Family-led philanthropy has grown by double digit figures in India over the last five years and is expected to rise further. 

According to a report outlining changes in India’s philanthropic landscape, published by consultancy firm Bain & co, alongside strategic philanthropic foundation Dasra, family philanthropy has witnessed a 12 per cent growth over the last five years, reaching $3.6 billion (Rs 29,600 crore) in 2022.  

Contributions from family philanthropy in India is expected to grow at an annual rate of 12 percent till 2027. 

Growth is attributed to the increased involvement of high-net-worth individuals. 

Overall, private philanthropy has grown at a “moderate pace” of about 8 percent between 2017 and 2022, despite foreign funding remaining stagnant.  

In 2022, private contributions totalled some $13 billion. Corporate social responsibility (CSR), family philanthropy, high net worth individuals (those that have a net worth of between $850,000 to $121 million), and retail giving cumulatively contributed about 86 percent of private philanthropy in India. 

The report says they are expected to remain the foundation of private giving in India. 

Two groups within family philanthropy are predicated to “reshaping giving, disrupting sector barriers”, including “professionals and entrepreneurs with first-generation wealth” and so-called ‘inter-generational givers’ which includes “the current generation of traditional family philanthropists”, both “giving by looking beyond historical funding preferences and beginning to focus on underrepresented causes”. 

Findings aren’t all rosy.

A report previously published in April by Bain & co and Dasra warned that philanthropic giving from India’s ultra-high-net-worth individuals has fallen by almost a third over the past year.

According to the research, the dramatic fall is due to significantly reduced grantmaking by the Azim Premji Foundation. 

Shafi Musaddique is a news editor at Alliance magazine.