Christian Aid is planning on cutting its staff by nearly half this yr as a part of what it is looking a world restructure.
The charity has downplayed the suggestion that the cuts are in response to a drop in government funding, as a substitute saying they need to be “more responsive and accountable to communities living in poverty”.
At present the international aid charity employs around 720 people. A report in Civil Society claimed that the planned restructure will leave Christian Aid with 400 staff members.
Christian Aid said it’s consulting with its staff about their futures, with final decisions expected to be made in mid-June. Most of the job losses might be within the UK.
The stated aim of the cuts is to lower its fixed costs and so increase available funding for its international partner organisations. Rather than be run via country offices, Christian Aid will move to a model based on partnerships that might be supported in five international hubs.
The hubs might be in Bogota, Abuja, Nairobi, Amman and Dhaka, giving the organisation a robust global spread.
Christian Aid said it might proceed to run its programmes within the 26 countries where it’s currently operating, but that on-the-ground staff presence can be scaled back. The group added that this approach had already been shown to work in quite a lot of locations, including the Middle East and Ukraine.
Patrick Watt, CEO of Christian Aid, said, “We are committed to shifting power to people whose lives are scarred by poverty, in order that they could make their voices heard, and create their very own opportunities for a greater life.”
Watt added that work being done in Britain would now not be the default response, with functions being taken on on the local level being the popular option wherever possible.
He downplayed the concept that the staff cuts where a response to assist cuts from governments, but conceded that this needed to be taken under consideration when planning for the longer term.
“The changes have been planned rigorously over the past 12 months. While the proposals we’re launching today usually are not driven by cuts to official aid, we consider that recent decisions by donor governments validate our selection to be a majority voluntary-funded organisation, which collaborates intentionally with institutional funders where we share a typical agenda.
“It is obvious that the role of INGOs is changing because the world around us changes. It needs to remodel further if we’re to contribute more effectively to tackling poverty and marginalisation. Christian Aid is committed to that transformation, in a way that builds on our history of working alongside others for equality, dignity and justice.”
