The Bridgespan Group has made headlines recently as the go-to adviser to billionaire philanthropists including MacKenzie Scott. Stephanie Beasley has a must-read interview with Bridgespan partner Nidhi Sahni about the consultants’ role at a moment when megadonors are under close scrutiny.
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U.S. billionaires have seen their wealth grow by 60% during the COVID-19 pandemic, but their giving has only increased by 5%. Why is that?
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“There's a lack of urgency because these [global development] problems have persisted, [and] they will continue to persist. That’s coupled with the fear of getting it wrong among some people that haven’t been in philanthropy for a long time,” says Sahni.
Asked about the growing tendency of megadonors to establish limited liability companies instead of foundations, Sahni says LLCs allow philanthropists to “start their learning with others while they are doing [philanthropic work], as opposed to sequencing the learning and the doing.”
Bridgespan has faced questions about the influence it wields over philanthropists’ money — and some have suggested organizations that have worked with the group before are more likely to receive donations from its donor clients.
“We are not decision-makers for any of our clients. We are advisers; donors make their own decisions. I think it's really important for people to understand. We let our donors know that as well. We have firewalls internally. We do not share information,” Sahni says.
Q&A: Bridgespan's US chief urges donors to keep 'doing the hard work'
Public diplomacy
With tens of thousands of evacuated Afghans still housed at U.S. military bases and a refugee resettlement system that has been depleted of funding, the U.S. government is leaning on public charity to get people settled as quickly as possible.
Adva Saldinger reports that the new model, called “sponsor circles,” relies on community groups to raise funds and support Afghan refugees in their search for housing, basic needs, employment, and education. The program launched in October with approval from the U.S. State Department and operates alongside the official U.S. Afghan Placement and Assistance Program.
Read: US tries 'sponsor circles' to speed Afghan refugee resettlement
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Bottom line
Cuts to U.K. and EU government funding threaten roughly one-sixth of the U.K. NGO sector’s annual income — approximately $1.3 billion per year — according to a new analysis. That stark figure has one expert warning that U.K. NGOs may “need to look at a fundamental change to their business model.”
Despite the dire outlook, so far very few organizations have gone bankrupt or signaled a desire to merge, David Ainsworth reports. That could be because the funding consequences of Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic have yet to fully arrive.
Devex Pro: £1B of income at risk for UK NGOs
ICYMI: What does 2022 hold for U.K. aid?
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Push factors
How much has the rise of “populist radical right parties" in Europe affected countries’ foreign aid spending? Roughly 1.2%, it turns out.
A new study from the German Development Institute finds that when populist radical right parties — PRRPs — capture a higher voting share, governments redirect funding away from climate change and multilateral cooperation and toward migration objectives. Specifically, a 10% increase in the vote share of PRRPs was associated with an average 1.2 percentage point boost in the share of migration-related aid.
Read: 'Radical right' populists alter aid priorities in Europe, study finds
+ For Pro subscribers: Migration has roiled EU politics in recent years, but the European Commission acknowledges it also needs help to meet labor needs and combat demographic decline.
In other news
The International Monetary Fund warned emerging economies Monday to prepare for U.S. interest rates to rise more quickly than expected, which could cause “turbulence.” [Reuters]
India has begun administering COVID-19 booster shots to high-risk groups in the face of an omicron-spurred wave of infections, with 179,000 cases reported in 24 hours on Sunday. [BBC]
Sri Lanka has asked that China — the country’s largest bilateral lender — reschedule its billions of dollars in debt as reserves dip dangerously low and shortages hit the population. [The Guardian]
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About the author
Michael Igoe@AlterIgoe
Michael Igoe is a Senior Reporter with Devex, based in Washington, D.C. He covers U.S. foreign aid, global health, climate change, and development finance. Prior to joining Devex, Michael researched water management and climate change adaptation in post-Soviet Central Asia, where he also wrote for EurasiaNet. Michael earned his bachelor's degree from Bowdoin College, where he majored in Russian, and his master’s degree from the University of Montana, where he studied international conservation and development.
