Building Resilience: New Study on Civic Space and Financial Sustainability in Latin America

Civil society organisations (CSOs) are an essential pillar of democracy across Latin America. They defend rights, promote participation, and sustain social agendas that governments or markets often overlook. But what happens when civic space contracts and the rules of the game shift rapidly?

The new study “Building Resilience: Financial Sustainability of Civil Society Organisations in Latin America amid Regulatory Change”, produced by Civic House with the support of The Tinker Foundation, explores precisely this question — how CSOs in the region manage to sustain themselves financially amid growing political, economic, and digital uncertainty.

A regional look at the shrinking civic space

The report introduces the Digital and Non-Digital Civic Space Index (IECDyND), which measures the degree of openness for civic participation both offline and online. The findings are striking: between 2014 and 2024, Latin America experienced a sustained decline in civic space, with Nicaragua and Venezuela among the most restrictive cases, while the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, and Guatemala showed moderate improvements.

The study also highlights new forms of restriction, from cybercrime laws and digital surveillance to limits on international funding for CSOs. The COVID-19 pandemic marked the sharpest downturn, particularly between 2020 and 2021.

Financial sustainability: between professionalism and fragility

A 2025 survey of 264 CSOs from Argentina, Colombia, and Mexico paints a complex picture:

• Over half operate with annual budgets below USD 100,000.

• Despite growing professionalisation and income diversification, most depend on large donors and individual contributions.

• The main obstacles include a lack of seed capital, legal and fiscal barriers, and weak digital infrastructure.

The case study of Donar Online, a leading fundraising platform, demonstrates how technology can strengthen the sector’s sustainability: since 2013, it has processed more than USD 100 million in donations from over 600,000 donors across Latin America.

Recommendations for the future

The report concludes that financial sustainability and the defence of civic space must go hand in hand. Among its key recommendations:

• Build coalitions and strategic alliances.

• Invest in digital capabilities and technological tools.

• Promote enabling regulatory frameworks and flexible funding.

• Ensure digital rights and privacy protections as preconditions for an open civic space.

At a time when digital regulation is advancing faster than civil society’s ability to adapt, strengthening the sector’s resilience is an urgent democratic task.

Download  the report's abbreviated version in English: 

Building Resilience.pdf

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