Kwanda brings diasporans together to fund sustainable development across Africa.
How Kwanda works
Join the village by making a monthly pledge of at least $5. This contribution funds projects and grants you voting rights.
Welcome to the village. You now have voting rights.
Members can track project progress and get real-time updates from the field.
Voting sessions are called to approve key funding decisions. Every member has voting rights and can take part in votes.
All finances and every transaction are accounted for in a public ledger.
We plan to build a global community of diasporans and tap into the enormous power of collective philanthropy.
Frequently asked questions
Who's behind Kwanda?
Jermaine Craig founded Kwanda and currently leads the company.
How can I learn more about your governance and legal structure?
You can find information on our directorship and financials on companies house
You can also read our constitution. It explains our governance and laws.
Is Kwanda a registered charity?
Nope! Kwanda is not registered as a charity. We decided to be a non-profit only, as charity status limits the scope of work we can do as a development fund.
As a non-profit, we maintain flexibility while following the same financial rules as charities. No individuals can profit from Kwanda, and revenues can only be reinvested.
We’ll keep revisiting this decision. We want to ensure we’re in the best position as a development fund.
How does Kwanda select and vet project partners?
We have a set of criteria against which we judge solutions we might invest in and the partners who will implement those solutions.
These criteria ensure that projects align with our mission and values and have the potential for sustainable development.
Regarding vetting, we practice trust-based philanthropy, which means we place a high level of trust in the local entrepreneurs and initiatives we support. Still, we use local networks and qualifying criteria to conduct due diligence before finalising partnerships.
When needed, we take advantage of Global Giving’s robust due diligence offerings and combine them with our own due diligence processes.
Global Giving is known for its thorough vetting of nonprofit organizations and projects. This partnership allows us to leverage an established system for verifying project legitimacy and potential impact, especially when additional scrutiny is required.
How does Kwanda ensure transparent fund and project management?
We only work with partners who have evidenced an ability to provide complete transparency on their use of funds and project implementation. This ability is a core part of our funding criteria and is assessed as a part of our due diligence process.
… and, of course, we hold ourselves to the same standard.
We provide regular financial updates and display all our financial transactions on our open ledger. We also outline and update our budget every month and list our fixed costs publicly.
We provide regular project updates and the occasional detailed report, allowing villagers to track the progress and impact of each project.
How does Kwanda ensure solutions are community-driven and not externally imposed?
We focus on supporting solutions that already have wide community backing.
Rather than proposing solutions ourselves, We act as a partner to scale solutions pre-established by local entrepreneurs. This approach respects local expertise and ensures solutions are driven by community members who understand the context best.
While we may suggest ways to evolve existing solutions based on knowledge gained from other projects, partner communities are not obligated to implement these suggestions. This approach allows for knowledge sharing while still respecting local autonomy.
Can members contribute skills or expertise beyond financial contributions?
Soon!
We’re still developing a framework for effectively engaging our members’ skills and expertise beyond financial contributions.
Internally, we prioritise having permanent staff cover all core functions needed for Kwanda’s operations. This approach helps us reduce risk and ensure consistency in our operations. While we appreciate the potential for volunteer contributions, we believe having a stable, dedicated team managing essential aspects of our platform is crucial.
Similarly, we ensure projects on the ground are not dependent on volunteers. We work with communities and project leaders to establish sustainable structures that don’t rely on volunteer support, which helps maintain project continuity and effectiveness.
While we’re not currently set up to fully utilise member skills beyond financial contributions, we’re exploring ways to incorporate member expertise in the future, potentially through advisory roles or knowledge-sharing initiatives. We’ll keep members updated as we develop more opportunities for engagement.
Is there a minimum commitment period for membership?
There’s no minimum commitment period. Members can adjust or cancel their contributions at any time.
How does Kwanda evaluate project impact over time?
We take a comprehensive approach to measuring the long-term impact of funded projects:
We establish key performance metrics that are unique to each project. These metrics are tailored to capture the specific outcomes and impacts relevant to the project’s goals and the community it serves.
We conduct regular follow-ups with partner communities and project leaders, tracking these key performance indicators over time. This allows us to monitor progress and assess each initiative’s sustained impact.
We combine these individual project metrics in more extensive reports to provide higher-level impact reports. These comprehensive reports offer insights across various sectors (education, health, agriculture) and regions.
This aggregated data allows us to analyse broader trends and the overall impact of our investments.
We also use this data to inform our future funding decisions, ensuring we continually improve our impact.
By using this multi-layered approach – from project-specific metrics to broader impact analysis – we can provide our members with a clear and detailed understanding of how their contributions are making a sustained impact.
How much of my contribution goes to projects vs. operations?
The percentage of your monthly contribution that goes directly to funding projects versus operational costs is not fixed and will fluctuate.
However, we strive for transparency in how we allocate funds:
Approximately 50% of contributions go directly to funding sustainable development, ensuring that a significant portion of your contribution has a direct impact.
Around 5% covers our fixed operational costs. This includes essential expenses like platform maintenance, financial audits, and core staff salaries.
Approximately 45% is allocated to marketing efforts. This significant investment in outreach is crucial for growing our community of contributors, allowing us to fund more projects and increase our overall impact.
It’s important to note that our marketing spend directly contributes to expanding our reach and ability to fund more projects over time. As we grow and achieve economies of scale, we aim to gradually increase the percentage that goes directly to projects.
We regularly review and optimise this allocation to ensure we maximise every contribution’s impact while sustainably growing our platform.