By Ron Chen, Senior Correspondent, ASEAN Region

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) hosted a dialogue on the role of private philanthropy in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region. The discussion, titled, “Data and Dialogue on Private Philanthropy for Development: Regional study to unpack Private Philanthropy for Development from MENA,” convened expert participants from across businesses, foundations, government, and philanthropy, to share perspectives. Speakers included Natasha Ridge, Executive Director of the Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi Foundation for Policy Research, Badr Jafar, CEO of Crescent Enterprises, Founder of the Pearl Initiative, and Founding Patron of the Centre for Strategic Philanthropy based at the University of Cambridge, and Sonia Ben Jaafar, Executive Director of the Abdulla Al Ghurair Foundation.

On the road to achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, private philanthropy is playing an increasingly critical role, providing targeted, localised, and nimble resources and support to communities in need. In December 2021, OECD released its second edition of “Private Philanthropy for Development,” a report which aims to meet the growing demand for open, reliable, and comparable data on philanthropy by analysing and comparing philanthropic activity across geographies and, sectors.

Of the various findings and recommendations in OECD’s report, the organisation emphasises a need to invest further in rigorous learning and recommends that organisations share data on philanthropic giving to better identify gaps, avoid redundancies, and inform the broader public. The report identified that private philanthropy for development, from 205 foundations worldwide, amounted to US$ 42.5 billion between 2016 and 2019, an annual average of US$10.6 billion.

In his keynote remarks, CEO of Crescent Enterprises, Founder of the Pearl Initiative, and Founding Patron of the Centre for Strategic Philanthropy based at the University of Cambridge, Badr Jafar said, “Availability of capital is not the obstacle. The sheer scale of philanthropic capital alone has the potential to deliver lasting results. It is the strategic deployment of this capital that we must learn to unlock.” He added, “Within our region, and all global markets, philanthropists are uniquely equipped to help innovate solutions to the social challenges that confront our communities. We just need the right tools to do so – digital infrastructure, transparency, trust, data, are all critical aspects with immense room for growth.”

Jafar recently partnered with the University of Cambridge to establish a Centre for Strategic Philanthropy at Cambridge University, dedicated to enhancing the impact of strategic philanthropy through rigorous research, executive education, and the convening of diverse voices both within and from the world’s emerging markets, including in Africa, Developing Asia, and the Middle East. More recently, he partnered with NYU-Abu Dhabi on a similar initiative focused on the MENA region.

Today, the world’s top 30 fastest growing economies are in emerging markets, including in the MENA region. According to Knight Frank’s latest Wealth Reports, ultra-high net-worth wealth populations in Africa and the Middle East are expected to rise by 33 per cent and 24.6 per cent, respectively, by 2025. Shifting trends in wealth, coupled with emerging trends in technology and innovation, signal a major opportunity to unlock high-impact, strategic philanthropy in the region. Mr Jafar’s keynote speech was followed by a panel discussion that featured Executive Director of the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development Noura Selim,  CEO of the Arab Foundations Forum Naila Farouky,  Executive Director of the Abdulla Al Ghurair Foundation Sonia Ben Jaafar, and Executive Director of the Pearl Initiative Ranya Saadawi. Among the topics raised, the panel discussed the effect cross-sector networks can by harvesting different areas of expertise and promoting better collaboration.

Executive Director of the Pearl Initiative, the leading non-profit organisation focusing on the promotion corporate accountability and transparency across the Gulf region, Ranya Saadawi elaborated, “When it comes to building resilient and sustainable economies and societies, corporate governance is essential. This, of course, extends to private philanthropy, which is essentially private capital for public good. The Pearl Initiative works tirelessly to create spaces for leading corporate and family business donors in the region to convene and share experiences and learnings with one another. When it comes to delivering results-driven corporate social responsibility and corporate philanthropic activities, experiential data is vital for the sector’s future planning and success.”

The OECD dialogue concluded that further investments in learning, transparency, and internal capacities can greatly help to enhance philanthropy’s contribution to development, and therefore towards building a more sustainable future within the region.