The philanthropy that supports civil society’s engagement with social change is growing at a global level, and “success stories” are no longer only occurring in countries with the most organized philanthropic traditions. Even though levels of giving in Latin American countries do not necessarily stand out globally, a philanthropic culture has been developing steadily over the past several years. The number of individual donors in the region is growing particularly quickly, climbing a great deal higher than strategies used to mobilize resources with businesses or state institutions.
In the World Giving Index (2014), which allocates a score based on three measures of giving behavior (the percentage of people who in a typical month donate money to charity, volunteer their time, and help a stranger) the most generous countries in the region are in the Caribbean: Trinidad and Tobago share tenth place in the global ranking, while Jamaica is ranked 20th globally. Following them are Central Americans such as Guatemala (25th place, globally), the Dominican Republic (27th) and Costa Rica (34th). Although Argentina (77th), Brazil (90th) and Mexico (85th) are not in the top ranks, these countries’ large populations make their total philanthropic contributions numerically superior to others in the region.
In Argentina, according to the World Giving Index 2015, 25% of the sample population donated money or time to help a stranger in the last month. Indeed, international organizations with strategies for recruiting individual donors in Latin America, such as UNICEF, and international NGOs such as Greenpeace, Doctors Without Borders or the Red Cross, all have their largest individual donor base in Argentina, even more than in Mexico or Brazil. Though 25% of the population may seem small when compared to the 40% in Chile or the 46% in Guatemala, this culture of donating is only just beginning to develop and grow, largely due to the creativity and persistence of NGO campaigning efforts.
