Overview
The Capacity Building Grant aims to strengthen the social sector ecosystem through four interconnected themes:
- Strengthening ecosystem and technology partners
- Accelerating mid-sized NGOs through cohort-based support
- Building technology leadership capacity within NGOs
- Convening the ecosystem for collaboration and shared learning
As an initial step, we began implementation of Theme 1: Ecosystem Infrastructure Strengthening. This report summarises the activities completed to date and outlines the next steps planned. The goal of Theme 1 is to strengthen technology partners building the ecosystem so they can serve NGOs more effectively and contribute to stronger sector-wide infrastructure.
Ecosystem partner assessment framework
Building on the selection criteria outlined in the proposal, we developed a framework to assess ecosystem partners across the following dimensions:
- Capital absorption capacity: Ability to help NGOs become more prepared for larger grants and institutional funding through technology-enabled organisational strengthening.
- Technology adoption through experimentation: Ability to support NGOs through structured digital transformation and technology adoption journeys.
- Implementation efficiency: Potential to improve outcomes while reducing the cost and effort required for NGO support.
- Ecosystem talent stability: Ability to attract, develop, and retain technical talent that strengthens the broader ecosystem.
- Interoperability and shared learning: Commitment to open knowledge-sharing, common standards, and collaborative approaches that benefit multiple organisations.
Ecosystem partner engagement process
We plan to onboard more ecosystem partners in a future meeting. As the first phase of this process, we conducted a series of one-on-one conversations with an initial group of ecosystem partners to better understand:
- Their organisational strengths and areas of expertise
- Current challenges and capacity constraints
- Potential use cases for grant support
- Existing collaborations within the ecosystem
- Opportunities to create shared value across organisations
Following these conversations, we brought the partners together for a two-day in-person workshop.
Two-day ecosystem convening
The convening was designed to create a shared space for ecosystem partners to:
- Build a deeper understanding of each other’s work
- Explore opportunities for collaboration
- Discuss ecosystem-level challenges and gaps
- Share perspectives on capacity building and technology adoption
- Reflect on how grant funding could create a broader ecosystem impact
The workshop also provided an opportunity for us to evaluate partner alignment with the program’s goals while learning directly from organisations about their priorities, challenges, and aspirations.
Technology Leadership Cohort | in-person Kick off in Bangalore
When we talk about building capacity in the ecosystem, one of the most direct ways is by bringing more senior technology talent into the social sector. There is a clear need for experienced technologists who can help organisations navigate technology, data, and AI more effectively. With this in mind, we designed the Technology Leadership Development Cohort to attract, support, and retain senior technology professionals in the sector.
To make this feasible for NGOs, we plan to cover two-thirds of each tech leader’s cost, with the remaining one-third contributed by the NGO partner.
Through an open call for applications, we received strong interest from both experienced technology professionals looking to transition into the social sector and NGOs seeking senior technology leadership. This week, we officially kicked off the cohort with an in-person onboarding for the first seven candidates.
The NGOs that have already confirmed their participation and signed agreements with us include Lend a Hand India, Goonj, SwaTaleem, and Milaan.
Key outcomes
- Better understanding of ecosystem partners
- Identification of collaboration opportunities
- Networking and new peer connections
- Shared reflection on ecosystem challenges
Next steps
- Finalise the second cohort of ecosystem partners
Engage with the next set of ecosystem partners and conduct a similar assessment process to identify high-potential organisations for support.
- Finalize funding decisions
Evaluate ecosystem partners against the assessment framework and identify opportunities where grant funding can unlock the greatest ecosystem-level impact.
- Finalise a measurement mechanism.
Work with partners to develop projections and success indicators across key dimensions, including:
- Number of NGOs supported
- Technology adoption outcomes
- Capacity-building outcomes
- Talent development outcomes
- Knowledge-sharing and ecosystem contributions
- Create a Governance Framework
Establish governance mechanisms, including regular check-ins, milestone reviews, fund utilisation reporting, and program review meetings to ensure accountability, transparency, and timely course correction.
- Build the Partner Portfolio
- Finalise the first cohort of ecosystem partners and begin implementation planning for funded activities.
- Evaluate and bring together the second cohort of ecosystem partners.
Reference blog posts
- Building a Collaborative Ecosystem: Life is a Circle by Donald Lobo
- Civic Tech as Ecosystem Enablement | Tattle by Tarunima Prabhakar
- A new ecosystem and Plenty of hope | Avni Field Service and Data Collection Platform by Mohit Kumar
- Technology leadership development cohort 1.0 | Kick-off by Ashana Shukla
