Why integrity is the real measure of social investment

By Thabo Qoako, Monitoring, Evaluation and Compliance Specialist at Momentum Group Foundation

CSI can fill glossy reports with impressive numbers and heart-warming images, but without accountability it cannot deliver the lasting change communities deserve.

What does success in corporate social investment really look like? Is it the number of certificates handed out, photos taken and ribbons cut, or the number of lives genuinely changed forever? Too often, the success of corporate social investment (CSI) is measured by statistics in a flashy report, rather than by the difference it makes in people’s lives. That gap between activity and real change is where responsibility and accountability matter, and where ethical compliance proves its worth.

Ethical compliance is about progress, not paperwork

Ethical compliance is not a matter of ticking legal boxes. It is a standard of integrity, fairness and accountability that should run through every decision. It requires an honest reckoning with questions that are often uncomfortable. Did the training provided lead to sustainable livelihoods? Did the businesses supported become resilient enough to employ others? Have we thought carefully about the unintended consequences that might arise from our interventions? Without this level of scrutiny, CSI risks becoming performance rather than progress.

This is especially important when it comes to protecting the progress we have made on transformation. Funding decisions in CSI are not neutral; they can either reinforce equity and broaden opportunity, or quietly set it back. Historically, well-established, often longer-standing organisations have received the bulk of support. For equitable focus, we also need to look at newer, black-led organisations that have the skills and capacity to deliver the necessary impact.

Ethical compliance helps achieve this by insisting on the same level of diligence for every partner and by keeping transformation central to funding decisions. It encourages us to question assumptions about capability and to direct investment in ways that deepen inclusion, rather than erode it.

At the Momentum Group Foundation, this principle shapes the way we work with partners. Our risk framework helps us balance accountability with innovation, making sure that projects are both responsible and forward-looking. Every organisation we support is carefully assessed for governance, compliance and financial integrity, but the process does not end with paperwork. We also consider their transformation profile and their potential to grow, because true compliance is about enabling progress as much as preventing risk.

Where projects are remote or harder to monitor, we place even greater emphasis on transparency. That means combining site visits with digital reporting and independent evaluations, and setting out clear agreements so that expectations are understood from the start and accountability is built in.

Innovation only matters if responsibility stays at the centre

Forward planning is just as important as due diligence. Challenges like budget delays, reputational knocks or gaps in governance are common in CSI, and they can easily derail programmes if no one has prepared for them. To manage this, we carefully balance our portfolio: Established partners and proven programmes give stability. Emerging initiatives create space for fresh ideas and growth. And carefully chosen pilot projects let us try approaches that carry more risk but could lead to meaningful breakthroughs. This balance allows us to encourage innovation without losing sight of responsibility. Even when we embrace a “fail fast and learn” approach, we do so within clear ethical standards that protect beneficiaries and keep transformation goals front and centre.

What makes ethical compliance powerful is that it never ends. It is not a report to be filed away but a way of working: questioning, listening, being transparent and making changes when they are needed. At its best, it protects the communities CSI is meant to serve and safeguards the credibility of the organisations behind it. When compliance is strong, communities see lasting change, stakeholders know their contributions matter, and trust grows on every side.

The real measure of CSI is not how much is spent, but how deeply it transforms lives. That is why ethical compliance is not a burden. It is the foundation that turns promises into progress.