In an era where digital innovation is reshaping economies, tokenization presents a transformative opportunity for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to address long-standing challenges in fundraising and operations.. By leveraging blockchain technology, NGOs can unlock new avenues for transparent, efficient, and scalable initiatives.
Introduction to Blockchain and Tokenization in NGOs
Blockchain technology, with its decentralised and transparent nature, offers a new way to conduct transactions, manage data, and ensure integrity across various operations. Tokenization involves converting rights or assets into digital tokens that can be traded or managed on a blockchain platform. For NGOs, this means a new approach to managing donations, tracking impact, and engaging with supporters.
While the current blockchain landscape offers significant advantages, NGOs also face challenges in implementation, including technical complexity, the need for digital infrastructure, regulatory uncertainty, and the importance of ensuring data privacy. Strategic partnerships with technology providers, like Sologenic, aid in overcoming these hurdles and can accelerate mass adoption within the sector.
The Current Landscape of On-Chain Fundraising
Initial ventures into blockchain for social impact have demonstrated the technology’s capacity to enhance transparency, reduce transaction costs, and facilitate direct engagement with beneficiaries and donors.
- Building Blocks and World Food Programme — In 2022, Building Blocks was deployed in Ukraine to help coordinate assistance to those affected by the conflict. As a result, between 1 May and 31 August 2022, 18 organizations used BB to flag potential unintended assistance overlap in $337 million of assistance, to 1 million unique households.
- FairChain Foundation and United Nations — The United Nations Development Programme partnered with Dutch NGO the FairChain Foundation to use blockchain for the more equitable funding of cocoa farmers. The funding raised will be used to plant new trees, with consumers able to track the impact of their donations using data recorded on the blockchain.
- Aidonic — Aidonic.io empowers NGOs, the UN, and Government Agencies with innovative digital tools that streamline fundraising, enhance aid delivery, and provide indisputable transparency to donors and impact investors.
The Benefits of Using Blockchain for NGO’s
From enhancing supply chain transparency in humanitarian aid to incentivizing sustainable behaviours among communities, the trend for further tokenization is growing. These use cases below illustrate further practical applications and benefits of tokenization.
- Donation Tracking and Transparency — Tokenization changes how donations are tracked and managed by NGOs, ensuring that every contribution is transparently recorded. Donors can see exactly how and where their funds are being used, increasing trust and potentially boosting the willingness to donate. This transparency ensures that funds are efficiently allocated to intended projects and beneficiaries.
- Direct Aid Distribution — In disaster relief or aid distribution scenarios, tokenization can facilitate direct transfers of value to those in need. Instead of distributing physical goods or fiat currency, NGOs can issue digital tokens that can be redeemed for essentials like food, water, and shelter. This method minimises the risk of theft or misallocation of resources and allows for rapid, targeted aid delivery.
- Environmental Conservation Incentives — Tokenization can be used to incentivize individuals and communities to participate in environmental conservation efforts. For actions like planting trees, reducing carbon footprints, or participating in recycling programs, participants could earn digital tokens. These tokens could either hold monetary value or be redeemable for benefits, encouraging sustainable behaviours through a tangible rewards system.
Future Directions: Scaling Blockchain with Sologenic for Greater Impact
The path forward for blockchain in the NGO sector relies on collective efforts from NGOs, tech innovators, funders, and policymakers. Sologenic is committed to fostering an ecosystem that champions the framework for these current and future applications. Through collaboration and continued development, Sologenic and NGOs can amplify their impact, contributing more effectively to global development goals and needs.
About Sologenic
Sologenic’s regulated arm is deploying a platform with a hybrid model for the on-demand tokenization of assets. The platform facilitates trading between crypto and off-chain traditional assets such as stocks & ETFs. The institutional-grade offering is designed for RIA’s, brokerage houses, family offices, banks and other financial institutions looking to tokenize real-world assets for their clients.
Learn more at www.sologenic.com
