While philanthropy in India (and elsewhere) is focusing on efficiency such as due diligence paperwork, what tools are needed to make NGOs more effective and impactful? In this article on IDR, Nimesh Sumati of Caring Friends, India talks of the importance of trust, understanding the vision and context of the founders of grassroots organisations and…
India is said to be the world’s second most unequal country, after Russia. Despite tremendous progress in reducing absolute poverty in the past two decades, and despite India’s promising economic growth, 97 per cent of the country would still be considered poor or low-income by global standards. What can developed countries with high levels of poverty like the UK learn…
By Birger Stamperdahl The non-profit sector in India is perhaps unlike that of any other country. By many accounts, the sector is massive, made up of hundreds of thousands of registered groups ranging from neighbourhood associations to well-organized non-profits with national reach. The diversity and size of the sector is probably larger than that of any…
By Swarna Rajagopalan I founded and run a small nonprofit, Prajnya, far from the capital city and off the radar of foundation offices; our work features neither in CSR schedules nor in government schemes; we have no FCRA or marketing genius. All I had when I started off was a decent slate of academic and interpersonal skills,…
Puja Marwaha of CRY (Child Rights and You) was announced as the 5th winner of the Olga Alexeeva Memorial Prize at the WINGS International Meeting for Funders in Barcelona, 26–27 March.Also nominated for the prize this year include: Frederick Mulder, The Funding Network Florencia Roitstein, Ellas: Women & Philanthropy Henry Timms & Asha Curran, 92Y…
By Pradeep Patra ‘It’s an interesting time for philanthropy in India. While there is a significant increase in the total volume of giving, on the other hand we are still grappling with finding the right models to create sustainable impact while adhering to principles of social justice.’ So said Amitabh Behar of the National Foundation…
By Jerome D’Souza Philanthropy, in its broadest sense, is love for humanity. A philanthropist has to make an ‘active effort to promote human welfare’. This means that a philanthropist is not only someone who donates a lot of money to humanitarian causes; they must also make a significant effort to change a societal problem. Because, philanthropy is not…
India has around 2 percent of the world’s millionaires and 5 percent of its billionaires, and since 2000, wealth in the country has grown 9.2 percent a year, faster than the global average of 6 percent. At the same time, India ranks among the highest in terms of income inequality and is home to the…
by Amita Puri In her fairly comprehensive paper, Philanthropy in India (a welcome addition to the literature on this topic), Caroline Hartnell emphasizes that the insights shared can only be a starting point in setting out an overview of philanthropy in India. For me the invitation to others to build on this is exciting in…
Response to Caroline Hartnell by Tulika Srivastava Sarojini Naidu once quipped to Mahatma Gandhi: ‘Bapuji! It takes a lot of money to keep you poor!’ Conversations about philanthropy and social justice as a sector are few in India, which makes Caroline Hartnell’s paper extremely relevant and timely. She has undertaken a herculean task, in providing a reader-friendly frame to…