Three recent reports on giving have provided information on charitable and philanthropic practice in South Africa. These three reports provide an interesting overview of the state of giving in South Africa and clearly distinguish between charitable and philanthropic practice.

The South Africa Giving 2017 focused on a wide range of income brackets and it was clear that the main driver of general giving in the country is alleviating poverty.

More than half (58%) reported that they had made donations to help the poor, and a large percentage of those who volunteered their time also involved themselves in activities that alleviated poverty.

In addition to helping the poor, the other most popular causes were religious organizations and support for children. The report revealed that the vast majority of South Africans (88%) had participated in charitable activities and that 81% had given money. This money had generally gone to a charity, a faith-based organization or to an individual. Of interest was that the most popular method of making a donation was a donation box in a supermarket or a shop and the median donation was R500. A high percentage of volunteers (48%) worked in their religious organizations.

Read more about the reports on philanthropy and charity in South Africa by Shelagh Gastrow at Daily Maverick