Africa’s ‘Homegrown Philanthropy’ Is Rising, Creating Self-Sufficiency For A New Generation

Because we seem to only get the bleakest news from Africa, or hear exclusively about how international aid is helping the continent to progress from the outside, I thought it was interesting to hear about how Kenyans and Nigerians are leading the philanthropic boom in Africa.

‘Homegrown philanthropy’ is rising from all segments of the local and national scene in Africa. This most recent episode of a BBC radio documentary series, Africa’s Big Philanthropy, highlights the fact that many of the fortunate members of the world’s fastest growing economies are not forgetting their often disadvantaged roots, but are returning to support education and healthcare, sometimes with breathtaking sums of capital. 

We can see philanthropy rising all over Africa... It is the only continent in the world where philanthropy among its people is growing. For instance, 93% of Kenyans give, or donate.