Software for NGOs

Something that is absolutely necessary, but is not there as yet. Mifos is supposed to a microfinance open source software with development efforts headed by the Grameen Bank, but the software is not available online as yet. Panacea Dreamweavers from Chennai, India are slightly better off and provide two paid applications: automation of school activities, and NGO accounting software. They also provide a free Self Help Group (SHG) managing software, but the functionality is only limited to loan management, and the source code is completely undocumented.

There is serious need for a good MFI software, because it is not just good account maintenance that is needed, but accountability makes it easier to improve the money flow to an MFI. If any geek wants to make some real impact, then this is what he or she should work on. Or, leave the geeks aside, why not you or I? And why not Microsoft or any other company for that matter?

On the same track, NGO In A Box and the Nonprofit Open Source Initiative are trying to assemble together software commonly needed by NGOs, such as email clients and web browsers, and provide pre-loaded systems so that the NGOs do not have to spend a lot of time in overcoming the technological hassles. These organizations are presently putting together generic systems, but plan to develop profile systems for specific categories of applications as well very soon.