It
is a truism that the Kingdom of Jordan draws in nonprofits. The triple threat of
economic instability, the Syrian refugee crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic have
attracted a significant amount of humanitarian attention since 2011.
International NGOs (INGOs) have flourished in this space and extended their
operations in country.
اضافة اعلان
While
these INGOs garner more media attention, they have long partnered with domestic
organizations on project implementation. Yet local partners face two
interrelated problems limiting their development. First, Jordan’s small to
midsized NGOs lack the technical skills to amplify their impact. Whether
because of a lack of knowledge or a lack of technically trained staff,
nonprofits may lack vital technical skills for their work. And when they do have these skills, they are often specialized for a limited purpose,
implemented inconsistently, or not broadly refined across different technical
areas, such as marketing, communications, outreach, or fundraising.
By offering a user-friendly, Arabic-language interface online, a MOOCs could help spread critical technical information to domestic nonprofits that would require only a computer, an Internet connection, and time to complete the course. Better yet, it would give all Jordanian nonprofits, whether big or small, a high-quality resource to develop their staff.
This
leads to a second problem: a pattern of inadequate project implementation. Without
solid technical skills, small NGOs could either underdeliver or overpromise,
squandering donor funds and compromising the medium- to long-term objectives of
project mandates. Worse, insufficient technical skills could force
behind-the-scenes subcontracting to compensate for these issues, limiting
discretionary funding for organizations already suffering from chronic
shoestring budgets.
Without
firm foundations in grant writing, local NGOs are poised to lose out on lucrative
grants. Without an outreach strategy, they cannot sustain projects or develop
donor networks. And without a detailed understanding of the legal, regulatory,
and economic landscape relevant to Jordanian nonprofits, NGO leaders and
workers may inadvertently fall into trouble or fail to capitalize on the
opportunities available to them. Each of these circumstances increases
liabilities, casts doubt on project success, and harms the organizations’
constituent communities.
Yet
these conundrums are among the most fixable in the sector. Indeed, there is a
creative solution for them: a Massive Online Open Course, or MOOC, for
Jordanian NGOs. The humanitarian community should prioritize its creation,
execution, and dissemination as swiftly as possible.
Without solid technical skills, small NGOs could either underdeliver or overpromise, squandering donor funds and compromising the medium- to long-term objectives of project mandates.
MOOCs
have a long history in the education sector and have been used to provide free
education or open-source knowledge since roughly 2007. In 2012, leading US
universities Harvard and MIT jointly launched edX, now one of the largest MOOC
providers. Private enterprise, namely Udemy and Coursera, seized upon the idea
in the mid-2010s, offering trainings and new service models. A similar class of
boutique MOOC variants quickly followed, offering paid courses à la
Masterclass.
In
each case, the premise was simple: use the Internet to centralize resources on
a particular topic, and do it in a high-level, formal structure that reaches
large numbers of people. Key to the success of such companies is that graduates
can earn recognizable credentials to prove their mastery of new skillsets.
Jordan’s nonprofits could similarly benefit. A standard MOOC would reduce the
risk associated with donations or grants given to domestic nonprofits.
Moreover, it would guarantee the existence of technical capacities that
grant-giving entities and donors have deemed essential for project implementation—all
in a way that is accredited and verified by a trusted authority, such as the US
Agency for International Development (USAID).
Designing
the MOOC would be relatively straightforward. USAID or a peer implementing
partner could develop a collection of educational modules that provide expert
training in precisely the technical skills many Jordanian nonprofits lack — determined
by a working group comprised of USAID, partner donors, and Jordanian nonprofits.
Once the framework is in place, the MOOC designers can locate instructors and
Arabic-language translators to prepare the course, syllabi, evaluations, and
other essential materials. Given the rich intellectual resources available
across Jordan, from the University of Jordan to other peer institutions, this
process could leverage multiple civil society stakeholders.
The humanitarian community should prioritize its creation, execution, and dissemination as swiftly as possible.
To
ensure success, the MOOC can be soft-launched through a pilot program or beta
testing period, in which users could offer feedback and identify any software
problems, as well as any serious content issues to revise. Once refined, the
MOOC can roll out formally and engage a monitoring and evaluation component—focusing
dually on the MOOC’s effectiveness and any regulatory, social, and economic
changes in can incorporate from Jordan’s broader humanitarian sphere.
By
offering a user-friendly, Arabic-language interface online, a MOOCs could help
spread critical technical information to domestic nonprofits that would require
only a computer, an Internet connection, and time to complete the course.
Better yet, it would give all Jordanian nonprofits, whether big or small, a
high-quality resource to develop their staff.
Developing
civil society is a tentpole of Jordan’s national
vision, especially as it seeks to begin arguably the most ambitious reforms
package since Jordan’s independence. Democratizing knowledge, spreading
technical awareness, and bolstering small NGOs is a wonderful place to start.
Gabriel
Davis and Ryan Mackler are 2022–2023 Fulbright Scholars in Jordan, focusing
respectively on nonprofits and economic development in the Middle East.
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