Partnerships | Activities

Activities

 

Why does SMart Kolektiv deal with partnerships?

Relying on the experience of the local and broader environment, SMart Kolektiv has recognized the need to enhance the cooperation among various sectors of the Serbian society - primarily between the private and non-profit ones.

Apart from social communications and corporate social responsibility, cross-section partnerships are also in the focus of our endeavor.

Since we are the first Serbian organization to deal with the topic of corporate social responsibility, it is in our best interest to stress the possibilities which partnerships with NGOs might attain to our business collaborators. Furthermore, we wish to assist our colleagues from NGOs to develop their own capacities so that they might create efficient partnerships with the business world.

Partnerships as a means for the sustainable civil sector

Although it is clear today that the civil sector is an important global factor, civil organizations still encounter immense challenges, one of the greatest being sustainability.

When we mention the sustainability of the civil sector, we must keep in mind that it is a complex notion which comprises at least several segments: the legal framework, organizational capacities, financial possibilities, representative capacity, service-providing, the infrastructure and the public perception.

Nevertheless, in Central and East Europe, where Serbia also belongs, the challenge of financial sustainability is the first association when the sustainability of the civil sector is mentioned and it is more obvious than in other parts of the world. Local organizations still primarily depend on foreign investors' resources. But, foreign investors are retreating from these countries and they are reducing their support, thereby intensifying the challenge of long-term sustainability of the sector.

It is highly important that the Serbian civil sector should diversify its financial sources, in the first place by focusing on the local ones: government funds (still a rarity in Serbia), private donations (i.e. philanthropy) and, finally, independent creation of profit - from donations, business activities and investments.

How does SMart Kolektiv deal with sustainability?

SMart Kolektiv has developed a range of activities to research diversification, i.e. finding new financial sources for the civil organizations. We strive to raise the awareness of such organizations in terms of fresh and unfamiliar financial sources. That is why it is our aim to present our colleagues the topics of philanthropy, cross-sector partnerships - mostly those with the business sector - social enterprises, etc.

We strive to achieve that by the means of educational activities, collecting quality materials about those topics, connecting organizations with potential partners from the business sector etc.

Moreover, since SMart Kolektiv is engaged in the area of social communications, it is especially interested in the public perception of the civil sector.