Save the Children Norway (SCN) has been working in Guatemala since the 1976 earthquake, with an in-country office throughout practically the whole period. Among other partners, SCN has been cooperating with Save the Children Guatemala (SCG) since it was founded in 1983. The organization previously bore the name Alianza para Desearrollo Juvenil Comunitario (ADEJUC), but was identified as a member of the Save the Children Alliance and used ‘Save the Children Guatemala’ as an additional name on its letterhead. In 2004 the organization changed its name to the current Save the Children Guatemala. In order to avoid confusion, this report...

SCG has a governance structure with a General Assembly as the maximum authority. The Assembly elects the Board of Directors, which oversees the work of the Director General and the rest of the SCG administration. The 2003 evaluation and the 2005/6 self-assessment both identify problems in making this governance structure function according to the principles of the Save the Children Alliances Best Practices. According to these assessments, the Board has been

a) little involved and not assuming its responsibilities for overseeing the organization

b) dominated by the staff members of the Board (according to SC Best Practices, staff members ought...

In terms of governance structure, there is still some way to go before the SC Alliance guidelines of best practices are adhered to. Yet, the process is moving in the right direction. The Board of Directors is increasingly being involved in the strategic management of the organizations, and mechanisms to ensure proper selection and rotation of board members are gradually being improved. SCG might consider whether its current administrative structure is the optimal for promoting an efficient division of labor and use of resources.

In terms of strategic planning, the elaboration of the 2006 strategy document implied a significant step...

In Chapter 2 of this report (Findings) a number of recommendations are mentioned in the context of the relevant descriptions or discussions. They have all been put in italics, so they are easily found when skimming through the pages. In order to avoid unnecessary repetitions, and to allow the focus in this section to be on the most important recommendations, most of these earlier points will not be mentioned again in this section.

1. The most important challenge facing SCG relates to the financial issues of very high dependence on one donor and the problem of long-term economic sustainability of a...