Strengthening the Financial Stability of Civil Society Organizations Through Regular Giving

Civil society organisations (CSOs) in Slovakia continue to face unstable and short-term financing, which limits their ability to plan strategically, retain staff, and respond to long-term social challenges. Many organisations remain highly dependent on grants, public funding, and one-off fundraising campaigns. This creates financial uncertainty and weakens the long-term resilience and independence of the sector.

At the same time, recurring individual giving remains underdeveloped among many Slovak CSOs, despite its strong potential to provide predictable and sustainable income. Through our experience operating DARUJME.sk since 2012, we see that regular donors represent one ofthe most stable funding sources for CSOs. The total volume of recurring donations and thenumber of recurring donors continue to grow every year. However, in 2025 only 388 out of 1,088 organisations registered on DARUJME.sk actively received recurring donations.

Smaller and regional organisations are particularly disadvantaged. They often lack fundraising know-how, strategic communication skills, access to data, and the internal capacity needed tobuild long-term relationships with donors. Many organisations still approach fundraising mainly through short-term campaigns instead of systematic donor engagement and community building.

The project also addresses the broader challenge of public trust and engagement in civil society. Regular giving is not only a financial tool but also a mechanism for strengthening long-term relationships between organisations and the public. Supporting recurring giving cantherefore contribute to stronger civic participation, increased public trust in CSOs, and a more resilient civil society environment in Slovakia. 

The project targets mostly organisations already registered on DARUJME.sk, especially smaller and regional CSOs seeking to strengthen their financial sustainability and fundraising capacities.

The project aims to strengthen the financial stability and fundraising capacities of CSO in Slovakia through the development of recurring giving and long-term donor engagement.

The project combines technological improvements, capacity-building activities, mentoring,networking, and public communication. One of the activities will be the development of new functionalities on the DARUJME.sk platform that support recurring giving and donor retention.These will include e.g. automated reminders for failed recurring payments, improvements to donation forms and UX.

Another key activity will be a comprehensive educational programme for CSOs focused on FR strategies, recurring giving, data use, and building donor communities. The project will include online and in-person workshops across different Slovak regions, as well as an intensive mentoring and incubation programme for selected organisations with high potential for developing recurring giving.

The project will also support networking and knowledge-sharing among organisations using DARUJME.sk. Participating organisations will exchange practical experience, fundraising approaches, and examples of good practice related to recurring donations and donor retention.

An important part of the project will be a public awareness campaign promoting the importance of recurring giving and public trust in civil society organisations.

The campaign will communicate the impact of CSOs and encourage long-term public engagement through regular donations. The project will also create a publicly accessible directory of verified organisations registeredon DARUJME.sk and publish an e-book titled “How to Build Recurring Giving”.

The Norwegian partner, Norsensus Mediaforum, will contribute international know-how indigital communication and recurring fundraising. The cooperation will include consultations,sharing of experience, and a study visit to Norway focused on practical examples ofsuccessful recurring giving models.

The project aims to improve the financial sustainability and long-term resilience of CSOs in Slovakia by increasing their ability to systematically acquire and retain recurring donors.

The main beneficiaries will be organisations registered on DARUJME.sk, particularly smaller and regional CSOs with limited fundraising capacities. Through the project, these organisations will gain access to improved fundraising tools, practical education, mentoring,networking opportunities, and donor engagement strategies that will help them strengthen their financial stability and diversify their income sources.

By the end of the project, we aim to increase the number of organisations actively receiving recurring donations through DARUJME.sk from 388 to at least 450 organisations. At least 150 CSOs will strengthen their fundraising capacities through participation in workshops,mentoring, and incubation activities focused on recurring giving. These organisations will subsequently implement concrete fundraising measures, such as launching FR campaigns,starting to actively raise donations, or introducing recurring giving programmes and donor retention processes.

The project will result in improved donor retention processes, stronger communication withsupporters, and wider use of data-driven fundraising approaches within the civil society sector. Participating organisations are expected to build stronger donor communities andreduce their dependence on unstable short-term funding sources.

The broader public will also benefit from the project through increased access to transparent and verified organisations, greater awareness of the role of civil society, and more opportunities to participate in public-benefit activities through recurring donations.

The project is also expected to strengthen cooperation and knowledge-sharing within the civil society sector and contribute to a more supportive environment for long-term philanthropy and civic participation in Slovakia.