Welcome to CENFACS’ online diary!

30 August 2017

∴ Recalling All-in One Impact Feedback and the review of Communications for Better Change Programme

Some of you may remember that we conducted a review of our Communications for Better Change Programme in Spring 2017 as well as the monitoring and evaluation of our last financial year’s work in the form of All-in One Impact Feedback during July 2017.  To keep you informed, we would like to provide here some key information from the preliminary findings about the above feedback and review.  The important news we want to share with you is that there will be some changes in our projects starting Autumn 2017.  Some of the projects will disappear as they have been completed or the need has been met or even they are not anymore required.   We will progressively introduce new projects to meet emerging and or unmet needs and demand of the community.  However, the main household brand projects making the poverty-relieving pitch at CENFACS will remain.  When these changes come into force, we shall let you know.  Please note that the above preliminary news are not the full project and programme reports.

∴ News coverage about UK Programmes

All year-round projects (like Play, Run and Vote) are only the iceberg of our UK projects making our UK programmes. Without detailing the scope of all our UK projects, we would like simply to let you know that some areas of our UK programmes will be reshaped in terms of the capacity we need to develop with our users (for the Individual Capacity Development Programme) and at the level of the new types of relationships we need to engage with other UK-based organisations (under Building Bridges, Building Bonds Programme).  This reshape is a reflection on the Post-Regional Economic Integration in our work.              

∴ Refreshers of UK-Africa projects and Programmes

Our two types of projects (i.e. Africa-based projects and UK projects) are the two sides of the same coin.  They do not operate separately or in isolation; there are communicating vessels between the two.  There is a lot in common and linkages between the two.  This is why we have UK-Africa programmes at CENFACS to highlight and include the nature of relations between these two aspects of our poverty relief and development works.  Being in the Year of Communications at CENFACS, it is normal we stress the transnational nature of our projects and programmes  

UK-Africa Programmes at CENFACS are made of two main areas: 1/ UK-Africa Skills Sharing and Development (UKASSD) programme and Poverty-Environment programme (PEP).  They are a two-way process of communications and exchanging skills and knowledge (e.g. digital knowledge and clean technologies) between CENFACS and Africa-based organisations in the UK and Africa.  In this financial year, the planning and development of our projects and services will be done in a way of featuring these links.  For example digital support project under our Individual Capacity Development programme will be integrated with the objective of sharing digital skills between CENFACS and Africa-based Organisations.  Likewise, our climate protection advocacy (under Peace, Protection and Sustainability Programme) can be tuned with the need to campaign for clean technologies (under Poverty-Environment Programme) to help reduce deforestation in Africa.

The above recall, news coverage and refreshers are the last engaging contents that can be added to our Trending in Poverty Reduction for this month of August 2017.  For any further details about them or any other aspects of our work, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

23 August 2017

RECAPS ON AFRICA-BASED DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS & PROGRAMMES

Our Mid-August Updates of last week have been mainly focused on UK projects, on what we are doing here in the UK.  The current Updates relate to what we do, are doing and will do in Africa.  So, to complete the picture of our August Updates we are providing below some recapitulations from last and past Africa-based projects as well as this year’s initiatives.  These recaps include what we can do and are doing to work in alliance with Africa-based Sister Organisations (ASOs).  This year, we are still moving in the same direction in terms of our three main African Programmes: 1/ African Integrated and Sustainable Development Initiatives Programme (AISDIP) 2/ African Rebuilding and Sustaining Infrastructures and Lives Programme (RILIVES) 3/ Poverty-Environment Programme (PEP).  In other words, we will continue to deliver our plan of the year while engaging in the development of new sustainable initiatives in Africa.

The contents of what we are doing with ASOs  – contents with which you can engage either as volunteers, donors or funders or in any other capacity – have been summarised in the following 10 points of engagement to our poverty relief work in Africa this financial year.

❶Continuing the delivery of the original 2009 version of CENFACS’ Twenty-Tens Poverty Reduction programme and its revised 2017 version until 2019

❷ Helping ASOs on how to survive, thrive and sustain in the Post-Regional Economic Integration (P-REI) era (via our Road to a Post-REI Thriving Development World project), particularly in assisting them in adjusting their economic infrastructures and structures, and in developing new skills to cope a changing development landscape

❸ Continuing the implementation of phase three of the integration of Sport Development Projects and Sustainable Development Initiatives (through ELCLASSICO III or the International Development and Poverty Relief Manager’s project) until its completion

❹ Helping ASOs in the setting up of cash transfer programmes and projects with sustainable development and climate change adaptation projects

❺Project planning and development with ASOs for the Post-REI sustainable and climate era

❻Advice on investing in capacity building and development, and helping in resource mobilisation for ASOs for the Post-REI times

❼Supporting ASOs and local people on ways of integrating children protection and safeguarding elements into project planning and delivery to reduce migration and trafficking of children as international refugees

❽ Advocating for rebuilding lives and infrastructures for the hardest hit by environmental disasters and armed conflicts, as we did last Winter and Spring for the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Horn of Africa through Light Projects

❾Continuing to act as an umbrella for ASOs concerning financial information for adapting agricultural, water and coastal projects

❿ Campaigning to make climate finance schemes and products work for the poor by helping them to transit to low-carbon economy in Africa.

The above 10 points of engagement and sustainable development initiatives are in our pipeline.  Some of them have been delivered, others are starting and others more will commence as we move along our financial year.  Because, we may from time to time intervene if there is an emergency or urgency (such as natural disasters or wars or even any other development events), we could be forced to alter our initial plan for the year.  In which case, we shall let all our supporters know.  

As said earlier, those who would like to engage with our development work, they are welcome to get involved either as volunteers, funders or donors or any other capacity.  To volunteer and or to donate, go the Support-us page of this site.  We can only do more with the help of others.  For further details on any aspect of our Africa-based projects and programmes, please contact CENFACS.

THE LAST SERIES OF AUGUST 2017 IN FOLLOWING THE DIRECTION OF POVERTY REDUCTION: FAKE OUTCOMES

The last week of our search on FAKE in the process of poverty reduction is about finding out what the Real Outcomes are compared to Fake ones.  Before going further in our exploration of Fake Outcomes, let us say a few words about outcomes.  Outcomes are generally defined as the changes one wants to see after the implementation of a development project, programme and strategy.  As Anne Connor (1) simply puts it in a book written on behalf of Charities Evaluation Services, “the outcomes are what has changed” (p.9).  What has changed means before any development intervention what was the situation and after the intervention what happens.  Is there any change or difference?   And if there is any, what is the direction of this change?  Changes can be real (that is, genuine) or fake.  To understand what we mean by Fake Outcomes, we are proceeding by giving some illustrations under the heading List of Contents.

The search for Real Outcomes versus Fake Outcomes is part 4 of the Trending in Poverty Reduction.  Part 1 (week one) was dedicated to Fake Theories, part 2 (week two) to Fake Leaders and part 3 (week three) to Fake in Role Modelling.  Part 4 (week four) concludes our Trending in Fake economy versus Real economy this month.  For those who want to know more and or get involved in following the direction of poverty reduction with CENFACS on a regular basis, they need to sign up to our online newsletter The Reliever.  Signing up will enable you to get more contents from CENFACS such as upcoming events, new services or products, news coverage in the sustainable development and poverty relief sectors, updates about CENFACS projects and programmes etc.  

We would like to take this opportunity to thank those who so far have joined us and shared with us their ideas in this August Trending.  Many thanks!

(1) Anne Connor, Monitoring Ourselves, Evaluating Ourselves series, Charities Evaluation Services, 1990

16 August 2017

MID-AUGUST UPDATES with… 

We hope that those who decided to take up a break and those who happened to be on holidays at this time of the year are having a happy season.  We also hope that those who are working this Summer are happy at work.  CENFACS would like to wish all of you well!

Our three All-year Round Projects – which are Play, Run and Vote – should be fully active around this time of the year.  Remember, if you are Playing the CENFACS Poverty Relief League and its sub-project Le Dernier Carrẻ, there are 16 team countries in this Poverty Relief and Development League playing each 32 matches/games each against the other.  If you are Running for Poverty Relief and Development, you can do it alone or as a group.  If you are casting your Vote for an International Development and Poverty Relief Manager of 2017, there are still four months remaining until the end of the year.  Whether you are Gaming or Running or even Voting for Poverty Relief and Development, please keep a track record (including the facts, data, videos, reviews and images) of your Summer activities to make and share your story with us and others.    To do that, you do not need sophisticated technologies or a third party.  With your mobile phone only – if you have one – you can text, record voices, make a video, take pictures, phone etc to capture and communicate the impacts of any event or activity you are doing or taking part in this Summer.  And if you are using or reflecting on Happiness Projects with Enhanced Protection, please do also keep a story to tell.  We would be more than happier to hear your holiday and at-work stories to feature CENFACS Year of Communications.  Tell it!

FOLLOWING FAKE IN THE PROCESS OF POVERTY REDUCTION continues…

FAKE IN ROLE MODELLING

Our Trending in Poverty Reduction by following the direction of poverty relief through FAKE is in its third week.  In this week 3 of our four series of following the direction of poverty reduction, we are searching on Role Modelling.  To help us, we are going to use the motivational theory of role modelling.  This theory is about how Role Models can influence Role Aspirants.  But before that, let us define role models.  To do that, we are going to use the definition given in the Oxford Dictionary of Sociology edited by Scott and Marshall (1).  From this dictionary, role-model is “a significant other, upon which an individual patterns his or her behaviour in a particular social *role, including adopting appropriate similar attitudes. …Role-models tend to provide ideals for a particular role only, rather than a pattern to be emulated across all the constituent roles of an individual’s life and *self” (p. 656).  In this respect, role models can bring admiration for those who may try to copy role models’ behaviour.  Role modelling can be fake just as it can be genuine one, like it can be negative or positive depending on the circumstances.  So this week, we are looking at the extent to which Role Models can be positive or genuine against the negative or fake ones.   For example how poor children, poor young people and poor families can draw expectancy values or can be motivated by real Role Models to escape from poverty and hardships?  This is the engaging content of our Trending in Poverty Reduction this week.   For further details on Fake in Role Modelling, read the notes under the heading List of Contents.

---

(1) Oxford Dictionary of Sociology, edited by John Scott and Gordon Marshall, Oxford University Press 2009  

09 August 2017

▼STILL ON…

Our Happiness season is moving smoothly with Happiness Projects.  Likewise, our fundraising campaign for the season (Appeal Projects) is still open to everybody who wants to donate and support the deserving causes of poor children, young people and families over this Summer time.  DONATE NOW! Thanks!

▼TRENDS AT CENFACS

Our integration theme of Track, Trip and Trending is in the week two.  The main focus is to get the three components of this integrating theme working and running at the same time.

Our sharing and engaging two keynotes (that is Track and Trip) of this main integrating theme are in progress.  We are asking to all participants to not forget to keep records of their activities as well as to put in place some monitoring tools to measure and communicate the impacts of their work.

The following and tracking of the direction in poverty reduction (Trending) through fake economy versus real economy continues to be popular subject within the CENFACSPHERE and the CENFACS Community.  In the first week of search for “fakeconomics” or FAKE in the process poverty reduction, we dealt with FAKE RELIEFS.  This week, we are working on FAKE LEADERS by looking at Leadership Styles. 

▼FAKE LEADERS: LEADERSHIP STYLES (WEEK TWO OF TRENDING)

There are many ways of defining leadership.  We are going to use the simplest definition of it from the dictionary.  Collins Dictionary of Business (1) defines leadership as “the process of influencing others to achieve certain goals” (p. 332).  [(1): Christopher Pass et al., Collins Dictionary of Business, HarperCollinsPublishers, 1991].  To influence others, leaders can employ various styles or ways of influencing.  There are many styles of leadership:  totalitarian, liberal democratic, authoritarian, autocratic etc.  Leadership embraces all aspects of life: politics, economics, social, family, business etc.  As CENFACS is a charitable organisation and voluntary organisation, most of our search on leadership styles will be based on community and international development although we may be forced to make some incursions in other areas of life to properly understand the various dimensions of leadership.  So, the ability or state of ruling, guiding and inspiring others on the road to real poverty relief incarnate specific talents, skills and abilities in order to make that genuine relief happen to others.  In this respect, leadership qualities or traits highly matter.

Our search for leadership styles will be on the relationship between aspects of personality and the delivery of genuine relief.  In this search for better leadership styles for real reliefs, we will focus on two theoretical approaches to leadership: the people-orientation style and myself first-orientation style.  In other words, leadership that has concern for people (or others) compared to leadership that cares only for itself.  The first is devoted to the successful relief of people while the second is self-centred and preoccupied by personal gain only.  The two styles oppose each other with leaders who scarify themselves for others (here the poor) against those leaders who exploit others to achieve their personal ambition, self-esteem, wealth and power.  For more about Leadership Styles and their impacts on poverty reduction, read under the heading List of Contents.

02 August 2017

Track, Trip & Trending

Before telling you what is going to happen during the month of August 2017, CENFACS would like to thank you for your likes, comments and shares about our heated 7DDJF (7 Days of Development in July Festival) of Thoughts and Actions on SCIENCE AND ENGINEER EDUCATION FOR POVERTY RELIEF AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, Festival  held from 22 to 28 July 2017. 

We would like also to thank those who responded to our All-in-one Impact Feedback, which is now closed.  We shall look at and analyse all the responses received and appropriately reflect on some of the points raised by all feedback respondents in our analytics.   Again thank you so much for your support.

August is CENFACS’ Track, Trip and Trending month.  We do Track at CENFACS because we believe that every one of us can undertake basic physical activity of running or racing to help reduce poverty.  Our project known as Run to Reduce Poverty is designed to meet that end. 

August is also the month we carry out some Trips to our projects.  We visit our projects all over the year, but August is the time we highlight this.  It is the month of the year we walk again to the need, to the people, communities, organisations and livelihoods in need. 

We thirdly deal with Trending in August as we spend time looking at what we can call Trendy Development.  Trending in Poverty Reduction help us to follow the direction of poverty reduction work.  This August we are going to follow this direction by looking at FAKE RELIEFS compared to genuine ones and their effects on poverty reduction.

Track to reduce poverty

This is delivered through the project Run to Reduce Poverty and Vote your African Manager of Poverty Reduction.  These are all-year round projects.  However, because of the weather conditions (sunshine) and nature of August (holidays time for many of our supporters) we put a particular emphasis on the Run aspects of these all-year round projects, over this month.  We expect those who sign up to the Run element to take actions and run it by themselves.  After summer, they can report back to us or at any convenient time before the end of the year.

Trip to the need

This is the second aspect or part of work over the month of August at CENFACS.  We expect and advise our supporters to visit some of our projects and initiatives whether in the UK or in Africa during and around the month of August.  Trip to the need and project includes some of the experiences undertaken by CENFACS All in Development Volunteers through field work involvements and project visits, to reach out to unreached, underserved and unserved people and communities particularly those living in remote areas of Africa.  It is the kind of experiences that we recommend to future volunteers to have and report back in September or after.  These trips also help us to check if we are on the right track at helping to reduce poverty and at tracking our records for the work on the ground.

Trendy development 

Development does not need to be trendy, but we can follow the trends in development and poverty reduction.  During this August we are dealing with Trending in poverty reduction through fake relief versus genuine relief.  We mean by that we are following the direction of poverty reduction by using or looking at fake economy compared to the genuine economy.  To do that, we are going to use the dictionary definition of the word fake.  Fake is defined in Collins English Dictionary (1) as “an object, person or act that is not genuine” (p.303) while genuine is termed as “real and exactly what it appears” (p.356).  [(1) : Collins English Dictionary, HarperCollins Publishers, 2007].  So, fake economy versus genuine economy and their respective impacts on poverty reduction are the trending we are following.  If you are interested in this trend, please share with us your experience or comments about it.    

Further explanation about this August month’s activities is given under the heading List of Contents.

28 July 2017

AFRICAN ORGANISATIONS AND EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRIES: How Voluntary Action does Handle Adversity from Mining Extraction in Africa

FACS, Issue no. 56, Summer 2017 

Key Highlights –

An abstract about the 56^th issue of FACS, CENFACS’ bilingual newsletter, was already given last month; abstract which can be found under the heading List of Contents on this page.  However, as part of Key Highlights on the issue, it is worth pointing out that not all the activities of mining extractive industries in Africa have negative impacts on people, the environment and the wider economy.  It will be biased to suggest that everything from mining extractive companies is negative.  Their activities can have both positive and negative impacts depending on different perspectives.  However, from the perspective of this 56^th issue, we are mostly dealing with the negative impacts, with what is not working for the poor as a result of the activities of these companies.  This is why action is needed to correct or challenge the imperfections of mining industry and market as it cannot be self-regulating to benefit the poor.  As CENFACS is a charitable and voluntary organisation, its action can only be altruist and voluntary.  How does the voluntary action of CENFACS’ African Sister Organisations handle adversity resulting from mining extractive sector in Africa?  It does it by advocating for the protection of land and water rights, by demanding that the aims and goals of mining projects meet the wishes of local people, by campaigning for poor people to have a stake in the sovereignty over natural resources, by supporting the victims of mining fields through a relief package for the locals living in the vicinity of mining sites.

The remaining Key Highlights making the contents of the 56^th issue of FACS are given under the heading List of Contents on this page.

26 July 2017

END OF JULY 2017 UPDATES

# 7 DAYS OF DEVELOPMENT IN JULY FESTIVAL (7DDJF)

The 9^th edition of CENFACS’ Annual Event 7DDJF is in progress.  There are only two days remaining to reach our planned 7 days.  We would like to remind 7DDJF participants that after 28 July 2017 you can still interact with CENFACS and others by posting (via twitter, facebook and e-mail) your comments and thoughts  on this year’s theme, which is Science and Engineer Education for Poverty Relief and Sustainable Development, until the 5^th of August 2017.  We would like also to take this opportunity to thank those who have so far responded and or supported the event.  Many thanks!

# ALL-IN-ONE IMPACT FEEDBACK: Only 5 Days to go!

Our monitoring and evaluation activities under the name of All-in-one Impact Feedback will be closed in 5 days (that is, on 31/07/2017).  We would like to appeal to you again to not miss this once-a-year opportunity to tell us what you think about the overall state of CENFACS programmes and projects delivered in approximately the last 11 months and 2 weeks.  Please help us with your comments and suggestions.  Tell it!

# HAPPINESS PROJECTS

CENFACS Happiness Projects have already started.  For further details about Happiness Projects including way of engaging, accessing and supporting them; please contact CENFACS.

# SUMMER 2017 FINANCIAL INFORMATION UPDATES – In Focus: Accounts Poverty

The main topic for our 2017 Financial Information Updates Resource is Accounts Poverty.  We introduced this topic last Spring when we hold Family Balance Sheet Week.  These Financial Information Updates are a financial aspect and part of our Individual Capacity Development programme and are meant to help with updated financial information and awareness conducive to reducing the lack of financial information, lack that could be a source of income vulnerability or simply poverty. 

This resource provides a basic financial guidance, but not a financial support or funds for multi-dimensionally poor children, young people and families (MDPCYPFs).  It simply highlights what is happening with the financial economy and gives some tips and hints to mitigate the bad effects of the financial economy.  It is presented in a user-friendly manner and simple language to help everybody to understand the financial jargon and some of the complex issues that make up the economy that impacts on the lives of the ordinary people and amongst them the poor. 

The resource is based on people-centred needs as our focus is on agency-led approach rather than a structure-led one.  These Summer Updates are on what people and individuals can do themselves instead of limiting on what institutions and structures can do for them only.  This means people and individuals as agents taking initiative and ownership of their own stand against any economic situation, in time of recession or prosperity.  As said above, the focus this year of Financial Information Updates Resource is Accounts Poverty.

It gives some leads regarding where to get financial information.  However, it is not a comprehensive or exhaustive tool on finance or economics.  It has to be complemented with other various financial sources of support and information. 

We hope you find it useful, purposeful and supportive to your financial information needs.  However, should you have any query about it or require any in-deep information, please let us know.

For more about 2017 Financial Information Updates Resource, please read under the heading List of Contents on this page.      

Wishing you a good summer time!

SUMMER PROGRAMME WITH HAPPINESS PROJECTS AT CENFACS

We have already started Summer 2017 Programme and Happiness season (3^rd season of CENFACS’ development calendar) at CENFACS, with the launch of our Humanitarian Relief Appeal projects one week ago. 

Summer Programme is mainly made of a set of projects for and with Multi-dimensionally Poor Children, Young People and Families.  This programme consists of two parts as follows: Happiness projects (Part I) and Appeal projects or Humanitarian Relief to Africa (Part 2).  As we have already launched Appeal Projects (see the page Supporting Us on this site), we are going to focus here on Happiness Projects.  CENFACS’ Happiness Projects are poverty-relieving responses to bring joyful lives while reducing misery for poor children, young people and families over the summer period and beyond.  The underlying principles or philosophy of these projects are in line with the main factors or indicators that define happiness as both a social and personal concept as explained  in World Happiness Report edited by Helliwell, Layard and Sachs (1).  These editors distinguish the social foundations of happiness from personal happiness, although the two are complementary.  They use six key variables to explain happiness differences among countries which include: income, healthy life expectancy, having someone to count on in times of trouble, generosity, freedom and trust.  When talking about key determinants of happiness and misery, they argue that happiness is caused by factors such as income, employment, health and family life.  CENFACS Happines Projects address the issues encapsulated inside the above variables and factors while keeping in mind first the needs of the CENFACS Community.  This is because we think the way to keep people happier is to reduce as much as possible poverty and misery among them.   Happiness is about ending poverty and misery.  A further explanatory note about CENFACS Happiness Projects 2017 and how to access these projects is given under the heading List of Contents.

_____________

(1) Helliwell, J., Layard, R., & Sachs, J. (2017), World Happiness Report 2017, New York: Sustainable Development Solutions Network

COMING SOON: 7 DAYS OF DEVELOPMENT IN JULY FESTIVAL

SCIENCE AND ENGINEER EDUCATION FOR POVERTY RELIEF AND DEVELOPMENT

There are many ways of defining poverty, just as there are many reasons or explanations why developing countries, especially those of Africa have problems or difficulties to reduce and end poverty, let alone to develop.   One of the definitions of poverty which also highlights a type of problems faced by Africa is the lack of some basic capability to function.  This definition draws its inspiration from the capability or empowerment theory of poverty.  African countries have many capabilities to function, but they also lack some other types of capabilities that one may find in the most industrialized countries.  One of these lacks or insufficient capabilities is the lack of use or insufficiency in skills and knowledge related to the fields of science and engineering.  It is pointless to mention the importance of science and engineering among other disciplines of learning in the educational systems and processes.   It is not surprising if UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) points out engineering is a major driver for sustainable socio-economic development (www.unesco.org).  

Indeed, not putting much emphasis on science and engineering subjects in the educational systems or simply not using the skills and knowledge deriving from these two disciplines in practical life can make societies lag behind in the concert of the world’s nations.  It is not a surprise if the most industrialized nations are also developed ones and have enough capacity to reduce poverty.  They are so because they have managed in their history to develop an industrial base which includes to a great deal of scientific and engineer contents.  For more about this event and on how to participate or support, please read under the heading List of Contents on this page.  

Please read the event supporting information below and provide your comments and views (on the themes of your interest) online.  You can e-mail, facebook, tweet and text CENFACS in order to exchange your views with other people’s.

Thank you for your continued support.

With best wishes and full of inspiration and creativity throughout our dedicated Seven Days of Festival of Thoughts and Actions on Science and Engineer Education for Poverty Relief and Development.

MONITORING, EVALUATION, REVIEW AND ANALYTICS

Our July month of Monitoring and Evaluation continues as planned. We are asking all our supporters, beneficiaries and users including our web visitors and blog readers to use this month’s opportunity to feedback their comments and views about our work. Please do not miss this once-a-year occasion to communicate your feelings about our programmes and projects we delivered from June 2016 to June 2017.  Remember! We are in CENFACS’ Year of Communications and we can only do the things you want us to do to help relieve poverty if you tell us what you think. No matter our reactions about your opinions! JUST TELL IT! This is an opportunity to tell us some areas of improvement we may need.  We always say (and we can repeat it again and again) that we are not a perfect organisation.  Monitoring and Evaluation give us valuable inputs to measure and capture the impacts of work while laying down foundations for any further development and adjustment of the strategy as well as for targets of the year’s to come.  A summary of this year’s July Monitoring and Evaluation (including selected programmes and projects requiring your SAY) is given under the heading List of Contents of this web page.  

Many thanks for considering our request of feedback.

05 July 2017

The name of the July game at CENFACS is Monitoring, Evaluation, Review and Analytics.  July is the month during which we conduct our monitoring, evaluation, review and analytics of the projects and programmes we delivered during almost last 11 months and 2 weeks.  It is the time we do our Summer tracking by reconsidering the value and relevancy of our work, let one the overall state of our charitable work.   It is the period that we carry out what we call All-in-One Impact Feedback.  In simple terms, we try to track or capture the impacts of our work.   This exercise results in Planning process for the next financial year.  This year’s All-in-One Impact Feedback will be extended to include our 2020-2030 Follow-up (XX23F) programme as we are in the month of Monitoring and Evaluation.  In brief, we shall conduct a follow-up and examination, look back and analyse data on the overall projects and programmes delivered during the above stated period, while keeping to implement our XX23F programme.  This July exercise is in line with CENFACS 2017 Year of Communications.  Details of selected projects and programmes for All-in-one Impact Feedback will follow soon.

July is also the month we hold our Summer Festival of Thoughts, the Seven Days of Development in July.  The theme of this year’s festival is SCIENCE AND ENGINEER EDUCATION FOR POVERTY RELIEF AND DEVELOPMENT.  The reason we have decided to choose this theme is that there are opinions that one of the problems Africa faces today is less emphasis is (or was) put on science and engineering in the educational systems.  Yet, science and engineering play a pivotal role in the process of fighting poverty and enhancing sustainable development.  Further details about this thoughtful event will follow soon. 

 

July 2017 is finally the month we have chosen to launch this year’s Humanitarian Relief Appeal for Poor Children, Young People and Families (CYPFs).  This Summer appeal is a form of expression to remind ourselves and our supporters that Summer time and holiday is not only for CYPFs who live very well and will enjoy their decent holidays in the destinations and places of their wish and choice.  Summer holiday is too for some of the poorest CYPFs who do not have choice to enjoy their Summer time, let alone to enjoy everyday life.  This is particularly true but not exclusively for those poor CYPFs in Africa.  Therefore, CENFACS’ Humanitarian Relief Appeal is a way of asking our supporters to give that missing choice and happiness to these poor CYPFs who are deprived of.  Please help us to help poor CYPFs to choose and enjoy Summer holidays.  For more information about this appeal, visit the page “Supporting Us” on this site.

2017-18 RUN TO REDUCE POVERTY IN AFRICA

There are many ways you can support CENFACS’ 2017 RUN TO REDUCE POVERTY IN AFRICA (2017 RRPA).  You can choose what you intend to do to support as follows: Research & report to CENFACS your AGGRAPR (African Global Games Runners, Agents of Poverty Relief), Organise a run or race event, Inclusion of CENFACS’ 2017 RRPA into event days, Support this project generally or miscellaneously, and Straightway donate to CENFACS.  We have provided, under the heading List of Contents, some details about CENFACS’ 2017 Run To Reduce Poverty in Africa.  These details include research, report, event organisation and other support.

ANNOUCEMENT OF 2016 RUN, PLAY AND VOTE ACTION-RESULTS: Still Pending!

The Action-Results of 2016 are still pending for many of our players, runners and voters of poverty relief.  We would like to hear from you about the Best African Countries of 2016 which best reduced poverty, the Best African Global Games Runners of 2016, and the Best African Development Managers of 2016.  If you have not yet told us, have your say now!

END JUNE TO FULL JULY e-MOBILISATION DAYS

27 June to 31 July 2017 e-Mobilisation Days as part of World Anti-poverty System (WAS)   Campaign: Advocacy for an International System To Reduce and End Poverty

With Summer 2017 slogan: STEP UP AND DRIVE RELIEF FORWARD!

World Anti-Poverty System (WAS) campaign is back this 27 June 2017 with our call to action to Step Up and Drive Relief Forward (SDR).  The SDR will continue throughout July 2017.   It will remain alive in whatever we will undertake as activities during the month of July 2017 and beyond.  We have added more information about WAS and SDR under the heading List of Contents.

CENFACS POVERTY RELIEF LEAGUE > SUPPORTING INFORMATION

Under the heading List of Contents, you will find supporting information about CPRL which we recommend all the participants to the League to read.  These updates are related to policy matters on transfers, fixtures, scores, results, tables and the entire spirit of CENFACS‘ beautiful poverty relief and development game.  Remember, CENFACS’ CPRL is the World’s League without relegation! 

SUMMER 2017 PROGRAMMES, PROJECTS AND EVENTS

Please find below what will make CENFACS’ 2017 Summer of Happiness.

CENFACS‘ Spring Relief season together with selected Spring projects and programme have come to an end, although there are still projects that are on-going.   For every of these projects delivered so far, we hope you have found a user-friendly and -centred relief.  Jmesci (June Month of Environmental and Sustainable Creative Initiatives) and WAS (World Anti-poverty System) are the projects that have made the last of  part of Spring 2017 programme.  We have already provided some briefs about these two projects under the heading List of Contents.

In practice, Jmesci is the project that ended our Spring Relief season to start Summer of Happiness.  After creating and innovating for poverty relief and development, we shall enjoy the sunshine of Summer with Happiness and Peace.  Summer is a period of the warm sunny weather that we would like to associate with at CENFACS.  It is the time of happiness that we all expect after a long period of full time work and education.  We look forward to a break after such a long time of routine working life, especially as most of CENFACS’ projects and programmes are framed around the school timetable to suit and reflect the needs and living patterns of our users and beneficiaries.

We have now entered Summer of Happiness at CENFACS, the 3^rd season of CENFACS’ development calendar and planner. It consists of Summer Programme which is mainly made of a set of projects for and with Multi-dimensionally Poor Children, Young People and Families (CYPFs).  This programme consists of two parts as follows: Happiness projects (Part I) and Appeal projects or Humanitarian Relief to Africa (Part 2).  Besides this main Summer seasonal regular feature, we also have planned other initiatives.  We shall gradually release the contents of these Summer projects as we progress during Summer 2017.  Our development calendar/planner already indicates what is planned for July and August 2017.  However, should anybody want to find out more, they are welcome to contact CENFACS.  

We hope you find a joyful, helpful and hopeful relief from the above programmes and projects over this Summer!

We would like to inform you that the title of the next issue of FACS, CENFACS’ bilingual newsletter, is

AFRICAN ORGANISATIONS AND EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRIES: How Voluntary Action Does Handle Adversity from Mining Extraction in Africa

We have provided an introductory note or abstract about it under the heading List of Contents.

Also, we would like to remind you that our month of Creation and Innovation is up and running as planned.  We still have two weeks to go and we are ready to welcome those who might be interested in it.  Likewise, our Zero Hunger Tolerance campaign is still on course.

Finally, don’t forget there is only one week remaining for our Spring Relief.  If you have any comments or suggestions about Spring Relief, please do not hesitate to make you voice heard.

Let’s together keep creating and innovating for poverty relief and development! 

07 JUNE 2017 UPDATES / TOWARDS THE END OF SPRING

Jmesci! – Our June month of Creation and Innovation has just started.   It is open to all our supporters, users and those who may be interested in CENFACS’ work.  If you have any new ideas or different thoughts or even initiatives to improve the environment and sustainable development while reducing poverty, CENFACS would like to hear from you.  Your contributions can create freedoms and innovate capabilities for the under-served and un-served people and communities. We are more than happier to welcome you to join our Jmesci. 

While these Creation and Innovation activities are on, we are dealing with other areas of our planned and emergency-induced initiatives.  

CENFACS BOOKLETSTORE! – Don’t forget to place your order for any of our Individual Capacity Development Programme (ICDP) updated seasonal resources.  They are available on request from CENFACS repository. 

HALVING POVERTY Campaign! –  CENFACS’ 2017 Halving Poverty Campaign will soon be ended until it returns next Spring in 2018 with a new focus.  You can find more information about this child protection and fundraising campaign on Supporting-Us page of this website.  Every support matters however small it may be.  If you (or people you know) have not yet supported this campaign, we would like to appeal to you and or people around you to do so now although any giving provided after Spring Relief will still be accepted by CENFACS.  There is always a child here (in the UK) and there (in Africa) with a critical or severe level of poverty and lack of protection who desperately needs help.  We value and thank you for your support!  

ALL IN DEVELOPMENT STORIES project! – We would like to take this opportunity to thank those who responded to our May month Stories project, All in Development Stories. It has been an amusing and moving development experience to hear from you your stories of transformation.  Thank you to all our Stories Givers and Sharers!  We will have an opportunity to celebrate all your stories telling and sharing support.

SPRING RELIEF! – Our Spring Relief Season will close in two weeks.  We hope the projects and programmes that made it so far have been fit for relief and your pressing need.  However, if you have any comments and suggestions about it and or our future plans, please do not hesitate to make your voices heard and send your web comments.  We are open for suggestions, particularly creative ideas and innovative ways of doing things.  That is why we have June month of Creation and Innovation, and have dedicated 2017 as the Year of Communications .at CENFACS.  Please Create, Innovate and Communicate with us for Poverty Relief and Development!

CREATIONS AND HAPPINESS

The proposed theme for this year’s Jmesci is CREATING AND INNOVATING TO REDUCE AND END POVERTY

The main Key words at CENFACS for this June month’s poverty-relieving contents are Creators and Innovators for Poverty Relief and Development.  If you are doing keyword search to optimize CENFACS’ contents, you should focus on creations and innovation at CENFACS during the month of June.  These words will ease to access and or get involved in CENFACS’ services and activities this June 2017.  They are used in the context of our June Creation project known as Jmesci (June month of environmental and sustainable creative initiatives).  We create all over the year and life, but June is the month for us at CENFACS to both acknowledge our environmental and sustainable makings, and record or recollect our creations and innovations.  We may not be able to reinvent the wheels, but we can create and innovate for poverty relief and development.

Jmesci is also the project that ends our Spring Relief to start Summer of Happiness.  After Creating and Innovating for Poverty Relief and Development this June, we shall then enter and enjoy Summer with Happiness and Peace.  

For more about Jmesci and steps to support, read under List of Contents on this post page.

June 2017 is also the month we planned to resume our World Anti-poverty System Campaign.  We will be doing it by holding e-Mobilisation Days.  

END JUNE TO FULL JULY e-MOBILISATION DAYS

June to July e-Mobilisation Days as part of World Anti-poverty System (WAS)   Campaign: Advocacy for an International System To Reduce and End Poverty

CENFACS will be holding e-Mobilisation Days between 27 June and 31 July 2017 under the WAS campaign to engage users, supporters and the entire development community to STEP UP and DRIVE FORWARD RELIEF through the proposals for the formation of an International System for Poverty Reduction.

Again to find out more about the WAS Campaign, please read under List of Contents on this post page.

CENFACS BOOKLETSTORE

As part of CENFACS Individual Capacity Development Programme (ICDP), we produce in-house resources to support users on different areas making this programme and which can be found in CENFACS depository.  Amongst these resources, there are seasonal ICDP booklets which are often updated to take into account the evolution of sustainable development and poverty reduction markets while considering how the needs of users fit into these changes and how best to meet them.  ICDP booklets can be ordered free of charge from CENFACS.   Although these resources are free, they cost us time and money to update them and put them to the public domain.  This is why we invite, those who can, to voluntarily donate on request of these resources.  This donation will help us to even do more in improving these resources and in helping those in most need to help themselves.  

Please feel free to contact CENFACS to place your order for our next Summer ICDP resource – Financial Updates (due in July 2017).  

DON’T FORGET OUR CALL FOR 2017 STORY ENTRIES

There are only 7 DAYS REMAINING to enter and share your story of the impact you make.  Don’t forget our Special May 2017 Stories – the African Elephant Stories.  Protect African Elephants through your story.  Don’t miss the closing date of submission (31/05/2017).  Tell it now!

All in Development is an in-house CENFACS volunteers’ support scheme set up since 2002 that offers opportunities to potential volunteers and interns of development to improve lives for free and good, not for money.  Through this scheme, we also run All in Development Stories project.  GIVE and SHARE your STORIES with CENFACS today!   

While our All in Development Stories (AiDS) project is on course, we are also dealing with other planned Spring projects.  Amongst these other Spring projects, there is our Holiday with Relief which is part of CENFACS Individual Capacity Development programme.

HOLIDAY WITH RELIEF AT HOME OR AWAY, Spring 2017 Issue

Spring is the time of the year during which we publish our second seasonal Individual Capacity Development Programme (ICDP) resource and holiday advisory support, known as Holiday with Relief at Home or Away.  The other three seasonal resources are: Financial Updates (published in Summer), Festive Income Boost (published in Autumn) and Consume to Reduce Poverty (published in Winter).  Every year, we update all the four seasonal ICDP resources in order to take into account the change in the poverty relief and development markets.  This year’s Holiday with Relief has been also updated to include the evolution of the information market and society as well as the changing needs of our users/beneficiaries.  This year’s updates are on online defense and security.  In other words, the updates are on the capacity of our users to defend and feel secure themselves when using online technologies during holidays at home or away.  

WHAT IS HOLIDAY WITH RELIEF?

Holiday with Relief (HwR) is a set of tips and tricks to help and enable vulnerably unaware people to plan their holiday or break with confidence in taking into account all aspects of life and by making sure that key areas of those life aspects are not adversely affected.  This is because before, during and after holiday or break to relax, there is life.  HwR is indeed designed to work together with users in order to enable them to pass holiday and return from it with peace of mind and ready to continue life.  HwR is an insightful and continuing protection resource that offers a fresh perspective and approach to pre- and post-holiday related issues.  HwR is a life line advisory support to multi-dimensionally vulnerable children, young people and families in making sure that their holidays do not harm their other aspects of life.  HwR is finally an awareness, preparedness and solutions-focused tool that can lessen the pressure and burden of poverty and hardship amongst them.  This resource is updated every year.  This year’s updates are on online defense and security.

ONLINE INDIVIDUAL DEFENSE AND SECURITY

The bulk of our collective defense and security are in the hands of our national, local and international authorities.  However, as most of us are getting digitalised with the use of the Internet, online and digital technologies; there is a need to make sure that at personal or individual level these technologies are safe or our information management system is secure.  This is regardless of whether one choose to stay home or being away for our holiday.  This need of security demands us to redeploy some individual efforts to act on some individual defense and security mechanics, tips and tricks.   The latter could include undertaking some basic things such as securing our passwords; updating online anti-virus checkers on our devices; ridding of spywares and ransom wares; protecting ourselves from cyber attackers, scammers and hackers etc.  There are aspects of defense and security that those who are responsible for the wider society and organisations we work for can do.  But, there are also some initiatives we can undertake at personal or individual level to defend and secure our life at home or away during holidays.  Being in the year of Communications at CENFACS, those precautionary and protective measures at home and or away can help make people’s information management system effective and efficient.   

We have provided, under the heading List of Contents, some tips on WHAT TO DO and WHAT NOT TO DO.  These tips have been extracted from the HwR 2017 full resource.  For those who want more information about the resource, please do feel free to contact CENFACS.   We hope you find it useful and practical in enhancing some holiday aspects of your lives. (Holiday with Relief © CENFACS, Spring 2017)

ONLY TWO WEEKS LEFT TO SUBMIT YOUR ENTRY TO CENFACS’ ALL IN DEVELOPMENT STORIES PROJECT!

Poverty-relieving and development stories as our main content for the month of May 2017 are still being trended.  We have two weeks more left before the closing date of submission of 31 May 2017.  We are inviting those who have stories to tell and share; and have not yet done so to tell their stories.

Everybody who supported a life has a story to tell and share.  Tell and share your story of Communication and Media NOW!  Tell it!

WHAT IS TRENDING THIS MONTH WITHIN AND AROUND  CENFACS?

Our trending topic of this month is still poverty relief and development stories.  A part from stories to be told by volunteers and interns, we accept stories from other development supporters and helpers as well.  There are many ways in which people can engage with this topic.  Engagement can be via twitter or text/phone or e-mail or even paper-based post.

We have added more information about May 2017 Stories (under the heading List of Contents) so that you can tell and share your story of change for change about the impact you make!

REBUILDING AFRICA WITH ZERO HUNGER TOLERANCE

We seasonally adjusted our Spring Relief programme compared to the initial plan we made as the Rebuilding Africa campaign started in March 2017.  We did it through Rebuilding Hungry Lives in the Horn and East Africa.  However, as part of this theme of Hungry Lives and of our Consume-to-Reduce-Poverty project, we are raising awareness about Sustainable Food to highlight the role of sustainability as far as the fight against poverty linked to poor food consumption is concerned.  Sustainable Food takes forward Zero Hunger Goal of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Targets while echoing the coming food month of celebration across London and other parts of the world.   Thus, this awareness will be done under the banner of Zero Hunger Tolerance (ZHT).  

The aim of ZHT is to raise awareness on sustainable food consumption and production in order to end hunger and malnutrition amongst those who are extremely food deprived.  This ending will happen through the provision of safe, nutritious and sufficient food.  The ZHT complements this year’s CENFACS Rebuilding Africa whose the focus has been on Hungry Lives. 

For further details about ZHT, contact CENFACS.

COMMUNICATING for BETTER CHANGE (CBCP) – Brief Celebration Reports

We have provided, under the heading List of Contents, a brief report regarding the celebration for Communicating for Better Change Programme.  This brief report covers key points of this celebration for the first two sessions held respectively on 23 & 24 March 2017 and 25 & 27 March 2017.  

Our March Climate Action with a focus on Localisation of Sustainable Development Goals continues.  Our programme review, capacity and skills development as engaging themes for March 2017 are still being carried out as well.  From 23 to 31 March 2017, we are adding to the above initiatives, the Celebration of Communication for Better Change Programme. 

Celebrating 10 Years of Communication for Better Change Programme (CBCP)

It is the celebration of

●10 years of communicating anti-poverty messages to communities and people in need in the UK and Africa.

●the four P’s of communication at CENFACS: Pitch, Positioning, Presentation and Persistence.  The Pitch is the absorption and reflection on CENFACS’ audience perspectives.  Positioning is where CENFACS sits on insider/outsider of the community and the Non Governmental sectors.  Presentation represents the need of action by CENFACS.  Persistence is the repetition of our anti-poverty messages over 10 years to help reduce poverty and achieve better change in both directions.

● CENFACS’ advocacy culture that is our continuous focus to achieve better change with and for un-served and underserved communities and people

● the fit between the communication and poverty issues advocated on the one hand and CENFACS on the other.  This fitness is important as we are in the implementation phase of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs).  In particular, it is the recognition of Goal 9 Target 7 of these UN SDGs which is “to significantly increase access to information and communications technology and strive to provide universal and affordable access to the internet in least developed countries by 2020”.

Although this celebration is about our past anti-poverty communication messages and achievements, it is also an opportunity for us to rethink of the future.  Notably, how the CENFACS community as a social media community for poverty relief and development can use social media platforms and internet contents to even communicate more and better in building and strengthening working relationships with others and helping to further reduce poverty in the new era.  It means going beyond encoding and decoding information by creating and sharing useful meanings and engaging contents to enhance freedoms and capabilities by working together with local people to develop sustainable initiatives.  

For about this celebration and the CBCP including the celebratory days and themes, please read the notes under the heading List of Contents.

As announced at the beginning of this month, our engaging contents for March 2017 are made of programme review, capacity, skills and this year’s theme celebration. This is besides our Climate Action which is still on course. Programme review, capacity and skills development are already under way while the year’s celebration will be done from the last 7 days of March 2017. Let’s deal with our March three in-progress engaging themes.

Evaluation and Review of the Poverty Relief in the 2010s programme

What the Poverty Relief in the 2010s programme is about

CENFACS 2010s Poverty Reduction is a rolling 10 year work plan that began on 1 January 2010 and will end on 31 December 2019 and aiming at improving the quality of life for those people living in poverty.  It is indeed a 10-year advocacy programme of work and a strategically review, renewed commitment and engagement with stakeholders, and innovative and visionary approach to dealing with those old problems, new and emerging challenges brought by poverty in Africa.  For more about this programme, please read under the heading List of Contents.

After running this programme for almost seven years and two months, it is normal to reappraise its objectives and policies in terms of progress and outcomes as we are now nearly two years away before it ends.

The Twenty-tens Minus 2 (2010s – 2) Evaluation and Review

The 2010s-2 Evaluation is an examination about the worth, quality, significance, amount, degree and conditions of this programme since its inception in 2010.  The 2010s-2 Review is a record tracking and reappraisal of the same programme by considering the objectives set up in relation to the progress made and areas of improvement and completion.  Both the 2010s-2 Evaluation and Review will enable to get data for the effectiveness, efficiency, learning, development and trends of this programme and projects making it so far.  As part of the 2010s- 2 Evaluation and Review, we are conducting a feedback exercise or survey which we are inviting people to respond.

The Twenty-tens Minus 2 Survey

This brief survey, which is part of CENFACS’ Poverty Reduction in the 2010s programme, is designed to capture and communicate the impacts of the 2010s programme or at least to collect users/stakeholders’ views and experience regarding the following selected projects and activities that made this programme so far: Drugs and substance for poverty relief, Green conservation and sustainable forest, Environmental science and energy for relief, Food security and adapted to climate and human needs, Find my inspiration for poverty relief, Women and children FIRST development days, Volunteering for poverty relief, June month of environmental and sustainable creative initiatives, Run to reduce poverty in Africa, and Perspectives for post-2015 poverty relief.

We would very much appreciate if you could provide us feedback in the form of your own words and comments (via e-mail, tweet and text) regarding the above mentioned projects.  Feel free to give your feedback with your own words.

For feedback via e-mail (facs@cenfacs.org.uk), please keep it below 271 words.

For feedback via tweet (www.twitter.com/CENFACS), please keep it below 127 words.

For feedback via text (07950515191), please keep it below 27 words.

Remember, we can only help reduce poverty and do the changes we all want if you tell us what you think.

Thank you for considering our request of feedback and for your support.

We would appreciate if you could provide it by the end of March 2017.

CLIMATE PROTECTION AND STAKE FOR AFRICAN CHILDREN – Phase 2

The 2016 Climate Action Month at CENFACS was more about Protections as we were in the Year of Protections at CENFACS than anything else.  The focus was on Protections of all children.  Now that we are in the Year of Communications for Better Change in 2017, our emphasis on Climate Action has gradually shifted by embracing climate communications for a better change for children while still retaining the essence of our climate project, which is CENFACS’ process of advocating better climate deals for children.  In other words, it is about finding ways of best communicating our anti-poverty messages to best protect children against the adverse effects of climate change.

Why we are advocating climate deals for children.  There are many reasons that justify these deals.  Without listing them here, let’s simplify our answer by saying this.  According to two recent reports from the World Heath Organisation, “environmental risks cause more than 1 in 4 deaths in children aged under 5 years every year.  Children are especially vulnerable to pollution due to their developing organs and immune systems, and smaller bodies and airways.  The most common causes of death – diarrhea, malaria and pneumonia – are preventable with safe water and clean cooking fuels”  (Source: www.who.int/en/accessed on 06/03/2017).

If we want to reduce environmental risks and adverse effects of climate change on children, then there is a need to strongly advocate their case or simply do something about it.  CENFACS‘ way of advocating on this matter is to follow the global climate talks.  As CPSAC Phase 2 project revolves around FOLLOWING THE CLIMATE TALKS, our next activity will consist on following the next round of global talks related to the twenty-third session of the Conference of the Parties (COP23), the thirteen session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP13) and the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 1-2); talks to be convened in Bonn (Germany) from 6 to 17 November 2017.  The title of our 2017 follow-up activity is WHAT BONN SAY.

WHAT BONN SAY

Our eyes, ears and minds will be on what climate change experts and participants to the next talks will say at Bonn Climate Change Conference regarding the previous and 2016 issues in terms of progress made and outstanding climate issues.  What Bonn Say (WBS) is both a specific follow-up as part of CPSAC Phase 2 and an example of the application of the 2020-2030 Follow-up (XX23F) programme.  WBS will consider previous unsolved and pending issues and new ones from climate talks.  To kick off WBS, we are going to deal with the following:

• Better climate governance that works for and benefits children’s welfare and well-being
• The political economy of negotiations for child protection against climate-induced poverty
• Green and climate capacity building and education for child protection
• Climate-friendly and children-friendly technologies for poverty relief
• Climate change adaptation and mitigation programmes for children and future generations.

The above advocacy or campaigning points will help us to galvanize this month’s climate action and guide the months ahead our CPSAC activities until we see, hear and mind What Bonn will Say at the Climate Change Conference the next November.  We have provided some background information about CPSAC project under the heading List of Contents.  

While our Climate Action Month is on, our other March 2017 initiatives are and will be carried out as planned.  They include the Review of Poverty Relief in the 2010s Programme, Capacity Building and Development for Localisation of Sustainable Development Goals, Skills Development for Post-regional Economic Integration and our Celebration of the Year of Communications for Better Change. 

AFRICAN CHILDREN’S CLIMATE & SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Our upgrading work on the African Children and Sustainable Development Goals continues with Contextualization of these global goals.

As part of our continuing work on ACSDGs, there is a need to contextualise sustainable development in any work and whatever we do as work for children so that we place or better centre stage it in their context.  Contextualizing sustainable development goals (SDGs) is a process of assigning meaning of sustainability in whatever we do and try to achieve as outcomes for children.  This helps to widen the scope of the well-known three dimensional aspects of sustainability: economic, social and environmental.  In doing so, we can improve our contextualising theory and practice of SDGs for children.  If we want SDGs work for children and be children-friendly, we need to contextualise or place SDGs in children settings and programmes.  Likewise, if we want to measure their impacts on the welfare and well-being of the same children, we need to contextualise them.  As we are in CENFACS’  Year of Communications, contextualizing SDGs help to improve our communication approach by accommodating our poverty relief messages to other cultural settings and practices as well as ways of believing and living.  So, contextualization continues our upgrading of ACSDGs.

Family Balance Sheet – Accounts Poverty

Financial awareness is part of CENFACS’ financial updates which normally happen during Summer.  We announced that we may introduce new initiatives and projects depending on circumstances and events.  We have chosen this time of the year to introduce Family Balance Sheet as we wanted to compliment our two festive initiatives: Income Boost (IB) run in December and Consume to Reduce Poverty (CRP) in January.  Family Balance Sheet takes into account both IB and CRP by going in-depth about poverty induced by the lack of accounting skills or just the non application of these skills in a family’s everyday life to generate or save income and to reduce spending when and where it requires.  We will expand on this financial awareness of accounts poverty in our Summer 2017 supportive information when we reissue our Financial Updates Resource.  But, if anyone wants to find out more about this initiative, please contact CENFACS.     

SUPPORTING CENFACS IN 2017 AND THE YEARS AHEAD – Beyond Monetary Donation

There is say which tells us that Money is King.  Money can offer many choices and possibilities as to what we can do especially to help relieve and end poverty.  One can support us with monetary donation as whatever we do to help relieve poverty involves costs and expenses.  And if a donor or funder can help reduce some of our costs and expenses linked to our poverty relief work, we would be more happy than just appreciate the gift.  However, those who are not in a position to financially support us or our projects, there are other options available for support.  You can support CENFACS beyond monetary donation.  Under the heading List of Contents, we have given a few examples of non financial ways of supporting us and our projects/programmes.

MEASURING POVERTY WITH CENFACS USING RELIEF TRACKERS AND POVERTY METERS

Knowing to measure what you are trying to achieve and tracking down your efforts with poverty make sense.

Two ways to deal with poverty at CENFACS regarding work on reducing and or ending poverty: RELIEF TRACKER and POVERTY METER.

CENFACS’ Relief tracker helps poverty relievers to track down their efforts in helping to reduce and or end poverty.

CENFACS’ Poverty meter helps get the extent of poverty one is striving to reduce: extreme, moderate, abject poverty etc.  CENFACS Poverty meter adds value to the existing poverty meters on the market.

GIFT IDEAS through ART & DESIGN TO REDUCE POVERTY

Design and send a Reduce-and-End Poverty Card.

You can design, build and send to CENFACS a paper-based card (p-card) or electronic card (e-card) as gift aids or wishes for a world without or with less poverty, as part of CENFACS’ Art & Design to reduce & end poverty work. (REP) p-card and your REP e-card.  For details, contact CENFACS. (REP=Reduce and End Poverty). 

YEAR 2017 DEDICATION: COMMUNICATION FOR BETTER CHANGE

It will be 10 years in this year since CENFACS won Media Award in 2007.  In 2007, CENFACS was nominated for the Communications Awards jointly held by The City Bridge Trust and Media Trust – The City Bridge Trust and Media Trust Better Communications Awards 2007.   On 23 March 2007, CENFACS won the Most Improved Planning and Organisation of Communications Activities Award, alongside other media award-winning charities.   As a result of this, in the same award year we developed a programme called “Communication for Better Change”.  Ten years on, we would like to look back on our work on this programme after deciding that 2017 would be dedicated as a Year of Communications for Poverty Relief and Development at CENFACS.  This dedication is about finding out what we have done so far to communicate for better change, particularly if we have done enough to communicate anti-poverty messages to help relieve more people out of poverty.  At the end of 2016, we granted ourselves the status of a Social Media Community for Poverty Relief and Development – the CENFACS Community.  With this new self-granted status, how can we use social media platforms and internet content to even communicate more and better in helping to reduce further poverty in the New Year and beyond?

Details of this dedicated celebration will be released in due course.  However, to find out more about it contact CENFACS.

The 2020-2030 Follow-up (or XX23F programme)

This is a new programme, which was part of CENFACS’ Post-2015 Development work and plans finalised in November 2015, kicked off in March 2016 when we started our preparation for the Marrakech talks under our international child protection project known as Climate Protection and Stake for African Children. XX23F programme is a double monitoring and double impact assessment programme that is following up the impacts of the Climate Change Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals on the lives of those who are extremely poor. It is about following the talks on climate change and the effects of climate change on children on the one hand; and the implementation and applications of the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development on the lives of our users (people and organisations). As it is said it is a programme of monitoring and evaluation which started in March 2016 and will end in 2030; to match the life of the Agenda 2030.
The 2020-2030 Follow up is a CENFACS’ child protection and safeguarding advocacy work that brings together the aspects of the Istanbul Programme of Action (resulting from the 2011 Istanbul declaration of the United Nations – Least Developed Countries IV Conference) and the Sustainable Development Goals that are applicable to children’s well-being – children global pledges – (as set up in the United Nations Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development). It is indeed a linking and coordination and mobilisation programme of monitoring and evaluation that uses two target deadlines of 2020 and 2030 (respectively from the Istanbul Declaration and the Agenda 2030) to advance the causes of children of Least Developed African Countries in seeking to expand the poverty reduction outcomes together with them. This two-deadline programme is a child anti-poverty initiative that focuses on monitoring and evaluating the halving of the numbers of African children in poverty by 2020 and making sure that the Global Goals for Sustainable Development work for African children by 2030 and beyond. So, following the climate talks round related to the COP22 and the CM12 which begin this week in Marrakech is part of CENFACS 2020-2030 Follow up programme.

NEW DEVELOPMENT MATCHES KICKED OFF THIS YEAR!

CENFACS POVERTY RELIEF LEAGUE,
The World’s Development League without Relegation!

● Those who make progress on poverty reduction get rewarded by moving up on top their economic grouping/band.
● Those who fall behind poverty reduction get the support they need, not a punishment.

RALLY BEHIND YOUR TEAM-COUNTRY AND SUPPORT THEM TO WIN OVER POVERTY AND HARDSHIPS AND ESCAPE FROM POVERTY FOR EVER!

The 2017 championship of CENFACS Poverty Relief League (CPRL) started since the beginning of the year. You can play or support projects for poverty relief in Africa. If you have not yet registered and or started to play for poverty relief and development, you can still register to play and or support. Register NOW! Further explanations are given below under the heading List of Contents.

Relieving poverty is not an exclusive business or a matter of specific organisations or individuals who have that task, skills, capacity, mission or vision. Poverty can be relieved by everybody as long as they have the willingness, ability and wisdom to do so. However, to continue to relieve it requires more than the above qualities; perhaps it could demand passion, hard-working enterprise and above all tireless work. Having considered a number of experiences, works and evidence-based stories about people’s contribution to poverty relief, CENFACS set up in 2014 an all-year round scheme aiming at finding the Poverty Relief Manager (PRM) of the year. This is a Vote project – a yearly project of selecting, voting and rewarding in CENFACS’ way and terms people’s contribution to poverty relief in Africa. This project is run together with the project RUN TO REDUCE POVERTY IN AFRICA, which is also all-year round one. We have provided under the heading List of Contents, basic details for those who want to vote this year’s PRM.

We would like to thank you  all for your continued support through your visits, encouraging e-mails, loyalty messages, readership, comments and web traffic leads.  Please don’t get disappointed if you don’t get an individually customised reply from us.  We wish we could acknowledge each comment on its own merit and reply to each reader supporter personally!  We can ensure you that we value your readership, comments and constructive insights into this site and our work.  Please keep coming back to see the improvements and changes we all want.  We look forward to your visits again.  

The following headlines and summaries under the heading List of Contents inform you on  what is happening inside and around CENFACS in July 2017.  You will continuously receive more news, notifications, add-ons, upgrades and updates about our work including new programmes and projects, appeals, events, reports and volunteering opportunities as we progress throughout the  Year 2017.

<1> Track, Trip & Trending <2> FACS, ISSUE NO. 56, KEY HIGHLIGHTS <3> SUMMER 2017 FINANCIAL UPDATES <4> HAPPINESS PROJECTS <5> 2017 RUN <6> SDR <7> CPRL UPDATES <8> FACS, ISSUE NO. 56, ABSTRACT <9> COMMUNICATION FOR BETTER CHANGE PROGAMME  CELEBRATION <10> CPSAC BACKGROUND INFORMATION <11> AFRICAN CHILDREN’S CLIMATE & SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS <12> CENFACS POVERTY RELIEF LEAGUE

<1> TRACK, TRIP & TRENDING

Track and Trip activities are on-going activities although in August we put Summer emphasis on them.  We are only going to speak about Trending as every year the theme changes for this activity.  This August 2017, our Trending theme is Fake Reliefs. 

Fake economy (or industry or market) is growing everyday compared to the genuine economy.  Because the fake industry is not open and illegal, it is difficult to express it in terms of figures or percentage.  This growth is happening to the extent that the boundaries between fake and genuine has become a grey area in unregulated world.  Fake development has multi-forms and has managed to infiltrate many areas of life, businesses and society across the world.  The non-profit or third sector is not exempted from the fake product and service offers.  Fake news stories are just a small proportion or fraction in the fake economy.  For example, how many fake websites offer fundraising support to organisations, support they do not have.  So, this Summer 2017 as part of CENFACS Trending August month, we are going to follow the direction of FAKE RELIEFS.  In other words, we are trending in poverty reduction by look at what is fake in the world and process of poverty relief.  Our trending journey in finding about fake in the poverty relief market will include: what, where, when, why and how it is fake.  Fake exists everywhere including in the poverty relief market.  It could be about theories, outcomes, impacts, leaderships, financial support etc. 

# FAKE THEORIES OF POVERTY RELIEF (Trending during Week One) 

In a series of fake reliefs that we are going to follow during the four successive weeks of Trending, we are starting with Fake Theories of Poverty Relief.  So, this week’s CENFACS Trending activity is to follow on the direction of poverty relief through the identification and examination of fake theories or perverted theories of relief.  These are the paradigms or ideologies which are not genuine but developed and presented to look like real to appeal or seduce vulnerable minds and to justify some types of irrational behaviour which are unjustifiable.  These forms of thinking are like projects of brain watch that can be found in international arena, fields of extremism and terrorism, places of wars and conflicts, zones of human insecurity, networks of exploitation etc. In particular, these perverted ideologies claim to relieve the minds of vulnerable and naive people (especially the young ones) from poverty through the use of violence and disorder sometimes to cause disaster while relying on online materials and means of communications.  To reduce and end poverty, there is no need to theorize on violence or disorder or even disaster.  There are genuine theories of poverty reduction that are on the market and some of them proved to be efficient and effective in the historical development of some parts of the world.  The newly industrializing countries have managed to sensibly reduce poverty and develop an industrial base by using genuine theories of poverty reduction and development without using perverted ideologies of violence.  Poverty can be reduced by using real theories of development to improve income, consumption, education, housing, health, sanitation, environmentally sustainable life in brief the spectrum of aspects of human rights and development of the poor without faking theories. 

# FAKE LEADERS OF POVERTY RELIEF (Trending during Week Two)

This week two (starting 09 August 2017) of Fake economy is devoted to FAKE LEADERS or Leadership Styles.  It is the week of the search for the relationship between leaders and people they claim to help lifting out of poverty.  We are trying to follow and to track which leadership style leads to genuine reliefs and which one to fake reliefs; which style responds to the demand of poor people’s reliefs and which style mostly benefits the leaders; which leaders serve its people compared to those leaders who simply exploit people.  For example, we are looking at those leaders who focus on their leadership roles in getting the real relief outcomes for poor people such as improved real incomes, better healthcare and housing, reduced environmental sustainability, reduced inequalities, achieved justice to the poor etc.  In the contrary, there are leadership styles which are preoccupied by personal gain and power.  These kinds of leaderships may result in fake reliefs; in producing some techniques to manipulate poor people such as brain watching people, using mass media to promote themselves, in some cases reducing the price of alcohol while the price of food is higher, putting restriction on education, over control on people’s freedoms etc.  Reduced people’s ability to properly think, less freedoms of speech, restricted education, control of the army over people’s all aspects of life etc  are all part of fake reliefs.  All these are the signs and symbols of fake reliefs.   So, real relief is about enhancing and sustaining freedoms and capacities of the poor people.

# FAKE IN ROLE MODELLING (Trending during Week Three)

DO POOR CHILDREN, POOR YOUNG PEOPLE AND POOR FAMILIES NEED ROLE-MODELS?

In social theorisation, there is a say that children, young people and families need a role model or social figures to imitate.  This can also be said about poor children, poor young people and poor families.  But this kind of role modelling needs to be genuine, that is who represents or embodies the expectancy values they would like to aspire to.  In the context of poverty reduction and sustainable development, they have to incarnate poverty-relieving and sustainable development values.     

In terms of motivational theories of role modelling, genuine role models can be a source of inspiration and power for Role Aspirants.  Role Aspirants can find their own inspiration for poverty relief and sustainable development from genuine Role Models.  Fake Role Models can result in the values and choices that Role Aspirants copy from them clash with those existing in the society they live.  Clash may or may not a big deal as long as it provides a further scope for development.  In this exercise of Role Modelling, the life experience and history can be important in terms of comparison, similarity and dissimilarity.  It is about checking whether their trajectory is reproducible and can be generalised or it represents just an exception in the general theory of motivational theory of role modelling.  For example, do poor children, poor young people and poor families need a celebrity, a famous person, a successful businessman or woman, a community leader or someone from their inner circle to be their role models?  As it is said in the above mentioned definition “Role-models need not be known personally to the individual” (1); but from the perspective of the follow up of the direction of poverty reduction they have to be real.  Briefly, poor children, poor young people and poor families may or may not need positive or genuine role models, but not negative or fake ones should they wish to have them and genuinely move from poverty and hardships. 

---

(1) Oxford Dictionary of Sociology, edited by John Scott and Gordon Marshall, Oxford University Press 2009

# FAKE OUTCOMES (Trending during Week Four)

We are going to use three specific examples to explain Fake Outcomes: a/ digital training skills c/ financial awareness campaign c/ climate workshop.

• Digital training skills for digitally poor people

As a result of digital training skills, Real Outcomes for digitally poor people are they become digitalised and able to independently run their own digital technologies.   They get the digital freedom to operate in their life.  On the contrary. Fake Outcomes could be users buying digital equipment (e.g. tablets) without using them while still not being able to use them or someone else has to run them on their behalf.  Nothing has changed from the empowerment perspective.  They are still digitally poor.

• Financial awareness campaign for financially unaware families

Further to financial awareness campaign, project beneficiaries become able to effectively produce balance sheet, and revenue and expenditure account for their families as well as monitor their financial assets and liabilities.  This financial capability can help them reduce accounts poverty.  This is a real outcome or change for them.  Conversely, Fake outcomes could be they are able to earn and spend their money but they do not have the capacity to check their financial records nor to read their financial statements to annually know areas of weaknesses in their family budgets so that they can alleviate the accounts poverty they are facing.  This is a fake outcome as they are deprived from the financial ability to read and understand their finances let alone the strategies to get out financial poverty. 

• Climate workshop for families on ways of improving indoor air quality

Real outcomes in this type of workshop would be participants take all the necessary steps and measures to improve the quality of air in their property.  As a result, they manage to reduce their indoor air pollution let say between 10 to 15% and reduce threats to respiratory diseases.  Change has materialised by clean air to breathe and healthy indoor environment to live.  Fake outcomes could be the family participants have notices, labels and instructions on the walls of their kitchen on how to reduce indoor air pollution; but they are not reading them neither applying them in their real lives.  In this case there is no change in their life as they are still affected by poverty induced by a lack of change in the conditions and quality of air, which is polluted, inside their home.  In these circumstances, the difference between real and fake outcomes is based on the type of actions taken.

The above three examples show that real outcomes are people-centred development, tangible, verifiable and measurable as well as they need to be smart.  By contrast, fake outcomes can be misleading and confuse regarding better changes one can expect from a particular development intervention.

<2> FACS, ISSUE NO. 56, KEY HIGHLIHTS ▼

█ NOT-FOR-PROFIT ACTION ON PROFIT-MAKING EXTRACTIVE ACTIVITIES IN AFRICA (page 2 of the 56^th issue of FACS)

There is nothing wrong if a company would like to extract natural resources in order to add value to them and create wealth within the legal norms and rules.  As long as this is done within the context of respect for environmental and human rights of local people and communities, this is acceptable.  What is wrong and at stake here is a number of problems have been identified which are linked to their activities, notably at the levels of their power, profit generated, income redistribution, accountability and other impacts.  The first of these issues is when extractive companies become or are very powerful to the extent that they undermine the will of national authorities and local people.  Likewise, when profit or income made from those extractive activities (related to let say gas, oil and minerals) is not equitably redistributed.   Also, when the quantity of resources extracted is not properly accounted for.  More than that when there are adverse impacts on people, environment and the wider society.  In these circumstances, action needs to be taken to challenge this predatory and selfish behaviour.  Because we are talking about voluntaryism, the voluntary action of CENFACS’ African Sister Organisations can help to curtail the negative and adverse effects resulting from the environmentally-unfriendly activity of this kind of extraction.  This voluntary action tends not only to help correct the damage caused but also to prevent a repeat of similar bad effects in the future and somewhere else. 

█ ADVERSE IMPACTS OF EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRIES ON THE PEOPLE,  ENVIRONMENT AND WIDER SOCIETY (page 3 of the 56^th issue of FACS)

There are many types of harmful impacts that extractive industries in Africa can bring.  For the sake of these issue and article, we would limit ourselves to three of them as follows: impacts on people, the environment and the wider society.

Adverse impact on the people

It is about their negative effects and outcomes on local people in terms of education, employment, health, housing, social relations etc

Adverse impact on the environment

This includes their damaging externalities such as pollution (of air, land, water, flora and fauna), deforestation, threats to the wildlife etc

Adverse impact on the wider society

This concerns conflicts over natural resources, land, water, food, rights and other resources.  Their vested business interests can cause, if not major, serious harms to the harmony of entire society where they operate in, particularly where the State is weak. 

█ ACTION ON MINING PROJECTS TO PROTECT LAND AND WATER RIGHTS (page 4 of the 56^th issue of FACS)

Some of the business interests of mining activities tend to undermine the land and water rights of local people and communities.  There is a number of stories whereby people were made landless or forced to move from their own land by giving them a small compensation in exchange for their land rights.  Since 2002, water was recognized as a basic human right (by the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights) and any extractive interest should respect this right.  Likewise, mining projects should value people’s right to land without taking away from them without their consent.   So, action on mining projects is required when these land and water rights are derided.

█ ACTION ON MINING PROJECTS TO MEET THE WISHES OF LOCAL PEOPLE (page 4 of the 56^th issue of FACS)

Meeting the wishes, needs and aspirations of local people should be at the heart of any development projects.  Generally speaking, the aim of extractive industries is to maximize their profit or income as they tend to follow a capitalistic business model.  Social goals and benefits are second if not last.  Voluntary Action in this context is required to establish a fair balance between the desire for profit and the need to meet social local needs.  This approach to social benefits should start from the onset, that is before and during mining projects planning.  The action requires that mining projects planners and designers should integrate or explain how they will meet the needs and wishes of local people before any planning permission is granted.  This is about doing justice to local people.

█ SOUTENIR LES HABITANTS DE ZONES ENVIRONNANTES DES ACTIVITES MINIERES EN AFRIQUE (page 5 & 6 of the bilingual newsletter FACS)

Les activités des sociétés d’extraction minière prennent partie dans des régions où parfois des autorités locales sont laissées pour contre.  C’est notamment le cas des exemples d’activités des régions d’exploitation des matières premières telles que le diamant, le coltan, l’or etc. en République Démocratique du Congo.  Les habitants pauvres de ces régions où sont localisés les gisements miniers prennent des risques incalculables et insurmontables.  Plusieurs voies se sont élevées pour demander la protection de ces habitants contre les intérêts des operateurs économiques à la recherche des matières et pierres précieuses.  Ainsi, soutenir les habitants de ces zones, en particulier des enfants, à travers des programmes éducatifs, de la réinsertion scolaire et de l’aide contre la pauvreté généralisée qui poussent ces jeunes à la déperdition scolaire de devenir de creuseurs de matières précieuses ou sources d’approvisionnement des compagnies extractives; est un impératif pour réduire la pauvreté en milieux ruraux. 

█ INTEGRATING SUSTAINABLE MINING INTO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (page 7 of the 56^th issue of FACS)

One of the criticisms of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is that they do not integrate the mining sector (that is the sector extracting minerals) as a sustainable development goal whereas mining is an important, if not, a driver of sustainable development.  The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 9 is about Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure.  There is no mention about sustainable mining neither in this Goal 9 nor in its related targets.  Yet, mining has always been subject of discussion when it comes to industrialisation process.  Mining sector can bring revenues just as it can create or exacerbate poverty and inequality.  If one wishes to have a “development that meets the needs of the present without comprising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (as explained in The Brundtland Report in 1987 by the World Commission on Environment and Development), mining has to be undertaken in a sustainable and environmentally-friendly way.  This is not always the case, especially when it comes to some extractive industries.  Therefore, advocating or taking voluntary action to campaign for the integration of sustainable mining into the SDGs project is the right course of action.  Perhaps, when the time of SDGs review will come, the international development community will rethink the SDGs in order to explore steps to add sustainable mining to SDGs project.

█ ACTION ON SOVEREIGNTY OVER NATURAL RESOURCES (page 8 of the 56^th issue of FACS)   

Who has the power or authority over natural resources in Africa.  Is it the State or the extractive industries or local people?  Generally, because of poor or lack of good governance together with democratic deficit; those who rule in some of the African countries give themselves the right to contract any deal with extractive industries without the consent of local people or their elected representatives.  In some cases, they act under international business pressure.  In some African countries, Parliament is non existent or not functioning as a normal democratic institution.  The ordinary people have been left to believe they have no power or the right to oversee the deals over natural resources between their State and extractive industries (whether national or multinational).  So, Voluntary Action on sovereignty over natural resources is needed to make accountable those who deal with negotiations over mining contracts and the results of the sale of natural resources.  Natural resources are part of national wealth and cannot be considered as a private property.  For example, Voluntary Action to demand to the African States to give a share and voting rights to poor people in the ownership and management of national extractive industries is a building block not only to end poverty but also to address democratic deficit. 

To further read and receive a copy of Summer 2017 issue (56^th) of FACS and or previous issues of FACS – or to subscribe to our mailing list, please provide your name, e-mail address and interest/focus by completing our contact form on the home page of this site. 

<3> Summer 2017 Financial  Information Updates – In Focus: Accounts Poverty ▼

Accounts Poverty

Poverty has various aspects.  In these Summer 2017 Financial Information Updates,  we are going to focus on the type of poverty linked to the lack of or poor handling of family financial accounts.  Family like any institution needs to do budgeting, financial planning and deal with financial accounts which could be summarised into a family balance sheet at the end of certain period.  Every day families, poor ones alike, earn and receive incomes which they spend.  The reality has shown that only a few of poor families run and check their accounts properly in order to produce a family balance sheet outlining and summarising family financial assets on one hand and liabilities on the other.  It is important for poor families to do this financial life-balancing exercise.  This is because if one wants to reduce poverty, then they need to do continuing exercise of knowing their weaknesses and strengths in a sort of SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis.  Then, they can know which weak areas of family accounts or budgets that need to be turned into strengths.  For example, if a family pays mortgage or rent, food, clothing, insurance etc while at the same time they earn or receive income they may want to know what will be their financial position (balance sheet) in terms of assets and liabilities at the end of certain period.  The same if they run an expenditure and income account, they may want to know if they run a deficit or surplus on this account or simply if they have any savings or money left after spending in a given month for example.  Although, generally speaking poor families are often short of incomes or with no incomes at all while they are obliged like anybody to meet their basic life-sustaining needs; this regular financial exercise can provide an understanding of some the problems they are experiencing if not help them to resolve them.  So, the lack of accounting skills or the lack of use of these skills in family setting can make poverty to take time to be resolved or even difficult for a poor family to just survive.  Thriving poor families are those who take time to do this sort of accounting and financial exercises which does not require high level of expertise.  Learning to count your income and expenses is much easier than learning to use a mobile phone or a tablet. 

What the 2017 Issue of Summer Financial Information Updates Contains

The resource contains three levels of information as follows: 1) financial economic awareness 2) financial information from CENFACS and 3) financial information help.

1) Financial economic awareness consists of ways of bridging financial information gap, key financial news and updates from financial information making and disseminating bodies or institutions, how a change in the financial and economic situation can affect the Multi-dimensionally Poor Children Young People and Families (MPCYPFs), ways out from financial hardship and accounts poverty, and financial accounts in the post-regional economic integration era.

2) Financial information from CENFACS includes financial awareness and protection, customised information on accounts poverty, confidence building in financial matters, individual financial impact assessment, financial signposting, regular updates, money management and saving tips and hints, basic advice on financial recovery leads and plans.

3) Financial information help is made up with the resources and websites to consider to build financial and accounting capacity, skills and knowledge.

For any query about the Financial Information Updates or in-deep information or a copy of the Updates, please contact CENFACS.

<4>HAPPINESS PROJECTS > 6 Projects: 3 Beneficiaries ▼

6 Projects to bring Happiness to 1/ Children 2/ Young People 3/ Families 

Summer is a holiday season of the year during which most of the schools are closed and families with children and young people in much needed help are forced to stay with them and or use the time of the year to take holiday.  The usual routine of educational/academic establishments with their recreational activities is scaled down.  Yet, these families are in need of seasonal activities and programmes for improving their well-being.  There are ways of ensuring that summer stays an interesting and enjoyable period for Multi-dimensionally Poor Children, Young People and Families.  There are things that can be done to make summertime a season of Happiness, Peace, Vulnerability-free, Protection and Sustainability.  The following CENFACS summer 2017 initiatives can help in achieving some joyful and helpful summer plans, goals and outcomes. 

CENFACS HAPPINESS PROJECTS include: 1) Happy Summer Break 2) Holiday with Relief 3) Removing Vulnerability Peacefully 4) Sustainable Summer 5)  VISIBLENESS and ONUS (Concept projects) 6) Networking for Protection & Safeguarding.  This is a combination of skills, knowledge, resources, tools, boosters and tasters for poverty relief

To the above Happiness Projects, we have spread our notion of Protection  all over our Summer 2017 Programme.  The spreading of Protection all across is what makes Summer 2017 Special.   It is about raising awareness and level of protection while taking action to enhance it so that Summer stay a season of Happiness not of Misery for unserved and under-served children, young people and families. 

 

<5> CENFACS’ 2017 RUN TO REDUCE POVERTY IN AFRICA (2017 RRPA) ▼

# WAYS OF SUPPORTING CENFACS’ 2017 RUN TO REDUCE POVERTY IN AFRICA (2017RRPA)

There are many ways of supporting CENFACS’ 2017 RRPA.  Amongst them, we would like to request and consider the following.

• Research your African Global Games Runners, Agents of Poverty Relief (AGGRAPR) and then report (by naming them) to CENFACS
• Organise a run or race event on behalf of CENFACS
• Include CENFACS’ 2017 RRPA into your event days
• Generally Support CENFACS’ 2017 RRPA in your own way, limits and within the laws

# BASIC GUIDELINES/INFORMATION ABOUT WAYS OF SUPPORTING 2017RRPA

For Research and Report about your African Global Games Runner

You need to report to CENFACS the following as outcomes of your research and support: your Agent’s name, running or race events, summary of key achievements of the Agents, Agent’s contributions to poverty relief and reasons for choosing your Agents.

For the Organisation of Run or Race Events

You need to provide details of your event three weeks prior to the starting day; details which will include: theme or title of your event, date and time, location (venue), participants and sponsors, programmes and proceeds raised (if fundraising activity is involved) of the event, health and safety policy, plans for monitoring and evaluation of your events.

For the inclusion into other any Day Events or Celebrations

You need to provide details of your day event three weeks prior to the starting day; details which will include: objectives of the event, event policy, health and safety policy, purpose and profile of the event, audience, dates, duration, activities, publicity, budget, sponsorship, location, staffing, materials and plans for monitoring and evaluation of your events.

For any change and or unpredicted circumstances about the organisation and administration of your Events,

You need to notify or alert us and or inform us of any changes as soon as possible prior to the starting day and the reason for changes and cost of changes.

For Miscellaneous or General support

You will need to inform CENFACS about the type of your support so that we are aware and be part of it.  Where and when our intervention is required or needed, we are quite happy to intervene provided that we receive an earlier notification. 

# STRAIGHTWAY SUPPORTING TO CENFACS

 Some may prefer to directly support CENFACS so that together we could work to reduce and end poverty in Africa.  There are no limits on the amount of support.  Simply support.

# SUPPORTER’S CONTACT DETAILS

Whichever way or manner you decide to support CENFACS’ 2017 RRPA, you must contact and inform CENFACS so that together we can ensure the smooth process or running of your selected or chosen method of supporting us.  Also, when contacting us we expect you to provide us with your contact details: your name, address, post code, phone and e-mail.

<6> STEP UP AND DRIVE RELIEF FORWARD (SDR)▼

The reason for SDR

A Step up from Making a Case for WAS to Winning Supporters’ Minds and Hearts

While our prime reason d’être as an organisation is to develop sustainable initiatives by working in alliance with local people; we should also recognise that we cannot stand by to let the international system in which we all operate to seem to operate against those it claims to help and protect – the poor and vulnerable.  We may try to help reduce poverty here and there; however if the international system is biased against the smallest, weakest and poor; our praiseworthy efforts could fall short of the outcomes expected and of the aspirations of the needy people.   To avoid that our collective efforts just disappear like smokes, there is a need to gradually develop the international system if there is one.  If there is not one, then this is an historical opportunity to work out our minds and hearts to start building such system so that a playing field level can be established for everybody, especially for the poor.  SDR is about making a step up from making the case for WAS to winning the minds and hearts of prospective supporters.  Open one’s mind and heart for this kind global mechanics does not have to be only the work of big and multi-national voluntary organisations.  Small and medium-sized organisations alike including individuals of all walks of life need to engage in this transformative process of better change for the common goods.  So, this Summer 2017 slogan for WAS is:  STEP UP AND DRIVE RELIEF FORWARD.

The aim of SDR

The aim of SDR is to support, defend and make the international development community understand the need of an internationally agreed system for poverty reduction that is fair for all, especially but not exclusively for people and communities with severe and or critical level of poverty.  After making the development case for WAS, SDR is an engaging content and process to winning the minds and hearts of all development supporters for the formation of an internationally agreed system to reduce and end poverty.  It is the continuation of the CENFACS’ Argument following the Post-2015 Global Development Agenda and discussions that led to the setting up of the United Nations 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals.  The CENFACS’ Argument is the international development community should be a bit more ambitious by going beyond and establish an internationally agreed system to reduce and end poverty.  

What do we expect from prospective WAS supporters

If one shares the idea of WAS, then what they can do to step up and drive relief forward is to try to convince as many minds and hearts as possible about the WAS proposals.  They can do it locally, nationally and globally.  They can use digital and non digital means to do it.  The more people we have that support the idea of WAS, the more we can start measuring the outcomes and impact of this idea.  Remember, SDR is not only a joining exercise and an end itself; it is rather a continuing questioning process than a yes or no campaign.  Those who are not convinced have the right to question the WAS project.  Answers have to be provided to them should we wish them to feel confident and support this development campaign.                

The above are the defining and engaging lines of our call to action for WAS.

To advocate or campaign or even join WAS, please contact CENFACS NOW!

<7> CENFACS POVERTY RELIEF LEAGUE – SUPPORTING INFORMATION ▼

⇒ CPRL Transfer News

Not all the country teams making CENFACS’ CPRL remain in the same position at the start the CPRL every year.  As some countries have made progress and others have set back on the road to reduce and end poverty, there would be a move up and down between them within the league.  Countries leave the CPRL because they move up the table while others come in as they move down.  It is better to check the latest reports on country classifications as far as the reduction of poverty is concerned. 

⇒ CPRL Fixtures, Scores, Results and Tables

It is advisable to let us know which games or matches are on when you plan and organise you own fixtures.  When telling us, make sure you also give the dates and country teams you are playing each country against the other. Likewise, let us know the scores, results and progress on the tables. 

⇒ Play for Eco

Play for Ecology is about factorising ecology in the play, that is playing to help your team to win over poverty by considering that your team is also playing by respecting environmentally- and climate-friendly norms and conditions, that a team’s way of winning is carbon free or with less carbon print.  So, when organising your fixtures and reporting your scores and results, make sure you include this ecological feature or factor.

⇒ Play at Different Speeds

CPRL is the only league in the world where there is no relegation or punishment.  Those who are able to advance quickly in the CPRL are allowed to do so.  Those who are no able can play at their own paces and speeds.

<8> FACS, Issue no. 56, Summer 2017, Abstract ▼ 

AFRICAN ORGANISATIONS AND EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRIES: How Voluntary Action Does Handle Adversity from Mining Extraction in Africa

There are many stories about the impacts of extractive industries – especially those of the mining sector – on local people, environment and the wider local life.  Two of the contrasting accounts about their activities are of benefits against adversity (Externalities).  The first part of their stories reflects on their beneficial effects of generating revenues through the sales of natural resources or commodities such as gas, oil and minerals.  A share or proportion of these revenues given to the African State within which they operate can be and has been used to reduce poverty.  The other side of the tales is their adverse impacts on local people, environment and organisations.  In this perspective, their activities are not free of problems.  There are documented reports about their destruction of natural habitat for animals and plants, forced displacement of local people, the stirring up conflicts and divisions over land, water, food other resources etc.    There is a number of local voluntary organisations that notice these side-effects of mining extractive companies and these organisations are trying to work with local people to reduce the scale of this problem, mostly poverty induced by the activities of these companies.  Amongst these organisations are CENFACS’ Africa-based Sister Organisations (ASOs) which are trying to help local people and communities to mitigate or nullify the adverse effects stemming from extractive mining industries where they are based and operate.  The work of these African organisations on reducing these impacts will be the main theme of the 56^th issue of CENFACS’ bilingual newsletter the FACS.  Therefore, the issue will focus on the work of Africa-based Sister Organisations on this particular area, on how they are trying to reduce the negative impacts caused by extractive mining industries on local people, environment and livelihoods.  It is well known and examples abound in the history that show, that extractive mining industries do not only generate wealth, they also create or increase poverty just as they pollute the environment.  Some of these industries do clean their mess and reinvest in the locals through poverty relief and development projects and programmes.  Others do little or hold poor record or even just do nothing.  In this 56^th issue of FACS, we are going to look at how ASOs are dealing with these issues, particularly how ASOs are trying to help poor local people and communities to get out of these problems.

To place an order for a free copy of the 56th issue of FACS, please contact CENFACS.

<9> COMMUNICATION FOR BETTER CHANGE PROGRAMME (CBCP) ▼

The basics of CBCP

This programme was originally set up in 2007 by CENFACS to respond to the need of developing and maintaining effective communication between CENFACS, her Africa-based Sister Organisations and UK stakeholders so that we can together share skills, best practice and experience in the process of delivering better change and ensuring a better quality of life for all.  Through this programme a better exchange and flow of information on poverty and development matters was meant to be established.  The programme also addresses the problem of trans-nationality of development services; that is it integrates a transnational dimension in the fight against poverty by using a two-way international development strategy.  In particular, as members of the global community how can we improve lives in both directions (of the African Diaspora in the UK and Africans in Africa)?  Better communications and skills sharing are thus crucial in the process of expanding human freedoms and capabilities, particularly but not exclusively for Africans.

The Aim of CBCP

The Communication for Better Change programme aims to improve poverty reduction outcomes, organisations and people’s lives who are in need both in the UK and Africa through a bi-directional exchange/communication of knowledge, skills and information sharing which will help deliver the change that all sides want.

CBCP Celebration days and themes

To celebrate our two-way process of reaching mutual understanding and human connection about anti-poverty messages, we have organised ourselves as follows.

23 & 24 March 2017 (Legacy days): Process of exchanging and flowing information on poverty reduction, 10-year review – lessons, experiences, learning and development (What do we need to remember CBCP for?)

25 & 27 March 2017 (Trans-nationality days): Transnational dimensions of communication and development services, projects and operations in the fight against poverty

28 & 29 March 2017 (Impact analysis days): Capturing and communicating the   impacts of CENFACS’ CBCP – the effectiveness and efficiency of communication between CENFACS and development agencies (Africa-based Sister Organisations, Community and UK Non Governmental and African Diaspora Organisations) over the last 10 years.

30 & 31 March 2017 (Prospects/outlook days): Better Change through innovation of communication and digital skills and services to meet the basic capabilities needed by the poor to participate in the information society – the future of CBCP as a response to information and communication poverty.

Briefly, all the celebratory themes are designed to recognise CENFACS’ process of creating and sharing communication skills, good practices and experiences in the last 10 years, as well as to project CBCP in the future.

Thank you

We would like to remember our readers/supporters that the CBCP was set up by CENFACS after CENFACS won the Media Award on 23 March 2007 of the Most Improved Planning and Organisation of Communications Activities Award jointly held by the City Bridge Trust and Media Trust.   As a result, we would like to take this opportunity to re-thank the two organisations (The City Bridge Trust and Media Trust).  We would like also to thank the Sun Newspapers for editing about CENFACS‘ award and remarkable achievements.

We finally want to pay gratitude to all our supporters behind the scene (people and organisations who help in a variety of ways without being seen) for their unwavering and tireless support to our communication work on poverty relief and development over the last 10 years.  Our sincere gratitude to all of you!

 <10> CPSAC BACKGROUND INFORMATION▼

Climate Protection and Stake for African Children (CPSAC) is our rebranded international child protection project helping to further up CENFACS’ process of advocating better climate deals for children.  CPSAC is the Phase 2 of CENFACS’ Climate Talks Follow-up project, the FACGMDGCS (First African Children Generation of the Millennium Development Goals) being Phase 1. The FACGMDGs has been a child protection advocacy model based on a sample of children who have been affected by the adverse impacts of climate change. 

In this phase 2, we have moved from sampling to generalisation by considering all children, and African children particularly but not exclusively, who may be affected by the adverse effects of climate change.  We have moved from the theory and practice of sampling to those of generalisation of all children.  CPSAC has been delivered through a number of activities and actions.  This month and year, it is delivered via Action Against The Adverse Impacts of Climate Change, action that is also part of CENFACS’ March 2017 Climate Action in the Year 2017 of Communications for Better Change.

In our March 2016 Climate Action, we kicked off this Phase 2 by dealing with two areas of advocacy: examination of the International Climate Change Agreement (the Paris Agreement) and setting up of a new follow-up strategy for the next international climate change talks.  As a result, we studied on the International Climate Change Agreement by ● Reporting back and reflecting on the Paris Outcome ● Unpacking the Paris Agreement and studying its implications for child poverty reduction ● Assessing the extent to which the Paris Agreement could respond to our key demand of Protecting Children (here the African children but not exclusively) Against the Adverse Impacts of Climate Change.  Our 2016 Climate Action month also devoted to the setting up of a new follow up strategy for the climate talks round related to the Twenty-second session of the Conference of the Parties (COP22) to the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the twelfth session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the 1997 Kyoto Protocol (CM12), and the first session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the 2016 Paris Agreement (CMA 1) convened in Marrakech (Morocco) in November 2016.  This follow-up kicked off our new programme – the 2020-2030 Follow-up (or XX23F), which is a double monitoring and double impact assessment programmes of following up the impacts of the International Climate Change Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals on the lives of those who are extremely poor. As part of new follow up, the following issues were highlighted and discussed: ● Insurance claims and programmes for the vulnerable children victims of climate change ● Loss and damage caused by the adverse effects of climate change ● Integrating mitigation and adaption into poverty reduction strategies, programmes, projects and processes ● Climate/green finance and aid for climate change-stricken children ● Ways of managing disaster risk for children in unstable development contexts ● Climate-change driven migrant children.  Furthermore, as part of our 2016 CLIMATE MONTH OF ACTION, we continued to look at the issue of adaptation needs assessment and knowledge hub of the CENFACS’ Community or Community Value Chains.  Further information about CPSAC Phase 2 can be obtained from CENFACS.

<11> The ACCSDGs▼

The African Children’s Climate and Sustainable Development Goals (ACCSDGs) or 3G project is the enhancement of our 2G project which now includes a further element – climate change.  Although in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) there are goals and targets reflecting on climate change, in this 3G project we would like to make climate-friendly goals to clearly resonate.  In the 3G project, we are still advocating that the same agenda and goals work for African children while making sure that the same children gain from the global process shaping goals on climate change including climate finance.  This integration of the climate dimension into our advocacy process on global goals should not be confused with the Phase 2 of CENFACS’ Climate Talks Follow-up project which is the Climate Protection and Stake for African Children (CPSAC).  ACCSDGs focus on global goals generally whether sustainable, climate or any other development goals and the extent to which they do or do not work for children, African children particularly but not exclusively.  On the contrary, CPSAC is a CENFACS process of advocating better climate deals for children in doing so it is solely centred on children’s stake in any climate change strategy/policy/deal and on the adverse impacts of climate change on children.  CPSAC is limited and specific in its scope as it only deals with climate change matters and their relationships with children.     

In the last act of 2G project, we advocated Making SDGs Children-friendly.  3G project goes further as it is not only Making SDGs to become children ones, but it is also about getting strong outcomes and impact from these goals including climate goals.  In other words, having goals working for people, here children, is one thing.  But, knowing the direction of their impact is another.  In the first act of 3G project, we will try to deal with two questions as follows. 1/ Are (or will) CSDGs working (work) for children?  2/ Are (will) CSDGs positively impacting (or impact) on children’s welfare and well-being?  If the answers to these questions are no or little, then we need to clearly advocate for strong impact from CSDGs for children in multi-dimensional aspects of their life: education, protection, housing, health, environment, economic well-being, social etc.  The main purpose of this first act is reduce and nullify adverse impacts of global goals on children while maximising benefits and good impacts deriving from the application of these goals for the sake of children’s welfare and well-being.  So, 3G project is the impact analysis level in CENFACS’ process of advocating that global goals work for children and not way around.  It is indeed the testing of the gains that global goals claim to achieve and of their impact on the welfare and well-being of children.  Having those tests and impacts done, we can then communicate them for further poverty relief and development for children as we are in the Year of Communications for Better Change.

Briefly, are global goals (here CSDGs) working for children?  Are they positively impacting (strongly, weakly and averagely) on children?  The answers to these two questions provide the basis to formulate our advocacy strategy in the context of 3G project, advocacy which is to simply demand a better impact from CSDGs for children.  For further details and or to support 3G project, please contact CENFACS.  

<12> CENFACS POVERTY RELIEF LEAGUE (CPRL) ▼

Set up in February 2014 by CENFACS, CPRL is a game project for relief made up of 14 Lowest and Poorest Human Development Countries of Africa (countries selected from the United Nations Development Programme’s classification) for which progress and setbacks have been monitored on a yearly basis inside CENFACS as far as poverty reduction is concerned. The 2014 game project is the continuation in a new form of our 2004/5 cultural and diversity project known as the Premiership Cultural Event (PCE) – the celebration of the cultural heritage of the participation of African football players to the English Barclays Premier League since its beginning. The CPRL is a recuperation project of PCE under a renewed formula. The CPRL project, which draws its origin from PCE, is not only about performance monitoring; it is more than just a cultural celebration as participants to the game project can also play by guesstimating CPRL countries’ efforts towards poverty relief and possibly the end of poverty. Through this new formula, we can also support poverty relief projects and initiatives in CPRL countries to help them come out poverty. These countries are as follows:
Ethiopia, Liberia, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, Burundi, Guinea, Central African Republic, Eritrea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Chad. Mozambique, Democratic Republic of Congo and Niger.
These 14 countries also make the list of the least developed countries (LDCs) from the classification provided by the United Nations. Our list of 14 countries of Lowest HDI and of LDCs will be reviewed every year in the light of countries performance and recommendations of CENFACS’ Committee on Development Policy.
The play or play project is a series of yearly analytical matches in the form of analytical comparison of results achieved in terms of poverty reduction (by a certain percentage/amount or number of people) between two countries of comparison based on poverty reduction criteria, each country matching against each other. In total, they will be 14 countries or teams and playing against each other (through participants to the game) from the beginning to the end of the year. The one which best reduces poverty and top up the group could move up to the ladder in the block of developing economies which they also belong to.
The game or play is done by guesstimating using all the techniques and approaches for guesstimating to predict which countries are better placed to come out the UNDP’s Lowest Human Development group rankings by the end of year (e.g. 2016) and moves to the next block. Apart from the game/play aspects of the project, the project is also a support project. Participants can support projects via CENFACS in countries where they objectively (with robust facts, figures and other evidence) think there is much chance and scope /future in terms of impact on poverty relief.
Play and or support
Whether you choose to play for poverty relief or to support projects for poverty relief, you need to contact CENFACS and register as participants

Thank you for reading this post.

We look forward to receiving your regular visits to CENFACS website and continuing support.

With many thanks!