Private Philanthropy for Development (Third Edition)

Between 2020 and 2023, philanthropic contributions to development totalled USD 68.2 billion, equivalent to around 10% of official development assistance.

These flows comprised USD 52.8 billion in cross-border funding and USD 15.4 billion in domestic philanthropy within low- and middle-income countries.

While philanthropy cannot match the scale of ODA, it plays a complementary role by supporting innovation, flexibility and risk-taking across sectors and geographies.

Africa received USD 17.6 billion in cross-border philanthropic funding over 2020–2023, representing 33% of total cross-border flows.

Annual funding to Africa increased steadily during this period, rising from USD 4.0 billion to USD 4.8 billion. Large international foundations accounted for most of this support, with the Gates Foundation and the Mastercard Foundation together providing more than half of all philanthropic funding directed to the region.

Private philanthropy is highly concentrated in health and education, which together account for half of total philanthropic flows, while also playing a comparatively strong role in gender equality.

Health alone receives 40% of funding and education 11%, followed by support to civil society (7%). Philanthropic actors allocate a higher share of their resources to gender-specific initiatives than ODA, with 8% of philanthropic funding (primarily for sexual and reproductive health and rights) compared to 2% of total ODA.

Co-financing is extensive, with more than two-thirds of surveyed philanthropies engaging in multiple collaborative projects with over 300 partners.

These partnerships span a diverse range of actors, including other philanthropic organisations, private companies and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Domestic NGOs and government entities are involved to a lesser extent.