In the last 12 months, 72 per cent of Indian adults gave money to a good cause according to the India Giving report 2019, a study of how Indians interact with charity published by the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF).

However, despite the fact that so many Indians donated to a cause they care about, the report finds that fewer people in this year’s survey took part in charitable activities in general – including donating money, volunteering and giving away food or goods.

The most common reason for donating was because it made the donor feel good 56 per cent, followed by believing that we all need to help solve social problems 42 per cent and because they care about the cause 40 per cent.

Indian people also gave clear answers on what would encourage them to give more money, time or goods to charity. The most popular improvement would be knowing for sure how their money would be spent 38 per cent, more transparency in the non-profit/charity sector 32 per cent and having more disposable income 30 per cent.

Commenting on the report, Meenakshi Batra, chief executive of CAF India said ‘India has again proven itself to be a generous country, with a majority of the population either donating money or volunteering to help out those less fortunate in our society.’

‘However, it is incumbent upon all of us in Indian civil society to be as transparent and effective as possible, to encourage even greater participation amongst the public. It’s also interesting to see 30 per cent of Indians saying that having more money would make them likelier to give to good causes. As our middle class continues to grow, this bodes well for the future health of the Indian charity sector.’

Read the full report here: https://www.cafonline.org/