Corporate giving trends: Insights from Brazil, South Africa and the US 

2025 has laid bare a fundamental tension in corporate social investment (CSI) amid an unpredictable and rapidly changing geopolitical landscape: companies are being asked to do more with less, demonstrate impact more rigorously and navigate an increasingly polarised political landscape. At the same time, they are expected to maintain their commitment to nonprofits, communities, stakeholders and society at large. 

Giving trends from South Africa, Brazil and the United States (US) highlight how companies in these countries have responded to their unique social, economic and political environments. The Giving in Numbers: 2025 Edition, compiled by Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose (CECP), is published during “a moment of reflection and recalibration” as US companies navigate economic uncertainty, geopolitical instability and shifting cultural expectations. In Brazil, Comunitas’s Benchmarking Do Investimento Social Corporativo (BISC) 2025 highlights record CSI spend, stemming, in part, from strong economic growth in that country. Comunitas noted a year-on-year increase of 19% in CSI expenditure in 2024. Meanwhile, in South Africa, CSI spend remained flat in real terms, growing in line with inflation.  

The years since 2020 have seen noticeable shifts in giving trends as companies responded to the Covid-19 pandemic, adjusted to significant declines in revenue and tried to navigate socioeconomic and geopolitical developments. The latest Giving in Numbers report reveals that median direct cash investments by US companies declined by 24% between 2020 and 2024, while median cash investments from foundations dropped by 17% over the same period. Non-cash contributions increased by 8% between 2020 and 2024, indicating a shift towards in-kind support and non-cash offerings (e.g. products, materials, foodstuffs, employee volunteering and pro bono services).  

Trialogue’s 2025 research shows that South African companies give in cash to a greater extent than their US counterparts (56% from CSI and other departments). Cash expenditure from trusts or foundations accounts for 18% of CSI spend, while non-cash donations account for 26% of giving in South Africa (25% through goods and services and 1% through employee volunteering).  

Brazilian companies apply most of their investments through direct cash (67%) and foundation cash (33%), influenced by the proportions of the biggest companies. Non-cash investments are least relevant in general terms, but very significant to the services sector, and small and middle-sized companies. Brazilian companies have increased their direct investments (77%), rather than leveraging the country’s tax incentive system (23%), which allows businesses to redirect a portion of their tax obligations to social programmes through government-established mechanisms. The share of direct investments increased by six percentage points year on year from 2023 to 2024, suggesting companies are adopting a more hands-on approach to their CSI strategies.  

Corporate purpose 

CECP’s report once again found that companies with metrics aligned to their corporate purpose report significantly higher revenue and pre-tax profit, as well as stronger year-on-year profit growth, than companies not aligned to their purpose. Eighty-seven percent of organisations polled had a purpose statement that served as a reference point in decision-making. In challenging social, economic and political environments, a strong corporate purpose serves as a guiding framework for companies navigating complex decisions. 

The percentage of US companies with metrics tied to their purpose grew from 58% in 2020 to 67% in 2024, suggesting either a greater adoption of measurement practices or more effort to tie measurable outcomes to corporate purpose. In Trialogue’s 2025 research, more South African companies reported that their CSI strategy was “very much aligned” with their business strategy, increasing from 78% in 2024 to 84% in 2025. 

Giving trends 

Between 2022 and 2024, 55% of US companies decreased their community investments, while only 35% increased them and 10% reported no change. The reasons companies gave for these shifts include expanding product donation programmes, budget constraints, organisational restructuring, or the conclusion of multiyear grants. In contrast, only 19% of South African companies decreased their social investments in 2025, despite operating in a depressed economic environment.  

While education continues to be the sector that receives the lion’s share of CSI expenditure (44% on average) and company support (91% of companies) in South Africa, health and social services was the most supported focus area among US companies, receiving the largest average allocation at 26% of TCI. Community and economic development programmes received an average allocation of 16% of TCI, followed by basic education (10%) and higher education (10%). The difference in sector spend is indicative of the poor state of education in South Africa. Locally, social and community development received an average of 14% of CSI spend, followed by food security and agriculture (13%) and health (11%). The spending allocation in Brazil appears more closely aligned with CSI expenditure in South Africa. BISC 2025 reported that education received 31% of CSI spend, followed by community and economic development at 20% and cultural sponsorship at 11%. 

The 2025 Giving in Numbers report found that disaster relief saw the steepest decline, with median investment falling 41% between 2022 and 2024, suggesting US companies may be responding more selectively to crises over time, or that the absence of major disasters in their operating regions reduced reactive giving. The trend in declining support for disaster relief was also noted in South Africa. Trialogue’s research found that 44% of companies supported disaster preparedness and relief, down from a high of 70% of companies in 2021 during the pandemic. Average CSI spend on this sector declined by six percentage points between 2021 (9%) and 2025 (3%). However, in Brazil, 87% of companies supported emergency disaster relief in 2024, as the country battled the aftermath of devastating flooding in Rio Grande do Sul. This was the most supported sector by companies, though education still received the largest allocation of CSI expenditure in Brazil. 

The geography of giving 

Sixty-four percent of US companies made international community investments in 2024, with a median contribution of US$3 million. While this represents a six percentage point drop from the 2022 peak, those companies still investing internationally increased their median contributions by 14% between 2022 and 2024. The trend is clear: fewer companies are giving globally, but those that do are giving more. In South Africa, support for international programmes is significantly lower at 3% (two companies). This is unsurprising, considering the scale of South Africa’s development programmes and its high levels of inequality. 

The measurement imperative 

The body of research in Giving in Numbers over the years indicates that, despite challenges such as increased workloads, aligning internal systems, managing resource constraints and navigating new standards, companies remain committed to the discipline of measurement.  

In 2024, 80% of US companies collected both outputs and outcomes data, while 76% tracked programme activities. Over two-thirds of companies gathered qualitative participant narratives, indicating that the opinions and experiences of beneficiaries, communities and nonprofit organisations are sought and valued by companies. In South Africa, 68% of companies had a monitoring and evaluation (M&E) policy in place in 2025, up from 45% in 2020. Nine out of 10 local companies track outcomes, while 76% report measuring impact. (See pages 92–104 for the results of Trialogue’s M&E research). 

The CECP’s 2025 report also found that an increasing number of US companies are evaluating the business value of their social investments in relation to their brand and customer relationships. In 2024, 35% of US companies measured brand-related outcomes. Among those measuring brand value, the top reported benefit was an improvement in reputation and trust scores (38%), followed by enhanced brand perception (30%). Over half (58%) of South African companies measured the business benefits of their community investments, with a high proportion (79%) of these companies assessing changes in brand perception. (See page 56 for the results of Trialogue’s company and nonprofit reputation surveys.) 

The DEI inflexion point 

The political environment has compelled US companies to address challenging questions – at least internally – about their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programmes. Navigating polarising opinions and emotive public discourse has been complex for many companies. Only 8% of companies surveyed reported investing in external inclusion, racial equity, or social justice in 2024. 

In South Africa, a different picture has emerged. None of the companies surveyed said they were ending their DEI programmes; 64% indicated they were keeping their DEI programmes as is, while 16% said they were adjusting or renaming their programmes following controversial executive orders issued by US President Donald Trump. 

This data suggests most South African companies are holding steady for now. However,  the high proportion of “unsure” and “don’t know” responses indicate uncertainty. While political winds are shifting in the US, the underlying business case for diversity remains unchanged. 

Social value: looking to the future 

One of the trends gaining momentum each year is how companies approach collaboration to drive greater total social value (TSV). TSV, as defined by CECP, is the component of total social investment that addresses innovative corporate practices and broader partnerships beyond traditional giving to nonprofits. Between 2022 and 2024, companies more than doubled their median TSV investment. This growth reflects a recognition that traditional philanthropy alone cannot solve complex social problems. Companies are experimenting with new models, leveraging cross-sector partnerships, fostering collaboration and investing in initiatives that generate both social and business value.