"Global Philanthropy — Hand Up or Hand Out?”

On September 18, 2012, The Center for Financial Policy (CFP) and the Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER) hosted Charles Waigi, a retired Kenyan dignitary, educator, one of East Africa's visionary leaders, and a 2012 Williams Bicentennial Medalist, to speak at the Robert H. Smith School of Business to an audience of students and faculty about various aspects of global philanthropy.

During his talk, Mr. Waigi expressed his hopes to achieve a “global village” accomplished by a well-developed social media network and the irreversible trend of globalization. He also shared his belief that all philanthropists should consider their donations to be investments and that due diligence must be exercised. In addition, he mentioned that educational initiatives might seem hard to accomplish, but since these initiatives provide continuous returns, they should always be prioritized.

The audience raised in-depth questions regarding education reform, teaching synergy and the measurement of the impact of philanthropy, specifically education-related philanthropy. Mr. Waigi admitted that it could be very difficult to find a “yardstick” to measure the impact of philanthropic efforts. However, having witnessed the differences that education could bring, Mr. Waigi has faith in his own approach and stated more detailed metrics should be put in place in the near future to make the progress more accountable.