‘With Africa spared the full brunt of the global economic crisis so far, some non-profit leaders say the tough financial times can provide a new impetus, and opportunities, for African donors and philanthropists to expand their work. Megan Lindow reports.

While some major Western donors to Africa, like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, plan to maintain or increase their giving, many are scaling back their efforts in Africa in order to concentrate shrinking resources on projects closer to home.

As a result, charitable groups here in South Africa and elsewhere on the continent may deepen their ties with African philanthropists, corporate grant makers, and others, observers speculate.

New generation
A new generation of African philanthropists has been gradually emerging, particularly in South Africa and Nigeria. The scale of their efforts so far is modest.

But the new players, such as Cyril Ramaphosa, South African trade unionistturned- businessman, and Theophilus Danjuma, businessman and former defence minister of Nigeria, bring a hands-on approach that emphasises making sure their gifts produce tangible results.

That trend will almost certainly accelerate because of the global downturn and the social problems it creates, said Akwasi Aidoo, executive director of TrustAfrica, a foundation in Dakar, Senegal, that promotes democracy and development on the continent.

‘Donors are going to be asking tough questions about whether their efforts are going to help the society as a whole, the country as a whole,’ said Mr Aidoo.

What’s more, some officials said that non-African organisations working on issues of democracy, governance, human rights, and fair elections in Africa may increasingly want to work with some of the nascent African grant makers.

‘With the global downturn, the bar has been raised,’ said Josh N. Ruxin, an assistant clinical professor of public health at Columbia University, who lives in Rwanda and directs the Millennium Villages project and other efforts there. ‘Those who have dollars want more leverage for those dollars.’

Businesses step in
To be sure, Africa is not free of economic turmoil. Flagging commodity prices are hurting some industries, and remittances from Africans who live abroad, which often pay for food, housing, and school fees for many families, appear to be declining.

But tight banking regulations on the continent have left financial institutions relatively unscathed, leaving both corporations and wealthy individuals relatively better off than many of their developed-world counterparts.

In part because of this, African businesses – and efforts to expand private enterprise – may take the lead in philanthropic projects in the years ahead.

Through two non-profit organisations, the Access Project, in Rwanda, and Rwanda Community Works, Mr Ruxin is trying to establish businesses that will spur economic development.

Rwanda’s government, he said, prefers private investment to philanthropy and would like to build the tax base so that the government itself can support childhood health and education, causes that have often been the purview of aid organisations operating in Africa.

‘Over all, there’s a pretty serious backlash against donorship and philanthropy because that makes us into a charity case instead of an investment case,’ said Mr Ruxin. ‘Rwanda Works is an incubator, but it takes donations, and the government was very clear in saying, “We really want you guys playing in the private sector.”’

Government policies
Tough economic times may also drive more corporate giving, said TrustAfrica’s Mr Aidoo. He expects companies may do more charitable work as they vie for customer loyalty and want to show their altruistic side in hard times.

In South Africa, new government policies have already triggered an uptick in such efforts. Last year the African National Congress introduced codes of conduct that businesses must follow in order to be eligible for government contracts.

The policy – Black Economic Empowerment – spurred an almost 30% rise in company support for social programmes in 2008, according to research by Trialogue, a South Africa-based consulting company that tracks corporate citizenship efforts.

The South African government has also extended tax breaks for charitable giving in recent years, and non-profit groups are trying to promote philanthropy among
the nation’s citizens.

‘We’re moving away from the traditional perception that philanthropy is all about the wealthy,’ said Carol Tappenden, managing director of Greater Good South Africa. ‘Anyone can be a citizen grant maker.’

The Greater Good South Africa website (http://www.myggsa.co.za) connects people with charities to volunteer for or support financially.

The organisation screens the charities it lists online and also conducts research to determine the country’s most pressing needs.

Ms Tappenden said that with South Africa’s racially fragmented society, people often feel overwhelmed by the magnitude of poverty and don’t know how they can make a difference.

While homegrown African philanthropy may expand, albeit slowly, in the near future, non-profit leaders do expect charity casualties durin