Accra: Ms Jenny Hodgson, the Executive Director of the Global Fund for Community Foundations, has called on civil society actors in Ghana to integrate community philanthropy as a crucial component of sustainable development. She emphasized that future civic actions should be grounded in local trust and resources instead of relying on foreign aid.
According to Ghana News Agency, Ms Hodgson made these remarks during a virtual address at the 2025 Ghana Civil Society Forum held in Accra. She highlighted the diminishing relevance of short-term, top-down donor interventions and urged stakeholders to invest in grassroots systems that promote community ownership and collective action. The Forum builds on insights from its 2022 and 2024 editions, positioning Ghana's civil society ecosystem as a pivotal player in Africa's transformation.
Ms Hodgson questioned how civil society could become credible and appealing to local communities, noting the frequent perception of civil society as an extension of foreign interests rather than a source of homegrown solutions. Drawing on her nearly two decades of experience in promoting community philanthropy globally, she cited Nepal's TEWA Women's Fund as an example of successful local donor networks built on transparency and community ownership.
She stressed that local donations carry value beyond monetary worth, representing an expression of trust and belief in collective power. Ms Hodgson further explained that many communities already possess the resources and social capital needed for change but are often overshadowed by international donor systems that undervalue indigenous knowledge and community-led approaches.
Highlighting the global momentum for grassroots-led development, Ms Hodgson pointed to events like the 2016 'Shift the Power' Global Summit in Johannesburg and its 2023 follow-up in Bogot¡. She noted that Ghana has a significant opportunity to participate in this global reimagining of power dynamics in aid and philanthropy.
The Forum, held under the theme 'Reimagining Development Financing and Civic Action - Challenges, Opportunities, and the Way Forward,' saw spirited dialogues on development financing's future. Organised by STAR-Ghana Foundation, in collaboration with partners including Oxfam, WACSI, and the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition, the two-day event drew over 500 participants from various sectors.
Ms Tendisai Chigwedere, Programmes Officer at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, echoed similar sentiments, calling for a Pan-African response to the global funding crisis. She emphasized the need for foundations to reimagine partnerships with African civil society and pointed out that Hewlett's approach now includes multi-year core support and minimal reporting requirements to facilitate long-term transformation.
Reflecting on USAID's abrupt withdrawal from Ghana, Mr Mohammed Awal Alhassan, Executive Director of Norsaac, highlighted the volatility of external funding. He noted that while local organisations were encouraged to lead localisation efforts, power dynamics often shifted back to global actors.
Ms. Samina Bhatia, Deputy Development Director of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) in Ghana, underscored the urgency for Ghanaian civil society to lead transformative change amid declining international development assistance. She urged accelerated action toward self-sufficiency and local ownership in response to the changing global economic context.
