SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOAL 17: PARTNERSHIPS FOR THE GOALS
SDG 17 aims to strengthen global partnerships to support and achieve the ambitious targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It focuses on collaboration between governments, the private sector and civil society, ensuring no one is left behind. The goal addresses finance, technology, capacity building, trade and systemic issues, fostering inclusive partnerships at the global, regional and local levels.
The extent and complexity of modern global crises are beyond the reach of any single entity. Creating meaningful, lasting change in the form of social justice and environmental sustainability demands shared intentions, collective effort and combined action. In a word – collaboration. As a key player in the global landscape business has a responsibility to embrace collaborative efforts. We explore how working together is playing out in the world of corporate social investment (CSI) and how companies can leverage collaboration to achieve positive impacts.
An antidote to polycrisis
Our world faces an unprecedented confluence of global challenges. International conflicts, accelerating climate change and the aftermath of a global pandemic have converged with other events to create a complex tapestry of present and future risks. The World Economic Forum describes this situation as a polycrisis – an intricate convergence of economic, political, geopolitical and environmental crises whose combined impact exceeds the sum of its parts.
This polycrisis demands a paradigm shift in problem-solving. Its interconnected nature requires solutions that are equally integrated, drawing on diverse perspectives, resources and expertise across sectors and borders.
Against this landscape, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are more than aspirational targets. The 17 interlinked objectives identify the root causes of multiple global issues, providing a blueprint for a more equitable and sustainable world. They cannot be realised without significant, coordinated, collaborative action, an ambition that is specifically articulated in SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals.
The Covid-19 pandemic served as a stark reminder of our global interdependence and capacity for rapid, coordinated response. While exposing systemic vulnerabilities, it also demonstrated the power of cross-sector collaboration.
This collaborative spirit is essential for addressing the polycrisis and advancing the SDGs. No single entity, regardless of its resources or influence, can tackle these multifaceted challenges alone. Instead, we must usher in a new era of strategic partnerships that bridge traditional divides between governments, nonprofit organisations (NPOs), communities and the corporate world.
The collaborative future of giving
‘Collaboration’ is a growing buzzword across the giving world as governments, philanthropists and businesses recognise that systemic, scalable change will need more collective effort. Private philanthropy has largely been leading this charge. Bridgespan Group research shows how philanthropy has seen a rise in collaborative efforts over the past decade. Releasing the Potential of Philanthropic Collaborations explores how the process of pooling funding to create change, which has been practised for more than a century, is experiencing a rapid surge. This trend follows the rise in global wealth accumulation and increased interest in new ways of giving. The Bridgespan Group’s 2023 report The Philanthropic Collaborative Landscape notes that US collaboratives currently collectively direct between US$4 billion and US$7 billion to a variety of grantees annually. While this is a small portion of the overall value of philanthropic giving, the trend is growing and not just in the developed world.
According to the Bridgespan Group’s 2024 report Philanthropic Collaborations in Africa and Their Unique Potential, collaborative giving in Africa has gained significant momentum over the past two decades. A sample of philanthropic collaborations involving African and non-African donors, found that these initiatives are bringing together diverse stakeholders, including governments, businesses and NPOs, to address pressing issues such as education, health, gender equality, climate change and economic development.
African funders see collaboration as a powerful tool for developing and implementing distinctly African solutions to local challenges. This approach has led to the emergence of many formal collaborations co-created by at least three independent actors, including philanthropists, with shared visions and strategies.
A key characteristic of African collaboratives is their emphasis on partnering with governments and the private sector. This approach recognises that systemic change often requires government involvement, especially in areas such as education and healthcare where extensive public infrastructure exists. Additionally, including private sector partners helps address the scope, scale and complexity of developmental challenges.
As wealth continues to grow across the continent, with increasing numbers of African millionaires and billionaires, there is the potential for further expansion of collaborative giving initiatives.
With this trend comes the potential for greater social impact. The Bridgespan Group’s 2024 report Want to Fund in the Global South? Philanthropic Collaboratives Can Help notes that Global South collaboratives are good at channelling resources to ‘proximate’ leaders – those with lived experience and local knowledge – and local communities. The report notes, however, that collaborative funding in the Global South is woefully under-utilised considering its potential for social impact. Collaborative funds offer efficient solutions for donors by handling due diligence, leveraging local networks and focusing on capacity building, often employing trust-based philanthropy principles. They also tend to provide access to specialised knowledge and local expertise, supporting donor engagement in a way that allows donors to quickly gain insights into unfamiliar geographies and solutions.
The Independent Philanthropy Association of South Africa (IPASA) has witnessed the growing need for deeper and more effective collaboration as well as increasing awareness from South African funders that the philanthropy sector needs more collaboration to meet its potential. Its 2023 Collaboration Case Studies report considers the need to explore and reinvent the power relations between funders, implementers, communities and beneficiaries.
The growing body of evidence of the effectiveness of collaboration in delivering social change holds potential learning for companies looking to amplify their CSI impact.
Unpacking collaborative models
Multiple models of collaboration exist, each suited to different contexts and goals. These range from the sharing of research and information to collective impact initiatives. Within these structural models, collaborations can take many forms, such as technical partnerships that address specific organisational needs (e.g. fundraising), relationship-based collaborations that leverage complementary strengths (e.g. networking or expertise in a particular area), sector-specific alliances tackling industry-wide challenges, geographic collaborations focusing on local development, and ecosystem-wide initiatives bringing together diverse stakeholders to address a systemic issue. Collaborations can range from the least intense joint efforts that involve little more than information-sharing to more intense collective impact initiatives.
As organisations move across the collaboration spectrum, the nature of partnerships becomes increasingly demanding. This progression requires a greater investment of time, resources and commitment from all parties involved. At the less intense end of the spectrum, collaborations are often straightforward, with clear boundaries and limited shared responsibilities.
However, as efforts move towards the most intense, or collective, end of the collaboration spectrum, partnerships become more intertwined, necessitating sophisticated governance structures, aligned goals and shared accountability. This evolution demands not only more resources but also a shift in organisational culture, fostering trust, open communication and a willingness to share both risks and rewards.
The state of collaboration in South African CSI
Broader collaborative effort holds enormous potential for CSI. Collaboration with other businesses, philanthropic organisations, NPOs, government agencies and communities would enable companies to leverage their unique strengths and resources to create a more significant, lasting impact. Effective partnerships that pool diverse resources, perspectives and experience, and share knowledge and best practices to deliver innovative solutions have a greater chance of building more resilient, sustainable systems capable of withstanding future crises.
Despite widespread acknowledgement of the potential value of collaboration from CSI practitioners, collaboration in its broader sense remains an under-exercised strategy for CSI, with many companies unwilling to invest the time and money required for collective impact.
Trialogue’s 2024 primary research finds that the top motivation for collaboration for both companies and NPOs is to leverage existing relationships. Beyond this, their motivations for collaboration differ, with companies collaborating to create systematic impact and extend reach, while NPOs are more driven by knowledge exchange and access to additional funding. Surprisingly, both sectors show limited collaboration for advocacy purposes.
The research further finds that South African companies predominantly collaborate with NPOs, with 93% of companies partnering with NPOs. The next most common partners are universities and research institutions, where three-quarters of companies report collaboration. There is a noticeable trend of increased partnerships between companies, both within and across industries, for joint-programme funding. NPOs and community-led groups are the primary partners for joint-programme implementation. While collaboration with universities for research sharing remains significant, it has decreased slightly since 2021.
NPOs demonstrate a strong tendency to collaborate within their sector and with community-led groups, mirroring the corporate preference for nonprofit partnerships. There is also a notable reciprocal relationship between companies and NPOs, with a significant portion of NPOs engaging in joint funding and implementation with private sector companies.
Interestingly, both companies and NPOs report minimal collaboration with regional and international multilateral organisations and aid agencies.
Reasons for collaboration
Leveraging existing relationships:
43% (NPO),
64% (corporate)
Creating more systemic impact:
32% (NPO),
49% (corporate)
Extending the reach of an initiative:
37% (NPO),
43% (corporate)
Enhancing relationships with business/organisation stakeholders:
36% (NPO),
31% (corporate)
Making programs more holistic:
24% (NPO),
29% (corporate)
Tapping into specific expertise:
18% (NPO),
21% (corporate)
Sharing complementary resources:
19% (NPO)
19% (Corporate)
Accessing additional funding:
36% (NPO),
13% (Corporate).
Amplifying the voice on advocacy:
12% (NPO),
9% (Corporate)
Exchanging knowledge:
28% (NPO),
8% (corporate)
Other:
1% (NPO),
4% (corporate).
Comparing percentages of NPO respondents and corporate respondents based on multiple response options
Developing a blueprint for collaborative success
The path to successful collaboration is fraught with challenges. Reconciling profound ideological differences and objectives between businesses, governments and NPOs is no easy task. It is a necessary one, however, if there is to be any chance of addressing complex social issues. Successful collaborative initiatives consider the following:
Align goals: At the heart of any successful collaboration lies a foundation of shared understanding. Partners must come together to articulate clear, common goals that align not just their broad social impact objectives, but also their secondary aims and expectations. Foster a spirit of collaboration: This means moving beyond viewing CSI as a tool for brand differentiation and instead embracing the power of collective impact. This allows partners to pool resources effectively and work towards shared success.
Develop robust structures and processes: Clear governance frameworks provide the scaffolding upon which partnerships can build, offering clarity on decision-making, roles and responsibilities. These should be reviewed regularly to ensure they remain fit for purpose as the collaboration evolves.
Allocate resources for the collaborative: Successful partnerships recognise that resource allocation must extend beyond programme delivery to encompass the management of the partnership itself. Regular assessment and reallocation of resources keep collaborations agile and responsive to changing needs.
Communicate regularly and effectively: Successful partners bridge cultural, linguistic and sectoral divides by creating platforms for open, regular dialogue. They foster a mutual understanding of one another’s organisational cultures and adapt their communication styles accordingly, ensuring that corporate formalities do not clash with nonprofit grassroots approaches and that the intricacies of government decision making do not become roadblocks.
Measure and evaluate: Rather than focusing solely on measuring and reporting, monitoring and evaluation (M&E) processes should prioritise learning and improvement. They should consider the interests of all stakeholders, including beneficiaries, using evaluation results to drive continuous enhancement of both programmes and partnerships. The Bridgespan Group’s 2024 report How Philanthropic Collaboratives Measure, Evaluate, and Learn explores the value of good measurement and evaluation as a means to deliver long term impact and improve the collaborative giving process.
Taking the first steps to collaboration
There is a compelling case to be made for widespread collaboration as a tool to address some of South Africa’s complex social challenges.
Companies looking to enter or grow their collaborative efforts might consider exploring existing initiatives through industry associations and platforms such as the National Business Initiative (NBI), IPASA and the Trialogue Knowledge Hub. Opportunities for collaboration might also be found through networking at sector-specific forums and CSI events, or by tapping into NPO networks and community forums.
It may be better to start small, with less intense forms of collaboration such as information-sharing, before joining existing or starting new collaborative initiatives. This would give companies time to better understand the sector and build trust while reviewing their capacity and internal policies that might affect collaborative partnership involvement. Companies should consider what value their organisation might bring to potential partnerships and identify champions within the organisation to drive collaborative efforts.
Collaborative approaches offer a promising path forward for companies seeking to amplify their social impact and contribute to more systemic impact.
Collaboration considerations
Successful collaboration requires careful planning. Depending on the intensity of the collaborative effort being established, the following elements may need to be considered:
Goal setting and measurement
- Collaborative strategic planning
- Development of shared metrics
- Joint M&E systems
Cultural integration
- Development of a shared partnership culture
- Cross-cultural training and sensitivity
Governance and decision-making
- Formal agreements and memorandums of
understanding (MoUs) - Joint steering committees or boards
- Consensus-building and conflict-resolution processes
- Opportunities for more stakeholders and exits
Resource allocation
- Shared budgets and financial management
- Joint fundraising efforts
- Allocation of staff time and expertise
- Funding for the collaborative process (coordination, staff, workshops, shared technology, etc.)
Communication and coordination
- Regular partner meetings and updates
- Shared communication platforms and tools
- Cross-organisational working groups
Risk management
- Shared risk assessments
- Joint contingency planning
- Collective problem-solving mechanisms
Knowledge management
- Systems for shared learning and best practices
- Joint research and publication efforts
- Intellectual property agreements
- Maintaining legacy knowledge
Stakeholder engagement
- Collective stakeholder mapping and engagement
strategies - Joint community outreach and participation mechanisms
- Shared reporting and accountability to stakeholders
Technological infrastructure
- Integrated data management systems
- Shared digital platforms for collaboration
Sustainability and exit strategies
- Long-term funding models
- Capacity building for sustained impact
- Planned transition or exit strategies.
Sources and further reading:
- ‘Philanthropic Collaborations in Africa and their Unique Potential’. Bridgespan Group 2024.
- ‘The Philanthropic Collaborative Landscape’. Bridgespan Group 2024.
- ‘Want to Fund in the Global South? Philanthropic Collaboratives Can Help’. Bridgespan Group 2024.
- ‘The growing momentum behind philanthropic collaboratives in India’. Bridgespan Group 2024.
- ‘How Philanthropic Collaboratives Measure, Evaluate, and Learn’. Bridgespan Group 2024.
- 2023 IPASA Collaboration Case Studies. IPASA 2024.
- ‘Collaborating to Systemically Address Social Justice in South Africa’. IPASA 2024.
- The Collaboration Spectrum Revisited. Tamarack Institute 2021.
- The Guide to Cross-sector Collaboration. Resonance Global 2018.
- ‘Unveiling 5 Game-changing Collaboration Models in the Development Sector’. Indian School of Development Management (ISDM) 2024.
