From capacity building to capacity sharing
Why the sector is moving from capacity building to capacity sharing, what changes, and how local NGOs can ask for support that respects their skills.
Short answer
Capacity building assumes one side lacks skills and the other supplies them. Capacity sharing starts from the fact that every organisation has strengths. Knowledge moves in both directions, local partners set priorities, and support is long-term and funded. In practice: assess capacity together, let the local partner choose topics, use mentoring and peer exchange, and record what the international partner learns too.
Key points
- Capacity sharing is two-way: international partners learn from local partners too.
- Local partners should set the priorities and own the plan.
- Mentoring, shadowing and peer exchange often work better than one-off training.
- Fund capacity support in the budget, over several years.
- Assess existing strengths first, not only gaps.
What is the problem with "capacity building"?
The phrase suggests that local organisations lack skills and international organisations supply them. The Grand Bargain localisation workstream notes that capacity is usually defined as "lacking" and needing to be "built". It says terms such as capacity strengthening, capacity exchange and capacity sharing acknowledge existing skills and assets that can be supported and shared.
Local NGOs in Myanmar often hold deep skills: reaching hard-to-reach villages, negotiating access, working in several languages, and keeping trust through long periods of change. A one-way model that overlooks these skills wastes them and can feel disrespectful.
What does capacity sharing mean?
DG ECHO's guidance note on equitable partnerships offers short definitions:
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Capacity building or strengthening | A deliberate process where people or organisations receive external support to improve capacity. Strengthening reinforces what local actors already possess. |
| Capacity sharing | A process where existing capacities are acknowledged, respected and shared across many actors. It is horizontal, not linear. |
| Complementarity | An outcome where capacities at all levels are combined to support the best outcomes for affected people. |
The same note says capacity strengthening is not a one-way effort towards local actors. Local actors help international partners understand contexts and cultures and give guidance on technical issues.
What principles guide good practice?
The Grand Bargain guidance and the DG ECHO note agree on several points:
- Two-way learning. International actors should also learn technical skills, operations and context from local actors.
- Local ownership. Local actors should set priorities and own any support they receive.
- Demand-driven support. DG ECHO says capacity strengthening should always be demand-driven, with local actors invited to set priorities.
- Long-term funding. Donors and international actors should prefer multi-year, predictable and flexible funding for capacity strengthening.
- Early action. As far as possible, do it before a crisis rather than after.
- Mixed methods. Mentoring, shadowing, secondments, peer exchange and on-the-job training, with follow-up.
How can you put it into practice?
Use these steps with your partner.
- Assess together. List strengths and gaps on both sides. Our guide on organisational capacity self-assessment gives a simple method. Ask the partner to accept your results rather than repeat an assessment.
- Set priorities. Choose a small number of topics. DG ECHO notes that areas such as governance, strategic planning and resource mobilisation often need support, besides classic topics such as reporting.
- Choose methods. Combine short training with mentoring, peer visits and shadowing. A trainer visit followed by monthly coaching calls often changes more than a workshop alone.
- Budget for it. Put time, travel and data costs in the project budget. Without a line, support will not happen.
- Record both directions. Ask the partner to note what it learned from you. The guidance on donor-intermediary arrangements suggests an intermediary can be asked to report on its learning from the local partner.
- Review every six months. Ask whether the support helps and change it if not.
What can you ask from your partner?
- That your priorities, not theirs, set the topics.
- That support is in the budget and lasts more than one project.
- That support is linked to your own strategy and organisation plan, for example your strategic plan.
- That you can choose providers, including local trainers.
- That your name and strengths are recognised in reports.
What does capacity sharing look like between local organisations?
The Charter for Change and NEAR workshop report encourages local-to-local capacity sharing. A strong township NGO can mentor a younger community group on financial records, while learning from that group about village-level trust. Networks help organise this. See why local NGOs should join networks.
What should you watch out for?
- Training without follow-up. One workshop rarely changes systems.
- Topics chosen by the funder only. If you are not asked, say so and propose your own.
- Support that adds reporting burden. Check that capacity plans do not become another heavy form.
- Treating "capacity" as one thing. Capacity depends on the context and crisis. Agree what it means in your setting.
How EMPO can help
EMPO is a reliable training and consultancy provider and one of Myanmar's leading names in practical NGO training, with 1,200+ people trained and 15 partner organisations. We are based in Yangon and work in English and Burmese, online and in person across Myanmar, with topics such as project management, MEAL and organisational development. Commission a session designed for your team through our services or contact us.
Sources
- Guidance note on capacity strengthening for localisation — Grand Bargain Localisation Workstream, 2020
- Promoting Equitable Partnerships with Local Responders in Humanitarian Settings — DG ECHO, European Commission, 2023
- Summary report: local leadership in NGO consortia — Charter for Change and NEAR, 2023
Questions people ask
Is capacity sharing the same as capacity strengthening?
They are close. DG ECHO describes strengthening as reinforcing what local actors already have, and sharing as a horizontal process where existing capacities are acknowledged and shared across many actors.
Does capacity sharing mean no more training?
No. Training is still needed in areas such as project management, reporting and monitoring. The difference is who chooses it, how it is delivered and whether it is part of a long-term plan.
What can a local NGO offer an international partner?
Context knowledge, community access and trust, language, local networks and practical operational know-how. Name these strengths in your agreement and ask that learning from your side is recorded.