Survey reveals strong approval for Chinese NGO programs abroad

Most foreign beneficiaries of Chinese non-governmental organizations appreciate their support for family and community improvement and want more programs in the future, a survey showed.

"The beneficiary group shows a strong demand for diverse and continuing support from Chinese NGOs, especially in children's education, income increase and medical service," said Dong Qiang, a professor from the College of International Development and Global Agriculture of China Agricultural University, while addressing a report on the survey in Beijing on Tuesday.

The conclusion came from a survey covering 15 countries — Myanmar, Nepal, Laos, Cambodia, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Lebanon, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Switzerland.

"About 88 percent of people interviewed said they like Chinese people, and more than half regard China as a 'big and friendly country that helps us'," according to the survey.

More than 60 percent of interviewees said Chinese NGOs gave strong support to their families, significantly improving their living conditions. About 70 percent agreed their efforts had a positive effect on their community.

She Hongyu, deputy secretary-general of the Amity Foundation headquartered in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, said their international projects include money and goods donations during disaster relief and emergency rescue, as well as long-term programs such as its Living Water project to build water supply facilities and toilets in rural areas of developing countries.

"By learning from our own experiences, such as those in poverty relief, we try to share the best practices and support countries of similar needs," she said.

Wu Peng, director of the international department of the China Foundation for Rural Development, said that nowadays, more people in China, especially those born between the 1980s and 2000s, are willing to donate to international non-profit programs.

His foundation has helped promote hybrid rice-planting and tea-processing skills, offered occupational skills training for women and donated food for children in Asia and Africa.

Since participating in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami rescue effort, Chinese NGOs have worked abroad for nearly 20 years. More NGOs have gone global since the Belt and Road Initiative was proposed in 2013.

They have been active in diverse sectors, such as education, livelihood, healthcare, humanitarian relief, small infrastructure and environmental protection, according to the survey conducted by the Peaceland Foundation and the College of International Development and Global Agriculture of China Agricultural University, along with 13 domestic NGOs and academic institutions.

The survey was also guided by the China NGO Network for International Exchanges and funded by the Alibaba Foundation.

It collected 1,547 questionnaires from beneficiaries, 39 interviews with collaborating agencies and 36 interviews with grassroots officials or community leaders in recipient countries.

It seeks to reflect on and improve development strategies for the internationalization of Chinese NGOs, thereby facilitating policy refinement on this topic by domestic policy departments, according to Dong.