The South Leadership Fundraising Institute (SLFI)

An eight-month leadership intervention for senior Global South leaders shaping the future of funding.

What Is the South Leadership Fundraising Institute (SLFI)?

The South Leadership Fundraising Institute is an eight month leadership intervention for senior Global South leaders shaping the future of funding.

SLFI treats fundraising as an act of leadership rather than a technical function. It works with leaders who hold real decision making authority and whose posture, confidence and credibility directly shape their organisation’s access to resources.

SLFI is not a fundraising course. It is leadership infrastructure designed to reposition how leaders engage money, power and partnership.

Why the SLFI Is Important

Across the Global South, leaders are being asked to secure sustainable funding in systems that were not designed for them.

Localisation has shifted responsibility faster than authority. Traditional aid is contracting. Boards and funders expect diversification, yet leaders are expected to deliver this shift without access, exposure or investment in leadership confidence.

This is often misdiagnosed as a skills gap. In reality, it is an exposure, investment and authority gap.

Left unaddressed, this gap compounds into fragility, dependency and burnout. SLFI intervenes before crisis forces reactive decisions.

The SLFI Journey

Eight Months of Leadership Repositioning

Months 1–2: Leadership and Authority
Identity, legitimacy and leadership posture in relation to money, power and asking.

Months 3–4: Diversification and Strategy
Income mix, earned income, donor power and readiness for growth or scale.

Months 5–6: Donor Engagement and Asking
Qualification, narrative clarity, real conversations and negotiation.

Months 7–8: Governance and Integration
Board leadership, internal alignment and sustaining change beyond the programme.

Register Your Interest

SLFI cohorts are deliberately curated to ensure senior level peer engagement and trust.

To register your interest in the next cohort, please complete the form below. A member of the SLFI team will follow up with further details.

Download Flyer here