India has the means to help its poorest residents. What it doesn’t have is the fundraising know-how.

By Maj. Gen. Surat Sandhu

NGOs desire to be sustainable. They need to become professional, transparent, accountable and self-reliant. But how can we do this?

There are more than 1 million NGOs in India. And, according to the Indian Professional Fundraising Association, only 1 percent has a fundraiser. Most rely on handouts and have no fundraising plan, no self-sustaining revenue model and no fundraising strategies. So, the potential remains untapped.