The major problem faced by Indian NGOs working in the health sector is not the lack of funds, but lack of awareness of availability of funds, according to Finlay Craig, managing director, Factsinternational.com, a UK based international consultancy. "Indian NGOs often fail to understand where the money is, and what the donor wants. It is this lack of access to existing funds that has to be looked into," he said.

In an exclusive interaction with pharmabiz.com, Craig said that the foundations promoted by pharmaceutical companies are interested only in high tech research, and not in promoting primary healthcare programmes in the country. He wanted Indian NGOs to mobilize resources from within the country by identifying the right donor and approaching him for the right cause. "India can take care of most of the healthcare funding needs of its citizens. With more than 90 million Indians enjoying a higher income status than that of the European average, India has tremendous funding options," he observed.

Craig, who had worked with the Indian arms of NGOs like OXFAM and HelpAge International for decades, wanted the country to look for local resource generation in the health sector. "Personally fund raising is not about money, it's about advancing a cause. It is not fund raising, but friend raising," he says.

Disagreeing with the style of functioning of international funding majors like Global Fund, he wanted funding agencies to take more responsibility when it comes to the selection of programmes and its effective implementation.

Indian health NGOs should succeed in involving domestic pharmaceutical industry, corporate sector and develop partnerships with religious and other cultural institutions to carry forward their programmes, he said.

Craig's current clients include the WHO, Stop TB Partnership, Plan International, the National Kidney Research Fund and Resource Alliance. Factsinternational provides fundraising, advocacy, communications, training and solutions to not-for-profit organizations world over.