THE HAGUE - The Netherlands is cutting its subsidies to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from 1.4 billion euros to around 400 million euros. The cuts will happen in 200 million euro chunks in the period 2026-2030, Minister Reinette Klever for Foreign Trade and Development Aid announced in a letter to parliament. According to the PVV Minister, who once, as an MP, argued to abolish all foreign aid, these aid organizations and charities must become less dependent on the government.
“My first decision is that we are going to organize the cooperation with NGOs differently,” Clever wrote. “Less money will go to cooperation with social organizations. This will make them less dependent on government support.”
Klever didn’t say which NGOs will get their budgets cut and by how much - that information will follow early next year - but she did list some priorities in her letter to parliament. According to her, the government will focus on “themes in which the Netherlands distinguishes itself internationally.”
There will still be a budget for combating HIV and AIDs in developing countries, preventing female genital mutilation and child marriage, stimulating female entrepreneurship, combating violence against women, promoting clean and fair trade, and protecting human rights, she said.
Klever wants to give the subsidies that remain directly to communities and organizations on the ground. According to the Minister, eliminating “complex structures” means these organizations and communities can spend the money as “efficiently as possible.”
To make NGOs less dependent on the government, Klever is also tightening the rules for being eligible for government funding. Currently, aid organizations must raise at least 25 percent of their income from donations to qualify for government funding. In the future, they’ll need to raise at least half of their income themselves to be eligible for a subsidy from the Dutch government.
According to the government’s plans, Klever has to cut her Ministry’s budget by 2.4 billion euros from 2027. This is the first step toward that budget cut.
