By Pedro P. Bocca, International Affairs and Public Policy Coordinator, and Cassio França, Secretary General, Group of Institutes, Foundations and Companies (GIFE)
Philanthropy deserves its place at the table
In 2024, Brazil was at the centre of major global debates, starting with its presidency of the G20 and continuing through the BRICS Summit and the hosting of COP 30, both scheduled for 2025. The country’s central role in hosting three major global forums during a time of multilateralism crises and increasing global uncertainties heightened society’s curiosity about these issues and the potential impact of various sectors, including philanthropy.
We are witnessing a transformation in the global financial architecture, particularly regarding development financing. According to a study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which only included the 40 largest global philanthropies, these philanthropies contributed $11 billion to development initiatives in 2022. By comparison, if this group of 40 philanthropies were a member of the OECD, it would rank as the 7th largest contributor to official development assistance (ODA) in 2022. Similarly, in the same year, the 170 private social investment organizations associated with GIFE (Group of Institutes, Foundations, and Companies) in Brazil contributed R$4.8 billion[¹] ($856 million), which was 50% more than the total ODA received by the country.
Philanthropy, therefore, is an increasingly fundamental and legitimate actor to have a seat at the table with governments to discuss major global issues and contribute to shaping efficient and effective financing policies. This was the motivation behind GIFE’s advocacy for a space where philanthropy could reflect on its role in the main global economic debate forum, the G20.
Philanthropy for Sustainable Development Working Group
The first step was to engage with institutions, especially the official G20 Engagement Groups. While philanthropy has areas of contact with several of the 13 Engagement Groups, notably Business 20 (B20), Think 20 (T20), and Civil 20 (C20), the type of philanthropy that GIFE and its partners advocate for, is one which works towards strengthening organized civil society.
Thus, through prior articulations, we agreed with C20 to establish a Working Group (WG) “Philanthropy for Sustainable Development” as one of its 10 WGs. This unprecedented initiative, co-coordinated by GIFE, WINGS, and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), worked for eight months in meetings, debates, and studies involving over 450 organizations from around the world.
Through C20 and the WG, we were able to participate in several G20 events, including those of the Sustainable Economies taskforce and discussions promoted by the G20 Financial Track, which included new financing mechanisms for development based on public-private partnerships, including blended finance and other topics of interest for private social investment. Participation in these forums boosted philanthropy’s role as a relevant actor in G20 discussions.
At the end of the working year, the WG produced a policy brief with 12 recommendations regarding the role of philanthropy, in partnership with governments, in fighting inequalities, unlocking financing for sustainable development, establishing a new framework for global cooperation, and emphasizing the importance of protecting civic spaces. The policy brief condenses the main reflections of the WG and is the main advocacy tool for philanthropy during the G20 2025, hosted in South Africa.
Engagement with government
In October 2024, GIFE and WINGS visited the Palácio do Planalto (Brazil’s government palace) to personally deliver the policy brief to the Brazilian government, represented by the General Secretariat of the Presidency, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Economy. This delivery marked an important moment in the cooperation agenda between the government and philanthropy and demonstrated the potential for establishing partnerships on issues of international interest. The establishment of the Philanthropy WG within the G20 also opened paths for philanthropy within the Brazilian government, strengthening institutional relations in the sector.
During the G20 Social Summit (G20 Social), held just before the Leader’s Summit in Rio de Janeiro, a public debate event was held on the recommendations and presentation of the policy brief, involving civil society actors and governments. One of the key points of this event was the discussion about the need for continued work during the G20 South Africa 2025. It is significant that the G20 2024 Leaders’ Declaration also mentioned philanthropic institutions for the first time.
Maintaining gains made in Brazil
It is a huge challenge to maintain the work done by the WG for several reasons. The main concern is to maintain the momentum of the unprecedented and highly successful Brazilian initiative, and to keep the doors open that were unlocked during the G20 in Brazil. Therefore, we received with concern the news that the C20 South Africa will not maintain the Philanthropy WG for 2025, and we need to understand how the sector can continue to engage in the G20 process. It is crucial that South African philanthropy engages and finds paths, together with its international partners, to ensure that the work done can progress even further. Additionally, the G20 is a great opportunity for sector involvement in the country, expanding debates, access, and perceptions.
We understand that beyond the C20, philanthropy has other opportunities to broaden its influence in the G20. Foundations 20 (F20), an international philanthropy network, aims to align G20 policies with the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and will hold its Climate Solutions Forum in South Africa in May 2025, which is an excellent opportunity for sector engagement. It is also essential to continue working with the South African government to ensure that the G20 maintains mechanisms for participation in the Task Forces and official meetings, guaranteeing the sector’s presence in the essential debates on the G20 agenda.
Significance of the Global South on the international stage
Another point worth reflecting on, as philanthropies of the Global South, is the realization that the G20 South Africa will close an unprecedented cycle of four G20 presidencies by countries in the Global South – Indonesia, India, and Brazil. This historical sequence creates a scenario that repositions global powers, with two fundamental aspects standing out: the functioning and priorities of the multilateral institutions created 80 years ago in Bretton Woods (the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank); and the growing significance that Global South countries have demonstrated on the international stage.
We acknowledge that the priorities of the Bretton Woods Institutions[²] have contributed to the widening of inequalities, as their rules facilitate credit for more stable economies and resist large-scale debt forgiveness for low-income countries, while maintaining high interest rates and permanent currency risks for those economies. At the same time, the maintenance of the dollar as the global standard currency gives the United States a disproportionate economic advantage over other countries. The G20 emerges as a more balanced economic negotiation arena, whose relevance and scope continue to expand year after year.
The Global South is not limited to its representatives in the G20[³], but is important to highlight that the participation of this group in terms of overall GDP is similar to that of its counterparts from the North in the G20. Furthermore, the total industrial production of countries in the Global South that participate in the G20 will surpasses that of the Northern G20 countries in a few years. Also consider that over 80% of the total G20 population is in the South.
Time for fundamental change
Against this background we can conclude that the world has changed, but that international organizations have not absorbed these changes. It is important for the Global South to exert its agency, continuing to highlight this incoherence in the political agenda until international political and economic institutions reinvent, respect, and balance the power in their governance models to reflect the relative clout of the Global South.
Being the host country of the G20 provides an exciting window of opportunities for the philanthropy sector and for influencing issues of philanthropic interest, whilst at the same time building international partnerships that can broaden possibilities and advance discussions on fundamental topics. In Brazil, we are very excited about the G20 South Africa, and we hope to contribute and cooperate to maintain the continuity of the work done in 2024 and for philanthropy to continue occupying spaces in and influencing the main global agendas.
[¹] The symbol for the Brazilian real is R$
[²] The IMF and the World Bank
[³] Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, México, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey and the African Union.