Bridge 5: Strengthening Cross-Sector Collaboration

Partnerships
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Geetanjali Solanki–Independant Consultant

  1.               What do you think holds companies back from deeper, more meaningful collaboration with other businesses, foundations, civil society, or government?

In an ideal world all organisations should this about the 5 P’s as they operate in any sector
These are People, Profit , product. Price and Planet . Unfortunately worry that Profit will be affected keeps them focussed only on Product and Price and neglect the other two which are People and Plant. This same hesitation and anxiety often create barriers in working with others in the same sector or even cross sectors. Times have changed from healthy competition to only wanting a monopoly and this prevents organisations from partnering with others. Organisation are also sometimes vary of partnering with governments due to the political environment and uncertainly of continuation.

. How can partnerships move beyond short-term projects to create long-term systemic change?
Change may be constant but real change takes time. While short term projects are good to have , to ensure long term systematic change, each project must also be weighed for
• Future expansion through understanding the needs of the stakeholders
• Learning and repetition
• Adaptability to different sectors
• Loss of impact due to non-continuation
• Next project steps coming out of the first one
• Trust among partners and knowing the people behind the scenes
• Constantly eyeing innovation in current project
• Geo political: economic uncertainty

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  1. I was working at Oxfam as Livelihood/Economic Justice Programme Officer for the Nigeria Country Programme. I was involved in a project known as Sustainable Cocoa in Osun and Ondo States, Nigeria. The project involved the following sectors: farmers/cooperative, public sector (Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria, Osun and Ondo ADP, private sector companies involved in shipment/logistics, processing, financial institution, INGO (Oxfam Novib), and NGO (FADU), training farmers on GAP and advocating for increased investment. The goal of collaboration was to create a growing, sustainable, and efficient value chain for certified cocoa, thereby improving economic, social, and environmental conditions of the Nigerian cocoa farmers in the States of Osun and Ondo. Federal and State governments provided an enabling environment and basic infrastructure, while the private sector companies involved supported with logistics in terms of shipment from collection centres to the port. FADU organized farmers in a cooperative for capacity building. Banks involved provided capital to the private sector companies.
    The programme was successful because of the ownership and participation of all stakeholders during the co-creation stage with shared responsibilities. This led to an increase in production from 1081 to 3960 mt
  2. What holds companies back from meaningful collaboration with other businesses or civil society is a lack of transparency, fear of being held accountable, and different sets of values.
  3. Partnerships can move beyond short-term projects to create long-term systemic change through the establishment of a global partnership of development goals with participatory-defined monitoring indicators. This should be a partnership that promotes compulsory involvement of different stakeholders of different value sets (business, government, civil society organization) towards shared long-term systemic development outcomes through a win-win situation.
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A1 - The National Business Compact on COVID-19, (NBCC) is a coalition convened by The Marketing Society of Kenya comprised of brands in the hygiene business, Kenya Association of Manufacturers, Association of Practitioners in Advertising, Kenya Private Sector Alliance, Public Relations Society of Kenya, AMREF, SDG Partnership Platform, and the UN family in Kenya whose mandate is to accelerate local action and support government efforts in countering the pandemic.
The coalition was launched on March 162020, through the efforts of The Ministry of Health to mobilize support from corporates and private firms in countering the Covid-19 pandemic
What made it successful
• Urgency that was there. Things needed to be done quickly.
• High-level of trust – There was a lot of trust among the partners even getting competitors working together.

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Greetings, my name is Judy Njino, Executive Director, UN Global Compact Network Kenya. UN Global Compact is the World’s Largest Corporate Sustainability initiative supporting businesses to align strategies with Human Rights, Labour Rights, Environment and Anti-corruption.

A1: A powerful example is UN Global Compact Kenya’s multi-year partnership on Corruption prevention in Kenya where we partner with Public sector regulators (EACC, DOJ/ AG), civil society, & business leaders in fostering systems change towards a corruption free Kenya. This partnership has resulted in the development of the Kenya’s first Anti-Bribery Act, the development of guideline tools such as model procedures and Risk Assessment and Management Guidelines to support public & private sector implementation efforts.

This is an ongoing collaboration and the things that make it work are:

  • Having the right partners onboard who are credible, have respect, are committed, and aligned on a shared purpose: fighting corruption;
  • Having a structured approach to collective action.
  • A long-term approach focused on system change + resilience, not quick wins; and
  • Pooled resources, from funding to technical input;
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Hello everyone! I’m Hannah Caswell, joining from Youth Business International (YBI) - where I’m Deputy Director of Development and Programmes.

YBI is the global leader in youth entrepreneurship, with over 25 years experience combining global influence with local knowledge and expertise to develop and scale the most effective solutions to help young entrepreneurs to succeed. It’s a pleasure to contribute to this important discussion!

What’s a powerful example of cross-sector collaboration you’ve been part of or witnessed - and what made it work?
One of the most impactful cross-sector collaborations Youth Business International (YBI) has been part of is our partnership with Standard Chartered Foundation through Futuremakers by Standard Chartered. A standout feature of this collaboration is the engagement of Standard Chartered employees as volunteer mentors for young entrepreneurs. These mentors offer not only valuable business insights and guidance, but also personal encouragement and access to wider professional networks — something many early-stage entrepreneurs lack. What makes this partnership work is its multi-dimensional nature: it combines funding, skills-sharing, and deep employee engagement in a way that aligns with both partners’ values. Standard Chartered’s commitment goes beyond transactional support to active participation in the growth journeys of young people, fostering trust and long-term impact. This model shows the power of unlocking corporate human capital to strengthen entrepreneurship ecosystems, especially in underserved communities.

What do you think holds companies back from deeper, more meaningful collaboration with other businesses, foundations, civil society or government?
One of the key challenges is the difference in priorities, language, and operating models across sectors. Companies often work toward short- to medium-term business objectives and may be focused on metrics like return on investment or brand visibility, whereas civil society organisations are typically oriented around long-term, systemic impact, community engagement, and inclusive development. These differences can lead to mismatched expectations or difficulties in aligning shared goals. Additionally, there’s often a lack of understanding or appreciation for the value that civil society brings to the table — not just in terms of delivery, but in shaping approaches that are locally informed and responsive to real needs. Risk aversion, internal silos, and the complexity of navigating multi-stakeholder partnerships can also discourage deeper engagement. Overcoming these barriers requires intentional investment in trust-building, mutual learning, and co-creation — recognising that the most impactful partnerships emerge when all sides are willing to listen, adapt, and collaborate as equals.

How can partnerships move beyond short-term projects to create long-term systemic change?
To achieve systemic change, partnerships must look beyond the life cycle of individual projects and invest in building the infrastructure that sustains change — namely, strong ecosystems and networks. Youth Business International’s (YBI) partnership with Accenture is a great example of this approach. Instead of funding only short-term, targeted programmes, Accenture has provided core funding to YBI. This has enabled us to strengthen our global network of enterprise support organisations that support young entrepreneurs with skills training, mentoring, access to finance, and more.

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James Kumbura, External Affairs & Strategic Partnerships Manager - Novartis
1. What’s a powerful example of cross-sector collaboration you’ve been part of or witnessed—and what made it work?

Execution of Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) Program across 17 high burden counties in Kenya in partnership with MoH, NCDAK and AMPATH - Afya Dhabiti Program

  • The ministry has been very committed to making SCD a focus disease in Kenya ensuring establishment of a dedicated SCD desk within NCD division and inclusion of SCD in the hematological TWG
  • The program has contributed to strengthening of SCD health care delivery through training of healthcare workers to ensure patients are treated closer home, early diagnosis and linkage to care.
  • The program has also led to improved advocacy through strengthening of SCD advocates across the counties, organizing them into county chapters and linking them to the policy and decision makers at the county level for increased health resources allocation
  • MoH has been critical in bringing onboard other potential partners to scale up the interventions being implemented under Afya Dhabiti project.
  • Program success is attributed to partners’ commitment, shared goals & vision, trust, clear SMART goals among others.
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Example of cross-sector collaboration:
(1) Having led the banning of shark’s fin from service across hotels, airlines and catering services in 2011 in Asia.
(2) https://travalyst.org/ - pre competitive industry coalition of travel and booking companies who share the same goal of having the industry be a force for good through clear, consistent and confident data provided to the customer at point of sales , to be able to make the right / better/ responsible travel decisions.

What holds us back from meaningful collaboration: Lack of or evolving levels of trust & transparency ; clarity of shared goals ; evolving roles and priorities that are not shared or talked about..

How partnerships can move beyond short-term projects to create long -term systemic change: There really needs to be a commitment to change something bigger than each and every partnership entity. A shared concern/ issue that is not a day-to-day problem but more around the realm of governance , decision-making and culture is something that entails continued collaboration

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Q2: A number of factors hold companies back from deeper cross-sector collaboration:

-Trust deficits: Past experiences with public institutions or civil society (real or perceived) can create hesitation to engage.
-Perceived risk: Companies often fear reputational exposure or regulatory complications, especially when navigating politically sensitive areas.
-Lack of neutral platforms: Without trusted spaces for dialogue, collaboration feels risky or unstructured.
-Misaligned incentives: When social and commercial value are not clearly connected, collaboration is viewed as optional rather than strategic.

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  1. What holds companies back from deeper, more meaningful collaboration with other businesses, foundations, civil societies or government?
  • Lack of commitment from the government – from a sustainability perspective once the partnership come to an end
  • Lack of trust among the players/partners
  • Lack of alignment in priorities between the various stakeholders
  • Lack of a clear sustainability plan after the funding cycle
  • Lack of a shared vision and goals amongst the partners
  1. How can partnerships move beyond short-term projects to create long-term systemic change?
  • Ensuring that all partners have shared Vision and Goals
  • Focusing on policy and institutional changes
  • Ensuring that the objectives and goals of the partnerships are based on Local Priorities and Population Needs
  • Establishing a strong Governance Structure on a robust Legal/Compliance Framework from the beginning
  • Wide Stakeholder Engagement especially of intended beneficiaries, their administrative representatives and local policy makers
  • Collaboration among partners for pooled resources
  • Ensure strong and Committed Leadership from the government for integration of interventions once partnership period lapses
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Q3: Creating long-term systemic change requires moving beyond ad hoc collaboration to intentional design. Key enablers include:

-Structured governance: Embedding partnerships in —such as MOUs, steering committees, or shared KPIs—helps sustain alignment and accountability.
-Policy and systems alignment: Linking partnerships to national priorities or global frameworks (like the SDGs or Bribery Act) anchors relevance and longevity.
-Co-investment: Long-term change needs shared commitment—whether through financial support, technical expertise, or dedicated time from leadership.
-A neutral convenor: Having a trusted facilitator like GCNK can bridge interests, manage expectations, and provide continuity across partners.
-Commitment to learning: Systemic change is iterative. Success comes when partners commit to learning together, sharing data in a transparent way, and adapt based on what works.

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Hello and welcome to the Business Fights Poverty forum today. Our first question for you:

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Partnership between Lorna Young Foundation, Twinings, FCDO’s Work and Opportunities for Women programme, NOPE (a Kenyan NGO specialising in peer education), ETP, Kenya’s Tea Research Institute, and two smallholder tea associations to deliver two local-language Farmers Voice Radio participatory radio programme series that raised the voices of smallholder tea farmers, women in particular, and supported them to adopt practices and behaviours that enhance resilience to climate change.
What it achieved:
• Broadcast of 84 episodes on two radio stations over 18 months reaching an estimated regular listenership of over 300,000 tea farmers over 126,000 women)
• Increased tea quality and yields through improved practice
• Greater livelihood diversification
• A more businesslike approach to farming
• Adoption of clean energy technology and environmental conservation practices
• Enhanced women’s leadership, decision-making and financial independence
Why it worked:
• Equal representation and participation by all links in the supply chain
• Agreement from the start amongst all parties that farmers’ experience and voices should be central to the intervention – concerted effort to listen and respond
• Strong, neutral facilitation with no hierarchies – creating space and opportunities for everyone to contribute, even if it takes more time
• Well defined roles – each party brought something different to the table and respected each other’s perspective and expertise
• Openness and honesty – creating an environment where all partners feel able to talk about the things that have not gone well (as well as the successes), to learn from this and to do something differently
• Flexible funding – yes, there was a budget, but it was also possible to make changes/ reallocate resources to take advantage of new opportunities, e.g. piloting biodigesters
• Good organisation – regular (but short!) meetings with clearly defined agendas and action points (sounds insignificant but essential in making progress)

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What’s a powerful example of cross-sector collaboration you’ve been part of or witnessed—and what made it work?
Over the past three years, as the biodiversity credit market has rapidly evolved, I’ve witnessed and contributed to significant cross-sector collaboration between the private sector, the conservation community, governments, NGOs, and Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IP and LCs) to support the development of a high integrity biodiversity credit market (one that does not include offsetting and that prioritises equity, inclusion and market leadership from Indigenous people and local communities).
Key examples of fora where partners have worked together include the Biodiversity Credit Alliance, the International Environmental Guardianship, and government-led initiatives such as the International Advisory Panel on Biodiversity Credits convened by the UK and France.

What made these collaborations effective were three core factors:

  1. A shared understanding of both opportunity and historic challenges: Partners aligned early on the systemic issues to address—including the complexities of developing a credible market and the need to avoid repeating past mistakes in the carbon space, such as inequitable benefit sharing and the exclusion of IP and LCs.
  2. Ongoing, open dialogue that fostered alignment and trust: Regular exchanges allowed stakeholders to share progress, test draft ideas, and actively look for ways to build on each other’s work rather than duplicate it. This openness created momentum and enabled joint problem solving.
  3. Inclusive design and investment in participation: From the outset, there was a clear recognition that IP and LCs must help shape and deliver the market. This was backed by practical support—funding for travel, creation of dedicated forums, multilingual resources, and flexibility in timelines to reflect different priorities. These efforts helped embed diverse perspectives into both strategy and implementation.
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I was working at Oxfam Novib as Livelihood/Economic Justice Programme Officer for the Nigeria Country Programme. I was involved in a project known as Sustainable Cocoa in Osun and Ondo States, Nigeria. The project involved the following sectors: farmers/cooperative, public sector (Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria, Osun and Ondo ADP, private sector companies involved in shipment/logistics, processing, financial institution, INGO (Oxfam Novib), and NGO (FADU), training farmers on GAP and advocating for increased investment. The goal of collaboration was to create a growing, sustainable, and efficient value chain for certified cocoa, thereby improving economic, social, and environmental conditions of the Nigerian cocoa farmers in the States of Osun and Ondo. The federal and State governments provided an enabling environment and basic infrastructure, while the private sector companies involved supported with logistics in terms of shipment from collection centres to the port. FADU organized farmers in a cooperative for capacity building. Banks involved provided capital to the private sector companies

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I have recently returned from a ‘Policy Sprint’ in person in Lagos Nigeria. The collaboration was fabulous - what striked me most was transparent collaboration and the level playing ground from Director General of membership organisations such as the West Africa Monetary Agency, West African Monetary Institute, Central Banks, Law Enforcement, Fintechs, International Organisation and the list goes on. We set the scene that the title and ‘status’ of those in the room doesn’t matter, the thoughts and intellectual capital of all is what is important - all opinions matter and must be heard. I then watched 100 experts come together for two days to solve for the wicked problem of Fraud in West Africa. I have led 10’s of events or collaborations and this one blew me away… the passion all to solve for their chosen ‘use case’ was incredible. The use case is development by telling the story from one particular issue within the bigger wicked problem. https://airsprint.mytevents.com. What’s important is the use cases that those in the room were solving for: Policy Sprint Use Cases

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Our second question of the day:

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The biggie for me was the “BRIDGING THE GAP” programme that I led the design and execution of for German Flavors organisation, Symrise.
We partnered with private sector actors including Unilever, MARS, Pernod Ricard, Natura, Haleon, Kellogg’s and others together with GIZ (German development agency) and various NGO partners.
What made it work was active investment in TRUST and TRANSPARENCY through deliberate questioning techniques to surface needs, motivations and concerns.

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Fear of losing control by working with cross-sector actors that have different aims and objectives- that are not driven by profit. Empowering smallholder producers, those working at the start of long and profitable supply chains, could be seen as risky. Connecting smallholder producers to information and knowledge, may mean they make decisions that are not advantageous to all actors in the supply chain. There will be competing pressures and power dynamics will change.
Empowered farmers may demand a higher price for their crops, but by ensuring farmers are receiving a fair income, producers are more likely to invest in their farming, try new practices to improve quality, successfully adapt to changing weather patterns, protect the local environment and young people are much more likely to take on their family’s farming business. Empowered farming communities across the world will result in high quality, sustainable supply chains that global businesses depend upon.
There may also be a conflict between achieving greater social impact and losing competitive advantage through collaboration. Farmers’ Voice Radio has been working with various private and public sector partners to deliver a shea sustainability project in Northern Ghana. Several cosmetic brands work in this region, with similar objectives and we were able to work with the Global Shea Alliance and BSR to combine forces to strengthen women’s business literacy and achieve scale and quality content that would not have been possible otherwise. But it needs a neutral facilitator to spot the opportunities and bring them together!
Very practically, some companies are put off by the time it takes to develop strong partnerships and deliver positive social outcomes. This does not tend to fit neatly within a standard accounting period or business planning cycles. In addition, ‘sustainability’ initiatives often sit within a special department within a business rather than being embedded in the core business functions. So while a sustainability lead may view a particular partnership or collaboration as a good idea, it may be more difficult to get the buy-in of those responsible for sourcing decisions. The cross sector collaboration is needed within the business, as well as externally!

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It was a long time ago, but when I worked at Salesforce we developed a great partnership project with Reckitt Benckiser focused on eradicating childhood diarrhoea which was delivered along with Save the Children. Each partner brought its resources to the collaboration: technology, money, soap and perfumery, distribution agents along with childhood health knowledge. Each area of expertise was valued and understood

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First Question
We are currently delivering the Sustainable Cities Challenge with Toyota Mobility Foundation.

  1. This challenge is looking at addressing local mobility challenges in three cities - Detroit, USA (clean freight in the Eastern Market - one of the biggest freight hubs in the US and closely connect to Canada), Venice, Italy (increasing the uptake of low and zero carbon transport options amongst residents), and Varanasi, India (make the crowded areas of the old city of Kashi (that welcomes 35x its residential population annually) safer and more efficient (reducing the instances of crushes and associated casualties).
  2. We are working with the city govs in each of these cities - collaborated in the design and development of their local city challenge, and now working with them to support the development of innovative product/service solutions that are moving through the challenge funnel.
  3. We are also working with a range of partners - non-profits, academic institutions, associations, networks, and of course the private sector.
  4. It hasn’t been a linear process, and relationships have been critical to building trust and strengthening collaboration across the partners to deliver effectively.

Second Question

  1. Limited flexibility and mismatched expectations are key challenges that hold companies back from more meaningful collaboration. What I mean by that is…

  2. Limited flexibility:
    1. Time - to build trusted relationships,
    2. working to different timelines (in practice vs. theory) – to navigate bureaucracy (in the case of gov)

  3. Mismatched expectations:
    1. what is possible for a project to be successful (within the timeframe available);
    2. understanding sector-specific agendas and priorities – what does success look like for all stakeholders, and acknowledging the differences that inevitably exist. It’s not about erasing those differences, but working together with those differences taken into account.