Major weaknesses exist in South Africa's civil society movements and its citizenry as a result of decisions taken by government in 1994 when it demobilised NGOs and civil society, making people "passive bystanders in their own lives", says Jay Naidoo.

Now a new challenge existed: to deepen organisation to give communities the power to negotiate improvements in their lives, he says Naidoo, a communications minister in the first South African democratic government and chairperson of the Development Bank of South Africa.

He was delivering the opening address at the Our World Our Responsibility Donor Conference in Cape Town this morning.

The conference is exploring the relationship between local and international philanthropists, and the manner in which civil society in South Africa needs to engage in non-traditional ways to channel funds from philanthropically-minded people and entities to transform the country's socio-economic landscape.

Naidoo said that in 1994 a culture was initiated that argued that government would deliver jobs, houses, education, health and basic service to the people. NGOs and civil society was effectively disbanded.

But today "we face the twin evils of 'entitlement' and 'corruption' and it is time to return to the basics of our struggle", he said.

"Although this may be troublesome and protracted and place enormous strain on decision makers it is a necessary part of the people-centred democracy we committed to when we promised our people a better life in 1994. We robbed our society of a very important voice and we have to rebuild that voice, and to deepen public dialogue in the face of increasing demagoguery," he said.

Naidoo said that economic growth and emerging markets in Africa offer unprecedented opportunities to secure the right conditions for democracy, developing African resources and fostering enterprises that will result in broadly shared prosperity.

But new wealth creation would have to be balanced by the emergence of African philanthropy. In turn, South African philanthropy would play a crucial role in determining how wealth creation is distributed against a broader set of economic goals that would impact on the future of African nations.

He said he saw philanthropy not as "giving back" but as "giving forward".

"Taken this way, philanthropy can be seen as a means to promote the stability of African society and culture and the process of economic peace, security and development. This would promote an opportunity for non-governmental leaders to have a say in the running of the country," he said.

He said the 21st Century will be about evolving the philanthropic model beyond financial capital to include new forms of capital, including social, technological and network capital.

Such integrated models required 'smart capital', driven by leaders who understood how to harness the assets of the public, private and social sector, and how to deploy those assets in the most efficient and effective way to solve complex societal challenges. 'Giving forward', he said, represented a paradigm shift in Africa's image of philanthropy.

"As leaders, it's our responsibility to participate in shaping the future of our countries in a way that offers opportunities for prosperity and security. A secure nation enables its citizens to flourish without fear of attack or harm, and prosperous citizens provide the financial resources and social and intellectual capital to maintain stability and safety," said Naidoo.

Recalling his days as an anti-apartheid activist and leader of Cosatu, Naidoo said the backbone of the labour movement were the hostel dwellers, workers living in the most brutal conditions, the most illiterate and exploited at the bottom of the pyramid. They had no voice in an apartheid system designed to extract every bit of profit from them and in which strife and conflict was inevitable.

But their involvement gave them ownership, and they were able, through an organisation such as Cosatu, to play a decisive role not only in improving conditions on the factory floor but also in achieving political change.

Similarly, he said, philanthropy had to address the need that gives a voice to the poor.