The Oscar (and $750,000) for "Best NGO" goes to Ottawa-based group

In the world of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the annual Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship is, those in the know tell me, is about as big a deal as winning an Oscar is for those who work in Hollywood. The award is named for Jeff Skoll, the Canadian who ended up as one of the founders and top executives at eBay. I remember writing about Skoll when I was a tech reporter and, at one point, he was Canada's second-richest Canadian, behind only the late Ken Thomson. Skoll still has lots of money and has been keen to use his eBay wealth to do some good in the world.

The award is one way Skoll does this.

So (drum roll please), the Oscar for NGOs this year goes to:

Peace Dividend Trust of Ottawa! Congratulations. This group does its work in Afghanistan, Haiti and East Timor and tries to get international aid agencies to source whatever they need to do their work from local suppliers. That means giving local suppliers — who are often operating with pre-industrial or, at best, developing world management skills and technology — the means to plug into technology-driven supply chains of modern aid organizations.

The Skoll Foundation will give PDT $750,000 (U.S.) and provide the kind of advice and investor interest that a venture capitalist might show in a promising startup.

PDT's founder, by the way, is Scott Gilmore who was born in Flin Flon, Manitoba, grew up in Edmonton and is now based here in Ottawa. Way to go, Scott!

The press release:

Peace Dividend Trust (PDT) announced today it is the recipient of a three-year, USD $765,000 Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship (SASE). The award, which recognizes the most innovative and effective approaches to resolving critical social issues, was made in support of PDT’s mission to make peace and humanitarian operations more effective, efficient and equitable in countries like Afghanistan, Haiti, and East Timor. Founded by Canadian Scott Gilmore, Peace Dividend Trust is just the second Canadian organization to join the prestigious group of Skoll social entrepreneurs who are working around the world on issues such as tolerance and human rights, health, environmental sustainability, peace and security, institutional responsibility, and economic and social equity.

Peace Dividend Trust also received an unprecedented endorsement from the United States Government through a joint memo issued by US Ambassador Karl Eikenberry and General Stanley McChrystal, directing all US government agencies in Afghanistan to use PDT’s services. PDT’s flagship project in Afghanistan is boosting GDP growth and job creation by channeling international aid and operational spending into the local economy through increased local procurement. Since 2006, PDT has redirected over $370m of new international spending into the Afghan economy, creating thousands of jobs on the ground.

“Peace Dividend Trust is honoured by the Skoll Award, which will provide a significant boost to our efforts to change the way aid is delivered on the ground to the people of Afghanistan and in other conflict zones,” said Scott Gilmore, Founder and Executive Director of PDT. “We are also extremely gratified by the US government’s decision to support PDT’s work to create jobs and build the Afghan economy”.

“Peace Dividend Trust, and its founder Scott Gilmore, are tremendous additions to the community of Skoll social entrepreneurs,” said Sally Osberg, President and CEO of the Skoll Foundation. “In developing a new, innovative model for peace and humanitarian operations, Scott and his team have demonstrated large-scale impact in a relatively short period of time. We’re thrilled that our support will enable Peace Dividend Trust to reinforce and grow its operations in war torn and post conflict regions around the world, ultimately resulting in a stronger peace and larger peace dividend for those affected communities.”

“The Skoll award will enable PDT to continue to expand our organization and increase our impact. It will allow PDT to hire peacekeepers and aid workers with new ideas for improving the lives of people effected by conflict around the world”, added Scott Gilmore.

Scott Gilmore will accept the award at a special ceremony on April 15, 2010, at the Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship at Oxford University. Scott will be participating in the three-day World Forum along with over 800 attendees from the social entrepreneurship community.

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