Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!
18 September 2024
Post No. 370
The Week’s Contents
• Autumn 2024 Fresh Start: With a Focus on Finding Ways of Ending the Cost-of living Crisis
• Starting XI Campaign 2024
• Financial Plan Updates for Households – In Focus from Wednesday 18/09/2024: Estate Planning
… And much more!
Key Messages
• Autumn 2024 Fresh Start: With a Focus on Finding Ways of Ending the Cost-of-living Crisis
• • What Is Autumn about for CENFACS and Its Community?
It is about Freshness. Autumn is the time of natural recycling process of plants and trees. Leaves change colour and fall. Without reinventing the wheels, we can say that Autumn of Freshness at CENFACS is the season after the long sunny weather and break of Summer; season during which our body and mind naturally recycle and engage in renewed energy, strength and thoughts.
Autumn of Freshness is the season of
∝ making fresh start after returning back from Summer to resume our life routine, work, education and voluntary work, particularly poverty relief one
∝ restarting after having some life and/or work experience (e.g., voluntary work or experience over the Summer, project visits, holiday trips, family sojourns, tourism, travel/expeditions of all kinds, etc.)
∝ beginning to apply or introduce and share those new experiences, ideas and discoveries we had during the Summer break or holiday
∝ slowing down some types of things while slowly setting up new ones from small to big sizes
∝ novelty, creativity and innovation to try to resolve the old, new, challenging and emerging issues of poverty and hardships.
Will this Autumn be same as the previous ones?
• • Autumn of Freshness 2024
This Autumn 2024, we are going to try find ways forward to end the cost-of-living crisis. It is not easy. One can even think it is overambitious. However, the cost-of-living crisis cannot keep indefinitely going on with its damages on poor people.
Finding ways of ending the cost-of-living crisis is also about answering these questions: How does economic crisis end? Does it end itself following the business or trade cycle model or fluctuations in the level of economic activity (that is, depression, recovery, boom, recession and so on)? Does it end through an intervention in the form of economic policy response?
There are different responses to these questions. For instance, the website ‘econofact.org’ (1) argues that
“History suggests two ingredients are needed to stanch the acute phase of an economic crisis: a resolution of the underlying cause and a dramatic economic policy response that mitigates the economic damage and causes a shift in the sentiment”.
Although the cost-of-living crisis is not comparable to the economic shocks of 1929 and 2008 or the 2019 coronavirus disaster with its economic ramifications, it is possible to find ways of ending the cost-of-living crisis. Economically speaking, it will be possible when real disposable incomes match the level of prices. One needs to find new ways forward for this match to happen.
To find new ways forward, we may need to keep refreshing the methods, approaches, theories, systems, practices and tools we have been using to tackle the cost-of-living crisis. Why do we need to find ways of ending the cost-of-living crisis?
Many economic analysts and expert bodies (like the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, the Resolution Foundation, chief economists at World Economic Forum, etc.) think that the cost-of-living crisis will last until the end of 2024, when household real disposable incomes will increase and inflation drop back. Although, the inflation in the UK is nearing government target of 2%, prices are still slowly rising and wages are still failing to meet them. Some even predict that the cost-of-living crisis will carry on up to 2027/2028.
If this is the case or scenario, one may need to find way of ending the cost-of-living crisis or refreshing their autumnal way through which they are dealing with the cost-of-living crisis. Let alone the economic theory they are using. Ways forward to end the cost-of-living crisis and refreshing are needed within CENFACS, between CENFACS and its community for the following reasons:
σ to conduct a brand refresh used or take a process of adjusting the brand in the fight against the cost-of-living crisis
σ to update with the latest information and knowledge about this crisis
σ to fix projects, activities and programme areas which are not working or where there are bugs
σ to review some of the fundamentals
σ to refresh values from an improved perspective
σ to take refresher training to close the gaps in knowledge in the way of tackling the cost-of-living crisis
σ to stay in tune with changing project beneficiaries’ tastes and technological innovation causing new services to emerge which may supersede existing ones
σ briefly to keep control on the life cycle (that is launch, growth, maturity and decline) of CENFACS‘ products/services while finding a new way forward to end the cost-of-living crisis.
All these reasons will help find new way forward to end the cost-of-living crisis, which has been tackled since inflation went far ahead wages. They will also assist in dealing with other enduring polycrises like climate crisis.
However, we have to admit that CENFACS does not have the capacity to end the cost-of-living crisis. CENFACS can however work with those affected by the lingering effects of the cost-of-living crisis to reduce or end these harmful effects on them. As the ‘verywellmind.com’ (2) puts it when referring to trauma:
“Fortunately, there are healthy ways to cope with a crisis and get to the other side”.
CENFACS will continue to work with those stricken by the cost-of-living crisis and its lingering effects so that they can get to the other side of the crisis.
So, the key words and phrases for our sharing and engaging contents over this Autumn are Finding or Refreshing or Reviving Ways of Ending the Cost-of-living Crisis; words and phrases which will underpin all our work over this period.
• Starting XI Campaign in 2024: Autumn Programme with Starting XI Projects to Find Ways of Ending the Cost-of-living Crisis
Autumn of Freshness is about working together with our users, project beneficiaries, members and stakeholders through a helpful bundle of Fresh Start projects blended together to give a contemporary and targeted relief, thanks to a good knowledge of users’ and members’ needs and expectations.
These projects will help implement new and improved ways of working with local people to meet changing needs mainly led by the lingering effects of the last crises (e.g., the coronavirus disaster) and the enduring cost-of-living crisis in the Year of Transitions; a year of transitionary skills to meet poor people’s needs in a new era and landscape of poverty reduction and development policies. These projects make up our Autumn 2024 Fresh Start Programme.
• • What Is Included in the Autumn 2024 Fresh Start Programme?
The Autumn 2024 Fresh Start Programme is made of
(a) Skills, tips, hints, tweaks, tools and hacks to find ways to end or refresh ways of ending the cost-of-living crisis
(b) Transformative and transitionary experiences
(c) The Season’s appeal to stand up again against poverty and hardships
(d) A Slice and feast of Africa’s history
(e) A Campaign to end the stubborn cost-of-living crisis
(f) A Spatial analysis of poverty via brown, blue, green and grey spaces
(g) Blue and green realignments of initiatives to the principles of greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals and targets
(h) Thoughts and inspirations to finish the unfinished work of building forward from previous crises.
All this is flavoured with hopes, dreams and reasons to believe in the future; a poverty-free, sustainable, net zero and crisis-free world.
So, the line-up for CENFACS’ Starting XI Projects and Campaign to find ways forward to end the cost-of-living crisis and other crises for this Autumn is as follows:
(1) Women, Children and Transitionary Skills to Transition from Ways of Tackling to Ending Crises – NEW
(2) Data Storytelling and Communications Skills for Households – UPGRADED
(3) African Charities’ Investment Management Project – NEW
(4) Making Memorable Difference through Africa’s Woven Loincloth
(5) Save Flora, Fauna and Funga
(6) Leaves-based Advice with Impact
(7) “A la Une” (Autumn Leaves of Action for the Upkeep of the Nature in Existence) with a Focus on Critically Endangered Fish Species
(8) Advice for Africa-based Sister Organisations and Guidance for Not-for-profit Impact Investing in Africa
(9) Autumn Help to End the Higher Costs of Living
(10) Campaign to End Poverty Induced by Rising the Costs of Living
(11) Autumn Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Appeals.
For more on these projects, please read below under the Main Development section of this post.
• Financial Plan Updates for Households – In Focus from Wednesday 18/09/2024: Estate Planning
Our 4-series of Financial Plan Updates for Households continues this week as we are working on the third serial of these updates, which is Estate Planning. Before going any further, let us explain the meaning of estate planning.
• • What Is Estate Planning?
According to Smart Assets (3),
“Estate planning is the series of preparation tasks that dictate how your assets will be dispersed upon your incapacity or death”.
Smart Assets also explains that
“Estate planning entails for more than just creating a will. It may include: assigning a power of attorney and healthcare proxy to make decisions on your behalf, creating trusts, establishing guardians for living dependents, appointing or updating beneficiaries on life insurance plans and retirement accounts, making funeral arrangement, preparing for estate taxes, potentially by scheduling annual gifting”.
Many of CENFACS users and members, especially those living on low or modest income may think that the above-mentioned areas of estate planning do not matter for them. Yet, they do matter. This is why CENFACS is running this initiative to work with them. Also, CENFACS runs planned gifting as a giving option for potential donors/funders who may be interested in inserting a giving aspect in the estate planning.
• • Working with Households on Estate Planning
CENFACS can work with those households interested in the following:
σ Creating their estate plan (which will include the inventory of their assets, potential beneficiaries of their assets)
σ Drawing their will and testament (CENFACS can signpost or refer them to appropriate services catering for will and testament matters)
σ Assigning powers on their health and financial decisions
σ Choosing an executor to administer their assets and final wishes
σ Dealing with aspects of their life linked to estate and inheritance taxes, etc.
Estate planning is important for all members making the CENFACS Community. As Smart Assets (op. cit.) puts it,
“Estate planning is crucial no matter your age or level of wealth. You want to have a say in where your assets end up and ensure your loved ones are adequately cared for should something happen to you”.
There are households capable of creating their own estate planning. There are others needing support on this matter. CENFACS can work with those needing support. Where CENFACS‘ capacity is limited, CENFACS can signpost them to agencies or professionals on estate planning (e.g., estate planners, financial advisor or attorney) offering the services they are looking for.
Those who may be interested in updating their Estate Plan can contact CENFACS for further details.
If you need support with your Estate Plan Updates, please do not hesitate to communicate with CENFACS.
Extra Messages
• Brown Spaces-focused Note for Wednesday 18/09/2023: Bringing New Opportunities
• Summer 2024 Humanitarian Appeal Projects: Only Four Days to Go!
• Starting or Renewing Your Involvement with CENFACS’ Work This Autumn 2024
• Brown Spaces-focused Note for Wednesday 18/09/2023: Bringing New Opportunities
Our understanding of sustainable planning and redevelopment of brown spaces in terms of their benefits continue this week. It carries on as we are looking at how some of the interventions to revitalise brown spaces in a sustainable way can socially, economically and environmentally benefit people, particularly end-users. One of the benefits is the creation of new opportunities.
• • New Opportunities to Be Brought by the Redevelopment of Brown Spaces
Where brown spaces have been successfully redeveloped, there could be new opportunities for local people in terms of employment, education, housing, health, business, recycling, etc. It could be even desirable if these new opportunities lift local people out of poverty.
Speaking about benefits from redeveloped brown spaces, the website ‘epa.gov’ (4) notes that
“Revitalising brownfields provides new economic and social benefits to communities, in addition to improving environmental conditions”.
The website ‘epa.gov’ also argues that there are steps to take in order for any redevelopment can bring benefits. Additionally, the community has to position itself to successfully reap the benefits from brown spaces redevelopment. In other words, there is no direct link between what brown spaces redevelopers would bring in terms of new opportunities and the benefits that people (where this redevelopment is taking place) would grab from the window of opportunities brought. People have to do something to capture these opportunities.
• • Working with the Community on New Opportunities Stemming from the Brown Spaces Redevelopment
It is about supporting our community members in the following ways:
> how to grab new opportunities arising from any redevelopment of brown spaces
> how not to be left behind of any opportunities created by the redevelopment of brown spaces
> how they can better position themselves to embrace the new opportunities to be created
> how they can back or not back brown space projects with their favourable or unfavourable opinions
etc.
For those of our members who would like to work with us on new opportunities stemming from the redevelopment of brown spaces, they are welcome to work with us.
For those members who would like to share their experience in terms of new opportunities resulting from the redevelopment of brown spaces and how they seized them; they are also invited to share it with us.
For those who would like to further discuss with us any other matters or insights relating to the the New Opportunities from the Redevelopment of Brown Spaces, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.
• Summer 2024 Humanitarian Appeal Projects: Only Four Days to Go!
There are only four days to go before our Summer Humanitarian and Fundraising Campaign ends.
All poor, unprotected children, undervalued young carers and those poor suffering from the lack of opportunities in sport development and sustainable development; they all are asking for support to reduce and or end the type of poverty they are experiencing.
Their requests are summarised inside the 2024 Edition of CENFACS’ Summer Humanitarian Appeal Projects.
The projects making this appeal include the following:
√ Cover Basic Spending for the Distressed Children in Africa
√ All Gifts for All Poor
√ International Networking and Protection against Crises
√ Iconic Young Carer
√ ELCLASSICO International.
The above five projects require donation or funding or influence.
You can donate money and / or give in kind or influence.
Please remember, the fundraising and influencing campaign for these projects will end by 22 September 2024.
CENFACS will accept any support given during and beyond the duration of this campaign.
Please do not wait to donate or influence as the needs are pressing and urgent NOW.
To support and or enquire about these humanitarian relief appeal projects, please contact CENFACS.
Thank you for your generosity.
• Starting or Renewing Your Involvement with CENFACS’ Work This Autumn 2024
The beginning of every season is an opportunity either to continue to do the things we always do as they work or to think of taking on new initiatives in the new season or to do both. Likewise, in time of enduring cost-of-living crisis there are not only worries and stresses; there are as well new opportunities and possibilities to do things differently. One can use the opportunity of the enduring cost-of-living crisis to review or change things. One way of doing is to start or continue to look forward. There are many ways in which one can look forward this Autumn.
For example, one can use the opportunity of the enduring cost-of-living crisis and rethink on the types of organisations and projects they support. One may find appropriate to start or increase or even reduce their support to a particular development or poverty relief cause. One could also think of getting involved in CENFACS’ work or renewing their commitment to it if they have ever got involved in it before. The decision is theirs.
We have spelled out below various ways in which one can enhance CENFACS’ noble and beautiful cause of poverty reduction, and make a useful impact on poverty reduction with us.
• • Getting the Most of Your Involvement with CENFACS into Poverty Reduction Work from Autumn 2024 and Beyond
The following points provide ways through which one can get involved with CENFACS‘ noble and beautiful cause of poverty reduction.
• • • Where to start: Sign up!
√ Register with us and or update us with your contact details
√ Respond to our communications and communicate with us when occasion arises
• • • Stay in touch with our…
√ Newsletter and other paper and free-paper communication materials
√ Regular updated and upgraded resources (e.g., fact sheets) and supporting information
• • • Involve us in raising awareness of the poverty relief issue
√ Advertise with us for helpful good and deserving causes
√ Pass our relief messages on to interested third parties
• • • Share your transformative experience
√ Tell us what you think and or your development story
√ Help us improve with your voices, comments, reports and feedbacks
• • • Boost your support
√ Support us according to your means and limits as every support counts
√ Add value to your support, if you can, by improving your support to us to support you and or others
• • • Get noticed to go further with your involvement
√ Register and keep up to date with information about your event, project, activity and so on
√ Join up our network of poverty relief and development work
• • • Stay ahead of the game with us
√ Communicate with us before hands and when the needs arise
√ Often read our news alerts, tweets and switch to our new developments
• • • Deliver on your promises
√ If you promise to do something for or with CENFACS and others, please do it
√ If you can’t do it, please let us know. Don’t just stay silent!
• • • Make our communications with you to be a two-way process and multi-channel approach
√ Talk to CENFACS and CENFACS will talk to you as well and vice versa
√ Help us improve the flow of information on poverty relief and development using a variety of channels and platforms
• • • Be contactable and present via
√ E-mail, (tele or mobile) phones, physical address and social media platforms
√ Word-of-mouth recommendations, outreach and other means of contact (like video calls)
• • • Get the word out on your communication channels
√ Spread words about CENFACS’ work on your social media links
√ Promote CENFACS’ work in what and where you think we can fit in
• • • Keep your involvement with CENFACS digitally and on papers
√ Up-to-date information on to your mobile by our free text alerts and messages
√ Check CENFACS’ website and make enquiries online 24 hours 7 days a week
• • • Act upon information received from us
√ Don’t just read or hear them and do nothing about them. Please react and be vocal!
√ If they are irrelevant to you, please pass them onto an interested and committed party
• • • Build and protect standards of trust in CENFACS
√ Correct inaccuracies and misinformation, stop the spread of false information about CENFACS and its community/network
√ Tackle with us the pollution of information, disinformation and distrust about our poverty reduction work and initiatives
• • • Ask for help and support
√ Seek help if you need it before getting involved with CENFACS
√ Find support when you need it in order to get involved with CENFACS
• • • Continue the legacy of CENFACS’ work
√ It is now 22 years and two months that CENFACS has been working on poverty relief and sustainable development since it was registered in 2002. You can continue this legacy with us.
√ You can be the face of CENFACS to those who are looking for a lifeline of support from us.
The above ways of getting involved in CENFACS’ work may not be exhaustive. Should you have any other way, please let us know.
To get involved with CENFACS into poverty reduction work, just let us know.
Message in French (Message en français)
• Mises à Jour du Plan Financier pour les Ménages – Point de mire à partir du mercredi 18/09/2024: Planification Successorale
Notre série de 4 mises à jour du plan financier pour les ménages se poursuit cette semaine; semaine pendant laquelle nous travaillons sur la troisième série de ces mises à jour, qui porte sur la planification successorale. Avant d’aller plus loin, expliquons le sens de la planification successorale.
• • Qu’est-ce que la planification successorale?
Selon Smart Assets (3),
«La planification successorale est la série de tâches de préparation qui dictent la répartition de vos actifs en cas d’incapacité ou de décès.»
Smart Assets explique également que
« La planification successorale ne se limite pas à la création d’un testament. Il peut s’agir de l’attribution d’une procuration et d’une procuration en matière de soins de santé pour prendre des décisions en votre nom, de la création de fiducies, de l’établissement de tuteurs pour les personnes à charge vivantes, de la nomination ou de la mise à jour des bénéficiaires des régimes d’assurance-vie et des comptes de retraite, de l’organisation des funérailles, de la préparation des droits de succession, éventuellement en planifiant les dons annuels.
De nombreux bénéficiaires et membres du CENFACS, en particulier ceux qui vivent avec un revenu faible ou modeste, peuvent penser que les domaines de la planification successorale mentionnés ci-dessus n’ont pas d’importance pour eux. Pourtant, ils comptent. C’est pourquoi le CENFACS mène cette initiative pour travailler avec eux. De plus, le CENFACS demande des dons planifiés comme option de don pour les donateurs/rices ou les bailleurs/resses de fonds potentiels qui pourraient être intéressé(e)s à intégrer un aspect de don dans la planification successorale.
• • Travailler avec les ménages sur la planification successorale
Le CENFACS peut travailler avec les ménages intéressés par ce qui suit:
σ Création de leur plan successoral (qui comprendra l’inventaire de leurs biens, bénéficiaires potentiels de leurs biens)
σ Rédiger son testament
σ Attribuer des pouvoirs sur leurs décisions sanitaires et financières
σ Choisir un exécuteur testamentaire pour administrer ses biens et ses dernières volontés
σ Gérer les aspects de leur vie liés aux droits de succession, etc.
La planification successorale est importante pour tous les membres qui composent la communauté CENFACS. Comme Smart Assets (op. cit.) le dit,
« La planification successorale est cruciale, peu importe votre âge ou votre niveau de richesse. Vous voulez avoir votre mot à dire sur l’endroit où se retrouvent vos actifs et vous assurer que vos proches sont pris en charge de manière adéquate si quelque chose vous arrive.
Il existe des ménages capables de créer leur propre planification successorale. Il y en a d’autres qui ont besoin d’aide à ce sujet. Le CENFACS peut travailler avec ceux qui ont besoin d’aide. Lorsque la capacité de CENFACS est limitée, CENFACS peut les orienter vers des agences (par exemple, des planificateurs successoraux, un conseiller financier ou un avocat) offrant les services qu’ils recherchent.
Les personnes qui pourraient être intéressées à mettre à jour leur plan successoral peuvent contacter le CENFACS pour plus de détails.
Si vous avez besoin d’aide pour la mise à jour de votre plan successoral, n’hésitez pas à communiquer avec le CENFACS.
Main Development
• Starting XI Campaign 2024: Autumn Programme with Starting XI Projects to Find Ways of Ending the Cost-of-living Crisis
The following two items provide the main idea of our Starting XI Campaign 2024:
∝ What Is Starting XI Campaign?
∝ Starting XI Projects to Find Ways of Ending the Cost-of-living Crisis
Before highlighting the projects making the Starting XI Campaign 2024, let us explain this campaign.
• • What Is Starting XI Campaign?
It is an organised series of actions and operations designed to help achieve the goal of poverty reduction during the autumnal season. Normally, there are eleven projects that make these actions to gain support for poverty reduction and build up opposition to practice that keeps poverty. The list of eleven projects will help work with the communities here in the UK and Africa to freshly start Autumn. These projects are our Fresh Start ones, which will help beneficiaries to cope with the lingering effects of the cost-of-living crisis. What are these projects?
• • Starting XI Projects to Find Ways of Ending or to Refresh Ways of Tackling Crises
The XI projects we are talking about will allow us to start our overall Autumn Season’s poverty reduction campaign. This is why we call them as Starting XI Projects or Campaign.
11 PROJECTS TO FIND WAYS OF ENDING THE COST-OF-LIVING CRISIS: 11 WAYS OF HELPING TO REDUCE AND END POVERTY THIS AUTUMN 2024
Please find below key highlights of projects making CENFACS’ Autumn 2024 of Finding Ways of Ending the Cost-of-living Crisis, including the month each of these projects is supposed to start.
• • • Key Highlights of Starting XI Projects
September 2024
(5) Save Flora, Fauna and Funga projects (including the Big Beasts sub-advocacy)
These projects will continue our advocacy work on the protection of plants, animals and fungi, while we are carrying on to implementing new ways of working with local people and organisations in Africa to help save flora, fauna and funga. (Advocacy)
(6) Leaves-based Advice with Impact
It is a step forward within the framework of the advice service we provide to the community. The leaves element within our local advice package, which marked CENFACS’ 2021 Year of Leaves, will continue to feature the advisory process of helping the community to reduce poverty. In 2023, we included impact to this package. Advice with impact means that advice will be given with an impact strategy to maximise outcomes for the beneficiaries. (Advice)
(7) A la Une (Autumn Leaves of Action for the Upkeep of the Nature in Existence)
‘A la Une’ will include our sub-advocacy work on nature, which is Sustainable Trajectories for the Nature. This year, A la Une project will focus on Endangered Fish Species.
In the last week of September 2024, we shall focus on saving endangered fish through our new initiative called ‘Mbisi’ (that is, Maintaining Bagrus In Situ Inhabitation). It is an advocacy for saving the endangered fish species.
Mbisi is a new advocacy project planned by CENFACS to help protect critically endangered fish species and keep them up in their natural habitat in Africa. Fishes like Bagrus, Boyoma Falls Upside Down Catfish, the Ruwenzori Lampeye, the Line-spotted Ufipa Barb, the Arnegard Electric Fish, the Kunungu Air-Breathing Catfish, African Wedgefish (Rynchobatus Luebbert) and the Angel Squeaker are endangered species because of environmental threats and unregulated fishing activities.
The ‘Mbisi’ project, which has already kicked off, will help us to advocate for a safe life for fish species. (Campaign)
October 2024
(11) Autumn Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Appeals
These appeals are a renewed engagement with supporters via appeals to deal with the exacerbation of poverty by climate change, the enduring cost-of-living crisis and any spotted lingering effects of coronavirus as well as the emergence of new threats brought by Mpox and other diseases in Africa. These humanitarian relief and emergency appeals, which will help people and communities in most desperate situation, will include as well
~ short-term environmental strikes and disasters linked to climate change cycles (like in the cases of Morocco-Safi earthquake and Libya deadly floods and landslides in 2023)
~ long-term environmental storms and catastrophes (e.g., the risk of freshwater sources to be contaminated in some parts of Africa by viruses, germs, parasites and pollutants creating water scarcity)
~ short-term crises and armed conflicts and disputes (e.g., the probable intensification of violence and worsening of humanitarian crisis in the African Sahel)
~ wars linked to economic trends and business cycles (e.g., the geo-economic tensions between Africa’s trading bloc and other economic blocs)
~ and long-running and permanent wars and structural warfare (e.g., the deterioration of the security situation in African countries where there have been military coups d’état like in Niger, Guinea with the possibility of long-running civil wars). (Humanitarian appeals)
(4) Making Memorable Difference (MMD)
The focus for this October History Month will be on Africa’s Woven Loincloth in lifting people out of poverty. Our work for this year’s MMD will be about identifying the historical figures (and families) of Africa in Woven Loincloth making. (History project)
(10) Campaign to End Poverty Induced by Rising Costs of the Living
It is an organised series of actions to gain support for the cost-of-living poor so that something can be done for them. These actions need to result in change, particularly the reduction and end of the cost-of-living poverty. The latter is now a barrier for many poor.
We shall continue our alignment of this campaign with the typical phases of crisis (i.e., crisis, de-escalation, stabilisation, resolve and post-crisis) as set it up in October 2022. We shall as well continue to offer the three services (short-, medium- and long-term services) linked to this campaign. (Poverty-relieving campaign)
November 2024
(9) Autumn Help to End the Higher Costs of Living
CENFACS does not have the power to stabilise prices, costs and bills for its members or members of the public. CENFACS has, however, voice to speak and can help through its voice so that those who can influence the economic factors and indicators (like inflation, interest rate, wages, etc.) do their best to stabilise prices and raise wages to match prices.
Also, there are people who are succeeding in their fight against the adverse effects of the cost-of-living crisis. There are others, who could be the majority, who are failing to win this battle.
For those who are not winning this fight, they may need to rethink or improve the ways they are tackling the enduring cost-of-living crisis, especially as many experts believe that the cost-of-living will last until real household disposable incomes increase and inflation drops back to meet the UK Government’s 2 per cent CPI (Consume Prices Index) inflation target.
For those failing this battle, they may need help to improve the way they are tackling the cost-of-living crisis.
Autumn Help to End the Higher Costs of Living, which will be a resource, will contain new information, tips and hints to help the community transition out of the cost-of-living crisis. This initiative or resource could start or be published before November 2024. (Resource)
(1) Women & Children FIRST Development Day
This year, our Development Day will still be about skills that can be learnt and developed in order to freshly start Autumn 2023. It will be about Women, Children and Transitionary Skills to Transition from Ways of Tackling to Ending Crises.
In the last four years, the Development Day has been designed to resonate with the November month of Skills Development within CENFACS. This year’s Development Day will too reverberate with the Skills Development Month within CENFACS. (Thoughts)
(8) Advice to Africa-based Sister Organisations (ASOs) and Guidance for Not-for-profit Impact Investing in Africa
Our support to Africa-based Sister Organisations via advice will continue to operate to help these organisations to overcome many challenges they face such as changing climate, the coronavirus and the cost-of-living crisis. We have added to the advice service the guidance we give to those who would like to not-for-profit invest with impact in Africa.
Under CENFACS‘ Guidance for Investing in African Not-for-profit Organisations and Causes in Africa, we run a programme to support not-for-profit investors in Africa. For both ASOs and not-for-profit investors, we have planned to conduct more activities this coming November 2024. (Advice & Guidance)
(2) Data Storytelling and Communications Skills for Households
Data are deeply embedded in households. Households need appropriate communications and storytelling skills about data to properly express by themselves what is behind data. To better communicate the story behind their data households, they do not need to be data scientists.
The initiative will aim at empowering user households with skills to tell and visualise data (i.e., words and numbers) as well as get explained information that run their life. It will help them to have control over their data and life. (Data and Insight Advocacy & Skills)
(3) African Charities’ Investment Management Project (ACIMP)
ACIMP is an advisory management project designed by CENFACS to work together with Africa-based Sister Organisations looking to plan and manage their investments so that they can realise their mission with peace of mind without to worry to much about investment issues. The project will help to avoid investment mistakes while tolerating risk at fairly acceptable level.
Through this project, organisations will build generational investment management capacity and wealth that will help them and their beneficiaries to escape from intergenerational poverty. (Support and Resource)
Note:
As said earlier, the above XI projects will allow us to start our overall Autumn Season’s poverty reduction campaign. This is why we call them as Starting XI Projects or Campaign.
Although they are scheduled for Autumn 2024, we may slightly alter our initial plan and or introduce occasional initiatives to cope with the reality of the unpredictability and complexity of development situations (e.g., side effects of the cost-of-living crisis, humanitarian and emergency situations), in which case we shall let you know as early as we can.
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• References
(1) https://econofact.org/how-do-economic-crises-end (accessed in September 2024)
(2) https://www.verywellmind.com/cope-with-a-crisis-or-trauma-3144525# (accessed in September 2024)
(3) https://smartasset.com/retirement/estate-planning (accessed in September 2024)
(4) https://www.epa.gov/sites/2019-06/documents/final_community_actions_that_drive_brownfield_development_6-3-19_508_compliant.pdf# (accessed in September 2024)
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• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going This Year
We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis. Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.
One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.
Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS. Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.
Donate to support CENFACS!
FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE AND BEAUTIFUL CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.
JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)
Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.
Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.
We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2024 and beyond.
With many thanks.
