In our quest to offer world-class courses, we have recruited a pool of highly qualified lecturers who are specialists in their fields and dedicated to producing a strong calibre of professionals.
Bheki is the Director at the Centre and Editor of the International Review on African Philanthropy and Social Investment Journal. He brings his experience in knowledge generation, policy analysis and building capable institutions to his lectures, which are ‘Landscaping African Philanthropy’, ‘Public Policy and Law’, ‘African Gifting and Philanthropy’, ‘Organisation and Management of Philanthropy’.
Jacob Mati
Jacob is the Deputy Director and Academic Director at the Centre. His professional experience spans across academia, civil society and consulting in many continents, which he brings as a lecturer for ‘Research Methods’, ‘Community Gifting and Philanthropy’, ‘Working with Communities’, and ‘Public Policy and Law’.
Peter Thuynsma
Peter has vast experience in teaching and practicing fundraising, and has been involved in building the fundraising functions at several South African universities. He is the lecturer for ‘Philanthropy and Fundraising’.
Sibongile Mkhabela
Sibongile is a social justice activist and social worker with extensive experience in public policy, philanthropy, fundraising, grant making, and community and institution building. She brings her vast experience as a lecturer for ‘Working with Communities’.
Bongiwe Mlangeni
Bongiwe is an independent consultant with sector experience as an executive and founder in journalism and communication. She is the lecturer for ‘Marketing and Communication in Contemporary Philanthropy’.
Christine Guchu
Christine is a facilitator, teacher, coach and strategy designer with over 30 years of experience as a development practitioner and has trained over 80 leaders since 2014. She is the lecturer for ‘Ethical Leadership’.
Gerry Salole
Gerry is a social anthropologist and author who has vast experience in international development, having worked across Africa, Europe and North America. He is a lecturer for ‘Philanthropic Foundations’ and ‘Innovations in Philanthropy’.
Alan Fowler
Alan is an Honorary Professor and Chair in African Philanthropy at the Centre who has decades of experience bridging knowledge in the academic, social investment and civic engagement sectors. He is the lecturer for ‘African Gifting and Philanthropy’.
Nomathemba Memela
The first PhD graduate to come out of the Centre, Nomathemba is an accomplished management professional and a sessional lecturer at the Wits Business School. She is the lecturer for ‘Measuring and Reporting Performance’.
Candice Morkel
Candice is the Director of the Centre for Learning on Evaluation and Results Anglophone Africa (CLEAR-AA). Her specialisation is in policy and public sector governance, as well as monitoring and evaluation. She is the lecturer for ‘Measuring and Reporting Performance’.
Melody Mandevere
Melody is a Postdoctoral Researcher, and the lecturer for ‘The Role of Religion and Belief’. Melody is passionate about home-grown solutions to African challenges and is contributing to the Centre’s vision.
Wycliffe Nduga Ouma
Wycliffe is a Research Associate at the Centre, with experience covering sustainable finance and investment, social impact investing, socio-economic development, corporate philanthropy, financial risk modelling, asset pricing and international trade. He is the lecturer for ‘Advising Private Wealth’.
Sustainability of governance and leadership remains the challenge for the non-profit sector, limiting its ability to address deep social and economic challenges in Africa. In response to the urgent need for an NGO leadership transition programme that will assist civil society, the Innocent Chukuma Leadership Fellowship was launched in 2018 as theAfrica NGO Leadership Transition Fellowship Programme.
This development programme has been designed to give NGO a full understanding of what is required to transition and plan for their careers outside of their typical working environment.
During the March 2022 cohort of the Fellowship, our Centre welcomed the following fellows as they began the learning pillar of this programme:
Muhammad Kyeyune (SORAK Development Agency, Uganda)
James Movel Wuye (Interfain Mediation Center of the Muslim Christian Dialogue, Nigeria)
Jenipher Mkandawire (Foundation for Children’s Rights, Malawi)
Taib Abdulrahman Basheeib (Reach Out Centre Trust, Kenya)
The fellows, who are all leaders in their respective countries and organisations, received practical lessons on developing succession plans within their own organisations, contemplate their personal transition plans, and preserve their knowledge and experiencefrom our team of lecturers.
Upon completion of this pillar, the fellows shared presentations on their accomplishments as well as their succession and transition plans.
We wish to thank the Association for Research on Non-profit Organisations for their partnership and support on this programme.
One of the most valuable aspects of the Fellowship was the opportunity to expand my knowledge about philanthropy through learning about the differences between American philanthropy and African philanthropy. I gained a deeper understanding of different funding model and the types of causes that philanthropists fund in the USA vs Africa and other regions. This knowledge gave me a deeper understanding of the strategies and approaches that are most effective in achieving impact through philanthropic work.
Another significant aspect of my experience was stepping out of my comfort zone. Although it was initially challenging, I learned to embrace and appreciate these differences, which has broadened my perspective and helped me to become more adaptable in different situations. One of the exciting parts of the Fellowship was the opportunity to walk almost everywhere and experience functional and accessible public transport at any time. This was an excellent way to explore the city and experience its unique culture.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Professors Kathleen McCarthy and Barbara Leopold of CUNY for their invaluable support and guidance throughout the Fellowship. They guided my understanding of the field and helped to shape my ideas into a feasible project. I would also like to thank Amal Muhammad for ensuring that my stay in New York was both productive and enjoyable.
Overall, my time in the Emerging Leaders International Fellows Programme was a transformative experience that has broadened my perspective, enhanced my skills and knowledge, and enabled me to make a more significant impact in my professional life.
One of the most valuable aspects of the Fellowship was the opportunity to expand my knowledge about philanthropy through learning about the differences between American philanthropy and African philanthropy. I gained a deeper understanding of different funding model and the types of causes that philanthropists fund in the USA vs Africa and other regions. This knowledge gave me a deeper understanding of the strategies and approaches that are most effective in achieving impact through philanthropic work.
Another significant aspect of my experience was stepping out of my comfort zone. Although it was initially challenging, I learned to embrace and appreciate these differences, which has broadened my perspective and helped me to become more adaptable in different situations. One of the exciting parts of the Fellowship was the opportunity to walk almost everywhere and experience functional and accessible public transport at any time. This was an excellent way to explore the city and experience its unique culture.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Professors Kathleen McCarthy and Barbara Leopold of CUNY for their invaluable support and guidance throughout the Fellowship. They guided my understanding of the field and helped to shape my ideas into a feasible project. I would also like to thank Amal Muhammad for ensuring that my stay in New York was both productive and enjoyable.
Overall, my time in the Emerging Leaders International Fellows Programme was a transformative experience that has broadened my perspective, enhanced my skills and knowledge, and enabled me to make a more significant impact in my professional life.
By Thandi Makhubele
Participating in the Emerging Leaders International Fellows Programme at the City University of New York (CUNY) was a life-changing experience that has made a significant impact on my professional and personal growth.
My time on the Fellowship enabled me to start work on my research proposal that is focused on Strengthening African Women Giving Circles. It was an honour to have the chance to work on a research paper that is currently being implemented through CAPSI, under the banner of the Women in African Philanthropy Initiative.
One of the most valuable aspects of the Fellowship was the opportunity to expand my knowledge about philanthropy through learning about the differences between American philanthropy and African philanthropy. I gained a deeper understanding of different funding model and the types of causes that philanthropists fund in the USA vs Africa and other regions. This knowledge gave me a deeper understanding of the strategies and approaches that are most effective in achieving impact through philanthropic work.
Another significant aspect of my experience was stepping out of my comfort zone. Although it was initially challenging, I learned to embrace and appreciate these differences, which has broadened my perspective and helped me to become more adaptable in different situations. One of the exciting parts of the Fellowship was the opportunity to walk almost everywhere and experience functional and accessible public transport at any time. This was an excellent way to explore the city and experience its unique culture.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Professors Kathleen McCarthy and Barbara Leopold of CUNY for their invaluable support and guidance throughout the Fellowship. They guided my understanding of the field and helped to shape my ideas into a feasible project. I would also like to thank Amal Muhammad for ensuring that my stay in New York was both productive and enjoyable.
Overall, my time in the Emerging Leaders International Fellows Programme was a transformative experience that has broadened my perspective, enhanced my skills and knowledge, and enabled me to make a more significant impact in my professional life.
By Thandi Makhubele
Participating in the Emerging Leaders International Fellows Programme at the City University of New York (CUNY) was a life-changing experience that has made a significant impact on my professional and personal growth.
My time on the Fellowship enabled me to start work on my research proposal that is focused on Strengthening African Women Giving Circles. It was an honour to have the chance to work on a research paper that is currently being implemented through CAPSI, under the banner of the Women in African Philanthropy Initiative.
One of the most valuable aspects of the Fellowship was the opportunity to expand my knowledge about philanthropy through learning about the differences between American philanthropy and African philanthropy. I gained a deeper understanding of different funding model and the types of causes that philanthropists fund in the USA vs Africa and other regions. This knowledge gave me a deeper understanding of the strategies and approaches that are most effective in achieving impact through philanthropic work.
Another significant aspect of my experience was stepping out of my comfort zone. Although it was initially challenging, I learned to embrace and appreciate these differences, which has broadened my perspective and helped me to become more adaptable in different situations. One of the exciting parts of the Fellowship was the opportunity to walk almost everywhere and experience functional and accessible public transport at any time. This was an excellent way to explore the city and experience its unique culture.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Professors Kathleen McCarthy and Barbara Leopold of CUNY for their invaluable support and guidance throughout the Fellowship. They guided my understanding of the field and helped to shape my ideas into a feasible project. I would also like to thank Amal Muhammad for ensuring that my stay in New York was both productive and enjoyable.
Overall, my time in the Emerging Leaders International Fellows Programme was a transformative experience that has broadened my perspective, enhanced my skills and knowledge, and enabled me to make a more significant impact in my professional life.
Our Centre recently completed an evaluation exercise that provided us with the opportunity to reflect on our founding vision and mission while measuring our progress and impact. This evaluation also helped us to critically identify wins and losses of our journey so far and pathways that we used to learn and improve our interventions. As a result, we have developed a revised theory of change, a monitoring and evaluation framework as well as delivery indicators.
Using the period starting in 2016 to March 2022, the evaluation process unearthed key findings and recommendations that may improve our relevance, coherence, effectiveness, and efficiency in the sector.
The following are outcomes that our team will be working to implement in the coming months:
Implement strategies to generate additional revenue and attract more funders to nurture long-term strategic partnerships.
Invest in more staff to teach and supervise Masters and PhD students, thereby ensuring that the content of courses and the topics of postgraduate students are aligned with the Centre’s goals and objectives.
Forge new networks across the whole of Africa offering scholarships to individuals from underprivileged communities academic programmes and short courses.
Further integrate philanthropy into the programmes of Wits Business School, thereby influencing the leaders of business who attend the school’s courses.
Develop a post-training feedback system that tracks individuals who graduate from various courses, to ascertain the impact of the skills and knowledge they have gained on philanthropy in Africa.
‘For the first time since our birth, we can now refer to an official evaluation of our work and cite some exciting successes and lessons that are backed by data. All along, we have been depending on ad-hoc information. This evaluation does not surprise us, but it gave us hard evidence that we are moving in the right direction, but the journey is not as easy as we would like it to be. For example, how do we make the Centre truly African including through the lens of its funding? How do we also embed our courses not just as standalone but as integral in the other offerings by the school? These are the challenges that the evaluation has thrown back at us. We will be working hard to address these, and many other issues raised by the evaluation’, emphasised Bhekinkosi Moyo, Director of CAPSI.
In the month of March, our team and the Executive Management of Wits Business School welcomed the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation leadership team, who were in the country as part of a regional oversight visit. This visit provided us with the platform to showcase the positive impact that has been achieved through the Foundation’s funding and technical support.
The Foundation is an early supporter and partner of our Centre’s overall mission and has provided support and resources towards our work on developing community philanthropy resources and enabling its implementation.
The visiting Mott delegation was welcomed by the Head of School and the Academic Director of Wits Business School, Profs Maurice Radebe and Logan Rangasamy respectively. The Mott Foundation team was represented by the Vice President of Programmes (Neil Hegarthy), Director for Civil Society Programmes (Shannon Lawder), Director for Education Programmes (Benita Melton), Director for Environment Programmes (Samuel Passmore), Director for Flint Area Programmes (Kimberly Roberson) and Programme Officers for Civil Society (Mamo Mohapi and Lorenzo Wakefield, based in South Africa).
Following Prof Rangasamy’s introduction where he profiled the School’s commitment to integrating modules on philanthropy and social investment in its MBA offering, Prof Radebe added that “CAPSI plays a pivotal part in the School’s community and as such we are able to infuse knowledge of philanthropy and social investment like no other institution. Thanks to this unique positioning, WBS students are equipped to be a driving force for sustainable change across the continent.”
CAPSI’s Deputy Director, Prof Jacob Mati reflected on the journey of the Centre and the milestones that have been achieved, highlighting that many students have remained with the Centre by transitioning to academic roles such as Lecturers and Postdoctoral Researchers. This has allowed CAPSI to upscale the academic and executive education offerings which are now offered through an online format for practitioners across the continent. This forms part of the Centre’s mission to train cohorts of new scholars in philanthropy.
Prof Mati emphasised that the Centre has extended its support to Masters and Doctoral students through technical skills workshops and thematic events that enhance their research journeys. All of this, amongst others, has been made possible through the support and funding received from Mott Foundation, and other donors of the Centre.
Diroshnee Govender, a student at the Centre, shared her experience with the Centre. Her journey began as one of the first students on the Postgraduate Diploma in African Philanthropy and Resource Mobilisation which she completed and is now completing her Master of Management in African Philanthropy. “My time with CAPSI has left a massive impression on me professionally and personally, giving me the confidence to speak with authority on what matters to me. This time has informed how I can make a fulfilling contribution within my community, of which I now coach young people to prepare for the world of work. I have written guides on work-readiness that have been accessed by over 5 000 youth and serve as a trustee on an educational programme. I am excited to grow on this journey and intend to register for CAPSI’s PhD programme after I complete my Masters.”
In his reflection, Neil Hegarthy remarked that the mandate of the Centre was well aligned with that of the Foundation, as there was a gap to fill in philanthropy. He extended his congratulations to the Centre and remarked on the Foundation’s pride of these milestones. In his closing remarks, CAPSI’s Director, Bhekinkosi Moyo said “Our experiences over the last couple of years have sharpened our resolve to map the changes in the landscapes of African philanthropy and social investment, while assisting the sector make informed decisions as well as tilt the narrative on African philanthropy towards a positive one.”
We are grateful to the Foundation for their continued support and their generous time spent with us.
As a research and education-focused centre, we believe in the power of a gendered narrative towards philanthropy in Africa. As we join the global community in commemorating International Women’s Month, we invite you to support events and initiatives that offer opportunities to deepen your professional and personal experience of the role of women in philanthropy.
Yours in giving, CAPSI Communications
Registrations for the September 2023 intake of our Masters of Management In the field African Philanthropy are officially open.
Our programme is ideal for professionals within the development sector, who want to further their career in either the business or social sectors. The delivery of the course is fully online, thereby making it accessible to people across the continent.
We welcome applications from students registered at African universities as well as African students registered at non-African universities, whose topic of study is on matters related to Africa. Full details of the sectors, themes of study and application conditions are available here.
We have received numerous enquiries on the Masters in African Philanthropy programme. This is a one-year, full-time academic programme comprising of four core courses, a choice of three electives and a Research Report. It is ideal for professionals within the development sector who want to further their careers in either the business or social sectors.
Should you or a colleague be considering registering for this programme; we invite you to join us for a virtual information session where Programme Director Prof Jacob Mati and programme team members will share finer details of the course and respond to any questions that you may have.
Pogramme brochure:http://bit.ly/3x9ZlBW Date: Wednesday, 15 March 2023 Time: 17h00 Johannesburg time
One of the frequently referenced narratives in African philanthropy is the role that women have played, particularly in how their efforts have been integral to the development of communities across the continent.
In order to meet the objectives of widening access to existing knowledge, supporting research, and enabling networks of women in philanthropy, CAPSI has launched the Women in African Philanthropy Initiative.
What is equally exciting is that the launch of this initiative coincides with International Women’s Month; an exciting opportunity to reach hearts and minds in this time of global attention. We would like to invite you to lend your voice by sharing your favorite quote from a woman in African philanthropy, or by sharing your personal journey in philanthropy with us. The submissions gathered will form part of a growing body of work that his initiative will host and make accessible for knowledge development.
An offering from our Publications portfolio, the Research Report Spotlight Series is a platform for researchers and partners and the broader CAPSI community in Africa who write on new narratives of African philanthropy and social investment to discuss their findings in their field of specialisation with a community of practitioners and academics who have an engaged interest in the topic.
This platform will offer a glimpse into the expressions of philanthropic forms, types, and practices across the continent, with research and findings that will cover topics such as High Net-Worth Individuals, Social Investment and Philanthropic Foundations, as well as philanthropic activity in selected countries. This is the beginning of the journey towards further interpreting the philanthropic landscape in Africa, and we would love you to join us.
Date: Thursday, 30 February 2023 Time: 14h00 Johannesburg time
The Cambridge Centre for Strategic Philanthropy hosted a conversation with African philanthropist Tony Elumemi where he reflected on how the Tony Elumelu Foundation is transforming philanthropy and entrepreneurship across the African continent.
Ese Emerhi from Alliance Magazine features Sarah Mukasa, the Deputy Director of Open Society Africa about the strengths and gaps in Africa’s philanthropic infrastructure, defining African philanthropy, and why trust matters when it comes to philanthropy.
With the year well and truly over, we’re proud to have walked the journey toward the progress of philanthropy and social investment in Africa with our incredible partners and collaborators. This year-end edition newsletter has been written in reflection of the work that has been completed and the positive outlook that we will enter the new year with.
On behalf of the staff of the Centre, we wish each individual and organisation in our community a peaceful festive season and a prosperous new year.
CAPSI Communications
Note: The Centre has closed for the year and will reopen on Monday, 9 January 2023.
After what has been a productive year, we at CAPSI are gearing up for 2023 with some valuable insights, experiences, and connections that we made. With 2022 declared as our ‘Year of Publications’, the teams responsible for each of our Portfolios have shown diligence in fulfilling the goals that were set at the beginning of the year.
We were delighted to welcome new cohorts to our Post Graduate, Masters and PhD programmes in 2022. With new accreditations added to our academic programmes, we look forward to seeing more people further their studies in the growing field.
With the many dynamic ways in which new knowledge can be consumed, our Customised Masterclasses remain an exciting offering to our Executive Education suite. 2023 promises to bring more innovative ways which practitioners can strengthen their expertise.
Efficiency, Value and Relevance – these are the words we leaned on when ensuring that the Centre’s Operations deliver support to our portfolios, partners and stakeholders over the past 12 months. We look forward to bringing more of the same in the new year.
The challenge of delivering on the mandate of “Year of Publication” was exciting and insightful. The network of continental researchers rose to the occasion and produced a rich body of knowledge that has been published for wide access to the global community.
This was certainly a year of firsts that saw us hosting the inaugural Academic Conference and inaugural Research Associate workshops, both enabling the vision of developing robust and peer-reviewed research for the benefit of the philanthropic ecosystem.
Launched in 2021, the Resilient Urban Communities project made steady headway toward its mandate to undertake research and knowledge development that will present viable opportunities for sustainable communities, and quality education across Africa.
The vision of a continent that values and practices collective giving toward the greater good is becoming a reality. Through storytelling, thematic dialogues and technology-based innovation, Kisima has grown in great strides in preparation for all that 2023 has in store.
Contextually relevant and progressive, this year’s iteration of the African Philanthropy Conference saw practitioners, donors and academics gather to engage in robust dialogues on what the new normal looks like for African philanthropy and social investment.
Following weeks of planning and consultation, this year saw the launch of Conversations on African Philanthropy Podcast – a platform where we interact with individuals whose work and lives have been of immense impact to philanthropy and social investment across Africa.
What better way to support the reflection reports shared in this newsletter than with a gallery that takes back to the moments that remain in our memories? Enjoy this celebration of what has been a productive year.
With the business of philanthropy and social investment well underway, we’re looking forward to what promises to be a productive and groundbreaking year. In this edition of the Community Check-in update, we share activities and dates that will keep you connected with ours and the work of our partners.
Yours in giving, CAPSI Communications
Registrations for the September 2023 intake of our Masters of Management In the field African Philanthropy are officially open.
Our programme is ideal for professionals within the development sector, who want to further their career in either the business or social sectors. The delivery of the course is fully online, thereby making it accessible to people across the continent.
The rise in short-form and dynamic learning has presented exciting opportunities for knowledge to be repackaged into essential lessons that can be learned and rapidly applied.
Our Executive Education portfolio responded with the introduction of our Masterclass series in 2020; this is a fully online 2-day series of classes lectured by subject matter experts.
We invite you to contact us and explore how our customised masterclasses can benefit your organisation.
An offering from our Publications portfolio, the Research Report Spotlight Series is a platform for researchers and partners and the broader CAPSI community in Africa who write on new narratives of African philanthropy and social investment to discuss their findings in their field of specialisation with a community of practitioners and academics who have an engaged interest in the topic.
This platform will offer a glimpse into the expressions of philanthropic forms, types, and practices across the continent, with research and findings that will cover topics such as High Net-Worth Individuals, Social Investment and Philanthropic Foundations as well as philanthropic activity in selected countries, to name a few. This is the beginning of the journey towards further interpreting the philanthropic landscape in Africa, one we wish for you to join us on.
Date: Tuesday, 28 February 2023 Time: 14h00 Johannesburg time
One of the highlights of this year will be the publishing of our new series of case studies that have been developed in partnership with Wits Business School Case Centre. This is a vital part of our research and insights offerings to the continent’s philanthropy and social investment community, with case studies providing detailed analysis into experiences and outcomes of different organisations.
The AROCSA Fellowship, also known as the Innocent Chukwuma African NGO Leadership Transition Fellowship Programme, will host its annual opening ceremony on Monday, 17th of April 2023 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
This initiative was founded in response to the urgent need for a leadership transition programme to assist sector leaders – specifically civil society and non-governmental organisation leaders – who are looking to grow toward roles that enable the creation of supportive infrastructure.
CAPSI is proud to serve as the host institution for the one-month in-person portion of the programme. This is followed by a two-month remote and facilitated career transition planning and chapter writing programme where fellows are also provided with a platform to interact with faculty from Wits Business School, who will provide them guidance on book chapters, documentation of leadership experience, and networking opportunities.
Join Cambridge Centre for Strategic Philanthropy, within the University of Cambridge Judge Business School, for a series of digital conversations conducted as a succession of intimate interviews discussing key philanthropic and development initiatives. The upcoming installment will host a conversation with Tony Elumemi who will reflect on how the Tony Elumelu Foundation is transforming philanthropy and entrepreneurship across the African continent
Date: Monday, 20 February 2023 Time: 12h00 London time Register:http://bit.ly/40J5O4n
Join Trialogue, in partnership with Barloworld, for a webinar on the topic of ‘Good Giving Practices’. This discussion will explore funding practices, including how partners are selected, the type and duration of funding, reporting, alternative support and other requirements. Panelists include representatives from Barloworld, and Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropies.
Date: Thursday, 23 February 2023 Time: 09h30 Johannesburg time Register:http://bit.ly/3DPIcl1
The year has come to an end, and we are gearing up for 2023 with some useful insights, experiences, and connections that we made in 2022. We considered 2022 to be our ‘Year of Publications’. In this regard, we published thirty-five (35) products – one research article, 16 research reports, 16 journal articles (since the launch of the journal), two conference proceedings and opinion pieces, especially in the Alliance Magazine. Given our need to promote more research and knowledge on African philanthropy and social investment, we also held several workshops on research, publishing, and writing. These included two doctoral workshops, two publishing workshops, an academic conference and several webinars to validate and disseminate research findings.
We also supported our associate researchers and staff members to present their research findings at different international platforms. For example, CAPSI was well represented at the 15th International Society for Third Sector Research Conference in Montreal, Canada in July 2022. Taking CAPSI research products to an international stage is very important in our quest to develop a new narrative on African philanthropy. At the ISTR Conference, CAPSI’s two post-doctoral fellows presented a paper on ‘NGOs and Social Enterprises as vehicles for resilient urban communities in African cities’. Three CAPSI staff members presented papers on their ongoing research projects, while two research associates shared their findings, and a doctoral student presented his interim thesis results. CAPSI staff members also presented in other important conferences that included the Africa Philanthropy Forum in Kigali, the Africa Philanthropy Network in Kampala, the Independent Philanthropy Association of South Africa in Cape Town, Philanthropy Europe Association (Philea) in Barcelona, Association for Research on Non-profit Organisations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA) in North Carolina, the Association for Research on Civil Society (AROCSA) in Dakar, the African Studies Association in Philadelphia and the 26th International Association for Volunteer Effort (IAVE) in Abu Dhabi.
Related to knowledge production, CAPSI continued to work with its associate researchers across Africa to conduct research on key projects that include understanding High Net Worth Individuals (HNWIs); Barriers to Civil Society in Africa; COVID-19 and its Impact on Philanthropy; Social Investment; and various expressions of African Philanthropy. Most of the associates’ research findings were published in-house and in several other academic journals. We are excited that our research on COVID-19 and its impact on philanthropy, social investment and civil society in Africa, will be published in a book format by Edward Elgar Publishing in March 2023. Be on the lookout for our upcoming book titled ‘African Philanthropy: Philanthropic Responses to Covid-19 and its Development Goals in Africa’. Indeed, 2022 was a year of publication for CAPSI. We thank our associate researchers, staff and students who were involved in the different research projects. Equally the research would not have happened without the support of our donors. I want to thank our donors for supporting our programmes.
As part of documenting organisational experiences and developing material for teaching, we also wrote case studies. We have so far written more than ten case studies and three of these are being finalised. The cases include the Sawiris Foundation in Egypt; the Southern Africa Trust in South Africa; the West Africa Civil Society Institute in Ghana, the Vodacom Foundation in South Africa, and the Kenya Community Foundation in Kenya, to highlight a few. Some of these case studies have been turned into teaching notes and published for citing by researchers and students alike. This is an exciting undertaking for us not only because we acquire material for teaching in our academic programmes, but also because our subjects of study want to use the case studies for their own reflections and constituencies.
Nothing is as fulfilling as seeing your objectives coming to fruition. One of CAPSI’s main objectives is to create a cohort of new researchers and academics in African Philanthropy. In the last five years of CAPSI’s existence as an institution, five doctoral students have graduated and all five are still associated with CAPSI, in the positions of associate researcher, lecturer, or post-doctoral fellowship. Two additional doctoral students submitted their theses in 2022. There are 18 active doctoral students who are associated with CAPSI – 16 of these are registered at Wits University and the other two are studying at the University of South Africa and the University of North West. Their research is made possible by several donors who believed in the dream of developing new expertise and competencies on African philanthropy. We look forward to admitting and graduating more doctoral students in the field of African philanthropy. Our hope is to create a movement and have African philanthropy taught and researched throughout Africa. We therefore take this opportunity to invite interested students to contact us, and we can assist in brainstorming researchable topics.
Our other academic programmes have also taken off. The Master of Management in African Philanthropy launched well in 2022 and the first cohort is currently underway. In 2023, we will admit our second cohort. In collaboration with Inyathelo, we also began a Post Graduate Diploma in African Philanthropy and Resource Mobilisation in 2021. The first cohort completed in July 2022 and graduated this year. Our academic offerings are the only ones on the continent, and we are excited to have been the first to develop and offer these. Being the first though, also means hard work. In this regard, we are working actively to promote the programmes, solicit interest and recruit more students. We are also eager to collaborate with other universities across the continent. We have begun conversations with several universities with the view to either having joint certification or helping them develop their own programmes.
In addition to the postgraduate diploma and the MM in African Philanthropy by Coursework, CAPSI also works with students who want to study for the Master’s degree by Research. At the moment, two have graduated with a master’s degree in the area of philanthropy and two are currently registered by research.
Recording an episode of the Conversations on African Philanthropy podcast
Fundraising Certification training hosted by the Intuitive Institute
With colleagues at Fundraising Management Training hosted by Ibn Haldun University
Connecting with sector stakeholders at the African Philanthropy Forum Conference
Preparative consultations with partners for Resilient Urban Communities
Celebrating philanthropy in action at the 3rd African Philanthropy Conference
Some of you reading this might have heard me canvasing ideas and resources for setting up a philanthropy radio station. The dream is still on, but we could not wait till we had everything in place. We decided to establish a podcast on philanthropy and as you read this, we have recorded 19 episodes and published 13 of these on the ‘Conversations on African Philanthropy’ podcast. This is an exciting project for us and in the next year we will increase the frequency and numbers per month. Our hope is to document as many different voices as possible from across Africa and in the diaspora. This is not an isolated initiative for us, it is very much embedded in our quest to promote African philanthropy and celebrate its uniqueness. It complements our research, teaching and our various platforms that we constructed to showcase different forms of giving, such as the Kisima African Giving Initiative, our digital platforms and the soon-to-be-launched Knowledge Hub.
For the first time, we conducted an independent assessment of our performance so far. The evaluation revealed a lot of successes and several challenges. One of these challenges is related to how CAPSI is fully embedded in the Business School. We are working on this with the view to introducing our modules not only as standalone, but also as part of the programmes across the school. The second challenge is that of our revenue model. CAPSI has not mobilised enough resources from African sources, and this is a challenge we will continue to face for a few years before we can become fully sustainable. Our sustainability is a long-term process, as it involves training our own experts, producing knowledge and becoming a platform for interpreting the philanthropic landscape, generating our own revenue through short and long courses, building a durable organisation and taking CAPSI and its initiatives to different African communities. We have to be fit for purpose. We have to report and account adequately and consistently. We have to remain relevant, timely and timeless. We recently developed a Smartboard internally to manage our operations and this will in many ways help us become efficient, effective and hopefully impactful.
We would not have done all the above without the support of our development partners. I want to take this opportunity to thank TrustAfrica, Southern Africa Trust, Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Ford Foundation, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the Open Society Foundation (Africa offices, in particular OSISA), Reckitt, Gilead Sciences, Africa Philanthropy Forum, Africa Philanthropy Network, East Africa Philanthropy Network and WINGS. I also want to thank our strategic partners: Strathmore University, Centre for Strategic Philanthropy at the University of Cambridge, Lilly School of Philanthropy, ISTR, ARNOVA, AROCSA, IPASA, Gerhart Centre at the American University in Cairo, Centre for Philanthropy and Civil Society at CUNY, University of Muenster, Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences, Bauhaus University in Weimar, City Parks (City of Johannesburg) and Higherlife Foundation.
As we look towards 2023, we can’t but wait to be in your area with more of our programmes.
I wish you a blessed, safe and enjoyable Christmas season and a fruitful 2023.
Bheki
Bhekinkosi Moyo is the Director of CAPSI. He has championed the African discourse on philanthropy, contributed to the growth of many African civil society formations and has taken part in most of the continental processes of development and governance. Equally, he has gained considerable experience in management, leadership and strategic roles over a significant period.
The Kisima, African Giving Platform is dedicated to enabling the practice of giving through storytelling. On the platform, visitors are introduced to individuals and organisations located in different countries across the continent, who have implemented programmes and projects that are making a difference in their communities. One of the ways that they will be able to continue their work successfully is through the philanthropic efforts of which each visitor has the power to practice.
During the launch of the Kisima, African Giving Platform, patron mama Graça Machel shared power that lies within each African. “Solidarity, passion, caring are the real glue to social development and transformation of societies. Everywhere I have gone, I have marvelled as to how each and every one of us has a story of that one person, or group or people, who helped them in one form or another. Equally interesting is that everyone of us has helped somebody at some point time in our own ways.” She further shares “If everyone in Africa gave only a dollar annually, we would raise money enough to respond to urgent crises. Today it is COVID19, tomorrow it may be climate change and other pandemics looming.”
This year, we committed to continuing the work that started in 2021 by either launching supporting or accelerating existing efforts. In the month of April, we introduced a series of hybrid events titled Kisima Dialogues, where members of the community were provided an opportunity to connect with the individuals and organisations whose stories of giving are hosted on the platform. This allowed for more in-depth discussions on the themes of Youth in Philanthropy and the Freedom to Give, while also giving valuable visibility for the work that has been fulfilled in communities. More of these dialogues will be hosted in the new year.
A key outcome that was achieved during this year was the launch of the Kisima, African Giving Platform mobile application on the Google Play Store. This expands the digital footprint of the platform and makes the stories as well as the opportunity to give, available to a wider audience. The availability of the mobile app on the Apple Store will be concluded in the new year.
With an increasing number of stories shared on the platform, one of the primary objectives of 2023 will be the launch of giving campaigns. This is the direct application of lessons learnt from observations made during the global pandemic lockdown, where people can give finances and resources towards a theme whose actors are in critical need of support, for example health research or vaccine deployment. Within these campaigns, donors will be able to see all the organisations who will receive the donations given and be able to track progress of the projects or programmes, again though storytelling.
We invite you to watch some of the stories that have been submitted on the website.
Since its launch in 2019, the African Philanthropy Conference has grown to become one of the must-attend conferences in the sector calendar. Following the fully virtual 2021 edition, this year’s conference adopted a hybrid format, with the in-person portion hosted in Johannesburg South Africa, which allowed for the much needed interaction that many had not had since before the global pandemic. The conference was hosted by the partnership of the Centre on African Philanthropy and Social Investment at the Wits Business School, TrustAfrica, Higherlife Foundation, Africa Philanthropy Forum, African Philanthropy Network, East Africa Philanthropy Network and Southern Africa Trust.
This year’s conference was unique in that it introduced a precursor event. The inaugural African Philanthropy Academic Conference was hosted by CAPSI and Wits Business School, serving to bring research rigour and the process of developing philanthropy in Africa. Doctoral graduates and renowned academics from research and academic institutions, presented insightful papers that will form part of the body of work that is supported by the Academic Conference.
The theme of the 2022 conference was Systems Change and The New Normal in African Philanthropy: Trends, Practices and Policies – with the objective of addressing system changes that are required in philanthropy in the new normal, especially as these changes relate to the continent’s institutions, policies and practices. To support the discussions that this timely theme offered, the programme of the conference was structured into three pillars, namely Philanthropy and Climate Change, Philanthropy and the Youth, and Technology and Systems in Philanthropy’s Practices. In this format, keynote addresses, plenary sessions and sub-thematic parallel sessions were moderated by partner organisations, with panelists who presented insightful observations to their discussions.
This year’s conference attracted an audience of delegates from across the globe, which included philanthropy practitioners, members of civil society, academics from numerous African universities, donors and business owners. Those who were able to travel to Johannesburg greatly enjoyed the opportunity to network within the sector and form new relationships.
As we look forward to 2023, we are excited to declare the month of August as “African Philanthropy Month”, which will host the 4th African Philanthropy Conference and the 2nd African Philanthropy Academic Conference in Dakar, Senegal. The partner organisations are excited to collaborate to support the strides that the sector continues to make.
3rd African Philanthropy Conference
Stractiv8 Impact is a communications and digital engagement agency that works with social impact organisations in the Global South.
At the conclusion of 2021, we sought to develop content that leverages on the vast offering of virtual platforms. With this goal set, we reflected on the body of knowledge that we have built since the establishment of the Centre, the questions that have emanated from this and the many relationships we have formed along the way. With these on the table, the concept of the Conversations on African Philanthropy was birthed – a platform where we interact with individuals whose work and lives have been of immense impact to philanthropy in Africa. Through these conversations, people with an interest in philanthropy, social investment, leadership, research, business and the arts can tap into the insights shared on the platform.
Following weeks of conceptualising and planning, the Conversations on African Philanthropy began recording video episodes and was formally launched in May 2022. Episodes are published on a dedicated YouTube channel and hosted on various audio streaming channels, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Hosted by Bhekinkosi Moyo, the episodes take the format of a 2-way conversation, with guests joining either in person or online. To date, the Conversations on African Philanthropy Podcast episodes have garnered 760 views on YouTube, and 200 downloads on audio streams.
Thirteen episodes have been aired with guests who are established authorities in the arts, business, academia, medicine and philanthropy management. Some of these guests are award winning musicians Yvonne Chaka Chaka and Berita, philanthropy practitioners Nicolette Naylor and Mmabatho Maboya, and business leaders Thabang Skwambana and Prof. Maurice Radebe. Upcoming episodes are under production, and we look forward to launching these to the growing body of followers of the podcast.
As we look ahead to 2023, Conversations on African Philanthropy Podcast will continue to grow. Continuing the practice of collaboration, we will partner with organisations and platforms to scale the message that philanthropy and social investment in Africa is active and impactful through the medium of storytelling that the podcast offers. We also plan to maximise the opportunity to host live recordings with community members.
We invite you to subscribe to the podcast channels and use the comments section to share your views and observations from episodes.
