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Some days are just feel made for solving the world's problems. You know the ones — that quiet Tuesday morning, a little grey and a lot of caffeine, where everything seems possible. The irony of our location was not lost on anyone: just a few minutes' walk from the site of recent racist, anti-migrant and Islamophobic marches, the Global Majority Fund joined ten of its “led by and for” funded partners and twelve funders at the Africa Centre(opens in new window) in Waterloo, London to unpack how we can make charitable giving fairer, just and equitable for Global Majority –led organisations.
Only four days earlier, those same streets were taken over by hatred and division.
The event built on the foundations of our previous event ‘United for Change - Community Resilience & Collective Action in the Face of Racial Unrest’ in December 2024, where we launched our Call to Action. That urged funders to:
The day opened with a powerful welcome from Poonam D’Cruze, Head of Poverty & Injustice at Comic Relief, who co-designed the Fund back in 2020 at the height of Covid-19. Poonam reminded us that while some progress had undoubtedly been made to redress the inequities in the funding landscape that exclude Global Majority-led organisations from access funding, there was still work to be done now was the time for funders to collaborate, to reimagine what was possible together. With tensions rising, hate speech dressed up as ‘free speech’ and a cost-of-living, housing and health crisis that disproportionately affects Global Majority communities, the urgency for structural change could not be more obvious.
Our funded partners, African Health Policy Network(opens in new window) and Anti-Tribalism Movement(opens in new window) spoke passionately about the impact of Global Majority Fund (GMF). They shared how it had offered temporary relief from the relentless cycle of fundraising, opening up space for strategic thinking, enabling them to move beyond service delivery to systemic change. They also highlighted its limitations; with just three years of funding soon to end, funding gaps are on the horizon for many who will have to re-enter the time-consuming cycle of chasing funds. Their stories told a simple truth: if we are to strengthen organisations and rebalance the impact of historic racism, long-term funding is not a luxury, it is a right.
Group discussions focused on two elements of our Call to Action (Grant and Prioritise) and brought substantial food for thought for funders and funded partners alike.
When discussing core flexible funding, participants highlighted that much so-called “unrestricted” funding still comes with limitations in practice. A lack of available funding can force smaller organisations into partnerships that dilute their identity. We also heard how chasing short-term or crisis funding undermines long-term impact, and how funders’ risk aversion, measurement culture and siloed practices can block progress. Despite this, there was a strong sense of possibility - funders are learning, piloting new approaches and actively exploring how to justify truly unrestricted support.
Prioritise
In discussions around prioritising participation, the message was equally clear. Organisations led by and for Global Majority communities hold deep trust, expertise and the ability to drive meaningful change — but systems and mindsets still need to shift. Our funded partners called for funders to refresh boards, hire more diverse teams, and support participatory approaches through improved collaboration, stronger advocacy and longer timeline to implement non-extractive processes. Funders were reminded that genuine partnership goes beyond money, extending to sharing networks, platforms and staff skills.
We closed the event with a moment of reflection, taking time to acknowledge the depth of the conversations shared. There was warmth in the space we had created, a rare opportunity to discuss such pressing issues together, and how organisations felt seen and to an extent valued. For many in the Global Majority communities in the UK, these discussions brought a sense of hope and agency at a time that can otherwise feel bleak.
Many of the funders that joined us are already starting their journey towards inclusive practices and together, we want to cast our net further and bring in other funders into the conversation to help them understand just how critical this funding is at this moment in time.
As a practical step, funders were invited to show their commitment to our call to action by placing coloured dots on our ‘discussion-to-action’ poster. We were encouraged by how willing attendees were to take that step, a sign of genuine readiness for action – before we rounded off the day with a delicious feast from the African Centre’s in-house restaurant, Little Baobab(opens in new window).
Looking ahead, the Global Majority team is excited to nurture the relationships formed with funders, to create more spaces like this, and to work together to influence, and ultimately transform – an unfair system in solidarity.
