Capacity development - Strengthened partner organizations in Asia

Background information

Mission 21 has many years of experience in Indonesia, Malaysia and Hong Kong in working with church and Islamic grassroots organizations that are committed to peace work and women's rights. This has resulted in trusting relationships, sound contextual knowledge and networks that are well anchored in the region. All of this forms an optimal basis for the implementation of locally supported and supraregionally coordinated interreligious projects that sustainably improve the situation of women in the family and society.

Our special task in cooperation with partner churches today is to train managers in aspects of good organizational management or good governance. The current focus is particularly on finance and human resources, project management and the prevention of sexualized abuse of power. Mission 21 checks compliance with regulations and applies the internationally valid principles of bookkeeping and accounting.

Mission 21 has also repeatedly supported capable young people who could not have afforded to study with scholarships. This tradition was later continued by the partner churches that had become independent. Today, they themselves are responsible for the renewal of their cadre and award scholarships that are co-financed by Mission 21.

Project goals

The regional coordination and the partner organizations of Mission 21 have motivated and qualified staff to carry out the projects and programs of development cooperation in a well-organized, effective manner and according to international standards.

Target group

Senior staff and middle management of our partner organizations - especially women and young professionals, pastors - as well as organizations that can be reached through the interfaith and inter-institutional cooperation of the churches. Through their dedicated work and by ensuring high standards in administrative areas, we reach the target groups of our development projects and programs: socially discriminated or marginalized groups, including women, indigenous people, the poor, the sick, migrants and their children.

Activities

• Church Fights Corruption Campaign (PGI and Member Churches)
• Annual platform with workshops on issues of good organizational management, with all project managers and leaders of the partner organizations involved in the Asia Cooperation Programme
• Supporting the regional partner Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) in organizing workshops on good organizational governance for its approximately 120 member churches and church alliances
• Regular audits and subsequent support in the implementation of recommendations (for the Indonesian Federation of Churches PGI and partner churches GKPI, BCCM-BM, PCS, GKPI, as well as Sabah Theological Seminary STS).
• Advise and support capacity building of partner churches BCCM-BM, PCS, and GKPI toward theological, staffing, and financial self-sufficiency.
• Scholarships for further training of staff of partner organizations (as part of support for capacity building of partner churches and as promotional scholarships).

Project progress

All partner organizations have actively worked on improving their organizational governance. Following the example of Mission 21, each has developed and adopted its own code of conduct for its employees on overcoming corruption. On this basis, supported by experts, several partner organizations have already developed a complete anti-corruption policy, including a complaints office and processes. The prevention of sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment is a new focus of work, and several partner organizations have already created a corresponding code of conduct for their organization. Efforts to improve organizational management are being continued on an ongoing basis. The capacity building of the partner churches BCCM-BM and PCS to achieve theological, personnel and financial independence will be completed in the current program phase. Former Mission 21 scholarship holders have been elected to leadership positions in their churches and affiliated institutions as hopeful "agents of change" or are doing valuable work directly in the communities to improve people's lives.