Philanthropic foundations in Belgium: Issues for governance in the public interest

Based on sixteen exploratory interviews with Belgian philanthropic foundations, we investigate the governance mechanisms that these organizations set up in order to achieve their public interest mission. Our paper describes the Belgian foundations’ governance practices and the governance challenges these foundations are confronted with. We then discuss three critical governance issues raised by the foundation sector in Belgium, and we identify three tensions that Belgian foundations need to solve to become legitimate in the achievement of their social missions.