The theme of this year’s Serious Social Investing (SSI) Conference, “doing more with less”, puts a hard question to corporate South Africa: in a tough economic environment, can social investment actually make a difference where it matters most?
The 2026 SSI Conference will challenge businesses to answer this question and show how their money, expertise and partnerships can move the country forward.
Tshikululu Social Investments will facilitate these discussions at the event on 7 October 2026 at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) in Johannesburg. FirstRand Empowerment Foundation joins as headline sponsor with support from Tiger Brands, Discovery and SPAR.
The conference will provide a space for dialogue with leaders in social investment on making resources go further. The programme will examine how organisations pool expertise, reduce duplication and direct funding towards demonstrable results. It will connect these approaches to the everyday needs of communities, from reliable access to food and healthcare to opportunities for employment and enterprise.
Partnerships sit at the centre of the agenda. Kone Gugushe, Head of Social Investing at FirstRand Group, features on the programme with an address on the business of social impact. The session will consider how businesses bring capital, skills and influence together to support inclusive growth, drawing on resources across organisations.
“Doing more with less means making the full contribution of business count. Alongside funding, we bring expertise, networks and access to markets. When we align those resources with the work of capable partners and the priorities of communities, we strengthen the value of our investment. This conference will explore how that collaboration supports livelihoods and creates lasting economic opportunities,” says Gugushe.
Better use of resources also depends on informed decisions about programme design and delivery. Leanne Emery-Hunter, CEO of Tshikululu Social Investments, features on the programme with a session on artificial intelligence and advanced technology. The discussion will explore AI’s potential to drive social innovation, improve delivery and advance equity, while also considering the risk of reinforcing existing inequalities if it is not deployed intentionally.
“Doing more with less starts with understanding what makes a difference. We need to use evidence to guide our decisions, share what we learn and work with partners whose strengths complement our own. Every investment should have a clear purpose and a way to assess progress. That discipline helps us direct limited resources towards lasting improvements in people’s lives,” says Emery-Hunter.
The breakaway sessions will apply this thinking to specific sectors. Food security discussions will explore how partnerships strengthen local production and distribution. Healthcare sessions will consider prevention, data and stronger connections between communities and services. Infrastructure discussions will examine coordinated investment in public spaces, service delivery and local opportunities, showing how partners contribute to shared goals.
The focus on shared resources will extend to livelihoods. FirstRand Empowerment Foundation and Red Meat Industry Services case study will examine how animal health support protects communal farmers’ livelihoods and improves market access. Further discussions will explore how skills development, procurement and business partnerships support entrepreneurs and job creation, alongside sustained investment in arts, sport and culture.
The programme will also address the administrative and governance practices that support effective investment. A workshop on the International Non-Profit Accounting Standard will introduce harmonised grant reporting to simplify and strengthen financial reporting for funders and recipients. Sessions on ethical leadership and accountability will examine the trust that partnerships require to work. Tshikululu’s monitoring and evaluation session will bring the discussion back to results, examining how organisations distinguish outputs from lasting change and use that evidence to allocate resources.
The 2026 SSI Conference will encourage social investors to take a closer look at how they work, where they invest and who they partner with. The goal is to help organisations make better use of available resources and judge success through the benefits communities experience to do more with less.
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