant on natural resources (agroindustry, 

ocean economy, tourism and energy), it is important that 

the Eastern Cape’s rich natural resources are sustainably 

used, and its rich biodiversity conserved 23 . In this context 

it is also important to proactively plan for adaptation 

to climate change as several areas are already strongly 

affected by drought and other negative consequences. 

Central to achieving these will be harnessing indigenous 

knowledge as well as the technology and innovation 

made possible by the 4th industrial revolution. 

With regard to this, goal 3 of the PDP emphasizes the 

need to promote innovation and orientation towards 

high-value production in the agriculture and the rural 

sectors. The application of ICT in agriculture should also 

be pursued as a means to attract more young people to 

work in the sector. 

There is a need though, for stakeholders to engage in 

further debates on: 

• Practical strategies for land reform and optimal land 

utilisation and land redistribution 

• Strategies to promote rural areas to counterbalance 

the rural exodus and brain drain to other urbanised 

provinces 

• Strategies for safeguarding community participation 

and beneficiation in larger scale economic investment 

projects in rural areas 

• Access to land rights and economic opportunities for 

women in rural areas to promote equity and curb 

economic dependence and vulnerability to genderbased 

violence. 


17

Identified result areas and interventions: 

Goal Anticipated result Planned Interventions 

Sustainable livelihoods 

and improved living 

conditions for rural 

communities 

• Strengthened civil society 

contribution to sustainable rural 

development policy and practice. 

• Increased attractiveness of rural 

areas and decreased brain drain. 

• Rural communities have 

improved access to economic 

opportunities by leveraging 

and preserving their natural 

resources. 

• Innovation is used to promote 

skills development and 

entrepreneurship in the formal 

and informal rural economy. 

• Improved access to land and 

sustainable land use methods 

with focus on women and youth. 

• Rural communities are 

empowered to steer economic 

investment projects in favour 

of equitable, sustainable 

development. 

• Strengthened information sharing, dialogue 

platforms and capacity building for member 

CBOs on current rural development issues. 

• Enable members to inform themselves and 

input into policy debates on sustainable land 

use, SDGs and adaption to climate change. 

• Provide inclusive information on the land 

debate and its gender dimension considering 

the broader context, experiences on the 

ground, relevant (draft) legislation and 

reform agendas. 

• Input into policy debate and practice on how 

to give rural communities better access to 

economic perspectives and services. 

• Partner with institutions of higher learning 

and other stakeholders to boost the capacity 

of the ECNGOC’s structures on sustainable 

rural development and innovation. 

• Advocate for the application of ABCD 

principles in rural sustainable development, 

implement training of trainers and showcase 

good practices. 

• Contribute to innovative projects on 

skills development and entrepreneurship 

promotion in the formal and informal rural 

economy. 

• Implement partnership projects on access of 

women to land and economic opportunities 

in rural areas. 

• Pilot partnership initiatives on the use of 

ICT in agriculture with focus on youth and 

women. 

• Develop comprehensive social facilitation 

package to safeguard community 

participation and beneficiation. 


18

6.2 Civic Engagement in Local Governance 

SDGs: Good Governance - crosscutting issue in the realization of all goals 

NDP: Active Citizenship guiding principle 

Chapter 9: Responsive, accountable, effective and efficient local government 

Chapter 14: Nation building and social cohesion 

PDP: Strategic Objective 6.3: Instilling a culture of good governance. 

4.6: Promotion of social cohesion and moral regeneration 

Background: 

Local government is the sphere of government closest 

to the people which has to deliver and coordinate 

the provision of services to the communities in its 

jurisdiction. 

The South African local government system has very 

extensive legislation on public participation that requires 

municipalities to consult residents on all major processes 

and enable them to participate from an informed 

standpoint. 

However, from the citizens’ perspective, the quality of 

engagement and outreach is often not sufficient. Many 

citizens feel that there are not enough mechanisms 

provided for meaningful two-way communication and 

feedback loops on service delivery issues. 

Equally, in many municipalities service delivery outcomes 

are found to be wanting due to institutional instability, 

resource and capacity constraints, good governance 

challenges and also the lack of effective mechanisms for 

oversight and bottom-up accountability. 

As a result of these serious challenges the level of trust 

in local government is declining, resulting in growing 

public participation fatigue. In 2018 the Eastern Cape 

was the worst affected province from violent service 

delivery strikes, amounting to 20 % of all incidents in the 

country 24 . 

According to the National Development Plan, a capable 

state and active citizenship are key for realizing local 

good governance. Since not every individual citizen 

can participate in governance processes, organized civil 

society plays a key role in representing citizens’ interests. 

Yet, due to experiences of non-responsiveness of 

municipalities, the politicisation of public participation 


19

structures and capacity constraints to engage in municipal 

processes, many CBOs retreat from the local governance 

space. The ECNGOC wants to change this trend by building 

up a critical mass of CBOs across all districts who take an 

active stand for local good governance and active citizenship 

in their municipalities. 

Capacity development is therefore needed on how 

local government works, understanding citizens’ rights 

and responsibilities and how to engage government 

constructively on service delivery. This also requires 

improving technical skills in analysing policies, planning 

and budgeting documents, defining own priorities and 

advocating for them, as well as monitoring service delivery 

implementation and holding municipalities to account. 

As local government alone cannot shoulder the myriad 

socio-economic challenges of our communities, the 

ECNGOC promotes collaborative partnerships between 

local government, business and civil society. In this respect, 

we see the enhancement of transformative leadership skills 

among all stakeholders and the application of the ABCD 

approach as further critical elements to improve meaningful 

citizen engagement in municipal processes. 



Empowered citizenry 

in local governance 

processes. 

• Increased impact of civil 

society on local good 

governance. 

• Strengthening of active 

citizenship 

• Change of mindsets and 

behaviour of citizens 

and local government 

representatives. 

• Strengthened citizen 

participation in municipal 

planning and budgeting. 

• More constructive 

engagement on service 

delivery resulting in 

decrease of violent service 

delivery strikes. 

• Citizens hold (local) 

government to account 

• More proactive and 

responsive local 

government and improved 

service delivery. 


platforms and capacity building for member CBOs on 

local governance issues. 

• Organize panel discussions on current societal topics 

that reflect on the local government level. 

• Build capacity and support local governance change 

maker CBOs in all districts. 

• Implement training for CBOs on local government 

structures and processes, how to engage 

government on service delivery grievances, social 

accountability tools, ABCD and collaborative 

leadership. 

• Refine and implement Leadership Training for Citizen 

Engagement for municipal representatives, local civil 

society and private sector. 

• Advocate for the integration of the ABCD approach 

into municipal planning, partner with municipalities 

to refine and replicate existing pilots. 

• Promote civic education in collaboration with (local) 

media and other stakeholders. 

• Partner with specialized NGOs to develop initiatives 

on the use of ICT for citizen engagement and 

bottom-up accountability. 

• Design and implement community dialogues on 

service delivery issues. 

• Promote dialogue with local government and 

traditional leaders on civic participation and 

economic empowerment of women in rural areas. 

• Support member organisations to make constructive 

inputs at public participation forums, monitor 

impact and channel up concerns to provincial level. 


20

6.3 Human Rights 

SDGs: Strong human rights focus of goals 1-8, 10-13, 16 and cross-cutting theme in other SDGs 

NDP: Strong human rights focus of outcome 1-5, 7-8, 12-14 and cross-cutting theme in other outcomes 

PDP: Strong human rights focus of goal 4 - Human Development and cross-cutting theme in other goals 

Most of the complaints received by the South African 

Human Rights Commission’s (SAHRC) Eastern Cape 

Provincial Office over the last years deal with the 

inadequate realization of economic and social human 

rights. International human rights treaties oblige states 

to the “progressive realization” of these rights. This 

means they have to take appropriate measures and 

take concrete steps towards the full realization of these 

rights to the maximum of their available resources 25 . The 

shortage of resources therefore does not free the state 

from the obligation to act decisively in improving public 

schools and health services, as well as to effectively 

address backlogs in the field of housing, electricity, 

water and sanitation. 

Against this backdrop, the state of public health services 

and the provision of water and sanitation services 

were subject to a high number of complaints to the 

SAHRC EC provincial office. The strongest concerns 

were, however, expressed by SAHRC with regard to the 

underachievement of the province in improving basic 

infrastructure in public schools to ensure the safety and 

dignity of learners 26 . 

A 2015 public survey by the Foundation for Human 

Rights (FHR) indicates that only about 10% of the 

national population is aware of the mandates of the 

Chapter 9 institutions 27 . In the 2016/17 year, race, 

disability and ethnic or social origin continue to be the 

highest grounds of equality related complaints reported 

to the Human Rights Commission 28 . 

Therefore, the ECNGOC decided to increase its 

collaboration with chapter 9 institutions and contribute 

to awareness raising and capacity building on human 

rights issues among its members. To address the 

continuing divide in our society, initiatives will be 

extended to support social cohesion, nation building 

and act against hate speech and disrespect of human 

rights. 



Increased 

awareness on 

human rights 

issues and 

more respect 

for each other’s 

rights and 

diversity in 

society 

• Increased awareness and activism of civil 

society on human rights issues. 

• Change of mindsets and behaviour of 

citizens and government representatives. 

• Civil society takes a strong stance against 

hate speech and discrimination based on 

race, disability, sexual orientation, ethnic 

or social origin. 

• Good practices on strengthening social 

cohesion and multi-ethnic collaboration 

that can inspire other communities. 



CBOs on human rights issues. 

• Collaboration with Chapter 9 institutions to 

increase awareness of human rights issues 

among member organisations. 

• Implement initiatives on social cohesion, respect 

for cultural diversity and nation building 

in collaboration with community initiatives, 

churches and local businesses. 

• Advocacy for the implementation of socio-economic 

rights, in particular right to health and 

education. 


21

6.4 Education 

SDG Goal 4: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all 

NDP Outcome 1: Quality basic education 

PDP: Strategic Objective 4.1: Early childhood development 

4.2: Improved quality of primary and secondary education 

4.3: Improved education and training for economic development 

Background: 

Even though in 2018 the EC had the greatest improvement 

of all provinces in terms of its matric pass rate which 

went up to 70.6 percent from 65.8 percent in 2017 29 , the 

state of the public education sector remains worrying. 

The deficiencies of the education and skills development 

system contribute to the falling share of the province in 

the national economy. 

The quality of teaching, in particular in maths and 

science, shortages and qualification deficits of teachers, 

as well as little access to computers and internet for 

research and learning remain a problem in many public 

schools. This is exacerbated in rural areas. 

In terms of infrastructure provision and basic service 

delivery to schools, the EC is lagging behind the other 

provinces. In May 2018 the EC had still 25 schools 

without proper sanitation, a large number had no access 

to electricity and there are still 205 schools that were 

built with inappropriate material 30 . 

Overall, the education levels in the province have 

improved over the past years. The number of people 

without any schooling decreased from 2007 to 2017 with 

an average annual rate of -3.81%, while the number of 

people within the ‘matric only’ category, increased from 

596,000 to 858,000 31 . The province’s functional literacy 

rate increased on average 2.23% annually and stands at 

77.63% in 2017 which is lower than the national total of 

83.69% 32 . 

The drop-out and grade repetition rate between grade 

10 in 2016 and grade 12 in 2018 was as high as 39.3% 

and puts the celebration of the official matric pass 

rate into question 33 . According to a community survey 

conducted in 2016 only 67.1 % of youth aged 16-17 had 

completed grade 9 or higher. 34.7 % of youth aged 20-24 

have completed matric or gained a higher qualification 34 . 

Teenage pregnancy remains a strong challenge with 30.8 

% of females aged 15-24 years having given birth to a 

child in 2016 35 . In 2017, 462 000 youth between 15-24 

years in the EC were neither employed nor in education 

or training (NEET) 36 . 

In terms of access and quality of early childhood 

development (ECD) centres the province has realized 

that it strongly needs to improve its efforts. According 

to DSD, in 2018 only 6.2 % of 870 900 pre-schoolers 

attended ECD centres in the EC 37 . In deep rural 

areas access is very low and compliance with norms 

and standards on infrastructure remains an overall 

challenge 38 . The ECNGOC will advocate for and contribute 

to the professionalisation of ECD practitioners and the 

integration of the centres into the formal education 

system. 

Even though the province has established 6 new public 

special needs schools 39 , still much more needs to 

be done to improve the education opportunities for 

learners with special needs and the piloting of inclusive 

education. The ECNGOC will advocate for and contribute 

to strategic pilot interventions in this field. 

Overall, making progress on the implementation of the 

Education Transformation (seven point) Plan, with a 

focus on the school rationalisation process remains key 

and must be followed up by all stakeholders. 


22

Identified results areas and interventions: 


All children have access 

to quality education 

starting from early 

childhood development 

and catering also for 

children with specials 

needs. 

• Civil society is enabled to use 

evidence-based advocacy on 

education issues. 

• School governing bodies 

contribute to improved 

monitoring and governance of 

schools. 

• Parents and guardians are better 

informed about education 

policies and service standards. 

• The early childhood development 

centres are professionalised and 

offer quality services. 

• Increase in special facilities 

and improved expertise of 

practitioners on serving learners 

with special needs. 

Strengthened information sharing, dialogue 


CBOs on education matters. 

Enable member CBOs to input into policy 

dialogues and advocate for access to quality 

education. 

Pilot training of local CBOs on participatory 

service delivery monitoring at schools and use 

of results for evidenced-based advocacy. 

Training of trainers of CBOs on capacity building 

of school governing bodies and awareness 

of communities on education policies and 

standards. 

Implement advocacy campaign for the 

professionalisation and improved regulation of 

ECD sector. 

Implement leadership training and thematic 

capacity building for CBOs working in the ECD 

sector. 

Advocate for and support initiatives on 

improved education services for learners with 

special needs including the promotion of 

inclusive education. 


23

6.5 Health 

SDG Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages 

NDP Outcome 2: A long and healthy life for all South Africans 

PDP: Strategic Objective 4.4: Improved Health Profile of the Eastern Cape Province 

Background: 

The strategic objective 4.4 of the revised Provincial 

Development Plan is an “Improved health profile of the 

Eastern Cape Province”. The PDP envisions that the people 

of the province should live healthy and long lives with a life 

expectancy of 70 years and an HIV/AIDS free generation 

under 20 years. The achievement of a healthy population 

is underpinned by a health system that provides quality 

health care to people in need, values patients, cares 

for communities, provides reliable services, creates 

opportunity to build health care capacities and values 

partnerships. Thus, the communities of the Eastern Cape 

have improved awareness on healthy lifestyles supported 

by a community oriented and efficient primary health care 

system 40 . 

The current health statistics show that slight improvements 

have been achieved but much still needs to be done to 

reach the relevant targets: 

According to the fifth South African National HIV 

Prevalence, Incidence, Behaviour and Communication 

Survey Conducted by the Human Sciences Research 

Council in 2017, the Eastern Cape had a HIV prevalence 

among adults aged 15 to 49 years of 25.2 %. After KZN and 

the Free State this is the third highest prevalence of all 

provinces 41 . Adolescent girls and young women between 

the ages 10-24 remain the most vulnerable to new HIV 

infections and are at high risk of teenage pregnancies 42 . 

In 2015 the Eastern Cape was the province with the 

highest reported rates of TB incidence at 692 per 100 

000 citizens. The child mortality rate was 12.8 per 1 000 

children in 2015/16 whereby the target of less than 34 per 

1 000 has already been achieved. This is less likely for the 

maternal mortality rate which stood at 135.2 per 100 000 

in 2015/16 against a target of less than 100 per 100 000 

by 2019 43 . 

In addition, key social factors such as child malnutrition 

and stunting persist, as well as the changing burden of 

disease, with increases in non-communicable and lifestyle 

diseases such as diabetes and hypertension 44 . 

In terms of access to quality services at public health 

facilities, several recent reports by health NGOs and 

advocacy alliances have pointed out the concerning 

conditions prevailing at many facilities. The inspection 

reports by the Office of Health Standards Compliance 

confirm these challenges 45 . 

The ECNGOC advocates for the improvement of the 

following deficiencies of the health care system of the 

Eastern Cape: 

• Insufficient access to quality services and 

medication at many health facilities 

• Shortage of health care workers, in particular in 

rural areas 

• Inadequate conditions and availability of health 

infrastructure 

• Insufficient health system and facility 

management, including incidents of corruption 

• Inequalities in public healthcare provisions 

• Insufficient information on the strategies and 

implementation measures of the National Health 

Insurance 


24

Identified results areas and interventions: 


Citizens are enabled to 

access quality health 

care services and make 

informed choices about 

their health. 

• Civil society is enabled to conduct 

evidence-based advocacy on health 

issues. 

• Citizens are better informed about 

the policies, strategies and service 

standards on health issues. 

• Hospital boards and clinic 

committees contribute to the 

monitoring and governance of 

health services. 

• Local CBOs working in the field of 

HIV/AIDS, treatment adherence 

support and home-based care 

achieve better results due to 

improved capacities. 

• Improved information of 

communities on healthy lifestyles 

and the prevention and treatment 

of diseases. 

• Improved health outcomes in the 

EC province. 



CBOs on public health matters. 

• Enable member CBOs to input into policy 

dialogues and advocate for access to quality 

health services. 

• Organising dialogue sessions and cascading 

down information on the National Health 

Insurance Scheme. 

• Pilot training of local CBOs on participatory 

service delivery monitoring at local health 

facilities and use of results for evidencedbased 

advocacy. 

• Training of trainers for CBOs on capacity 

building of hospital boards and clinic 

committees. 

• Provide capacity building to CBOs 

working the field of HIV/AIDS, treatment 

adherence support and home-based care 

on project management and organisational 

governance. 

• Training of trainers of local CBOs to 

inform community members on access to 

health services, healthy lifestyles and the 

prevention and treatment of diseases. 


25

7 

ORGANISATIONAL 

DEVELOPMENT 

PRIORITIES 

The bases for high quality sector programming are sound organisational systems and processes. Without these, the 

plans presented in the previous chapter cannot be realized. Hence, the strategic planning process devoted considerable 

time to discussing the organisational development of the ECNGOC. 

The following graphic illustrates the jointly defined organisational development results and necessary measures to 

realize these. 

NECESSARY MEASURES TO REACH DESIRED RESULTS 

Continued strategy 

review and 

implementation 

Capacity development 

of staff, additional 

recruitment and 

measures to 

supplement capacity 

Donor retention and 

establishing new 

partnerships 

Generating CSI and 

philantrophy funding 

Partnerships and 

consortiums with 

specialized sector 

NGOs and ICT experts 

Strategic use of 

partnerships with 

goverment institutions, 

think tanks and private 

sector 

Improved collaboration 

with SETAS 

Partnerships with 

institutions of higher 

learning 

Collaboration with 

media 

Stronger involvement 

in relevant networks 

and international 

alliances 


26

DESIRED ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT RESULTS 

Diversified, sustainable 

funding model 

Community 

Foundation established 

Strenghtened capacity 

of secretariat, board 

(PEC) and DCOs 

Increased training 

offers to members and 

as income base 

Improved 

communication and 

outreach through ICT 

Increased advocacy 

and media 

engagement 

Stenghtened research 

and impact monitoring 

7.1 Sustainability 

Recognising the ongoing funding crisis and overall 

weakening of the South African civil society sector, the 

ECNGOC has put strong emphasis on the crafting of a 

resource mobilization plan as part of its strategic planning 

review process. Expert advice was sought on integrating 

good practices on diversified funding models, promoting 

community philanthropy and tapping into corporate social 

investment funding (CSI). The main pillars of the resource 

mobilization strategy will be: 

• Refining the value proposition of the ECNGOC on its 

overall services and sector specific offers 

• Developing a diversified funding model 

• Strengthening the training offers and collaboration 

with SETAS as a source of income generation 

• Concept and partnership development on 

strengthening community philanthropy and putting 

respective organisational structures in place 

• Concept and partnership development on SCI funding 

and collaboration with the private sector 

• Establish the ECNGOC as a funding conduit and 

implement re-granting programmes 

• Build strategic partnerships and consortiums to offer 

state of the art approaches for local government, 

health and other key funding sectors 

The resource mobilization strategy was developed in a 

participatory manner. The sharing of the draft strategy and 

its underlying resource mobilization approaches will also 

help the members to improve the sustainability of their 

own organisations. 

7.2 Impact-Orientation and 

Monitoring 

As an outcome of its self-reflection process and 

engagement with partners, the ECNGOC decided to 

integrate results-based monitoring (RBM) into its 

operations. This will help to better track, document 

and strengthen the change that our interventions are 

facilitating at the level of intermediaries and at direct 

community level. 

As a first step the ECNGOC has inducted all structures, 

staff members and stakeholders involved in the strategic 

review on SMART planning principles and indicator 

development and ensured their full application 

throughout the process. 


27

This abridged version of the strategic plan document 

has been produced for the benefit of partners and 

stakeholders with the aim of giving a concise overview 

of the broader concept and planned interventions. For 

internal steering and monitoring purposes the detailed 

version of the strategic plan, as well as the operational 

plan will be used as critical tools. These include the 

following information: 

Resources required 

By when 

Who is 

responsible 

Indicators/milestones 

(How will you know you are on track?) 

New programmes and projects will be fully designed in a result-based manner. Internal research will be done on how 

to measure the impact of the core services of the umbrella structure and the development of relevant indicators. The 

organization also plans to boost the capacity of its staff members in the field of results-based planning and monitoring. 

A system will be developed to ensure regular review and monitoring of the strategic plan. The following questions will 

be asked during the process: 

• Are goals and objectives being achieved or not? If not, then why? 

• Will the goals be achieved according to the timelines specified in the plan? If not, then why? 

• Do staff have adequate resources (money, equipment, facilities, training, etc.) to achieve the planned goals? 

• Are the goals and objectives still realistic? 

• What can be learned in order to improve future planning activities? 


28

REFERENCES 

1. Word Bank, Partners- Civil Society, http://www.worldbank.org/en/about/partners/civil-society#2, 

accessed May 2019 

2. Wikipedia, Theory of Change, accessed May 2019 

3. UNICEF Theory of Change Methodological Brief No.2, 2014 

4. Environmental Analysis - Extract from ECSECC 2019/2020 Annual Performance Plan, p. 2 

5. ibid, p.2 

6. GIZ-AIZ Leadership Toolbox-Leadership for Global Responsibility, p. 6 

7. Graphic extracted from ECSECC presentation on PDP, 2018 

8. UN Sustainable Development Goals Knowledge Platform, https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs, 

accessed May 2019 

9. UNDP, What does it mean to leave no one behind?, https://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/librarypage/ 

poverty-reduction/what-does-it-mean-to-leave-no-one-behind-.html, accessed May 2019 


11. ibid, p. 5, SA Scenarios 2030-Indlulanithi, http://sascenarios2030.co.za/ , accessed May 2019 

12. IHS Markit, Statistical Overview Eastern Cape Province, 2018, p. 5 


14. ibid, p. 3 


16. ibid, p. 55 

17. Ibid, p. 34 


19. ibid, p. 6 

20. Ibid, p. 7 

21. Eastern Cape Vision 2030- Draft Provincial Development Plan, Eastern Cape Planning Commission, June 2018 

22. Environmental Analysis - Extract from ECSECC 2019/2020 Annual Performance Plan, p. 6, Eastern Cape Vision 

2030- Draft Provincial Development Plan, Eastern Cape Planning Commission, June 2018, p. 12 


24. Municipal IQ, Municipal data and intelligence, 3 key trends from 2018’s all-time service delivery record, Jan 2019, 

accessible at https://www.municipaliq.co.za/ 

25. OHCHR, Fact Sheet No33, Frequently Asked Questions on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, p. 13 and 16, 

accessible at https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Publications/FactSheet33en.pdf 

26. Times Live, Human Rights investigation into Eastern Cape Schools after girl drowns in pit toilet, March 2018, 

https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2018-03-16-human-rights-investigation-into-eastern-capeschools-after-girl-drowns-in-pit-toilet/ 

27. South African Human Rights Commission, Annual Report 2016, accessible at: https://www.sahrc.org.za 

28. South African Human Rights Commission, Annual Report 2017, accessible at: https://www.sahrc.org.za 

29. Mail & Guardian, Eastern Cape joins 70 % performance club, 03.01.2019, https://mg.co.za/article/2019-01-03- 

eastern-cape-joins-70-performance-club 


29

30. Business Day, Eastern Cape Schools are worst in SA for poor infrastructure, 25.05.2018, https://www.businesslive. 

co.za/bd/national/education/2018-05-25-eastern-cape-schools-are-worst-in-sa-for-poor-infrastructure/ 


32. Ibid, p. 61 

33. RNews, Matric Results 2018: Eastern Cape’s ‘real’ pass rate is 31.3 % not 70.6% says DA, 04.01.2019, https://www. 

rnews.co.za/article/23121/matric-results-2018-eastern-capes-real-pass-rate-is-31-3-not-70-6-says-da 

34. Youth Explorer, https://youthexplorer.org.za/profiles/province-EC-eastern-cape/, accessed in May 2019 

35. ibid 

36. Department of Higher Education and Training, Fact Sheet on “NEETs”, August 2018, p.6, accessible at: 

file:///C:/Users/PCZA/Documents/GSP%20documents%20and%20presentations/Strat%20Plan%20ECNGOC/ 

background%20information/WED%20Fact%20sheet%20on%20NEETs_Final_Version_29%20Aug%202018.pdf 

37. RNews, Only 53 700 out the 870 000 Eastern Cape pre-schoolers enrolled at ECD centres, 11.04.2018, https:// 

www.rnews.co.za/article/19373/only-53-700-out-of-870-000-eastern-cape-pre-schoolers-enrolled-at-ecd-centres 

38. OTP, presentation on “Progress on the Implementation of the National Development Plan”, 03.2017, p. 11 

39. ibid, p. 12 

40. Eastern Cape Vision 2030-Draft Provincial Development Plan, Eastern Cape Planning Commission, 11.06.2018, p.31 

41. HSRC, HIV Impact Assessment Summary, July 2018, http://www.hsrc.ac.za/uploads/pageContent/9234/SABSSMV_ 

Impact_Assessment_Summary_ZA_ADS_cleared_PDFA4.pdf 

42. Ibid. 

43. OTP, presentation on “Progress on the Implementation of the National Development Plan”, 03.2017, p. 14 


45. Treatment Action Campaign, State of Provincial Healthcare System- Spotlight on Eastern Cape, May 2018, 

https://tac.org.za/files/tac-eastern-cape-state-of-health-report-may-2018.pdf 


30

PHYSICAL ADDRESS 

Block C East London IDZ Science & Technology Park, 

Harbour Arterial Street, Sunnyridge 

POSTAL ADDRESS 

Postnet 227, Private Bag X9063, East London, 5200 

Tel: 087 373 1082 / Fax: 086 622 4780 

Email: info@ecngoc.co.za

STRATEGIC PLAN 2019-2024

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?