WINGS’ board meeting, hosted in Beijing by the China Foundation Center (CFC) in March 2015, provided the opportunity to gain fascinating insights into how philanthropy is developing in the country.

During the visit, CFC and China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation hosted a workshop where public and private foundations shared how over the last five years there has been a surge in foundations driven by growing wealth in society and the private sector. Nevertheless, Chinese foundations still suffer from a lack of trust from the government and society at large. To improve the situation, CFC has increased the rate of data disclosure by foundations from less than 30 per cent in 2011 to over 90 per cent in 2014.

CFC and China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation hosted a workshop with WINGS’ board of directors.

Discussions also highlighted the areas where foundations believe they need to strengthen their capacities, including:

• Setting the right balance between being operational and grantmaking
• Defining appropriate tools to help philanthropists to be strategic
• Building the ecosystem for effective cooperation among all stakeholders

The pace of growth and change in China is so fast that Chinese philanthropy, too, will continue to evolve rapidly, developing its own unique characteristics and contributing to the rainbow of global philanthropy that is so rich in its diversity.

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This article is based on a blog post by chairman of WINGS Atallah Kuttab. See http://tinyurl.com/WINGSforAlliance