Philanthropic gifts made from one country to another reached US$70 billion in the first year of the pandemic, a half a percentage drop from two years earlier, according to a new report from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.
The 2023 Global Philanthropy Tracker followed cross-border donations from individuals and organizations from 47 countries in 2020, and found that, despite the slight drop, giving was resilient in the face of the pandemic.
“The global challenges of 2020, from social injustice to the Covid-19 pandemic and climate disasters, put the philanthropic sector to the test and provided an opportunity to reconceptualize the role of philanthropy in foreign aid and sustainable development,” the report said.
The study also tracked private-capital investment, remittances, and official development assistance to show how individuals, governments, businesses, and civil society collaborate to finance social assistance and tackle issues, such as health and education—the top supported causes.
Together, these four sources contributed US$841 billion to cross-border resource flows, the study found, providing “a holistic picture of the global community that is rarely depicted publicly,” said Amir Pasic, the dean of the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.
Advertisement – Scroll to Continue
The global economic effects of the pandemic had a much greater impact on private capital investment—which includes both physical and financial support that is provided from the private sector, including non-government organizations. This investment sank to about US$400 million from US$112 billion.
Official development assistance from governments worldwide, meanwhile, fell 1% in 2020 to US$180 billion, while individual remittances jumped 19% to US$590 billion, as migrants in countries that provided stimulus packages sent funding home to support their families, the report said. The higher level of remittances also reflects better ways of tracking money transfer between countries, among other factors.
The 47 countries that provide philanthropic funding come from all over the world, and account for 22% of all countries and economies and 61% of the world’s population, the report said. Of the 47, 32 high-income countries, topped by the U.S., the U.K., and Qatar, contributed most of the US$70 billion, with five low-income and lower-income countries donating US$42 million, and 10 upper-middle income countries donating US$644 million.
Advertisement – Scroll to Continue
Africa was the top recipient of support among countries that reported on where philanthropic financing was directed, the study found.
While the results proved the strength of cross-border philanthropy, the role of philanthropy in sustainable development can be strengthened, according to the report’s findings.
This can be done by strengthening on-the-ground organizations and connecting them to regional groups that have relationships with international donors. Another way is to develop international standards for tracking giving to specific causes such as climate change or racial injustice and inequity, data that currently doesn’t exist.
“This significant lack of public data presents an ongoing challenge to fully understanding the patterns and trends of cross-border generosity,” the report said. “It also limits our understanding of the role that philanthropy plays globally, especially during global crises like the Covid-19 pandemic, when all sectors are called upon to respond.”
Credit:Source link
