Spotlight on 25 Years of Grantmaking: Notes from SNF Program Officer Ange Munyakazi

What ‘s a grant that ‘s stuck with you over time?

Honestly, I cannot select only one. I will instead talk about key things that the grants that stuck with me have in common. The first one is the deep involvement of the communities that the grantees work with, the communities are at the heart of the project and are consulted and involved every step of the way. The communities know well the challenges that they face and are best placed to know and have the solutions to these challenges. The second is people with lived experience in leadership positions making important decisions regarding the projects and organization. The third is transparency, open culture, and strong safeguard policies ensuring the safety of the communities, especially those most vulnerable and reducing the likelihood of abuse. The fourth is grantees and projects that are making transformative change and a lasting impact with the communities.

What’s your favorite part of working at SNF?

I have wonderful colleagues that I enjoy working with and learn from and grantees that from the very beginning I have learned so much from and gained a better understanding of the changing nature of the context that they work in, and this has helped me do my job better.

Has the nature of my job changed as part of SNF ‘s work changed over the years?

I strongly believe that every day is an opportunity to learn, and so is life and work. Our work has evolved since COVID-19, as the world changed overnight and we saw very quickly a health and socioeconomic crisis. SNF set up a COVID fund to support organizations around the world that were working on the front lines and giving lifesaving support to millions of people. We learned to adapt our internal processes to be much quicker in our evaluation and getting the funds to the grantees and to be closer to our grantees to understand how best to support them.

Ange Munyakazi, Program Officer
Ange has been at SNF for three years. She is an avid reader with a strong interest in human rights.