Factors affecting financial sustainability of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Tanzania

This study focuses on factors affecting financial sustainability of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Tanzania. The study was led by two research specific objectives, which aimed to determine the contributions of strategic financial management to financial sustainability and management performance of NGOs in Tanzania and second to determine if donor relationship management affects NGOs financial sustainability. These objectives formulate adequate theoretical and empirical reviews and subsequently generate the conceptual framework to underpin them. The study uses a case study design encompassing ten NGOs. It uses both primary data and secondary data where the former were gathered using questionnaires and the latter were gathered using documentary reviews. The data gathered using the questionnaires were analyzed using SPSS software version 19.0 to get simple descriptive statistics. Research findings indicate that financial sustainability in NGOs is largely influenced by two main factors, namely strategic financial management and donor funded system relied upon by most of the organizations in Tanzania. In this regard, the study recommends that organizations should develop appropriate measures to diversify sources of funds (particularly private ones) to enable them avoid overreliance on donor funds. It is additionally suggested that NGOs may consider setting adequate strategic financial management systems to growth and financial developments.