Cape Town - The first-ever Imagine Awards are taking place on Friday at the Artscape Theatre.
The awards ceremony is the brainchild of Survé Philanthropies and will be honouring individuals and organisations who have made and are making a social impact in education, children, women, human rights, media, technology, and alike.
Director at Survé Philanthropies, Dr Iqbal Survé, said it is an umbrella body for seven different foundations, each with a specific focus area and has been involved in philanthropic work for just over two decades.
“As a family, we have decided to give most of our wealth away. You cannot live in an ivory tower when there is so much poverty on the other side of the city,” said Survé.
Survé says the idea for the awards was born from his family’s personal experiences, having started from humble beginnings.
He and his sisters were all recipients of bursaries and this allowed them to complete their studies.
“I do not come from a wealthy family. One of the first things I did when I started working as a doctor, was to donate part of my salary towards bursaries so that other young people could study,” said Survé.
Recipients of the Imagine Awards will receive huge publicity which will benefit their brand and they will be able to seek funding from other donors.
Director at Survé Philanthropies, Dr Iqbal Survé. Picture: Ayanda Ndamane /African News Agency (ANA)
This year, the event has attracted 100 entries and Survé said they hope that by next year this figure will climb to 1 000.
Key to the event is putting NGOs and individuals on the map so that they can access more funding and improve on the good work that they are already doing.
Winners on the night will receive training and support on an ongoing basis to unearth their potential.
“The award is a validation of community building and best practice. There will be a cash prize but it is the training and support that will help organisations more,” added Survé.
Survé said raising money from the donor community is a “science” and an “art” and the awards will empower individuals and NGOs.
“There are many organisations doing fantastic work but they lack the skills set, for example, writing proposals. This is where the support and prizes will come in handy,” said Survé.
“This is not a marketing exercise. We are doing it for the right reasons,” he said.
Survé Philanthropies concluded that it has noticed that civil society is struggling as many donors have pulled out and it is now stepping in to create a better society for all.