From donors to social investors in Brazil: IDIS celebrates 10th anniversary and C&A Institute changes profile

In an article written for the 10th anniversary of the Instituto para o Desenvolvimento do Investimento Social (Institute for the Development of Social Investment – IDIS), Chairman and President Marcos Kisil explains how the last decade was important in establishing new insights on the role of private social investment.

‘Companies have made progress in designing social investment as part of their commitments to sustainability and social responsibility. Families with resources have converted their welfare and paternalistic actions into socio-environmental development actions, incorporating different generations and new ways of professional management,’ writes Kisil.

Eighteen years on, the C&A Institute has benefited a million people in the area of education and has moved from being a donor to a social investor. Paulo Castro, the institute’s president and director, said that C&A designed its strategy considering the Brazilian context and the need for dialogue with civil society organizations: ‘We always carry out projects through institutional partnerships. Recognizing local leaders and partnering with them are our guiding principles. We have carried out more than 1,400 projects with over 800 organizations.’

At first, the C&A Institute had a classic donor profile. In the mid-1990s, it helped found the Grupo de Institutos, Fundações e Empresas (Group of Institutes, Foundations and Enterprises – GIFE). In addition, with the object of participating more actively in projects, C&A added technical support. ‘This affected the institute’s structure, which now has a technical team, administrative processes and conceptual definitions.’ Over the past four years, the institute has been reorganized, introducing new processes for programme management, communication, knowledge and relationships with stakeholders. Since 2008, financial support has remained at about USD9.5 million, ‘and this sum must be repeated in 2010’.

For more information
www.gife.org.br/redegifeonline_noticias.php?codigo=8643&tamanhodetela=4&...
www.idis.org.br
www.idis.org.br/acontece/noticias/aos-18-anos-instituto-c-a-mostra-como-...