60
A World Bank Study
to the beginning of 2010, different Global Fund grants have disbursed US$54 million through CSOs acting as first-line PRs. Pooled funding: The main focus of pooled funding has been to fund NGO and CBO interventions. Funding is provided by the World Bank (US$250 million), DFID, and the Indian Government. In total, the available resources for the pooled fund currently amount to US$508 million, with a funding gap of US$390 million during NACP III. In this context, the World Bank currently finances 55 percent of 1,609 targeted interventions implemented by CSOs. These interventions cover an estimated 1.1 million high-risk groups, and DFID finances the remaining 45 percent. CSOs are funded against the implementation of standardized programs and an agreed-upon set of deliverables. Assuming that the percentage of pooled funds allocated to the implementation of NGOs/ CBOs interventions is the same as the World Bank’s (60 percent), the estimated funding reaching small CSOs would amount to US$60 million per year.4 Other bilateral and multilateral donors provide direct financial support to civil society. • USAID’s funding increased significantly, from US$11 million to US$15 million annually under NACP-II, to US$22 million annually under NACP III. Approximately two-thirds of this funding flows to CSOs, although a significant portion is now routed through the NACO programs. • DFID resources for NACP-III have increased, but are now part of the pooled funds, apart from a small portion for a capacity-building project. Under NACP-II, DFID made 58 grants to CSOs under its Civil Society Challenge Fund, which provided about US$7 million from 2005 to 2007, but has now ended. • UNDP’s annual commitments rose from roughly US$15 million under NACP-II to US$20 million under NACP-III, but the funding patterns have become much more aligned to NACP priorities, which limits the flexibility of direct funding for CSOs. • There are some other funds from foundations, charities, and international NGOs that finance civil society activities, but usually at levels that are felt to be significantly smaller than the donor flows cited above. With the available information, it is difficult to provide an accurate estimate of the funding flows that actually reach civil society in India. However, it is possible to provide an estimate. Most of the funding for national CSOs comes from the pool of funds noted above and direct funding from donors, which is classified as extra-budgetary resources. Simply adding the average annual funding provided by Avahan (US$63 million), the pool of funds (US$100 million), and the Global Fund (US$11 million) would total 31 percent of the NACP III funding that has been identified as being available.5 Adding the funding provided by government and other bilaterals and foundations would further raise this share.