Should we start preparing ‘mass graves’ for CSOs?
Should we start preparing “mass graves” for CSOs? Funding is drying up, policy space is tightening, and too many organizations in the Global South are being pushed to downsize or shut down. This isn’t just institutional loss, it’s the erosion of civic voice and agency. As APN’s Dr. Stigmata Tenga warns, “It’s not just the organizations that die, it’s the voice, the dignity, and the agency of the people they served.” Recent APN trainings revealed a stark reality: many CSOs wouldn’t survive beyond five years without foreign funding.
There is another path. APN’s capacity-building (with Change the Game Academy) is helping members pivot to alternative financing, community philanthropy, social enterprise, impact investing, and local resource mobilization, drawing inspiration from peers like Thubutu Africa Initiatives and DEC–Ethiopia. The choice is clear: adapt or disappear. Join us, partner with APN and the CivLegacy Foundation to co-create alternative financing pilots, invest in community philanthropy, and sign up for the next sustainability cohort so we build futures, not funerals.