Our Mission
Our mission at SIVIO Institute is ‘a quest for inclusive society’. Our work aims to make society more inclusive for the poor and vulnerable, giving them a voice to challenge the flawed and unequal development frameworks created by their respective governments. Our work is about increasing the prospects for inclusion for everyone and it focuses on three inter-related issues – democracy; development and citizen participation. We do this not just by looking at ‘what is’ , but we actively work with start-ups founders, community foundations, civil society leaders and activists to frame ‘what should be’ narratives. Our approach is to create solutions for an Africa that works, and not just for the rich but also for the poor and vulnerable.
We do all of the by creating citizen accountability platforms in our research, public convenings, and training programs. By supporting our work, you can get involved in some of the following activities in 2024:
- Training at least 20 policy advocates in policy analysis and advocacy in SADC through the policy lab process.
- Training 20 start up founders in how to start and run a social enterprise through the social entrepreneurship lab process.
- Training 20 leaders of community-based foundations to start and high impact foundation that assist communities at the forefront of facing development challenges.
- Expanding one of the few African journals in existence through our work in the African Journal of Inclusive Societies
- Support the development of accountability tools using technology through the expansion of the expand of our integrated technology platforms.
- Expanding our research on African citizenship into 5 more countries
- Expanding our research on the ease of doing philanthropy into 5 more countries
- Conducting survey on inclusion index into 5 more countries
Our Centres of Work
Our work is separated into three centers of work namely:
- The Centre for Civic Engagement
- The Centre for Philanthropy and Communities
- The Centre for Social entrepreneurship and Inclusion
The Centre for Civic Engagement is focused on sharpening the citizens’ engagement in public spaces/processes; design, implementation of policies affecting equitable, responsive and acceptable public development processes and in promoting citizen participation in public processes and their engagement with state and non-state actors.
The Centre for Social Entrepreneurship and Inclusion is a centre focused on interventions to Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises with a particular interest in growing their skills base, creating networks for collaboration, learning, and trade, whilst addressing policy concerns within the small enterprise ecosystem in the Sub-Saharan Africa.
The Centre for Philanthropy and Communities is focused on nurturing and growing philanthropy and the understanding of work between and amongst African communities.