Attitudes, Knowledge, and Obstacles Toward Employing Digital Fundraising among Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations رسالة ماجستير

Abstract

NGOs are crucial contributors to the causes of development, relief, and support for the stability of such a society, particularly because they offer services in a variety of areas, including health, culture, relief, etc., and they focus on a number of sectors, including marginalised groups like people with disabilities and several groups in need of care, particularly women and children. So, it is important to study the procedures and tactics that have to be used in order to obtain the assistance required for NGOs to survive through the activation of digital finance tools. This cross-sectional study uses the descriptive analytical approach to determine attitudes, knowledge, and obstacles toward employing digital fundraising among Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations. To achieve the study's objectives, a questionnaire comprising (48) objective items, including the necessary quantitative data was distributed to the study sample of those classified as professional NGO staff individuals in the northern West Bank governorates who possess sufficient technological competencies to participate in digital fundraising. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to generate the results and examine the study's hypotheses using "Mean" and "Standard Deviation" parameters. The study results revealed that most Palestinian NGO employees were convinced and affiliated with their organizations' positive role. The employees were also convinced of the need to adopt a transparent digital fundraising approach and the cruciality of technological means in promoting and spreading awareness. The results also revealed that organizations believe in diversifying income sources; however, they lack the expertise and knowledge to make the most of the digital fundraising resources available. Most organizations lack specialized teams to manage digital fundraising plans and activities, so they are far from taking advantage of most known digital fundraising strategies. Palestinian NGOs operating in the northern West Bank governorates face several obstacles in their quest to employ digital fundraising, most of which are related to the Israeli occupation. At the top of these obstacles is the issue of the administrative-security divisions imposed by Israel in the West Bank, in addition to the occupation's stubborn and aggressive practices towards the organizations. The Palestinian political and societal complications are on the list of these obstacles, too, especially the current Palestinian division between the West Bank and Gaza, besides the hostile fluctuating society's view of these organizations in terms of their actual role, funding, and goals. Upon the study results, the researcher recommended that Palestinian NGOs should start promoting a positive organizational climate by fostering a sense of belonging and positivity. Palestinian NGOs also need to support creativity and innovation through dialogue workshops and brainstorming sessions, enabling management to listen to employees’ suggestions. Palestinian NGOs should conduct extensive studies on the most important and recent digital fundraising strategies and apply those suitable to the Palestinian context, develop strategic plans for digital fundraising that align with current developments and leverage past experiences, and prioritize measuring prgress toward goals to assess organizational status and guide future planning. And Palestinian NGOs should enhance logistical support by providing necessary equipment like computers, laptops, and tablets. They should also prepare employees to integrate into the digital fundraising strategy by improving their readiness, skills, and competencies