Youth at the Forefront of the Change of Paradigm in Indian Philanthropy

The good news is that Indian high-net-worth individuals are donating an increasing share of their assets to philanthropic causes. The great news is that young people are at the forefront of this move. The India Philanthropy Report 2012 released in March 2012 by consultancy firm Bain and Company polled 400 high-net-worth individuals (with investible assets of more than $1.1 million) across Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Pune. The outcome shows that 52% of them intend to increase their charity contributions in 2012, after a 3.1% rise of their income in 2011, up from 2.3% in 2010. Among them, young people under 30 (accounting for one-third of survey respondents) appear especially willing to “give back to society” what they have received by investing in charitable causes.

Facilitating their donations and adapting to their preferred philanthropic methods could fuel this new trend. The development of this new class of donors could ensure a bright future for Indian philanthropy, although charitable organizations’ lack of accountability seems to be a deterrent to donations, for them. Philanthropic organizations will need to focus on delivering results to encourage increasing contributions from Indian donors, especially young donors.