Philanthropy in Asia gets more professional
₹10 billion ($120 million) to commit to giving away a quarter of their wealth. Governments are doing their part to encourage giving, too. In Singapore, a financial hub where many well-off Asians store their wealth, the government has used a series of tax incentives to promote the city-state as a centre for philanthropy.
In India, big companies are legally required to spend at least 2% of after-tax profits on corporate social responsibility (CSR). A lot of that spending is unambitious; car manufacturers giving to road safety and it-services groups paying for digital-literacy programmes. But just last year, CSR was responsible for ₹262 billion from 20,800 companies being channelled into worthy causes of all kinds, a small but growing sum.
A formal giving industry is gradually emerging. There are a handful of conferences on Asian philanthropy, and various annual reports that pick apart trends in the region. Funders’ groups, like the Asia Philanthropy Circle and AVPN, bring donors together to discuss their giving and share due diligence on potential recipients.
The Grassroots, Resilience, Ownership and Wellness (grow) Fund, led by EdelGive Foundation, the philanthropic arm of a Mumbai-based financial-services group, is being talked about as a model by donors across the world. It has raised money from big American donors, like the Gates Foundation and the MacArthur Foundation, as well as local funders. And, rather than dishing out sizeable chunks to well-known non-profit groups, it is identifying relatively small grassroots organisations to re-grant to, like the Dehradun-based Latika Roy Foundation, which works with people with developmental and other disabilities, and Nagpur-based Slum Soccer, which uses the beautiful game
. Read more on livemint.com
