Kepa is the umbrella organisation for Finnish civil society organisations (CSOs) who work with development cooperation or are otherwise interested in global affairs. At the moment Kepa has more than 300 member organisations, ranging from small voluntary-based organisations to major national organisations.
Kepa was founded in 1985 to coordinate the Finnish Volunteer Service, through which dozens of professional volunteers were sent to work in developing countries. The programme was scaled down after 1995, and Kepa’s work today mainly involves strengthening civil society both in Finland and in developing countries, with the ultimate goal of changing the socioeconomic structures and processes that lead to impoverishment.
Kepa’s main activities include training, advisory services and development policy work.
Kepa’s headquarters are in Helsinki, and we also have country offices in Mozambique, Nicaragua and Tanzania. Additionally a small regional office covering the Mekong region is based in Thailand.
Kepa is a politically non-aligned organisation that receives funding from Finland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs.