AFP Chapter Spotlight: AFP Egypt and MENA Chapter

In this Q&A, Perihan Abouelela, AFP Egypt and MENA Chapter president, highlights the fundraising community in Egypt, future plans for the chapter and more.

Can you tell us about the fundraising community in Egypt? 
Egypt has 50,000 non-government organizations. All NGOs do their own fundraising yet do not have professional fundraisers. There are top 10 NGOs that have professional fundraisers, and that’s the group that makes up the AFP Egypt Chapter. The fundraising usually targets, individuals, corporations, gulf and international donors, and the market is more or less like the U.S., consists of 75% individuals, 15% corporations, and 10% international organizations.  

What was the driving force to create an AFP chapter in Egypt?
After attending AFP ICON in 2011, Dr. Azza Koura was impressed by how the fundraising job was organized professionally and was inspired to create a chapter that would allow fundraisers to gather for networking, consultancy, sharing and promoting ethical fundraising. 

How do you recruit new members and build the pipeline of fundraising leaders? 
The membership chair’s main duty is targeting new fundraisers and each chapter member has a list for targeting new professionals. In addition, we communicate with NGOs to  promote chapter benefits. We also utilize the benefits of AFP Global, such as the Chamberlain scholarship for ICON and the LEAD scholarship to attract them to join. 

How do you engage the community in your chapters work? 
We hold regular meetings and briefing sessions after both the ICON and LEAD conference. We held virtual meetings during the consecutive waves of coronavirus pandemic. We also have a Whatsapp group where we rapidly share AFP news, fundraising news and jobs. 

What has the Egypt chapter accomplished that you are most proud of? 
We had two big fundraising events that were moderated by top leaders from AFP Global, including Kevin Foyle and Martha Schumacher, 2021 AFP Distinguished Professional Andrea McManus. Those events targeted top NGOs and professional fundraisers all over Egypt. We promoted the AFP Code of Ethics and the Misr El Kheir Foundation—the lead NGO in Egypt, which adopted Code of Ethics. The MEK has 17 branches and more than 1,200 employees, where 20% of them are fundraisers, promoting the best practices of AFP Global to the top NGOs in Egypt.

What are some of the future plans for the chapter? 
We’d like to create a third event that includes experts from AFP Global, specifically for NGOs and fundraisers from the Gulf, including corporations, CEOs and consultants in the Egypt Chapter. 

What advice can you share with other international regions thinking about starting a chapter but unsure about how to start the process? 
Select your board members, identify the objectives and common goals, and communicate with AFP Global. Attending both the ICON and LEAD will inspire you to initiate your chapter. The capacity building resources, which are available on AFP website, are a bonus as it will support both your NGO and chapter.