Understanding Pakistan’s Non-profit Sector: Issues of Organisational Identity in TVOs and NGOs

Pakistan’s non-profit sector has traditionally been divided in three segments namely, traditional voluntary organisations (TVOs), non-governmental organisations (NGO), and faith based organisations (FBOs). These organisations are typically identified based on their preference of funding sources and causes. The literature falls short of suggesting the reasons for such differences in identities and how these identities have emerged. This research explores the non-profit sector of Pakistan from the lens of organisational identity and asks how TVOs and NGOs construct their identity as non-profits, as well as how their identity affects, and is affected by, their preference of funding sources and income generation. Interpretive methodology was used to build four distinctive case studies of TVOs and NGOs. Findings from this study suggest that non-profits’ identity was established based on their funding choice in the earlier years which in turn was affected by their founders’ influential backgrounds. Reliance on local donors and donations was a central attribute in defining TVOs identity, while reliance on foreign funding projects was a central element of NGOs identity. These identities then influenced future funding decisions and preferences. The TVOs were named family non-profit due to hefty dependence on circle of family and friends to fund and run the organisation. The TVOs were found to have successful income generation ventures that could assimilate them to social enterprises, however they were reluctant to identify as such. NGOs failure at income generation was dominantly caused by international donors’ lack of support for such projects. Based on the findings of this research, a framework for understanding the hybrid nature of non-profit organisational identity is proposed. The model identifies the factors that play a significant role in the emergence of these identities and that may create conflict among them.