Registered entities in the Netherlands and Germany
CBM Global Disability Inclusion Vereniging (CBM Global) is registered in the Netherlands under commercial registration number 75787032. The German subsidiary, CBM Global Disability Inclusion gGmbH, is registered in the Handelsregister Darmstadt under number 100174.
Governance
The highest governance body of the Vereniging is the General Meeting of the Members. The General Meeting elects the Board of the Vereniging.
Under its Articles of Association and By-laws, the Board of CBM Global may have a maximum of nine members, of whom three should be independent, non-member directors.
During 2025, CBM Global’s Board comprised nine members:
- Andrew Ellis – CBM Australia
- Edwin Godfrey (Chair of the Board) – CBM UK
- Mark Finan – CBM Ireland
- Dulamsuren Jigjid – Independent
- Ivy Kihara – CBM Kenya
- Delphine Misan-Arenyeka – Independent
- Neil Murray – CBM New Zealand
- Ursula Simon – CBM Switzerland
- José Viera – Independent
The board held five meetings in 2025, four of which were virtual, and one held in person. More information about CBM Global’s board members can be found on the website.
Executive Management
The Executive Director reported to the Board Chair and oversaw delivery of the strategic priorities agreed with the Board for 2025: strengthening Federation capacity, performance and collaboration; promoting CBM Global as a unique and distinctive Federation; establishing solid programme quality and delivery; and pursuing growth and new funding opportunities.
Remuneration
All Board members give their time freely, and none received remuneration during the year.
The pay of CBM Global staff is reviewed annually and normally adjusted in line with increases in the retail price index. Salaries are also benchmarked against similar-sized international non-governmental organisations in the country concerned.
Risk Management
The management team implemented a risk management process to identify, monitor and mitigate risk. The risk register was reviewed monthly and updated quarterly, with a clear focus on following through on mitigation actions. The Board received risk reports at each of its meetings.
Some cash at bank is held in local currency in our 11 country offices across Asia, Africa and Bolivia. To minimise foreign exchange risk, we keep only balances representing a few months of operating costs in country offices. Because those costs are also incurred in local currency, this helps reduce exposure to exchange-rate fluctuations.
We operate in some of the poorest countries in the world, where fraud risks are inherently higher. We have a zero-tolerance policy on fraud and corruption and maintain monitoring measures, including a whistleblowing facility.
Safeguarding and Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment
CBM Global believes that anyone who comes into contact with our staff and representatives, programmes and operations should be protected from harm, exploitation, abuse and harassment, regardless of age, gender identity, disability, belief, sexual orientation, ethnic origin or other status.
Our Safeguarding Policy sets out our approach to preventing and responding to abuse, exploitation and harassment, including the responsibilities and procedures that apply across the organisation. It also includes CBM Global’s safeguarding commitments, which define the behaviours that employees and representatives are expected to uphold and to hold one another accountable for.
A dedicated Safeguarding Manager leads the implementation of our safeguarding framework, including capacity strengthening, report handling, incident management, investigations, compliance and accountability. The Safeguarding Manager reports quarterly to the Global Management Team, the Executive Director and the Board.
In 2025, we focused on strengthening safeguarding risk management and assessing how consistently we are meeting our own safeguarding standards across the portfolio.
Key achievements included the development and rollout of a practical safeguarding risk management tool to help project teams and partners assess safeguarding risks more intentionally and plan mitigation measures. The Safeguarding Manager supported this process through online forums and face-to-face workshops with country teams, partners and OPDs in Indonesia, Laos and Kenya.
We also made progress in reviewing and improving safe and inclusive feedback mechanisms. In a programme implemented in Kenya and Zimbabwe, CBM Global and partners piloted an approach using community safeguarding focal points. These trusted community members were recruited, trained and supported to act as a link between communities, partners and CBM Global in receiving and reporting safeguarding concerns.
Across the Federation, teams also carried out a self-assessment against CBM safeguarding standards. The findings will help shape workplans and priorities for the year ahead.