The Southern Africa Community Grantmakers Leadership Forum (SACGLF), founded in 2010 by the members of SACGLC a project started in 2005 by Synergos , brings together leaders of community Grantmakers organisations in a knowledge-sharing and peer-learning partnership to strengthen social justice philanthropy in Southern Africa. The Forum aims to enhance the growth and sustainability of the independent development funding sector in the region by developing the knowledge and capacity of leadership personnel, with a special focus on sustainability and governance issues.
 
SACGLF address the issues facing community Grantmakers organizations as they seek to become sustainable; outlines our strategy for continuing support to the leadership of the community grantmaking sector; and how we can advocate for support to local Grantmakers to build their capacity.

The purpose of the SACGLF is to support the growth and sustainability of the independent, indigenous development funding sector in the region in order to maximise their social impact and benefit to the communities they serve. 

1.1 The Role of Community Grantmakers

Southern Africa is a region characterised by huge disparities in wealth and poverty with enormous social development. The depth and spread of poverty is further magnified by the presence of enormous wealth and resources sufficient to be able to address the social development needs and push back poverty.

Throughout Southern Africa, thousands of small non-profit and community based organisations (CBOs) undertake vital social development work in both urban and rural communities. The funding needs of these organizations are often small and large Grantmakers-- international foundations, foreign aid donors, corporate funders, local donors and government agencies — typically do not have the administrative capacity to manage, oversee and evaluate numerous small grants. Thus CBOs often lack the much needed financial resources to address the social development needs of their constituencies.

In response to this challenge, a growing number of community intermediary grantmaking organisations have emerged in the Southern African region.  These organizations partner with CBOs and other non-government organisations (NGOs), providing relevant funding, expertise, training, capacity-building, and knowledge-sharing and evaluation services.  Community Grantmakers are key players as intermediaries and advocates, in ensuring a more effective flow of support from large donors to local communities, where the resources are most required and have the most impact. 

Community Grantmakers, therefore, constitute an emerging sector that plays a critical bridging role between civil society development organizations, development donors, governments and the private sector.  In addition to their critical role in channelling resources to community-driven development, these organizations contribute important community capacity building, convening, policy formation, advocacy and knowledge-generating value. Yet, this contribution has not been fully understood and acknowledged in the wider development community, nor fully marshalled in a multi-sector effort to reduce poverty, increase equity and address social justice in the region.

1.2 The Need for Peer-Learning and Partnership

Community Grantmakers typically struggle to secure a sustainable resource base for themselves and the NGOs or CBOs that they support.  This problem is becoming particularly apparent as many Grantmakers, who have been overly-dependent on foreign donors’ funding, are challenged to develop a durable and diversified local financial base. Thus, capacity building in the fields of effective leadership, resource development, communications, social justice advocacy, board governance and sustainability is essential to ensure the organization’s long-term success and the ability to deliver on their mission and goals.

At the same time, leaders in the Community Grantmakers sector are keenly aware that many poor and disadvantaged communities in the region still lack access to their services – the same is true in varying degrees about community access to resources from government and business development agencies. Extending the reach and impact of Community Grantmakers will require more effective partnerships between Community Grantmakers, more common purpose collaboration with both government and the corporate sector, and a significant growth in the range and capacity of Community Grantmakers. The effort to maximize benefit and outreach to poor and marginalized communities requires a joint forum in which Grantmakers can learn, strategize and act together. It also demands a common platform to influence policy, increase resources for community development, and help build a stronger, more collaborative ‘culture of giving’ in Southern Africa.

The 2006 closure of the Southern African Grantmakers’ Association (SAGA)--which provided a shared membership association for independent, business and para-statal Grantmakers--has accentuated the need for a more active leadership and joint learning network among community Grantmakers.

1.3 The Creation of the Community Grantmakers Leadership Forum

In 2005-2009, the Synergos Institute, in collaboration with Inyathelo: South African Institute for Advancement (also known as SAIA), initiated the Southern African Community Grantmakers Leadership COOP, a peer-learning and leadership development network with a wide and representative cross-section of leaders of the independent grantmaking sector in Southern Africa.

In 2010 the members of the COOP agreed to formalise the organisation and the Southern African Community Grantmakers Leadership Forum (SACFLF) was registered as a Non-profit organisation in South Africa.

The mission of SACGLF is to support the growth and sustainability of the independent, indigenous development funding sector in the region in order to maximise their social impact and benefit to the communities they serve. 

The objective of the SACGLF is to bring together senior leaders of Southern African Community Grantmakers organizations in a knowledge-sharing and peer-learning network. The Forum was formally launched in November 2010 after a process of joint planning and consultation and networking of five years of community Grantmakers leaders.