Commissioner for Voluntary Organisations Kenneth Wain tells Jacob Borg that a White Paper to be launched soon will ensure that all NGOs are registered with his office and open to scrutiny.

The law governing voluntary organisations is intended to guarantee transparency and accountability in NGOs. But according to Prof. Wain, a large number of voluntary organisations are just not interested in enrolling with his commission – which they must do if they want to apply for government funds.

“We do not know how many voluntary organisations there are at present operating under the radar,” he says in an interview at the end of a week in which a number of NGOs were in the news for the wrong reasons.

“Amendments to the law will strengthen the powers of the commission and enrolment will be mandatory. If they are not enrolled under the new law, they will not be allowed to fundraise.”

Voluntary organisations enrolled with the commission are obliged to present annual accounts, which are open to public scrutiny. Church organisations are exempt from these requirements, but this is all set to change with the new law.

“I would hasten to say as a point of clarification that we do have a number of Church organisations enrolled with us. The Church organisations we had problems with are those that fall directly under the Curia.

“After quite a few years of trying to resolve this issue we have now come up with a final solution to it and this will be presented in the White Paper.

“If they qualify as voluntary organisations enrolment will be mandatory. This will apply across the board.”

Enrolment will be mandatory. If they are not enrolled under the new law,they will not be allowed to fundraise

The new law proposes that all voluntary organisations will have to make themselves known to the Commissioner, though those falling under a certain income threshold will be kept on a separate register and will not have to present annual reports.

Prof. Wain says that the culture of accountability in Malta still leaves much to be desired.

“This was probably one of the most difficult things. Even with large organisations there were some far from ideal practices.

“I had to cajole them to get into line. My approach has always been to convince them that the more organised and efficient they are, the better it is for them in the long run.

“People are more willing to donate if they know the money is going for the purpose that it is earmarked for.”

Prof. Wain has been critical of government funding given to non-enrolled organisations in the past, and this issue was once again highlighted in the commissioner's 2015 annual report tabled in Parliament last week.

The commissioner’s report slammed the Gozo Ministry for being “far from transparent” when it gave thousands of euros to ineligible entities.

“The Gozo case is a bit troubling. It is a bit out of phase. We have come to a situation in Malta where the ministries and other government entities are more or less on board. Gozo in this sense was a bit of an exception.

“I am keen that Gozo should come in line and be compliant with the law. Once the amendments pass, these types of problems will disappear. There will be no division between enrolled and non-enrolled organisations.”

Prof. Wain found that a “very large number” of organisations received support from a €50,000 fund from the Gozo ministry without any call for applications or criteria for how the money was going to be used.

“Funds were given to a whole variety of organisations. One example was money given to a band, when a band is not a voluntary organisation.

“If the money is earmarked for voluntary organisations, then that is where the money should go. Any serious organisation should enrol with the Commissioner.

“I am not very happy with voluntary organisations that do not enrol because they do not want their accounts to be open to public scrutiny.” If the source of income is donations or fundraising, he says, the organisation has to account for the money and show how it is being used.

“You have to ensure that the income is being used well.”

Asked about the Love, Faith, Forgiveness project, which used inmates to sew curtains and costumes available for sale to private clients, he says that more clarification is needed about the case.

The project is endorsed by the Marigold Foundation, chaired by the Prime Minister's wife, Michelle Muscat.

The foundation is a registered NGO, though the project is not.

“What is not clear to me and requires clarification is the relation of this organisation with the Marigold Foundation.

“I need to find out more. What sort of animal is it? Is it a voluntary organisation operating on its own? Is it a part of the Marigold Foundation?

“The answers seem to conflict. Is it a subsidiary or a branch of it? Is it a project within the Marigold? Is it a business entity if there is trading going on?”

As long as there is no trading, then there is no problem, he adds.

A voluntary organisation cannot trade. It can carry out certain fundraising that is a part of its basic functions, but it can only trade if it sets up a separate company.

The Malta Community Chest Fund (MCCF) has attracted criticism in the past for carrying out fundraising events despite not being registered with the commissioner.

To collect funds, the MCCF is legally obliged to obtain an exemption from the government with repsect to the law that stipulates that all fundraising events must be covered by registration with the commissioner.

Prof. Wain explains that the new law will still allow the MCCF to operate outside of the commissioner's remit.

“The new White Paper will not change anything. It is always possible for MCCF to enrol on its own initiative.

“As long as there is State involvement in the MCCF, which is the case as the President is the chair, it does not need to be enrolled with the commissioner.”

The visibility, transparency and accountability of the voluntary sector

The Office of the Commissioner for Voluntary Organisations was set up by the Voluntary Organisations Act in 2007. The office is tasked with strengthening the voluntary sector through several initiatives and promoting the work of voluntary organisations, as well as encouraging their role as partners with the government in various initiatives.

Kenneth Wain has been the commissioner since the office's inception.

The aim of the office is to give more visibility to the voluntary sector, as well as to guarantee the transparency and accountability of the organisations enrolled with it.

The Office of the Commissioner is the regulatory authority responsible for the sector. As well as supporting them, it is in charge of monitoring and supervising the activities of these organisations.