Unit 5: Strengthening Civil Society

With the advent of economic and political changes and a boom in science and technology, capacity building or capacity upgradation, is crucial. Capacities of people involved in any sector need to be continuously assessed and built. In the case of the voluntary sector, there are various aspects to capacity building like individual capacity, organisational capacity, sectoral capacity and environmental capacity.
After completing this Unit you will be familiar with the following aspects of capacity building of civil society:

• What capacity and capacity building mean in the context of civil society and civil society organisations (CSOs)
• How capacity within CSOs can be strengthened
• How capacity in the civil society sector as a whole can be strengthened
• How capacity in the wider environment which affects civil society and CSOs can be strengthened
• Current and future issues concerning capacity building in civil society