Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) World Giving Index 2021: a global pandemic special report – June 2021

What are key findings from the article?

• One of fifth of all people around the globe volunteer.
• Indonesia is number one in generosity. Eight out of ten Indonesians gave to charity and the number of volunteers were three times the global average. The countries in the top ten most generous countries changed dramatically. They are (in order):
  1. Nigeria
  2. Myanmar
  3. Australia
  4. Ghana
  5. New Zealand
  6. Uganda
  7. Kosovo
  8. Thailand
• The United States, usually in the top five, fell to 19^th in 2020. It has significantly declined in all three categories since 2016. Other countries usually in the top ten (United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, the Netherlands) also dropped out of the top 10. Overall, developing countries are seeing participation in philanthropy increase across the board; developed countries are showing some decline or stalling. The report finds that European countries dominated the list of countries least likely to help a stranger.
• People were more likely to give to strangers than ever before. More than three billion people (over 55% of total population) helped a stranger in 2020. Six of ten countries that topped the list were in Africa. CAF attributes the high rates of caring for strangers to the African idea of ubuntu “described as the capacity in an African culture to express compassion, reciprocity, dignity, humanity and mutuality in the interests of building and maintaining communities with justice and mutual caring.”

• Giving is up despite (or because of) the pandemic. 31% of people gave, and volunteer levels were unchanged in 2020.
• CAF tracks the countries that have increased their World Giving Score in at least four out of the five past years. The Biggest risers are:
  1. Georgia
  2. Paraguay
  3. Ethiopia
  4. Bulgaria
  5. Vietnam
  6. Serbia
  7. Bangladesh
  8. China
  9. Ukraine
  10. India

What can I do as a result?

• Look beyond the US and Europe if your organization has a global reach. There’s potential for philanthropy from other parts of the world, provided that your mission touches the country in some way. Check out if you have prospects in Indonesia, Kenya and Nigeria. However, the report did not focus on where the philanthropy went —in other words, did the money stay in the country or go elsewhere?
• There’s money available for philanthropy. This is a theme that has shown up in many recent wealth reports. Some nonprofits were worried about asking for donations during COVID-19, but people still want to give to nonprofits, probably even more, as a result of the pandemic.
• Think outside the box with your volunteers. Despite the pandemic, volunteerism did not decrease. How can your organization continue to engage your volunteers for your mission? After all, we know that volunteerism makes people feel good and more likely to want to give to your organization.
• The drop in US in philanthropy is concerning. Consider examining how you are engaging donors — and when and how you are losing donors.

Additional Resources

• World Giving Index 2021: a global pandemic special report l Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) 2021
• Boston Consulting Group: Innovations in Wealth Management 2021 l Aspire Research Group 2021
• Capgemini 2021 World Wealth Report l Aspire Research Group 2021