Capacity Building in the Arab Nonprofit Sector: A Scoping Review and Preliminary Bibliometric Insights

Abstract

Arab countries are pursuing ambitious development agendas, modernizing while preserving cultural identities. Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) play vital roles across social, economic, and environmental sectors, yet research on capacity building remains limited. Guided by PRISMA-ScR, this bilingual review (English and Arabic) retrieved 219 records (2012–2023), of which only 20 met the inclusion criteria. A small-scale bibliometric analysis identified key concepts involving institutional development, the NPO watchdog function, and Islamic social finance. This review contributes to global capacity-building theories by unveiling region-specific factors, such as localized volunteering and religious endowments, that both enrich and challenge conventional NPO models. While highlighting pressing gaps for empirical and conceptual work, it offers actionable insights for policymakers and nonprofit leaders seeking to strengthen Arab NPO interventions. Ultimately, it reframes capacity-building dialogues, revealing how Arab NPOs can advance broader development agendas. The data sets generated and/or analyzed during this study are available from the corresponding author on request.