Integrity complaint

Through this page you can file a report or complaint about an integrity violation committed by ngo-federatie, including by its employees, volunteers and board members during the performance of their assignement, as well as file a report or complaint about an integrity violation committed by external people whith whom ngo-federatie has a contract (ex. consultants, trainers, researchers) provided that the violation takes place during the exercise of their mission for ngo-federatie.  The reporting and treatment of complaints is confidential, independent and takes into account the reporter and the aggrieved person.

Ngo-federatie developed an extensive integrity policy that includes the core values that employees and board members of ngo-federatie must demonstrate and follow when carrying out their assignement. These values are stated in the code of ethics, that can be found starting on page 3 of the integrity policy of ngo-federatie. If an employee or board member violates this code of ethics, this may give rise to an integrity complaint.

The English version of the integrity policy will be reuploaded soon (the translation from Dutch to English is being improved).

Do you have a report or complaint about a recognized NGO?

Every NGO recognized by the Belgian government has a confidential reporting point/reporting hotline where complaints about integrity violations committed by employees, board members, volunteers, etc. of the organization in question can be filed. So if you do’nt have a complaint about ngo-federatie, but a complaint about a recognized NGO, we would like to refer you to the confidential reporting point/reporting hotline of the organization in question.

If you have a complaint specifically about non-ethical fundraising, you can contact the complaints desk of the Ethical Fundraising Association (EF).

If you don’t have a complaint or report, but a general question related to the NGO sector, do not hesitate to contact one of the staff members of ngo-federatie.

Dan ben je bij dit meldpunt aan het juiste adres. Elke benadeelde van integriteitsschendingen begaan door ngo-federatie, met inbegrip van haar medewerkers, vrijwilligers en bestuurders in uitoefening van hun functie, alsook van integriteitsschendingen begaan door externen waarmee ngo-federatie contracteerde (vb. consultants, vormers, onderzoekers…) (op voorwaarde dat de schending plaatsvindt tijdens de uitoefening van hun opdracht voor ngo-federatie) kan een klacht of melding indienen via het onderstaande e-mailadres of telefoonnummer.

Do you have a report or complaint concerning ngo-federatie?

Then you have come to the right place. Any aggrieved person of integrity violations committed by ngo-federatie, including by its employees, volunteers and board members in the performance of their assignement, as well as of an integrity violation committed by external people whith whom ngo-federatie has a contract (ex. consultants, trainers, researchers) (provided that the violation takes place during the exercise of their mission for ngo-federatie), may submit a complaint or report via the e-mail address or telephone number below.

Every report or complaint will be treated confidentially. Only the complaint manager, Sam Mostrey, has access to the information of the report. Personal data is not shared with anyone unless with the reporter’s permission. Other people may be involved at a later stage if the further treatment of the complaint requires it.

The treatment of the report or complaint is done in an objective and independent manner. It proceeds in accordance with the integrity policy and the ethical code of ngo-federatie and in conformity with the internal procedure for the treatmenet of complaints (see page 16-20 integrity policy ngo-federatie).

After submitting your complaint, you will be kept informed of further treatment.

Filing a complaint concerning ngo-federatie

Send an email to our complaints manager Sam Mostrey at integriteit@ngo-federatie.be. In the email, please answer the questions below. You can also contact us by phone at +32 2 536 19 29. Complaints against the complaints manager himself or against the director of ngo-federatie (Arnout Justaert) are not reported to the complaints manager, but to the president of ngo-federatie, Vincent Volckaert (vincent.volckaert@gmail.com), who will also handle this report confidentially.

• Name
• E-mail address and any other contact information (e.g. phone number)
• What organization are you affiliated with?
• Please describe the nature of your relationship with ngo-federatie.
• Please list all persons and parties involved.
• When did the events take place?
• Describe your report or complaint. Be as complete as possible.

In need of advice on integrity and possible integrity violations? The integrity advisor is there for you.

Having questions about integrity is very normal: what is integrity, when is something an integrity violation, what can I do when I am a witness or victim of a potential integrity violation…?

Employees and volunteers of ngo-federatie, as well as any other person who wishes to do so, can therefore turn in confidence to the integrity advisor for advice on integrity and potential violations. The integrity advisor acts as a guide: he or she acts as a sparring partner and guides you through the organization’s integrity framework and the various possible paths to take. The integrity advisor is always bound by the confidential nature of the information received, unless there is an exceptional situation, such as a serious and imminent danger to the person, other persons, or the organization, which requires a violation of the confidentiality principle mentioned above.

Contact details: Katrien Geens, reachable at katrien.geens@11.be (tel: 02 536 11 82) and Sophie Renson, reachable at sophie.renson@11.be (tel: 02 536 11 94).

Central point of contact for abuse in development cooperation

Since July 1, 2023, in parallel to the reporting points/reporting hotlines on organizational level, a central point of contact for abuse exists at sector level, which is managed by the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation.

The scope of this central point of contact is limited to reports of abuse, where abuse is defined as “sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment.”

• “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a person in a position of vulnerability, trust, or unequal power for sexual purposes, including – but not limited to – obtaining economic, social, or political benefits from the sexual exploitation of another;
• “sexual abuse” means actual or threatening physical transgressive conduct of a sexual nature, whether by force, or coercion, or by exploitation of unequal power;
• “sexual harassment” means unacceptable and unwelcome sexual conduct, including – but not limited to – sexual suggestions or demands, requests for sexual favors, and sexual, verbal or physical conduct or gestures, which are offensive or demeaning or may reasonably be perceived as such

How does the central point of contact relate to the organizational-level reporting points/hotlines (also called first-line hotlines), such as the reporting point/hotline of ngo-federatie? To whom should one report his/her abuse complaint?

The basic principle laid down in the legislation is that reports must always first be reported to the reporting point at the organizational level, i.e. the reporting point of ngo-federatie. The central point of contact can only follow up a report when there are good reasons to believe that:

1. it is unlikely that the investigation will be conducted thoroughly and correctly after reporting to the first-line hotline;
2. a report to a first-line hotline has not been followed up;
3. the investigation was not conducted thoroughly and correctly after reporting to a first-line hotline;
4. the necessary measures have not been taken when it appears/turns out that the facts reported to the first-line hotline are well-founded.

More information and link to the reporting form of the central point of contact: : https://diplomatie.belgium.be/en/integrity