Introduction to Philanthropy in Developing Countries
The book Why Philanthropy Matters: How the Wealthy Give, and What It Means for Our Economic Well-Being lists the importance of philanthropy as, "it [philanthropy] solves the “problem of wealth” and its corollary of the presence of vast inequality in capitalist economies" (Zoltan 1). The goals of philanthropy are therefore to improve the wellbeing of humans by solving social and structural problems while dealing with the monetary inequality. In developing countries, these goals can be solidified more to focus on developing countries' society and infrastructure to improve the wellbeing of people.
With these important goals, there is certainly an abundance of NGOs operating in developing nations. In the last two decades, we've seen multiple nonprofits tackle a variety of disasters, outbreaks, and inequalities in developing countries with varying levels of success. Donations to such causes are also plentiful. For instance, according to David Maurrasse, a researcher at the Earth Institute, Americans alone donated $15.1 billion to address international issues in 2014 (Maurrasse). Unfortunately, not all nonprofits use their funds appropriately and carry out their mission successfully.
Ultimately, because philanthropy in developing countries carries such important responsibilities, it is vital to examine its efficacy and challenges. Our goal was not to disparage the work of nonprofits or only showcase the negative side of nonprofit corruption and inefficiency. Rather, we hoped to determine what qualities allow nonprofits to create lasting positive change successfully. To this end, we analyzed cases of ineffective and effective NGOs in the Caribbean, Asia, and Latin America. Through these examples, we isolated 3 characteristics that play an important role in a nonprofit's efficacy:
Adaptability with locality refers to a nonprofit's ability to involve the native residents and take into consideration the unique traits of the environment when committing to a project in a certain community. Fund management relates to what nonprofits spend their funds on, the proportion of funds used to further their mission, and the transparency of their expenditures. Sustainability covers nonprofits' ability to create lasting change in an area, whether it's continuing a program for a long time or strengthening communities to help themselves. The nonprofits studied in the Caribbean, Asia, and Latin America exemplified different levels of adaptability, effective fund management, and sustainability, respectively. After comparing these cases, we could establish criteria for ineffective and effective philanthropy in the developing world.
- Adaptability with locality
- Fund management
- Sustainability
