Ten Myths of Global Civil Society
By Melanie Lovering
May 24, 2005
Dr. Lester Salamon, author, professor and director of the Center for Civil Society Studies at
Johns Hopkins University Institute for Policy Studies was the keynote speaker at Imagine
Canada's Symposium "Learning from the World: Canada's Charitable & Nonprofit Sector
through a Global Lens." Salamon's
presentation, entitled "Ten Myths of Global Civil Society," centred around research conducted
in 37 countries worldwide, and challenged a number of the myths that plague the third
sector.
Despite the enormous outpouring of efforts, Salamon's main conclusion is that
the "Civil Society Sector" is an industry that is very poorly understood. "We are
clouded by ideological screens that distort our view and get in the way with this
sector's ability to move forward," he proclaimed. The reason for his
presentation was to "explode and get behind the myths" that have driven our
perceptions.
Myth #1: That civil society is only made up only of NGOs. As a sector, we tend to focus on what is different about us, instead of on our
commonalities, he commented, and we tend to use words that obscure some
organizations, while shining a light on others. The use of the word "NGO" for
example, has its own connotation of development work to facilitate social
change, but "NGO" leaves out other valid sources of nonprofit activity, including
hospitals, universities, human rights organizations, trade associations, sports
clubs, grassroots and other nonprofit groups. There are a number of different
models that work, that are also representative of civil society; therefore, it is
possible to broaden the term.
Myth #2: That civil society sector is a marginal actor economically.This is simply not true, as research assembled from countries all around the
world proves. In the 37 countries measured, the civil society sector employs a
total of 4.5% of employees in the workforce and spends $1.33 trillion in
operating expenses. Measured by gross domestic product, it is the 5th largest
industry in the world, and employs eight times the number of employees in the
utilities sector. (In Canada it employs 2 million people- two and a half times
more workers than the construction industry.)
Myth #3 & 4: Civil society organizations are chiefly an American phenomenon
and are not present in the welfare states of Europe, where reliance on
government is greater; and that there is no civil society sector for all intents and
purposes in the Scandinavian countries, where the welfare state is most fully
developed. The truth is that civil society is a global phenomenon, and when
measured as a percentage of the economically active population, the United
States ranks 5th behind the Netherlands, Canada, Belgium and Ireland.
Scandinavian countries actually rely heavily on civil society organizations to
deliver services privately with state-financing. Canada's civil society sector was
classified by Salamon as "robust."
Myth #5 & 6: Volunteers play a more important role in the civil society
workforce in developing than developed countries; and paid staff drives out
reliance on volunteers. The worldwide average shows us that nearly half, or 44%
of the workforce in civil society organizations are volunteers, and this statistic
does not vary widely with wealthier versus less wealthy countries. That said,
volunteers do tend to play a somewhat more important role in the civil society
workforce in developing countries than in developed countries. Volunteering is
a social act that needs to be mobilized and research proves that an effective
volunteer effort significantly benefits from the presence of paid staff to provide
structure. In Canada, only 25% of our civil society workforce is comprised of
volunteers.
Myth #7: The civil society sector is mostly engaged in the provision of services.There are a number of functions that civil society organizations undertake,
including provision of services (68% on average, of an organization's activities.)
Advocacy and community building represent 32% of an organization's activities,
however, and these are activities which serve to establish trust, bonds of
reciprocity, and the social capital essential to a healthy society. Civil society
sector organizations act a vehicle for the expression of a variety of human
values, including cultural and religious values. Salamon bemoaned the
restrictions that Anglo- Saxon society tends to place on advocacy (he included
Canada and the US in that group.)
Myth #8 and #9: Philanthropy is the chief source of civil society revenue; and
philanthropy is at least the chief source of civil society revenue in the United
States. The global average of civil society sector revenue breaks down as follows:
government contributions contribute 35% of revenue, fees and charges
contribute 53% of revenue, while philanthropy contributes only 12% of revenue.
(In Canada, the breakdown is 31%, 51%, 9% respectively, whereas in the US it is
57%, 31% and 13%, respectively.)
Myth #10: The civil society sector is growing at a slower rate than the private
business sector. Employment statistics measured in eight countries between
1990 and 1995 demonstrate that the sector experienced 24% growth compared
to an average overall employment growth of 8%.
We are experiencing a global associational revolution, confirmed Salamon, and
there is a worldwide search on for new models to effectively manage civil
societies. There has been a corresponding rise in social entrepreneurs (lawyers,
engineers, physicists) who are frustrated by the lack of opportunities in their
chosen professions, and who consciously turn to civil society organizations to
give meaning to their lives.
Civil society institutions are surprisingly well structured and exuberant, yet
unnoticed. They are fragile organisms, facing immediate challenges of legitimacy
and sustainability, but potentially limited by the unrealistic expectation that
philanthropy alone will sustain it and help to build its capacity. "We simply
cannot go it alone, and have prided ourselves on our independence for too long.
The key to the future is cross-sectoral initiatives," stressed Salamon, who then
reminding delegates about their collective raison d'être, which in its simple
form, is all about justice.
Melanie Lovering is executive director of the Stephen Leacock Foundation for Children. She can be reached at leacock@sympatico.ca.
This article first appeared in the April issue of "The
Contributor", the AFP Greater Toronto Chapter's monthly member
newsletter, and is reprinted with permission.
