16+
Years of Impact
580+
Partners Collaborated With
10
Provinces Covered
50k+
Lives Touched
100%
Local Solutions
About Us
The Zambian Governance Foundation (ZGF) for Civil Society was established as a not-for-profit private company limited by guarantee under the Companies Act Chapter 388 of the Laws of Zambia in July 2009. ZGF was formed to strengthen the institutional capacity and autonomy of civil society organisations (CSO) to engage actively in policy processes and undertake advocacy on behalf of the poor and socially excluded people in Zambia. In 2017, community philanthropy emerged as a new pillar of work following exposure to the concept of community philanthropy promoted by the Global Fund for Community Foundations. The organisation has started engaging in community-led development initiatives using community philanthropy as one of the key strategies. In this new direction, ZGF still remains committed to civil society organisations (CSO) support through various mechanisms including sub-granting and capacity building.
Vision
A Zambian society where local communities realise their rights and shape their own development.
Mission
Local communities and civil society with strengthened capacities to unlock and utilise available resources.
Our Programmatic Pillars
The core strategies driving community-led development across Zambia.
CSO Support
Building the capacity of local organisations to practice active citizenship.
Explore Strategy →Strengthening Communities
Empowering communities to lead their own development and hold the state accountable.
Explore Strategy →Community Philanthropy
Advocating for the growth of formal and informal philanthropic giving in Zambia.
Explore Strategy →Social Media Highlights
All Highlights
Strengthening Local Solutions Through Community Financing Today, the Mphukila, Kankole and Kanyongoloka Community Foundations signed partnership agreements with the Zambian Governance Foundation (ZGF) to support the financing of community-led projects. The partnerships mark an important step towards putting resources closer to the communities that understand their challenges best. Through community foundations, local people are able to identify their priorities, mobilise resources and invest in solutions that respond directly to their needs. At ZGF, we believe sustainable development is strengthened when communities are not simply beneficiaries of development, but active decision makers and owners of the solutions that shape their futures. These partnerships represent a shared commitment to strengthening local philanthropy, community leadership and locally led development. When communities have the resources and power to shape their own development, lasting change becomes possible. #ZGF #CommunityFoundations #CommunityLedDevelopment #LocalPhilanthropy #Localization #CommunityOwnership @topfans
📢 Newsflash is back! And in our latest edition, we’re asking: What happens when opportunities exist, but people don’t know how to reach them? Our main feature, “The Information Gap is a Development Problem,” explores why making information available is not enough. People need to be able to find it, understand it and act on it. Because an opportunity that cannot be found is not truly accessible. Read it here and tell us what you think: https://mailchi.mp/zgf/zambia-went-to-the-polls-heres-what-happened-news-for-from-civil-society #ZGF #ZGFNewsflash #AccessToInformation #DevelopmentCommunication #Zambia @followers Comic Relief Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office United Nations Development Programme - UNDP Foreign, Commonwealth & Development OfficeTilitonse Foundation Teenage Sensitization Community Based Organization Gwembe Women's Lobby The Healing Balm Foundation Africa Philanthropy Network Prisons Care and Counselling Association Prisoners Future Foundation Enlight Abilities Elina Chanda @topfans
What if grantmaking started with community power, rather than donor requirements? Across Africa, young philanthropy practitioners are reimagining how resources reach grassroots communities. Join us for Reimagining Grassroots Grantmaking in Africa, a consultation and knowledge exchange around a youth-led, Afrocentric and community-grounded Grassroots Grantmaking Toolkit, co-created by young practitioners from South Africa, Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia. The conversation will bring together researchers, practitioners, funders and community philanthropy actors to interrogate the approach, share learning and help strengthen the toolkit before finalisation. 📅 20 August 2026 🕑 14:00–16:00 SAST 💻 Online Grantmaking with communities, not simply for communities. Register now and be part of the conversation. https://wits-za.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_8abUdSGfRYipiirOTmcFuA#/registration @top fans
Featured Initiatives
Explore some of the local solutions we are supporting across Zambia.
The Reverse Call for Proposals
Reverse Call for Proposals (RCfP) The Reverse Call for Proposals (RCfP) is an innovative participatory grantmaking approach that shifts the traditional power dynamics of funding by placing communities at the centre of decision-making. Unlike conventional grant processes where funders define priorities and organizations submit applications, the RCfP enables communities to identify their own needs, propose solutions, and determine which initiatives should receive support. Through the RCfP, ZGF works with community foundations and local actors to mobilize local knowledge, strengthen community ownership, and support locally driven solutions. The approach recognizes that communities are best placed to understand their challenges and opportunities, and therefore should have a meaningful role in directing resources towards initiatives that matter most to them. The RCfP promotes transparency, inclusion, and trust by involving community members in identifying priorities, reviewing proposals, and making funding decisions. It supports grassroots organizations and community groups to implement initiatives that respond to local realities while strengthening the culture of local giving and community philanthropy in Zambia. As the first Reverse Call for Proposals implemented in Zambia, the initiative represents a significant step towards shifting power within the development sector and demonstrating that communities can lead decisions about resources intended for their own development.
Learn More
The Shifting the Power Programme
So far, ZGF has worked with 50 CSOs in Zambia under the STP programme
Learn More
Youth-led Entrepreneurship and Cooperative Development
ZGF has been working with youth groups in Chawama, George and Mandevu peri-urban neighbourhoods of Lusaka.
Learn MoreReady to Make a Difference?
Join us in our mission to strengthen civil society and promote good governance across Zambia. Contact us at info@zgf.org.zm for partnership inquiries.