Despite GDP growth in several countries in Africa, poverty continues to be a growing concern with over 47 percent of the population of sub-Saharan Africa, living on $1.90 a day or less1. Traditional approaches to addressing social needs such as grant-making have proven to be insufficient. Over the past decade, VP/SI has gained momentum as a powerful alternative to creating social impact, by enabling individuals and organizations with high aspirations for making a difference to deploy their resources with discipline, transparency and accountability.
A strong social investment movement has existed in Europe since 2005 http://evpa.eu.com/ and in Asia since 2012 https://avpn.asia/ with 230 and 409 members respectively, across 52 countries. These networks have proven very powerful catalysts of social impact, attracting and connecting diverse capital providers, and providing them with value-added services that enhance their effectiveness in deploying such capital to create impact. They have since their inception contributed to the mobilization of US$ 7 billion in social investment across both regions.
In the recent past, the International Venture Philanthropy Centre (IVPC), led by the Founding Chairman of EVPA and AVPN, have spearheaded efforts to build a Pan-African network focused on advancing venture philanthropy (VP) and social investment (SI) in Africa. This network has potential to improve lives in Africa, by playing a similar catalytic role on the continent, as her peers in Asia and Europe.
Over the last 18 months, extensive due diligence consultations with over 400 leaders across the continent have shown that conditions are ripe for this network to take-off. There is a consensus that a membership network of capital providers – can accelerate social impact by expanding capital deployment, fostering learning, collaboration and accountability and leveraging the community to advance systemic change in Africa.
There is, therefore, no timelier moment to launch the African Venture Philanthropy Alliance (AVPA) than now. To succeed, this network must be African-based, African-led and substantially African-funded. Membership to the network will include any provider of the financial, human and intellectual capital required to make VP/SI successful, e.g. private investors, high-net-worth families, foundations, corporations, professional services firms, universities and government-related agencies.
This network will thus:
• Create a platform for attracting, connecting and building partnerships among diverse parties who desire to engage in VP/SI
• Provide value-added services that enhance members effectiveness in deploying capital to create impact
• Link efforts in Africa to similar networks of like-minded parties in Asia and Europe
It is within this context that the Kenyan Strategic Advisory Group2 is organizing this half-day conference to further discuss the formation strategy of this African Network under the banner of African Venture Philanthropy Alliance (AVPA).
Meeting Objectives
1. Enhance understanding of the formation strategy and value proposition to potential members
2. Appraise participants on the current development status
3. Learn from the Asian experience (with a view to spurring interest)
4. Seek buy-in/commitments to becoming Founding Partners or future Members of the network.
