Main activities ran by PACT Foundation
- undertakes local development projects in South Romania (Oltenia and Muntenia), in view of creating and developing community-based organizations, by offering training, facilitation and consultancy in the following areas:
- provides small grants/seed funding (ranging from 500 to 5000€) to organizations and groups from disadvantaged communities, which are interested in developing and implementing community projects, community affairs/income generating activities or social enterprises, contributing to the improvement of the socio-economic situation of both the initiators and other community members;
- organizes its own fundraising campaigns, in order to raise money to fund the community projects, affairs or enterprises developed by community-based organizations or groups that it works with;
- in view of supporting community-based organizations interested in the development of community projects and affairs that benefit the community they represent, PACT Foundation seeks to establish collaboration relations among community organizations, physical and legal persons interested to contribute to local community development;
- organizes various events (seminars, workshops) dedicated for persons that are interested in community development, to the purpose of facilitating experience exchange and partnering between organizations that are active and institutions that work in the field;
- supports the community development sector in Romania and Central and Eastern Europe, through studies, research, training for professionals
- supports the development of the social economy sector in Romania, by means of:
- provides internship opportunities for Romanian and foreign students.
Main results of our work in communities from South Romania
Since its establishment, in 2006, through the continuous work of its team with beneficiaries from South Romania, a work that would not have been possible without the support of its partners and financers, sponsors and donors, PACT Foundations has registered so far the following main categories of results:
- we have worked in more than 70 rural and small-to-medium urban communities from South Romania (South Muntenia and Southwest Oltenia regions, respectively Mehedinţi, Gorj, Dolj, Vâlcea, Olt, Argeş, Teleorman, Ilfov, Ialomiţa, Călăraşi and Giurgiu counties)
- we have contributed to the development of approximately 50 community-based organizations/community groups that are active in these regions, working with and for disadvantaged/marginalized categories of beneficiaries in their home communities or in neighboring ones
- we have trained more than 150 individuals, on various themes related to community development: participatory assessment of community needs and resources; participatory planning and project management; organizational development; communication and external relations; community fundraising and mobilizing local resources; participatory local/organizational strategic planning; entrepreneurship; entrepreneurship; financial education
- we have financed approximately 60 community projects (with sums ranging from 500 to 1000€ per project), that involved over 600 citizens from those communities
- we have improved the lives of over 4500 people belonging to disadvantaged/marginalized categories
- we have facilitated the establishment of more than 130 local partnerships between public and/or private institutions/organizations
- we have elaborated a “Study on the profile and role of community-based organizations developed through PACT Foundation’s programs” – a research regarding the development of community-based organizations, undertook in 2008 by a sociologist interested in community development
- we have supported 7 experienced community-based organizations to develop business plans for income generating activities aiming at social objectives (community affairs), in order to stimulate economic development and inclusion of disadvantaged communities; 2 out of the 7 organizations each succeeded in starting up a social enterprise in 2 disadvantaged communities (a traditional carpets workshop and a hairdresser’s saloon); PACT Foundation contributed 5000€ for one of the two businesses, in grant matching system; for the other enterprise, the community-based organization raised the entire start-up amount by mobilizing local resources
- we facilitated collaboration between 9 community-based organizations and 9 local public authorities in 9 localities in South Romania, in view of facilitation and stimulation of public participation in decision-making processes; the collaboration yielded 9 local development plans elaborated in a participatory manner
- we have trained and supported over 150 disadvantaged Roma persons from 9 rural communities and 1 urban locality to enhance their chances of integration on the labor market; out of these, 120 people are now qualified for crafts demanded on the South Muntenia labor market
- we have edited a brochure regarding “The role of personal development and vocational orientation courses in the process of integration of disadvantaged categories on the labor market”
- we have elaborated the first activity report of the organization (2006-2007), which brought PACT Foundation the prize for the best reflection of training activities in an activity report, within the festivity for “Best annual reports of NGOs in Romania”, organized by the Romania’s Donors Forum in 2008
- we have directly contributed to the organizational development of 12 community-based organizations active in their region
- we have organized the first Future Search Conference event in Romania, on facilitating the access of local communities to development funds; thereafter, we have drafted a detailed report presenting the conference works and outcome
- we have drafted a brochure regarding potential financing sources for local communities, for which community-based organizations are eligible beneficiaries, either independently or in partnership with other local development actors
- we have preserved and developed our well known role as actors in the fields of community development and social economy in Romania and Europe; PACT Foundation is active in national and international professional networks: RuralNet – the network of organizations active in rural community development in Romania, NNDR – the National Network for Rural Development, initiated by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Development in view of facilitating information and knowledge transfer for the implementation of the National Plan for Rural Development; Central and Eastern Europe Citizens Network – a network that supports participation, involvement and citizen initiatives; APARTE – the network of organizations that are active and interested in community fundraising; RDF - Romanian Donors Forum, a federation assuming the mission to contribute to the sustainable development of civil society in Romania, by building capacity for the donors’ community and promoting philanthropy
- we continue applying the classic methodology for developing community-based organizations (training, consultancy, seed funding), in order to built capacity for community groups to actively engage in community life, to participate in local decision making and take initiative for solving their own local problems
