Does NESsT believe self-financing is the panacea for nonprofit financing problems?
In a word: no. NESsT believes that self-financing is one additional form of nonprofit finance that is already used by many CSOs but typically in an ad hoc way. Self-financing does not mean “commercializing” CSOs. Self-financing is not intended to replace philanthropic support (donations/grants) but rather to supplement them – and thereby help CSOs to diversify their financing base. We believe that self-financing strategies have not been given the professional and rigorous attention that other traditional CSO “fundraising strategies” have received. As a result, many opportunities for generating revenues have been lost, many unnecessary mistakes made and unnecessary risks taken by CSOs. With appropriate financial and technical support, the financial stability and mission impact of many CSOs have been improved through self-financing. However, we do not believe that self-financing is for all CSOs – whether for practical or philosophical reasons, not all CSOs may be able to or choose to use
