Article originally published in Romanian on Stiri.ong, 24 March 2020 – accessible here
Fundația pentru Dezvoltarea Societății Civile (FDSC) released a public statement drawing attention to the fact that civil society also needs support measures, at least as strong as those granted or envisaged to support SMEs.
In the current period of crisis that the whole society is going through, especially for its ability to mobilize resources that are used mainly to support the public sector, the Romanian non-governmental sector needs, in its turn, to be included by the Romanian state among the professional sectors deeply affected by the current pandemic and which need structural support, in order to adapt and contribute actively to solving the social problems generated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Non-governmental organizations make sustained efforts during this period to follow their mission, to fulfill their obligations assumed as a responsible employer in the context of the restrictive measures imposed by the emergency situation, but more than that, to ensure continuity in the provision of services in the most disadvantaged areas. In the country, to vulnerable groups whose needs are not covered by other entities at the moment, or in areas where the expertise and inter-relationship skills of the human resource in the sector can support public institutions to manage this critical period.
This statement prepared by FDSC is based on the preliminary analysis of the opinions expressed by over 130 NGOs from all over the country in a questionnaire completed between March 19-23, available HERE.