Index of Global Philanthropy 2008

The flow of private money to the developing world, in the form of investment, philanthropy, and remittances, now far exceeds the flow of public money. Today government aid constitutes less than 25 percent of developed countries’ economic dealings with poor countries. These are among the more surprising conclusions of the 2008 Index of Global Philanthropy, published by the Hudson Institute's Center for Global Prosperity (CGP) with significant support from the John Templeton Foundation.

In its third year, the 2008 Index details the sources and magnitude of private international giving. This year's report introduces a new feature: a survey of U.S. religious giving to relief and development projects in the developing world. The study, conducted by the University of Notre Dame's Center for the Study of Religion and Society, found that a stunning $8.8 billion in religious donations passed from the U.S. to the developing world in 2006, as compared to $23.5 billion in official development assistance.

The structure of philanthropy is changing too. The Index provides multiple examples of how the traditional "donor-to-recipient" model of foreign aid is being supplanted by public-private partnerships. Increasingly, government agencies are leveraging official aid with new private programs run by foundations, corporations, charities, universities, and religious organizations. “New and diverse private players are creating new business models for foreign aid,” said Carol Adelman, director of the CGP. “But most importantly . . . poor people are helping themselves through partnerships that are locally owned, transparent, and accountable—with better, more lasting results than government aid has had in the past."