By Octavia Roufogalis

The Workshop on Transparency and Accountability of Social Organisations in Latin America took place on 4th June 2013 in Bogotá, Colombia. It was organised by WINGS and Asociación de Fundaciones Empresariales (Association of Corporate Foundations, AFE) of Colombia.

The objective of the workshop was to exchange ideas with all participants on the importance of accountability in the social sector, and discuss how civil society organisations can be more transparent.

Although the event was based on Principles of Accountability for International Philanthropy, which recommends seven principles that must be followed by social organisations to be transparent and accountable, the context of Latin America is very particular and allowed participants to go beyond these principles and repurpose them for their needs.

The event was divided in two panels, each focusing on subjects of interest for the non-profit sector. The first panel discussed the current status of transparency and accountability in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico. The second panel debated three of the main issues of accountability in the sector: public financial statements, effectiveness and impact, and good government and governance.

A report of the workshop will be available online in the coming weeks.

Octavia Roufogalis is Coordinator of Alliances and Projects for Asociación de Fundaciones Empresariales (AFE).