For the past two decades, third sector activities in Hungary have been focused on the development of Hungarian civil society.
The circle of organizations working in the field of international development remains quite small, but recently Hungarian NGOs have shown a growing interest in participating in international development. During the first round of EuropeAid projects, for example, the majority of proposals from Central and Eastern Europe came from Hungary (11).
The majority of organizations active in the international development field are church-related. Interventions tend to be in emergency situations, but some do have proper development projects underway. Most of the international fieldwork is done in neighboring countries, with very few working in other regions of the world.
The most important activity carried out by NGDOs is awareness raising and development education on international development issues within Hungary, targeting politicians, decision makers, media and students. This is also the main area of intervention for the Hungarian Association of NGOs for Development and Humanitarian Aid (HAND), created in 2003 to unite non-governmental development organizations (NGDOs) working in Hungary. It aims to contribute to the formulation of development cooperation policy, building on the experience of member organizations. It’s most important activity.
