Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

23 February 2022

 

Post No. 236

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Debt Distress for the Highly Indebted Poor Households

• Climate Neutral Projects

• Making Zero Hunger Africa Campaign with a Focus on Events Leading to Acute Food Insecurity

 

… And much more!

 

Key Messages

 

• Fourth Wednesday (23/02/2022), In Focus: Debt Distress for the Highly Indebted Poor Households

 

Our Month of Sustainable Development carries on with the last sub-theme making the theme of Debt Sustainability for the Highly Indebted Poor Households; theme which is part of the United Nations (1) Sustainable Development Goal 17 and Target 4 for poor countries.  The last sub-theme is about Debt Distress for the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPHs).  Although the United Nations speak about Debt Distress in its Target 4 for poor countries, these notes are really about Debt Distress Free for the Highly Indebted Poor Countries.  Having said that, what is debt distress?

Debt distress is one of the four ratings for assessing the risk of external public debt associated with sustainability, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).  The IMF (2) argues that a country is in debt distress…

“When the country is already experiencing difficulties in servicing its debt, as evidenced, for example, by the existence of arrears, ongoing or impending debt restructuring, or indications of a high probability of a future debt distress event (e.g., debt and debt service indicators show large near-term breaches, or significant or sustained breach of thresholds).”

Debt distress matters not only for countries but also for households and individuals making indebted countries.  For highly indebted poor households, debt distress could simply mean that they are in a financial situation in which they have so much debt or high level of debt compared to their both tangible and intangible assets.  This troubled financial situation can prevent them from functioning as a normal household while it can sometimes lead to debt-induced poverty.  This is why something needs to be done in terms of reduction of debt distress and risks associated with it in order to enable debt distressed households not to totally and humanly collapse.

So, the key message here is about helping HIPHs to both come out debt-induced poverty and moral poverty as they are experiencing debt distress.  In other words, the effort here is about making sure that debt distress does not lead to moral distress which could be another form of poverty that may require debt advice and counselling.  Debt distress, which is already a financial difficulty and hardship as well as a form of poverty, should not lead to another type of poverty, like mental and emotional one.

For an insightful outlook about the sub-theme of Debt Distress for the Highly Indebted Poor Countries, please read under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

 

• Climate Neutral Projects (CNPs)

 

The following items summarise CNPs: What are CNPs?, their components, how CENFACS can work with users so that the latter can get the most from CNPs and the link between climate neutrality and poverty reduction.

 

• • What are CNPs?

 

In its guide to climate neutrality, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (3) defines climate neutrality as

“The idea of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by balancing those emissions so they are equal (or less than) the emissions that get removed through the planet’s natural absorption; in basic terms it means we reduce our emissions through climate action”.

With reference to the above perspective on climate neutrality, we can argue that CNPs, which are one of CENFACS’ Light Season’s new initiative, are about putting into practice the idea of achieving net zero greenhouse emissions by balancing those emissions so that they are equal (or less than) the emissions that get removed through the planet’s natural absorption capacity.  In simple terms, CNPs help to reduce our emissions through climate action.

There is a number of initiatives on which CENFACS  will be working with users under the banner of CNPs.

 

• • CNP Components

 

They are initiatives or activities that CNP users can undertake anywhere (at home, at work and on the move).  These greenhouse gas emission reduction or removal initiatives or activities can include:

 

√ Walking or cycling

√ Switching to LED bulbs and green electricity

√ Turning off tap when brushing your teeth

√ Using natural light as much as possible

√ Only registering on mailing lists if it is important to do so

√ Reducing junk mail

√ Using energy-efficient electric devices

√ Switching to paperless life (e.g. use your device like phones, laptops, tablets, etc., to manage your financial operations)

Etc.

 

These activities or initiatives will help to measure our user households’ CO2 emissions.  Alternatively, user households can use online climate change calculator to determine the emissions (direct emissions like combustion and indirect emissions) that arise in their households through heating, cooking, and so on.

 

• • How CENFACS can work with users on CNPs

 

There are basically two ways through which CENFACS can work together with users, which are:

a) sharing experience about initiatives taken to avoid climate-damaging greenhouse gas emissions

b) accompanying those who would like to take a climate neutral path.

 

a) Experience sharing about climate neutrality

 

So far, so much has been written and said about climate neutrality.  There are already people, including those making our community, who are already using these writings and says in their daily lives – whether it is at home or at work or even when travelling – in the choice they make in order to run their lives.  For those ones, they can share with us their good practice of climate neutrality experience or initiatives.  This experience sharing will also be part of monitoring and evaluation of CNPs.

 

b) Accompany to a climate neutral path

 

For those who would like or may be interested in taking a climate neutral drive, but for some reasons they are not doing it; they can work with CENFACS so that together we can explore ways of taking climate neutral action with them.  We can help them with tips and hints as well as we can support them to find what is required for them to find their way to climate neutral road.

 

• • Climate neutrality and poverty reduction

 

CNPs are also poverty reduction initiatives.  By taking action to bring down one’s own CO2 emissions to zero, this action can also help to reduce poverty, especially for those looking for climate neutrality-based solutions to poverty.

For example, if you are poor and take some initiatives to switch off lights and move to green electricity; this action can help to save on both electricity bills and income.

So, taking some steps to reduce unnecessary consumption in terms of climate neutrality can benefit those living in poverty by reducing the cost of running their lives.  And, if they can get the same level of satisfaction with goods and services (like electricity, gas, water, etc.) by reducing the costs of these goods and services; the unspent money can be allocated to other needs.

This action can help them to reduce income poverty.  Indeed, if you are income poor, any tiny reduction you can get or save on your expenses could be a huge boost for you.  It may not be something for well-off people, but for the poor it can make a lot of helpful difference.

For those members of our community who have personal experience to share about climate neutrality and/or those who would like to dip into climate neutrality with us, they are welcome to contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Making Zero Hunger Africa Campaign with a Focus on Events Leading to Acute Food Insecurity

 

This year’s Making Zero Hunger Africa Campaign (MZHAC) will focus on events or key drivers that can lead to acute food insecurity in Africa, especially in the so-called Africa’s hunger hotspots.  Before looking at what is in focus, let us remind our readers the aim of Making Zero Hunger Africa Campaign.

 

• • Aim of Making Zero Hunger Africa Campaign

 

The aim of MZHAC is to raise awareness on sustainable food consumption and production in order to end hunger and malnutrition amongst those who are food deprived, particularly in Africa where the number of hungry people and families is still on the rise.  It is as well a campaigning response to the challenge of rise in hunger that Africa will face in the foreseeable future.  In this respect, the coronavirus pandemic has only made the matter worse as it has put a heavy toll on the consumption poor.

The contents of MZHAC are: End Hunger and Malnutrition Goal, Support Small-Scale Food Producers in Africa, Actions to Support the Food Industry in Africa, Meeting Vulnerable People’s Nutritional Needs, Actions for Sustainable Food Production Systems, etc.

 

This year, we are focussing on Events Leading to Acute Food Insecurity.

 

 

 

• • Focus on Events Leading to Acute Food Insecurity

 

To help our readers and audiences to understand what we are talking about and possibly follow our campaign, let us explain acute food insecurity.

 

• • • What is acute food insecurity?

 

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and the World Food Programme (4) define acute food insecurity as

“Any manifestation of food deprivation that threatens lives or livelihoods regardless of the causes”.  (p. 37)

In their joint publication entitled ‘Hunger Hotspots’, the two organisations give their warnings on acute food insecurity in Africa’s hunger hotspots.

Following on these warnings and findings about Africa’s hunger hot spots, we have framed our MZHAC around four events or areas of action that may influence food security in Africa and that need to be seriously taken in order to make zero hunger Africa.  The four events or areas are: violence and conflict, natural events, adverse economic factors, and pests and diseases from fauna and flora.  Let us look at these drivers or influencers one by one.

 

• • • Drivers or influencers of acute food insecurity in Africa

 

• • • • Violence and conflict

 

To respond to this driver, MZHAC will be about CENFACS working with Africa-based Sister organisations (ASOs) to help people displaced by violence to access food, agricultural land and other life-sustaining livelihoods.

 

• • • • Likelihood of natural events

 

MZHAC will be activated to work with ASOs to support vulnerable households to replenish their food stocks in the event of poor season and poor harvests leading to the worsening of food insecurity conditions, like in the Greater Horn of Africa.

 

• • • • Adverse economic conditions

 

MZHAC will be stepped up to work with ASOs to help those in need to overcome barriers to access food and various economic difficulties such as soaring food price, disruption of food supply chains, increase in energy prices, etc.

 

• • • • Pests and diseases from animals and plants

 

MZHAC will be conducted with ASOs to assist in the fight against the problems of current upsurge of the widespread migratory pest and swarm formation, like in the case of desert locust upsurge in Greater Eastern Africa.

So, the message of the MZHAC for this year is to help avert acute food insecurity and malnutrition.  To do that one needs removing barriers that can hamper any access to food.  The message is finally about saving lives while preventing starvation and total collapse of livelihoods.

To support and or enquire about MZHAC, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• EcoBio Days: 24 to 28 February 2022

 

EcoBio (Ecological and biological) Days, which will be held from 24 to 28 February 2022, bring a climax to our Sustainable Development month.

 

• • What EcoBio Days are about?

 

EcoBio Days are the days of works about the nexus between organisms (e.g. animals, plants, etc.) and their environment.

They are as well the days of study about living organisms.

The days are about how we deal with living things and their environment in order to meet our own needs and goals without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs.

They are the days of humans with their environment as well as humans with things and living organisms.

 

• • Programme for this year’s EcoBio Days

 

The programme for this year’s EcoBio Days is as follows:

 

24/02/2022: Link between organisms and their environment

25/02/2022: Study of living organisms and poverty reduction

26/02/2022: Humans with things

27/02/2022: Humans with living organisms

28/02/2022: Humans with their environment

 

To enquire and or support EcoBio Days, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Triple Value Initiatives: Questions (Q) and Answers (A) for Starters

 

We are pursuing the planning process for Triple Value Initiatives (All Year Round Projects) by inviting those who may have some questions to raise and put them to CENFACS.   CENFACS will try to respond to them.

To kick-start this invitation and clear some of the misconceptions about Triple Value Initiatives (All Year Round Projects), we are going to respond to the following questions.

 

Q • • What are Triple Value Initiatives or All-year Round Projects?

 

A • •  They are a set of 3 yearly projects that run from the 1^st week of January to the week preceding the end of last week of December of the same year.  Through these 3 initiatives/projects (i.e. Run, Play and Vote), their users have the opportunity to do something about poverty reduction and sustainable development in the forms of either undertaking a physical activity (Run) or gaming activity (Play) or research activity (Vote).  The participants to these projects can chose to engage with one of these projects/activities.

For those who want to organise a run activity or play the CENFACS’ League of Poverty Reduction or vote a person who made difference in helping others in reducing poverty in Africa; they can contact CENFACS if they have any problems about how they would like to engage with any of these activities.

 

Q • • What are the objectives of Triple Value Initiatives or All Year Round Projects?

 

A • • Each of the initiatives/projects has its own objectives.  However, we can broadly argue that their objectives include the following:

σ To recognise and acknowledge those who are helping to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development in Africa

σ To contribute to the efforts of poverty reduction in Africa

σ To celebrate and jointly  promote sporting talents and sustainable skills in Africa

σ To honour outstanding individuals in the field of international poverty reduction and sustainable development

σ To game and provide recreational activities to a generation of gamers to do something different about poverty reduction and sustainable development in Africa.

 

Q • • How can I participate?

 

A • • Anyone can participate or run any of these projects as long as they follow the underlying principles relating to them.  They can use whatever means are necessary and available to undertake and complete these projects.

For example, if one wants to undertake physical run, they need to plan the running equipment they need including personal protection equipment against the coronavirus; to have a devise to time themselves, a bottle of water, a pair of comfortable trainers, etc.

 

Q • • When can I enter these projects?

 

A • • You can enter any of these projects at any time of the year.  However, since they are all year round projects, it is better to join or run them early.  This way, you will have more time to organise yourself and fit them within your priorities and other areas of life.  Also, if you start earlier it is much easier to get help than if you start later.

 

Q • • Why should I run these projects?

 

A • • There are several reasons that may help you to decide to participate like the following:

√ These projects may help you to improve your own life in terms of physical and mental health, wellbeing, fitness and happiness

√ You can use them as a way of bringing back something to the community

√ You can take the opportunity given through these projects to do something against poverty and hardships

√ You can use them to improve sustainable development and reduce adverse impact of climate change on any lives

For example, during the coronavirus crisis and lockdowns, some used them to break out the vicious circle of the COVID-19 lockdown pressure.

 

Q • • Where can I run them?

 

A • • It depends on each of the projects.  

For run activity, you can do it outdoor and or indoor. 

As to gaming activity, you can play online or offline. 

Concerning vote activity, you obviously need to conduct some background research which you can do at home, in the library, online or travel abroad for those who can.  You can as well do fieldwork. 

It really depends on your ambition and what you want to achieve as outcomes.

So, the above are the possible questions and related answers for those who would like to know more about Triple Value Initiatives (All Year Round Projects). 

For those who have still questions to ask, they can address them to CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Zero Income Deficit Campaign: The Impact of Debt on Household Budget

 

As part of Zero Income Deficit Campaign, we are working on the impact of debts on household budget, in particular how the payments of both principal and interest as scheduled in the debt contract can impact household budgets.

Through this work, we hope to undertake the following:

 

√ Look at household budget constraint linked to debts, particularly the elements like available assets, the liquidity of those assets and structure of debt

√ Explore ways with users on how to deal with these monthly fixed expenses linked to debt payments

√ Find out whether or not honouring debt payments becomes distressing or is putting a stress on other budget items

√ Identify distressed items within household budgets and find ways of addressing them with users.

 

This work will help households with budget negatively affected by debt to find ways of maintaining their basic life-sustaining consumption without going into negative net worth and debt distress.  The work will include any budgetary period (that is, monthly or quarterly or six-monthly or yearly period).

For those members of our community who would like to work on the impact of debt on their household budget, they are free to contact us.

Need to work with us on the impact of debt payments on your household budget, please contact CENFACS.

 

Les Journées EcoBio (Écologiques et Biologiques) qui se tiendront du 24 au 28 février 2022 marquent le point culminant de notre mois du Développement Durable.

En quoi consistent les Journées EcoBio ?

Les Journées EcoBio sont les jours de travail sur le lien entre les organismes (par exemple, les animaux, les plantes, etc.) et leur environnement.

Ce sont aussi les jours d’étude sur les organismes vivants.

Les journées portent sur la façon dont nous traitons les êtres vivants et leur environnement afin de répondre à nos propres besoins et objectifs sans compromettre la capacité des générations futures à répondre aux leurs.

Ce sont les jours des humains avec leur environnement ainsi que des humains avec les choses et les organismes vivants.

Quel est le programme de ces Journées EcoBio?

Au menu du programme de ces Journées EcoBio, nous avons choisi les sous-thèmes suivants:

 

24/02/2022: Lien entre organismes et leur environnement

25/02/2022: La biologie et la réduction de la pauvreté

26/02/2022: Les humains avec des choses

27/02/2022: Les humains avec des organismes vivants

28/02/2022: Les humains avec leur environnement

 

Pour vous renseigner et/ou soutenir les Journées EcoBio, veuillez contacter le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Fourth Wednesday (23/02/2022), In Focus: Debt Distress for the Highly Indebted Poor Households

 

To enable us to effectively work with beneficiaries on the theme of Debt Sustainability for the Highly Indebted Poor Households, we have composed the notes relating to Debt Distress as follows:

Understanding of debt distress, signs of debt distress, causes of debt distress, remedies to debt distress, costs of debt distress, and CENFACS’ role in working with HIPHs to reduce debt-induced poverty.

Let us go through each of these composed notes.

 

 

• • Understanding of debt distress

 

Our understanding of debt distress in this post should be placed within the context of HIPHs, since we are not dealing with countries.  We are working with people who make countries.  In this context, a HIPH is in debt distress if the HIPH is unable to fulfil its financial obligations towards its creditors because of financial difficulty or hardship.  There are or could some indication or indicators displaying that a given HIPH is in debt distress or financially troubled.

 

 

 

• • Signs or indicators of debt distress

 

The following can tell if a particular HIPH is in debt distress or debt-distressed:

 

∝ The HIPH has unmanageable debt

∝ The HIPH has cash flow problems if its cash flow statement or projection is often in deficit without any hopes of improvement

∝ The HIPH is defaulting on debt payments at recurring grounds

∝ The HIPH is asking for or often in need of extended debt repayment terms or plan

∝ The HIPH is constantly struggling to make ends meet, particularly to cover its living expenses (e.g. household utility bill arrears) unless it depends on debt

∝ The HIPH has lost moral and is experiencing or on the brink of mental or emotional or physical pain because of debt pressure

∝ The HIPH’s debt cannot be covered by its fixed or illiquid assets

∝ The HIPH’s disposable income is highly sensitive to the economic trends.

 

Many of these signs or indicators can be found in debt-distressed households.  These signs do not come by themselves.  They have origins.

 

• • Causes of debt distress

 

The literature survey on the origins of debt distress for poor households suggests that there are many reasons for which households can end up in debt distress.  Amongst the causes are the following:

 

∝ Lack of knowledge about the mechanics of debt, especially of the interest rate

∝ Lack of monitoring activity between debt servicing costs and monthly income, between cash inflows and cash outflows

∝ Income poverty

∝ Poor budgeting and forecasting

∝ Insufficiency and loss of earning capacity

∝ Debt load

∝ Lawsuit

Etc.

 

Amongst the above stated causes, we would like to concentrate on the lack of knowledge about the mechanics of debt and of the interest rate.

 

• • • Lack of knowledge about the mechanics debt and changes in interest rates

 

Some of the HIPHs do not understand how the mechanics of debt runs and how creditors work out their interest rates (both simple and accrued interests or fixed and flexible).  They do not also comprehend the difference between the principal and interest as well as how economic crises can impact, particularly inflate, debt payments while constraining incomes.  Failure to understand these parameters (i.e., fluctuations in interest rate, inflation, soaring prices, currency exchange rates, debt contracts, income constraints, etc.) may not help them.

Other HIPHs could grasp these parameters.  Yet, when these parameters change a little in a such way that they do not favour them; they could be in serious trouble since their disposable income could be highly sensitive to these parameters.  This situation could easily lead them to debt distress; that is in dire need of help.

However, being in debt distress is not an automatic end of life if there is remedy to the problem or help somewhere.

 

 

• • Remedies to debt distress

 

There are classic remedies to debt distress which include initiatives such as credit counselling and advice, renegotiation of debt obligations, cutting back unnecessary or excessive spending habits, debt consolidation, etc.

Except credit counselling and advice and debt renegotiation, many of these classic answers may not be applicable to HIPHs.  They may not be suitable to them because we are talking about people who are poor and without collaterals to cover their debts/owings.  Many of these debt-distressed households would rather prefer debt cancellation or forgiveness to stop them having continuing distress and be able start again their lives as debtless.  Continuing debt distress is a cost for these financially troubled households.

 

• • Costs of debt distress

 

Debt distress is most acute amongst lower income and highly indebted poor households.  It disproportionally affect the poor because not only they are unable to meet their financial obligations to their creditors, but also they do not have means to find an alternative to the problem.  It costs them financially, psychologically, mentally, physically and emotionally.

In 2016 for example, the Citizens Advice Bureau (5) commissioned the Understanding Society Policy Unit at the Institute for Social and Economic Research (Policy Unit) to conduct new analysis of the Understanding Society survey regarding the impact of debt.  The Citizens Advice Bureau argued from the findings of that study the following:

“The analysis found that there was a statistically significant positive relationship between high levels of personal debt and poor mental health, no statistically significant relationship between debt and low pay or poor physical health and a negative  relationship between unmanageable debt and unemployment”.

Within households where there are children, these costs of debt distress could be even immense and incalculable as debt distress could negatively impact relationships within households, let alone it can jeopardise children’s education, welfare and well-being.  Children from debt-distressed households can be affected by the mood of their households.

In this respect, debt distress can have generational effect in terms of the kind of poverty it can come with or lead to.  Mental and emotional poverty takes time to heal since we are not only talking about poverty being a material lack, but also immaterial hardships.  Working with debt-distressed poor households can help to mitigate some of these problems even if it may not help to heal most of them.

 

• • CENFACS’ role in working with HIPHs to reduce debt-induced poverty

 

As we mentioned it in the preceding notes to these ones, CENFACS‘ role in working with HIPHs is not to reduce or end debts. Our role is to help reduce debt-induced poverty.

In the context of this sub-theme of Debt Distress for HIPHs, it is about working together with them in order to help them navigate their way out poverty linked to debt distress.  Through our work with them, we can undertake the following services:

 

√ Support them to become debt-distress free by setting up a debt-distress resolving strategy

√ Help better manage distressed household assets on their balance sheets

√ Provide them with leads to agencies/organisations dealing with debt distress as far as finances are concerned

√ Explore together ways of reducing the costs of debt distress on them.

Etc.

 

As a result of services provided against debt distress to the HIPHs, we hope to achieve the following together with them:

 

√ HIPHs will become sustainable (that is; having to maintain their basic life-sustaining consumption without going into negative net worth or debt distress)

√ Debt distress, which is already a financial difficulty and hardship as well as a form of poverty, will not transform itself into another type of poverty like mental, emotional or other one for HIPHs, especially for those at high risk of debt distress

√ Long-lasting debt distress, that can have far-reaching negative ramifications in terms of health and the economy of these households including intergenerational poverty, can be avoided.

 

Finally, we would like to end these notes to Debt Sustainability and Distress for HIPHs by highlighting what the World Bank (6) has recently argued for COVID-induced debt and debtors in her World Development Report 2022, which is:

 

“The law and the courts should aim to quickly resolve no-income, no-asset cases and provide a discharge and fresh start for all natural person debtors“. (p. 141)

 

For those members of our community who are debt-induced poor and who would like to discuss their debt-induced poverty problems, they are welcome to contact CENFACS.

For any other queries and enquiries about CENFACS‘ Month of Sustainable Development, the theme of Debt Sustainability and the sub-theme of Debt Distress for the Highly Indebted Poor Households; please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

_________

 

• References

 

(1) https://sdgs.un.org (accessed in February 2022)

(2) https://www.imf.org/en/About/Factsheets/2016/08/01/16/39/Debt-Sustainability-Framework-for-Low-Income-Countries (accessed in February 2022)

(3) https://unfccc.int/blog/a-beginner-s-guide-to-climate-neutrality (accessed in February 2022)

(4) WFP and FAO (2022), Hunger Hotspots, FAO-WFP early warnings on acute food insecurity, February to May 2022 Outlook, Rome. https://doi.org/10.4060/cb8376en 

(5) Joe Lane (2016), A debt effect? How is unmanageable debt related to other problems in people’s lives? at https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/global/citizensadvice/debt (accessed in February 2022)

(6) World Bank (2022), World Development Report 2022: Finance for an Equitable Recovery, Washington, D.C.: World Bank; doi: 10.1596/978-1-4648-1730-4, License: Creative Commons Attribution CCBY 3.0 IGO

_________

 

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 consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future or as a New Year resolution.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ PROJECTS, 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 2022 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

16 February 2022

 

Post No. 235

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Debt Restructuring for the Highly Indebted Poor Households

• The Cyclone-stricken People of Madagascar Desperately Need your Help at Present

• Review of 2021 Peace Appeal for Ituri Region of the North-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Third Wednesday (16/02/2022), In Focus: Debt Restructuring for the Highly Indebted Poor Households

 

Our Month of Sustainable Development continues with the sub-theme of Debt Restructuring for the Highly Indebted Poor Households.

Debt Restructuring for the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPHs) is part of the United Nations (1) Sustainable Development Goal 17 and Target 4 for poor countries.

Debt restructuring matters not only for countries but also for households and individuals making indebted countries.  It is not surprising if Mohamed M. Malik and Peter Holmes à Court (2) argue that

“Without rapid debt restructuring and relief, half a billion dollars flows every week from the continent [Africa] to service lenders money that is desperately needed by vulnerable households and children”.

Debt restructuring can be debtor-friendly so that debt does not cause enormous pain to the already suffering highly indebted poor households.  In particular, debt restructuring should not be done in a way that threatens the coverage of inescapable family/household specific costs.

Therefore, the key message here is debt restructuring should not compromise the ability of HIPHs to meet their inescapable specific costs.  The notion of inescapable family-specific costs stems from the Social Metrics Commission (3) when it defined the total resources available.  Failure to respect this notion in the process of restructuring debts can further damages the lives of HIPHs and eventually push them into persistent and deep poverty.

To get the most of this first message, please read under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

 

• The Cyclone-stricken People of Madagascar Desperately Need your Help at Present

 

The People of Madagascar need your support to recover from the legacies of the cyclone Batsirai.

According to the local sources in Madagascar, since the cyclone impacted nearly ten days of ago in the coast of Madagascar and the region of Fianarantsoa, it has left the following after-effects:

 

∝ Almost 92 LIVES have been TAKEN

∝ 1,200 CLASSROOMS have been DESTROYED putting nearly 112,000 CHILDREN at risk of DE-SCHOOLING

∝ More than 60,000 PERSONS have been DISPLAYED

∝ There is a HUGE FOOD CRISIS

∝ Two TOWNS were STRICKEN by the disaster (which are: Manakara and Mananjary)

∝ There is an ENORMOUS LACK OF ACCESS to safe drinking water

∝ Between 300,000 and 400,000 PEOPLE are WITHOUT access to healthcare

Etc.

 

Before even the cyclone Batisrai stroke, it is known that Madagascar is suffering from the following:

 

∝ More than ONE MILLION people in Le Grand Sud of Madagascar rely on international food aid

∝ The country has experienced TWO-YEAR drought

∝ ONLY 3% of people are vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2 in Madagascar. 

 

Additionally, it emerges from the findings of the outlook jointly carried out by the the World Food Programme and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (4) that

 

“Madagascar continues to remain a hunger hotspot due to persisting high levels of acute food insecurity (that is; any manifestation of food deprivation that threatens lives or livelihoods regardless of the causes, context or duration” (p. 13)

 

Because of the above mentioned after-effects and the existing food deprivation in Madagascar, particularly in the areas severely hit by the cyclone Batsirai; the need for emergency support is even greater than ever before.

There are organisations (like United Nations Children’s Fund, World Food Programme and others) that are already on the ground and trying to help as much as they can.  However, because of the scale and severity of the Batsirai shock there is a need to complement these efforts.

The demand for items such as emergency medical products, accommodation tents, water purification equipment and food stuffs is 5 times greater than before the cyclone Batsirai stroke.

They need life-saving and sustaining services restored as the few basic infrastructures have been destroyed by the power of the cyclone.

You can help the Cyclone-hit People of Madagascar to recover from this calamitous natural disaster.

Would consider making a gift to help the Cyclone-stricken People of Madagascar to navigate their way out of this crisis?

You can donate, gift aid and or support differently by

phoning, e-mailing, texting CENFACS and filling the contact form on this website.

Please support today so that we can help the struggling Cyclone-hit People of Madagascar to navigate their way out the destructive effects of this environmental disaster. 

To discuss and get further details about this appeal, please contact CENFACS at http://cenfacs.org.uk/contact-us/

Thank you for considering delivering on this appeal.

 

 

 

• Review of 2021 Peace Appeal for Ituri Region of the North-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo

 

In February 2021, we launched an appeal to support innocent peoples (that is, women, men and children) who were suffering from a deadly conflict between the agriculturalist Lendu and pastoralist Hema ethnic groups in the Ituri region of the North-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

One year on since then, we are reviewing this appeal to assess if the goal of ending situational poverty created by this deadly conflict and objectives of this appeal have been reached.  In particular, we are assessing if the following objectives have been met:

 

√ Saving lives of displayed women, men and children

√ Stopping the creation of favourable conditions for the spread of infections like COVID-19

√ Restoring destroyed basic infrastructures (e.g. homes, fields, livestocks, health centres, etc.)

√ Preventing human rights violations

Etc.

 

We are as well doing this review since the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and the World Food Programme (op. cit.) jointly argue in their findings that

 

“The protracted food crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo – country already 5.4 million projected in Emergency (Integrated Food Security Phase Classification 4) nationwide for the January to June 2022 period – will likely be a deterioration.  This is expected to be the consequence of further intensification of violence in the Eastern province and the secondary impact of a fourth wave of COVID-19, potentially leading to restrictions by neighbouring countries that will affect trade and other livelihood activities” (p. 14).

 

The review, which is a post-appeal needs assessment, will help us to determine if there is still urgent and pressing humanitarian needs that require another appeal.  The review will as well contribute to find out what has been done so far and what gaps need to be filled in our collaborative work with the locals and their organisations.

To find out about this review and to add your inputs in terms of what has been done since we launched our first appeal, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• African Children’s Climate and Sustainable Development Goals (Generation Global Goals Project): Generational Impact Analysis of COVID-19 and its Variants on Children

 

Third round work about the generational effects of COVID-19 and its variants on children  regarding the realisation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

 

It is fair to argue that COVID-19 has left and will leave some scars and fractures in the realisation of SDGs, particularly but not exclusively for those aspects of these goals relating to children.  The study on the following five selected SDGs will help to speculate on how COVID-19 is impacting or can impact the realisation of SDGs for children (particularly but not exclusively African children).

 

• • Summaries of possible generational effects of COVID-19 and its variants on children regarding the realisation of SDGs

 

Let us broadly consider the five selected goals (Goal 13 to 17) out of 17 United Nations SDGs for dealing with the COVID-19 effects.

 

Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

 

Although climate advocates called for urgent climate action during the COP26 at the 2021 Glasgow Summit, there is a need to recognise that COVID-19 did slow climate action in many parts of the world.  This slowing down can only have some impacts on children and future generations.

Besides that, there is still the goal of mobilising funds under the Green Climate Funds which needs to be met.  One could hope that these funds will reach poor children, victims of climate adversity.  One could expect as well that climate action will be at a faster pace like during the pre-COVID-19 period.

 

Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

 

The increase of plastic waste linked to COVID-19 items (such as gloves, masks, sanitizing plastic bottles, etc.) in the seas and oceans as well as the threat they pose to marine resources is just one of the many revelations about how COVID-19 and its variants could directly or indirectly impact children and future generations.

Actions against the threats to the ocean under the One Ocean Summit (5) recently held in Brest (France) are welcome,  However, the world is still struggling to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development of children.

 

Goal 15: Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

 

COVID-19 and associated lockdowns may have halted some industrial activities, especially non essential ones.  However, natural events such as drought, floods, landslides, etc. are still occurring.

For example, drought in the Horn of Africa has affected the availability of food and water for both humans and other beings (flora and fauna).  Likewise, deforestation is still happening even if it is at low pace; just as the loss of biodiversity has not yet stopped.  What does this mean for children?

It means threat to the ability of children and the generations to come to meet their own needs.

 

Goal 16: Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

 

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and the World Food Programme (op. cit.) argue that

“In the Central African Republic, Central Sahel, the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, northern Ethiopia, northern Nigeria, northern Mozambique, Myanmar, the Sudan, South Sudan and Yemen, conflict or organized violence remain key drivers of acute food insecurity. Violence has reduced people’s access to, and the availability of food by displacing populations, limiting their access to agricultural land and other livelihoods, and disrupting commercial trade and services and markets”.

From the above statement, it is possible to argue that peace, inclusive societies and access to justice are still a matter of dispute for the people living these areas of Africa.  Children in these parts of Africa are also the victims of the lack of peace, inclusivity and justice.

 

Goal 17: Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development

 

The COVID-19 and associated effects have negatively impacted the partnership for sustainable development as the means to keep this partnership during the global lockdowns was only via information and communication technologies (ICT) and digital infrastructures.  Yet, there is an ICT and digital divide between regions of the world, between the wealthiest and the poorest.

The majority of poor African children did not or do not have enough ICT and digital facilities to maintain and strengthen  this partnership.  So, there is still long way to see this partnership to be better implemented and revitalised.

We hope that the above summaries will provide some ideas about the generational impact analysis of COVID-19 and its variants on children, particularly but not exclusively on African children.

For those who would like to know more about our findings from this third round work and the stories of poverty reduction happening in Africa from CENFACS’ Africa-based Sister Organisations working with children, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Project Planning Service for the Users of Triple Value Initiatives (or All Year-round Projects)

 

Following last week’s announcement regarding the start-up of Triple Value Initiatives (made of Run, Play and Vote projects), our project planning service is now available for those who would like to engage with either of these projects.

For those who are interested in this service, they can contact CENFACS by phoning, texting, e-mailing and completing the contact form on this website.  We can together discuss in detail your proposals about either your Run or Play or Vote projects.

 

 

 

• Simultaneous Reduction of Debt-induced Poverty and Poverty linked to the Lack of Progress in the Realisation of Sustainable Development Goals

 

Debt-induced poverty can have several effects on highly indebted poor people and households.  One of these effects is it could significantly delay or slow the progress about the realisation of sustainable development goals for the highly indebted poor households.

As part of the Month of Sustainable Development, we are looking at ways of simultaneously reducing both debt-induced poverty and poverty linked to the lack of progress in the realisation of sustainable development goals.  We are doing in exploring ways of having initiatives that tackle the two issues.

For example, let us take the case of energy debt-induced poverty.  If energy debt-induced poverty reaches a certain proportion or level, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7 of ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all may be off track for the energy indebted poor.  To avoid this to happen, both energy debt-induced poverty and poverty linked to the lack of progress regarding this Goal 7 need to be addressed.

So, this week we would be working with the community on ways of addressing both debt-induced poverty and poverty associated with the lack of progress towards the realisation of sustainable development goals.

Those who may be interested in this area of work and would like to be part of it or need to enquire about it, they are free to contact CENFACS.

 

 

Nous continuons à travailler sur l’Agenda de développement et le Programme de réduction de la pauvreté des années vingt-vingt (années 2020).

Dans le cadre de notre travail sur cet agenda et ce programme, nous sélectionnons chaque mois un objectif particulier de réduction de la pauvreté sur lequel nous concentrer.

Cette sélection peut provenir de l’un des objectifs déclarés de l’Agenda de développement et du Programme de réduction de la pauvreté des années 2020 ou en dehors de ces objectifs déclarés.

Pour ce mois de février 2022, nous avons sélectionné la Réduction de la pauvreté induite par la dette. Qu’est-ce que la réduction de la pauvreté induite par la dette? Qu’est-ce que sa sélection ou son orientation implique?

Comprendre la réduction de la pauvreté induite par la dette

La réduction de la pauvreté induite par la dette est toute mesure ou initiative prise pour réduire l’état, causé par la dette, de ne pas avoir d’argent et pas de biens matériels ou d’en avoir très peu.

En bref, il s’agit d’abaisser l’état de manque de revenu minimum pour acheter les besoins fondamentaux de la vie; état causé ou exacerbé par l’état de devoir quelque chose.

Implications pour la sélection de l’objectif du mois

Après avoir sélectionné l’objectif du mois, nous concentrons notre travail et notre état d’esprit sur l’objectif sélectionné en nous assurant que dans notre vie réelle et quotidienne, nous l’appliquons. Nous attendons également de nos sympathisants qu’ils travaillent sur le même objectif en soutenant ceux qui peuvent souffrir du type de pauvreté lié à l’objectif pour le mois dont nous parlons au cours du mois donné.

Pour plus de détails sur l’objectif du mois et sa procédure de sélection, veuillez contacter le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Third Wednesday (16/02/2022), In Focus: Debt Restructuring for the Highly Indebted Poor Households

 

In order to deal with the issue of Debt Restructuring for the Highly Indebted Poor Households, we have organised the following notes:

 

the notion of debt restructuring, causes of debt restructuring, approaches to debt restructuring, debt restructuring techniques, household debt restructuring and poverty reduction, debt restructuring and inescapable household-specific costs, political economy of the renegotiation and agreement of debt restructuring, and how CENFACS can work with the community on debt restructuring matter.

 

• • The notion of debt restructuring

 

The notion of debt restructuring here will be put in the context of individuals or households as we are dealing with households.  As a result, we are referring to its definition as given by the online dictionary ‘financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com’ (6) which states that

“Debt restructuring is the process of a person or business negotiating and agreeing with its creditors to reduce its debt or to revise a repayment plan”.

Basically, debt restructuring is a debt reduction with an extension to the repayment plan or programme.  The reduction could be about the amount of principal or interest or both.  Debt restructurings can be informal, formal, enhanced and hybrid.

Because the above mentioned definition includes negotiation and agreement between debtor and creditor, we are going to come back on these two elements (negotiation and agreement) below when we will explain the political economy of the renegotiation and agreement of debt restructuring.

 

• • Causes of debt restructuring

 

Debt restructuring can stem from various sources.  Among the causes, it is worth mentioning the following:

the evolution of debt structure over time, mismatch of debt and assets during the life time of debt, debt given on a wrong product or informational basis (e.g. mis-sold credits), misalignment between debt and cash flows, early repayments, etc.

HIPHs can come across these causes that could form the basis for debt restructuring.

 

• • Approaches to debt restructuring

 

To restructure debts, there are many approaches, which basically include two solutions:

a) market-driven solutions

b) government approach, which can be government-sponsored debt restructuring programme and/or legal/institutional framework.

The purpose of us highlighting these approaches is not to elaborate on them.  Instead, it is about CENFACS working with the community members and helping them to understand how these approaches work and find out how helpful and supportive they can be in dealing with debt restructuring that these members may face.

 

 

• • Debt restructuring techniques

 

Principally, there are two techniques to restructure debt, which are: settlement and modifications of the terms of debt agreement.

a) Settlement

Concerning settlement, HIPHs cannot settle their debts or convert them into equity because they do not have the means to do it.

b) Modifications of the terms of debt agreement

Regarding modifications of the terms of debt agreement, they can include: interest rate, extension of maturity date, reduction of the face amount, reduction of accrued interest, etc.

In the context of the work between CENFACS and the community members, the focus will be on the aspects of modifications of the terms of debt agreement and how they can or cannot meet them.

 

• • Household debt restructuring and poverty reduction

 

Poor people and households may not be able to pay their debts.  This is why it makes sense to look at the connections between household debt restructuring and poverty reduction.  To look at the relationship between the two, we are going to refer to social and economic metrics of weekly total resources available, particularly the metrics of inescapable family-specific costs, as provided by the Social Metrics Commission (op. cit.).

 

• • • The metrics of inescapable family-specific costs

 

According to the Social Metrics Commission (op. cit.), this metrics includes:

“recurring housing costs, childcare costs, extra cost of disability, social care costs, others [other costs] that require more research/might apply in different
countries (e.g. travel-to-work, energy, healthcare)” (p. 20).

Any sensible household debt restructuring policy or plan needs to take into account this metrics.  In practical parlance, the given policy or plan would consider the cost of living.

For example, the cost of living calculator or index produced by Expatistan (7) gives an estimation in terms of the summary of cost of living in the United Kingdom.  As calculated by Expatistan, the estimated monthly costs for the family of four in the UK would be £3,570.

Therefore, our argument/key message is that household debt restructuring must take into account the reduction of poverty of the given indebted poor household.  In other words, household debt restructuring should not threaten or  destroy the ability or capacity of the HIPH to cover their inescapable specific costs.  Otherwise, debt restructuring can lead to persistent and deep poverty, not to poverty reduction.

 

• • Political economy of the renegotiation and agreement of debt restructurings

 

The economist Jean-Baptiste Say (8) defined political economy as

“The manner in which wealth is produced, distributed, and consumed.  Wealth, nevertheless, is essentially independent of political organization”.

It is also the search for ways to enrich a nation as Adam Smith (9) argued in his treatise on economic development, his Wealth of Nations in 1776.

By understanding the role of negotiation in political economy, HIPHs and their advocates can use their negotiating skills and bargaining power, however limited, to ensure that the problem of poverty reduction is at the heart of debt restructuring negotiations and agreements, but not on the periphery.  This is important since debt restructuring reflects on the problematics of wealth creation for some and poverty creation for others.

In every negotiation and agreement, there is what is to be gained and what is to be lost; similarly, there are compromises to be made between the negotiating and agreeing parties. This can make debt restructuring a zero-sum game. What could be difficult to understand is that in debt negotiations and agreement poverty reduction is often marginalised or simply forgotten, especially when talking about HIPHs.

 

 

• • How CENFACS can work with the community on debt restructuring matter

 

Our work with the community on debt restructuring matter is about checking if the debtor has reached The Square of Escape or Inescapable from poverty.  What is the Square of Escape or Inescapable from poverty?

 

• • • Le Dernier Carré Model or the Last Square of Poverty Relief or the Square of Escape and Inescapable from poverty

 

It is CENFACS’ a four-dimensional model of working together with local people to help reduce amongst them four types of poverty respectively related to elements: income, consumption, energy and employment.  Through this theoretical model, it is possible to know if an individual has reached the four types of poverty, which are: income poverty, consumption poverty, energy poverty and in-working poverty.  In order to do that, we use the appropriate metrics relating to each of these types as follows.

For income poverty, we would use income-based measure of income poverty like the total resources available as defined by the Social Metrics Commission (op. cit.)

Regarding consumption poverty, we shall call to food poverty line, which is defined by ‘devinit.org’ (10) as “the cost of a basket of food with minimum recommended nutritional intake”.  This metrics can be used to quantify consumption poverty.

Concerning energy poverty, we shall turn to energy poverty line, which is “the sensitivity of the energy to household income as an indicator to identify the energy poverty”, according to Lu Jiang et al. (11).

As to in-working poverty, we shall consider “household equivalised disposable income below 60 per cent of the national household median” as specified by Abigail McKnight et al (12).

All these quantitative measures will be involved in the theory of the last square of poverty relief and help to determine a four dimensional poverty.

In the context of debt restructuring for HIPHs, the model will help us to establish if debt restructuring is a viable option to be conducted or to look for an alternative to debt restructuring.  If debt restructuring is not a viable option, then the focus will be helping them to reduce debt-induced poverty.

 

• • • CENFACS’ role in working with HIPHs to reduce debt-induced poverty

 

As we explained in the last week’s notes about debt relief for HIPHs, CENFACS‘ role is not to reduce debt.  It is not to restructure debts that our users or community members hold or owe.  We believe that there are organisations and specialised players in the debt restructuring market that are better placed than us to deal with the mechanics of debt restructuring and relief.

CENFACS‘ aim in running the theme of Debt Sustainability for HIPHs is to help reduce debt-induced poverty.  In the context of debt restructuring, it means that debt restructuring programme needs to preserve or protect the coverage of HIPHs’ inescapable specific costs if one wants to avoid poverty and socio-economic collapse of these HIPHs.

For those members of our community who are debt-induced poor and who would like to discuss their debt-induced poverty problems, they are welcome to contact CENFACS.

For any other queries and enquiries about CENFACS‘ Month of Sustainable Development, the theme of Debt Sustainability and the sub-theme of Debt Restructuring for the Highly Indebted Poor Households; please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

_________

 

• References

 

(1) https://sdgs.un.org (accessed in February 2022)

(2) Mohamed M. Malik and Peter Holmes à Court (2021), A perfect storm is pushing children in Sub-Saharan Africa into crisis at https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/03/perfect-storm-children-sub-saharan-africa-crisis/ (accessed in February 2022)

(3) https://socialmetricscommission.gov.uk/wp-content/upload/2020/06/Measuring-Poverty-2020-Web.pdf (accessed in February 2022)

(4) WFP and FAO (2022), Hunger Hotspots, FAO-WFP early warnings on acute foods insecurity: February to May 2022 Outlook, Rome, https://doi.org/10.4060/cb837en (accessed in February 2022)

(5) https://oneoceansummit.fr/en/ (accessed in February 2022)

(6) https://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living (accessed in February 2022)

(7) https://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/debt+restructuring (accessed in February 2022)

(8) Jean Baptiste Say, A Treatise on Political Economy; or the Production, Distribution, and Consumption of Wealth, ed. Clement C. Biddle, trans. C. R. Prinsep from the 4th ed. of the French, (Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1855. 4th-5th ed. ).

(9) Adam Smith (1776), The Wealth of Nations

(10) https://www.devinit.org/org/resources/food-poverty-global-regional-and-national/# (accessed in February 2022)

(11) McKnight, A., Stewart, K., Himmelivert, S, & Palillo, M. (2016), Low Pay and In-work Poverty: Preventative Measures and Preventative Approaches, Evidence Review, May 2016

(12) Lu Jiang, Lu Yu, Bing Xue, Xing pen Chan, Zhifu Mi: Who is energy poor?  Evidence from the least developed regions in China

_________

 

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 consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future or as a New Year resolution.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ PROJECTS, 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 2022 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

09 February 2022

 

Post No. 234

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Debt Relief for the Highly Indebted Poor Households

• Activity/Task 2 of the Knowledge (K) Project: Knowledge about How Those in Need are Meeting Sustainable Development Goals

• Zero Income Deficit Campaign: Household Budget

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Second Wednesday (09/02/2022), In Focus: Debt Relief for the Highly Indebted Poor Households

 

Our Month of Sustainable Development continues with the sub-theme of Debt Relief for the Highly Indebted Poor Households. 

Debt Relief for the Highly Indebted Poor Countries is part of the United Nations (1) Sustainable Development Goal 17 and Target 4 for poor countries.  Debt of these countries may need to be relieved since the World Bank Group (2) estimated that

“Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa recorded the highest increase in external debt stocks in 2020, on average 10.7 per cent” (p. 10)

Although this data does not include domestic debt, it still matters from the perspective of debt relief since the populations of these indebted Sub-Saharan African countries are the ones to pay this mounting external debt.

Because countries are made with people and households, we are looking at debt relief at the household or people level rather than at the public or national level.

We are dealing with Debt Relief for the Highly Indebted Poor Households (HIPHs), particularly those household members of our community and members of sister communities who may be highly indebted poor and who need some advice, guidance and leads to debt relief support services.  Our work with and support to them does not replace or reduce any assistance they may have somewhere else.  Instead, it reinforces it.

In addition, debt relief support services should not be an end to themselves.  Instead, they should lead to poverty reduction and to the improvement of the quality of life for debtors.

So, the key message here is HIPHs need their debts to be remitted or relieved if one wants to see them not living or going deeper in poverty.  This remission or relief could be total or partial, and it has to make a helpful difference to them.

To get the full grips with this first message, please read under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

 

• Activity/Task 2 of the Knowledge (K) Project: Knowledge about How Those in Need are Meeting Sustainable Development Goals

 

In the process of localisation of sustainable development goals, it is interesting to find out how local people with whom CENFACS work with are doing in terms of the realisation of these goals.  This interest is also felt when one is trying to know and learn about the needs of those in need.

In the context of the ‘K‘ Project, we are trying to know the real needs of those suffering from all sorts of poverty so that their problems could be better identified, understood, unveiled and addressed in appropriate and efficient manner.

For example, the coronavirus pandemic has made the meeting of poor people’s needs very difficult and in some situations even impossible.   In that difficulty or impossibility, the prospect for realising the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals has become distant.

So, knowing whether or not poor people are meeting needs and moving towards the realisation of sustainable development goals is an interesting issue.  This month, we are working to know if our members are meeting or failing to meet sustainable development goals. 

However, we are not going to limit ourselves to the knowledge of their needs.  This is because knowing their realisation or failure is one thing.  Doing something to support them if they are failing is much better and it is on the agenda.

For those members of our community who would like us to be aware of their needs and or who are failing to meet sustainable development goals, they can get in touch so that together we can work through the ‘K‘ Project and help them to navigate their way out of their problems.

 

 

• Zero Income Deficit Campaign: Household Budget

 

The next phase of our work about Zero Income Deficit Campaign is to work with users on budgeting of their income and expenses.  This work is done in conjunction with our work on balance sheet and cash flow.  The following summarises  what we will be doing.

 

• • What is budgeting work with users?

 

It is about dealing with the process of preparing households’ or users’ financial plan for a given future period, which could be a month, a quarter, a semester, a year or any other period that users may want us to work with them.   This financial plan, which is expressed in quantitative and financial terms, will include income forecasts and planned expenses for households/users who will work with us, like in any budgeting process.

 

 

• • What we hope to achieve

 

Through this process, it is hoped that households and users will be able to achieve the following:

 

√ To clarify financial responsibilities within their households

√ To coordinate household functions

√ To improve management and control of their resources

√ To correct or fix any potential problems due to bad or poor budgeting within their households

Etc.

 

 

• • Budgeting with users as an extra help and support

 

There are, on the market, many organisations offering budgeting recipes (online, in print and in-person).  However, not all our users can understand or feel comfortable with  budgetary jargon and processes; just like not everybody feels good at dealing with numbers, tables and charts.

For those members of our community who cannot deal with budgeting process by themselves or who have no time to budget their resources and may need extra help and support with their budgets, they can feel free to contact CENFACS.

CENFACS can work with them on income forecasting and expenses planning.  We can as well work out their budget surplus or deficit depending on how their accounts look like on a monthly or quarterly or six-monthly or yearly basis.

To ask for extra help and support about budgeting your income and expenses, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• African Children’s Climate and Sustainable Development Goals (Generation Global Goals Project): Generational Impact Analysis of COVID-19 and its Variants on Children

 

Second round work about the generational effects of COVID-19 and its variants on children  regarding the realisation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

 

It is without doubt to argue that COVID-19 has left and will leave some scars and fractures in the realisation of SDGs, particularly but not exclusively those aspects of these goals relating to children.  The study on the following six selected SDGs will help to speculate on how COVID-19 is impacting or can impact the realisation of SDGs for children (particularly but not exclusively African children).

 

• • Summaries of possible generational effects of COVID-19 and its variants on children regarding the realisation of SDGs

 

Let us broadly consider the six selected goals (Goal 7 to 12) out of 17 United Nations SDGs for dealing with the COVID-19 effects.

 

Goal 7: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

 

The soaring price of energy (e.g. electricity and gas) combined with the prospect for phasing down coal as source of energy can only have adverse impacts for those African children who are poor and coal-dependant.  These children may not have the means to transition to carbon net zero or post-carbon economy (that is; from polluting to clean and green energy and technology) if the pledges made to developing countries do not materialise.

In these circumstances, the Goal of ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all; may not materialise by its initial deadline.

 

Goal 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

 

Parents of poor children working in non essential economy suffered a big loss of jobs as a result of COVID-19 lockdowns.  Many informal and casual workers as well as traders experienced an unprecedented  cut in activities, jobs and earnings.  The lingering effects of COVID-19 on jobs and earnings in terms of cuts are still felt until today.  These huge cuts could only adversely impact children of these workers.

Thus, promoting sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all; is still a distant prospect for COVID-19 induced poor and unemployed parents.  Their children may not have the chance to realise some of the targets within Goal 8, let alone the realisation of other SDGs and targets by 2030.

 

Goal 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

 

COVID-19 has displayed the weaknesses and lack of critical infrastructures for poverty reduction to help children from poor families to come out poverty, let alone to embrace sustainable development.  For example, urban poor children in many large cities of Africa do not have access to resilient infrastructure to secure safe drinking water, sanitation, healthcare, decent housing, etc.

The cost of building resilient infrastructure to meet international standards and human rights approach is beyond reach in over-indebted African countries because of COVID-19 recovery bills and debts.

Additionally, industrialisation is more than just building a plan or a factory.  It involves harnessing social change and fabric in places stricken by the legacies of COVID-19 or other epidemics or wars or civil insecurity.

Therefore, it will take such a long time for African children to see the fruits of Goal 9 to materialise as long as the COVID-19 damaging effects linger in their daily lives.

 

Goal 10: Reduce inequality within and among countries

 

One of the generational adverse impacts to mention here is the uneven and asymmetrical distribution of the effects of COVID-19 and lockdowns.  This generational adverse impact or inequality has been in education where in some places in Africa some generations of children could not attend in-person school or home school because of mandatory lockdowns.

They could not follow online lessons through devises because they have not got equipment at home such as computers, laptops, tablets, etc.  This is let alone the digital divide they have been already experiencing compared to children who are digitally educated and wealthy.  This uneven access to information and communication technology and digital infrastructure continues even at the time of COVID-19 variants.

 

Goal 11: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

 

Many urban cities of Africa are not inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable for children of poor families.   Urban poor children experience poor living conditions such as appalling overcrowding, contaminated water, poor or absent of sanitation, lack of services and the constant threat of floods, landslides or industrial pollution.  They are exposed to severe environmental health risks.  This is let alone exploitation, abuse and trafficking.

The astronomic COVID-19 recovery costs do not make things easy for many urban cities in Africa in order for them to make human settlements (including children making part of these settlements) inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

 

Goal 12:  Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

 

Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns mean a move towards net zero consumption and production; that is consumption and production that do not add extra CO₂ emissions to the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.  Net zero consumption and production are an effort that any of the members of the global community can make in order to help achieve the global goal of 1.5 degrees Celsius under the Paris Climate Treaty.

To move towards a net zero consumption and production trajectory, one needs to reduce the adverse generational impact of COVID-19 on children if one wants to take them through this trajectory.  This is because COVID-19 crisis and the related lingering economic effects have reduced choices for many poor consumers and producers.  The children of these poor consumers and producers are not exempted from these long-standing adverse COVID-19 induced economic effects.

We hope that the above summaries provide some ideas about the generational impact analysis of COVID-19 and its variants on children, particularly but not exclusively on African children.

For those who would like to know more about our findings from this second round work and the stories of poverty reduction happening in Africa from CENFACS’ Africa-based Sister Organisations working with children, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

 

• Triple-value-initiative Start-up/Planning

 

In order to support those who have decided or may decide to engage with All-year Round Projects or Triple Value Initiatives, we are running start up sessions for each of them (i.e. Run, Play and Vote projects).  What do we mean by running start up sessions for Run, Play and Vote projects?

 

• • Start up for Run, Play and Vote Projects

 

Start up for these projects is about working with whoever decides to execute the above mentioned projects to set the tone of their projects and expectations for themselves.  It is also about setting realistic goals and working out the right methodology from the beginning to the end in their project journey.  It includes better planning and management.

 

• • Phases of project planning and management

 

We are going to deal with different phases of project planning or start up from the idea (of running or playing or voting) to the initiative implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

Whether you want to run or play or vote; you need to undertake a basic project planning in terms of the way you want to do it.  This basic project planning/start-up will include things like the following:

 

σ Aims (changes you plan to achieve)

σ Impact (a longer-term effects of your project)

σ Inputs (resources you will put into your initiative)

σ Monitoring (regularly and systematically collecting and recording information)

σ Outcomes (changes and effects that may happen from your initiative)

σ Indicators (measures or metrics that show you have achieved your planned outcomes)

σ Budget (income and expenses for your initiative)

Etc. 

 

As we all know, not everybody can understand these different steps they need to navigate in order to make their initiative or project a success story.  That is why we are offering this opportunity to those who would like to engage with the Triple Value Initiatives (Run, Play and Vote projects) to first talk to CENFACS so that we can together soften some of the hurdles they may encounter in their preparation and delivery.

For those who would like to discuss with CENFACS their Triple-value-initiative plans or proposals, they are welcome to contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Goal for the Month: Reduction of Debt-induced Poverty

 

We continue to work on the Twenty-twenties (2020s) Development Agenda and Poverty Reduction Programme.  As part of working on this Agenda and Programme, every month we select  a particular poverty reduction goal to focus on.  This selection can come from either one of the stated goals of the 2020s Development Agenda and Poverty Reduction Programme or outside these stated goals.

For this February 2022, we have selected the Reduction of Debt-induced Poverty.  What is Reduction of Debt-induced Poverty?  What does its selection or focus imply?

 

 

• • Understanding the Reduction of Debt-induced Poverty

 

Debt-induced Poverty Reduction is any measure or initiative taken to decrease the state, caused by debt, of having no money and no material possessions or of having very little of them.  Briefly, it is about lowering the state of lacking the minimum income to purchase the basic needs of life; state caused or exacerbated by the state of owing something.

 

• • Implications for selecting the goal for the month

 

After selecting the goal for the month, we focus our work and mind set on the selected goal by making sure that in our real life we apply it.  We also expect our supporters to work on the same goal by supporting those who may be suffering for the type of poverty linked to the goal for the month we are talking about during the given month.

For further details on the goal of the month and its selection procedure, please contact CENFACS.

 

Plan de travail de février 2022 sur la viabilité de la dette

Le plan de travail suivant donne un aperçu de la manière dont nous allons à la fois mener à bien le Mois du Développement Durable et soutenir les ménages de la communauté sur la question de la viabilité de la dette.

À partir de chaque mercredi de ce mois, nous traiterons de chacun des quatre éléments de la cible 4 de l’Objectif de Développement Durable 17 des Nations Unies comme suit:

Mercredis/Dates                           Notes/Sous-thèmes

1er mercredi / 02/02/2022 :     Financement par emprunt

2ème mercredi / 09/02/2022:  Allégement de la dette

3ème mercredi / 16/02/2022:   Restructuration de la dette

4ème mercredi / 23/02/2022:   Réduction de surendettement

Notre travail portera sur les questions ci-dessus en relation avec la COVID-19 et la pauvreté en ce qui concerne les pauvres.

Pour plus de détails, veuillez contacter le CENFACS.

 

Main Development

 

• Second Wednesday (09/02/2022), In Focus: Debt Relief for the Highly Indebted Poor Households

 

To approach Debt Relief for the Highly Indebted Poor Households (HIPHs) and to prepare ourselves in the way we could support these households making our community, we have organised these notes as follows:

Concepts linked to debt relief, relationship between debt relief and poverty reduction, energy debt relief for  HIPHs, debt relief assistance programmes and CENFACS‘ programme of work with the community on debt relief.

Let us look at these notes.

 

• • Key Concepts

 

There are two key concepts we would like to highlight in these notes, which are: debt relief and net present value of debt.

 

• • • Debt relief

 

The literature review about debt relief provides lots of definitions about it.   After reviewing some of them, we have selected the definition provided by the website ‘lawinsider.com’ (3), which argues that

“Debt relief means the release of the outstanding debt.  [It also] means the reduction of debt for consideration that is less than the face value of the debt”.

We have also chosen the definition of the website ‘financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com’ (4), which states that

“Debt relief is the forgiveness of a legal obligation, in whole or in part”.

There is something in common in the above two definitions, which is the need to remit what is owed by the debtor to the creditor.  It is hoped that this remission would provide to the debtor or HIPHs a blast of oxygen or a breathing space.  The larger is the relief, the bigger could be the breathing space.  For HIPHs, they could see this relief of debt as a road to the reduction of poverty induced by debt.

Briefly, debt relief is a measure to partially or totally remit debts; measure that can lead to the reduction or refinancing of debts so that the debtor can find easy way to pay the creditor.  To remit debts, there could be a need to arrange a plan or programme of action.

 

• • • Net present value of debt

 

In order to relieve debt, it helps to know its net present value.  What is the net present value of debt?

According to the  International Monetary Fund (5),

“The Net Present Value of Debt measures the actual financial burden on a country of various kinds of debt and allows a more meaningful comparison of debt burdens across low-income countries than the face value of debt.  The Net Present Value of Debt is a measure that takes into account the degree of concessionary.  It is defined as the sum of all future debt-service obligations (interest and principal) on existing debt, discounted at the market interest rate”.

Although the International Monetary Fund refers to countries in its definition, this definition can be extended to include micro-economic entities such as households.   It can be referred to them if one can make the hypothesis that a country is a sum of  households.  In this respect, it makes sense to know the net present value of debts owed by households.   In fact, debt statistics are sometimes presented in terms of debt per household or per capita or per head.

 

CORRELATIONS BETWEEN COVID-19 INDUCED DEBT AND COVID-19 INDUCED POVERTY

Is anyone doing some research work on the connections between COVID-19-induced debt and COVID-19-induced poverty?

If yes, please could you share your findings with CENFACS?

Thank you!

 

• • Relationship between debt relief and poverty reduction

 

Debt relief is a key to poverty reduction.  As the website ‘arstechnica.com’ (6) explains this:

“Behavioural scientists have found that poverty and the debt that goes with it actually change people’s behaviour, including how they respond to monetary decisions”.

From the behavioural perspective, debt relief can induce significant changes.  These changes can happen to HIPHs as well.

So, reducing debt can be a sensible measure if those living poverty and who are indebted have been offered debt relief or reduction.  Debt relief can help HIPHs to improve the access to and quality of health, housing, education, water, sanitation and other essential needs to the HIPHs.

If the debt is high, the indebted poor debtor can experience enormous difficulties to meet their basic life-sustaining needs.  High levels of indebtedness associated with soaring debt service can lead to the reduction in available and necessary resources to meet HIPHs’ needs.  And failure to meet them can further keep or lead them to poverty.  This is why debt relief could be the key to the reduction of poverty for them.  This applies to both formal and informal debtor.

For example, many of poor debtors would be informal borrowers as a good number of them would fail to meet universal institutionalised lenders’ criteria.  They may have to borrow from relatives, friends and families, community members, etc. in the informal sector in order to meet their basic life-sustaining needs.  They would still face the repayment issue even if there was no interest to pay on the loan received.  Having their debts relieved or reduced can positively impact them, especially if they are living below the poverty line.

The energy debt relief is another good example as to why debt relief could be a key to poverty reduction.

 

 

 

• • Energy debt relief for highly indebted poor households

 

The soaring price of energy (in particular electricity and gas) means that there is a need to relieve energy debt for HIPHs as many of them could be energy poor.  A growing number of them lives in energy poverty whereby most of their income goes towards the cost of buying energy.  Many of them could be in arrears regarding the payment of their energy bills in order to keep running their households.  This situation keeps them in energy poverty as well.  But, what is energy poverty?

 

• • • Definitions of energy poverty

 

There are many definitions of energy poverty.  In the context of these notes, energy poverty will be looked at from two perspectives:

(a) A single energy poverty line, based either on the minimal energy requirement or on the share of energy expenditure on household income as conceptualised by Barnes et al. (7)

(b) The sensitivity of the energy share to household income as an indicator to identify the energy poverty line, like the study of Lu Jiang et al. (8) tells us.

Barnes et al. use a demand-based approach to define the energy poverty line.  They define energy poverty line as

“the threshold point at which energy consumption begins rise with increases in household income.  At or below this threshold point, households consume a bare minimum level of energy and should be considered energy poor”.

In their study, Lu Jiang et al. differentiate energy poverty line from the sensitivity of the energy share to household income.  In their analysis on the energy poor in China, they argue that energy poverty line is

“the line at which energy is used to sustain basic life needs”.

Lu Jiang et al. also contend that energy poverty is also defined as

“the sensitivity of the energy share to household income as an indicator to identify the energy poverty line”.

To work with and help those who need to reduce energy poverty and debt, we shall refer to this sensitivity of the energy share to household income.

 

• • • Energy poor households in energy debt

 

Energy poor households could as well be in energy debt.  If they are in energy debt, any sensible measure helping to relieve or reduce energy debt can be a boost for them to navigate their way out of energy poverty and any other forms of poverty.

For more information about energy poverty, please read CENFACS‘ post at cenfacs.org.uk/2021/o9/29/reduction-of-energy-poverty/

 

 

• • Debt relief assistance programmes

 

There is a variety of debt relief assistance programmes ranging from statutory to non-statutory, to institutionalised to non-institutionalised, to charitable to non-charitable, etc.  They include organisations offering all sorts of packages, plans, programmes, schemes and services.

Concerning for example debt relief programmes specifically, there are those that provide debtors with budget-friendly possibilities to navigate their way out debt problems.  Their recipes could include the following:

 

∝ Debt consolidation loans

∝ Debt settlement or negotiation

∝ Deferment

∝ Bankruptcy

∝ Loan modification

∝ Balance transfer

∝ Debt management plan

∝ Debt relief order

∝ Consumer credit counselling

Etc.

 

However, the aim of highlighting them is not to present or list them regarding what types of products and services each of them offer.  Our aim is to help reduce poverty linked to debt or debt induced poverty.  To do that we need to work with HIPHs and together source the most suitable and viable debt relief programme to their debt relief needs and problems.

In practical parlance, it means undertaking the following:

 

√ Comparing and contrasting these programmes regarding their products, terms, benefits and conditions of offer

√ Conducting a needs assessment about debt relief with HIPHs

√ Checking the eligibility criteria with HIPHs

√ Learning about these programmes’ outcomes and results in terms of beneficiaries

Etc.

 

To add value to what we are arguing, CENFACS has also its own programme of working with HIPHs.

 

• • CENFACS’ programme of work with the community on debt relief

 

CENFACS can still add value to any debt relief assistance that its community members can seek from the above mentioned programmes.  By working together with the community members, we can help them in the following:

 

√ To select the best debt relief service without having to solely rely on online reviews about their products and services

√ To reach debt relief assistance services that are relevant to our users’/members’ needs

√ To effectively source information and explore a better a way of dealing with debt relief

√ To find way of lowering their debt to sustainable levels as part of debt sustainability

√ To formulate a strategy to reduce both debts and poverty

√ To incorporate their debt relief plans into Zero Income Deficit policy

√ To advocate their cases to be eligible to debt relief assistance

√ To point them to the relevant and appropriate debt relief service on the market.

 

Briefly and finally, our work with HIPHs would not be about reducing debts, but helping them to help themselves so that debt relief can lead them towards poverty reduction.  In other words, debt relief for HIPHs would not just be a pain killer, but a road/journey to poverty reduction and sustainable development.  Debt relief for HIPHs should be about putting first people/HIPHs at the centre of the economics of debt relief.

For any queries and enquiries about CENFACS‘ Month of Sustainable Development, the theme of Debt Sustainability and the sub-theme of Debt Relief for the Highly Indebted Poor Households; please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

_________

 

• References

 

(1) https://sdgs.un.org

(2) World Bank (2022), International Debt Statistics 2022, Washington, D.C.: World Bank, doi: 10.1596/978-1-4648-1800-4, License: Creative Commons Attribution CCBY 3.0IGO

(3) https://www.lawinsider.com/dictionary/debt-relief

(4) https://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/debt+relief

(5) https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/eerp/debt/eng/

(6) https://arstechnica.com/2019/03/number-of-debts-not-just-amount-causes-psychological-burden/#

(7) Douglas F. Barnes, Shahidur Khander and Hussain Samad (2011), Energy Poverty in Rural Bangladesh, Energy Policy, 2011, Vol. 39, Issue 2, 894-904

(8) Lu Jiang, Lu Yu, Bing Xue, Xing pen Chan, Zhifu Mi: Who is energy poor?  Evidence from the least developed regions in China

_________

 

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 consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future or as a New Year resolution.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ PROJECTS, 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 2022 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

02 February 2022

 

Post No. 233

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Sustainable Development Month with Debt Sustainability For Highly Indebted Poor Households

• African Children’s Climate and Sustainable Development Goals (Generation Global Goals Project): Generational Impact Analysis of COVID-19 and its Variants on Children

• Knowledge Year/Project and the Global Knowledge Index

… And much more!

 

 

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Sustainable Development Month with Debt Sustainability For Highly Indebted Poor Households

 

February is the month of Sustainable Development, according to CENFACS development calendar or planner.  It is the month during which we revisit our works relating to sustainable development.  In particular, we try to look at again the United Nations (1) Seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their related 169 targets.  We normally select one of the topics within the set of SGDs and targets; and try to work on it.

Since the coronavirus pandemic and its variants have led to a soaring debt for many people, especially for the poorest ones, we have selected Goal 17 of the United Nations SDGs and 2030 Agenda in order to tackle the month of sustainability.  Within this goal, we have chosen Target 4.

The Goal 17 is to strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development.

The Target 4 of Goal 17 is to assist developing countries in attaining long-term debt sustainability through coordinated policies aimed at fostering debt financing, debt relief and debt restructuring, as appropriate, and address the external debt of highly indebted poor countries to reduce debt distress.

Although this target speaks about countries, countries are made of people.  Thus, this target is about people.  In the context of our Month of Sustainability, we are going to look at how this target can be applied to poor people, particularly the people that make up CENFACS‘ noble cause of poverty reduction.  To do that we have organised a plan of work on debt sustainability as shown under the Main Development section of this post.  Under the same section, we have provided more details about the theme of Debt Sustainability as well.

 

 

• African Children’s Climate and Sustainable Development Goals (Generation Global Goals Project): Generational Impact Analysis of COVID-19 and its Variants on Children

 

Normally, the project that carries this month of Sustainable Development is African Children’s Climate and Sustainable Development Goals (ACSDGs).  It is also known as Generation Global Goals (3G) project.

3G project is the impact level in CENFACS’ process of advocating that global goals (like the United Nations Sustainable Development 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.  This is regardless whether these children are in spaces and times of peace or lack of peace (like conditions of wars, areas stricken by viruses or epidemics and time of natural disasters).   Unsurprisingly, these gains should be materialised even in time of health crisis like the coronavirus pandemic.

For this year, our 3G project will continue to focus on the Generational Impact Analysis of COVID-19 and its Variants on Children.  The current focus will be a second-round work after the one we carried out last year.   But, what do mean by ‘generational impact analysis’?

 

• • Children generation of global goals

 

The children generation of global goals are those two generations of children relating to two sets of global goals: Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).  The generation of Millennium Development Goals will be those children or persons born and live between 2000 and 2015, whereas the generation of Sustainable Development Goals will be referred to those born and live from 2015 until now (ideally between 2015 and 2030).  The two generations are relating to the lifespan of these two sets of goals.

These generations relating to global goals have to be differentiated from the conventional definition of generations which classified them as follows: Gen Alpha (2013 – 2025), iGen/Generation Z (1995 -2012), Millennials/Generation Y (1980 – 1994), Xennials (1975 – 1985), Generation X/Baby Bust (1965 – 1979) and Baby Boomers (1946 – 1964).

 

• • Impact analysis

 

We are going to use the definition of impact analysis as given by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).  The OECD (2) differentiates ex ante impact analysis from ex post impact assessment.  According to the OECD, ex ante impact analysis is

“Part of the needs analysis and planning activity of the policy cycle. It involves doing a prospective analysis of what the impact of an intervention might be, so as to inform policymaking – the policymaker’s equivalent of business planning”.

From the above clarification of children generation of global goals and impact analysis, it is possible to speak about generational impact analysis.

 

• • Generational impact analysis

 

The generational impact analysis would be a set of tasks that we will perform to identify children generation of sustainable development goals; generation that has been impacted by a change/disruption brought the coronavirus pandemic and its variants.

We are going to establish a chain of causation or theory from COVID-19 shock waves and its variants to impact as well as to measure or describe the changes induced along that chain.  Briefly, we are going to refer to cause-and-effect approach and to the theory of change.

 

• • Early inference of the effects of COVID-19 and its variants on Poor Children

 

Our work on generational economics and the intergenerational transmission of poverty continues with the study/analysis of the generational impact of COVID-19 and its variants on children and future generations.  We started this impact analysis two years ago by looking at how COVID-19 may have delayed the realisation of several aspects of the United Nations Climate and Sustainable Development Goals for children.

We are continuing our work where we left it by searching on the way in which COVID-19 may have impacted different generations of children.  This generational impact analysis of COVID-19 shock waves and their variants will be on children we can call as the generation of sustainable development goals (SDGs) or the generation of children thought to be the beneficiaries of the implementation of SDGs.

Although we are using the word impact, it is clear that the real impact of COVID-19 will be known in the long term as there are still data to be collected and treated quantitatively and qualitatively.  This may take sometimes.  This is why United Nations Children’s Fund (3) argue the following:

“COVID’s legacy will take several years to definitively quantify, but it is already possible to infer some aspects that are especially salient for children” (p. 10)

It is possible to start inferring the effects of COVID-19 and its variants on poor children.  So far, a number of agencies and individuals have tried to do it.

In this second round of work, we are trying to seize the early outputs or effects of COVID-19 on the realisation of SDGs linked to children’s health, well-being and welfare.  However, one needs to be cautious in interpreting what we may have found since we are carrying on studying and learning more from COVID-19 scarring and lingering effects.

 

• • Generational impact of COVID-19 on children generation of SDGs

 

It is without doubt that COVID-19 has left and will leave some scars and fractures in the realisation of SDGs, particularly but not exclusively those aspects of these goals relating to children.  The study on the following six selected SDGs will help to speculate on how COVID-19 is impacting or can impact the realisation of SDGs for children (particularly but not exclusively African children):

Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all (Goal 7), Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all (Goal 8), Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation (Goal 9), Reduce inequality within and among countries (Goal 10), Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable (Goal 11), and Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns (Goal 12).

In this study, we have not included the climate impact as this will be a matter of another advocacy which we will deal with at a different time during this year.

 

• • Possible effects of COVID-19 for children regarding the realisation of SDGs

 

We have considered the above selected goals (goal 7 to goal 12) out of 17 United Nations SDGs for dealing with the COVID-19 effects.

For those who would like to know more about our findings from this second round work and the stories of poverty reduction happening in Africa from CENFACS’ Africa-based Sister Organisations working with children, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Knowledge Year/Project and the Global Knowledge Index

 

Our Knowledge Year/Project kicked off last month with the first activity, which was about the Knowledge on the Consumption Needs of Those in Need.  This month, we are continuing the application/implementation of the ‘K’ Project through the Global Knowledge Index.  Before going any further, let us try to understand the Global Knowledge Index.

 

• • What is the Global Knowledge Index (GKI)?

 

The United Nations Development Programme and Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation (4) argue that

“The Global Knowledge Index consists of seven sub-indices which are:

pre-university education; technical and vocational education and training; higher education; information and communications technology; research development and innovation; knowledge-based economy; and enabling environment”.

The authors of the Global Knowledge Index (GKI) argue that the GKI, which covers 232 indicators, serves as a vital tool to monitor the knowledge status of countries in key areas including education, innovation and information and communications technology.

 

• • The Global Knowledge Index and CENFACS’ Knowledge Year

 

The GKI can help us to understand the needs of those in need.  By using some of the sub-indices of the GKI (e.g. technical and vocational education and training about sustainable development), it is possible to know and assess the needs of those in need as well as explore solutions to the issue of poverty they are facing.

Briefly, the GKI can help to identify how, where and on who to invest for poverty reduction and sustainable development.  It can lead us to the kind of support that is appropriate to address poverty stemming from knowledge gaps.

For any queries or enquiries about the Knowledge Year/Project and its relationships with the month of Sustainable Development within CENFACS, please read our next posts in this month.

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Triple Value Initiatives, All Year Round Projects: Extra Support

 

Last week, we announced the kick off for our Triple Value Initiatives, initially known as All Year-round Projects.  For those who are interested in engaging with these initiatives, we would like to highlight the following three points: start-up, fundamentals and goals.

 

• • Triple-Value-Initiatives Start up

 

It is better to start up early, although people can always join at any time.  The earlier you start the better.  This is because everybody is busy with their lives and has other things to do.  Also, the earlier you start, the earlier CENFACS can help if one encounters any problems.  Briefly, the message is start up early.

 

• • Triple-Value-Initiatives Fundamentals

 

You need to get the fundamentals about All Year-round Projects right from the beginning.  You need to clearly sort out the basic principles and bases of these projects so that you move to the right direction early without being forced to change course as you progress or repeat from scratch.  Briefly, the message is get the fundamentals right.

 

• • Triple-Value-Initiatives Goals

 

Whether you play or run or vote for poverty reduction and sustainable development, the all exercise is for you to reach your goal of delivering the objectives you set up from the onset.  It means you need to be clear in your mind set about what you want to achieve.  Again, if you have any problems in setting up clear goals (aim or purpose) and objectives, CENFACS can be of help.  Briefly, the message is be clear about what you want to achieve.

You can select a theme to run, create your play station game and watch people to vote.  This is what Triple Value Initiatives or All Year Round Projects are all about.  Good luck!

 

 

 

• Zero Income Deficit Campaign 2022 with a Double Focus on Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

 

What are the net worth and net cash flows of my family/household accounts?

 

We can help you to find out the net worth and net cash flows of your accounts.

 

Last week, we concentrated on the key activity of reducing the excess of liabilities over assets as we were trying to work out the net worth from members’/users’ individual balance sheet.

This week, we are continuing with the balance sheet and net worth activities.  While we are doing these activities, we are taking enquiries about household cash flow.  In other words, we are working on cash inflows (that is; income deriving from labour income and capital income) and cash outflows (i.e.  expenses as a total of consumption plus debt service plus other expenses).

 

 

• • Working with the Community on Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

 

We are taking on enquiries about ways of improving community members’ fixed assets and working capital.  We can advise them on their liabilities.  This advice will help them to find ways of increasing their assets while reducing their liabilities.  We are also advising on household cash flow, how to increase household cash inflows and decrease household cash outflows in order to generate a positive net cash flow.

 

We can advise you to increase your cash inflows and to decrease your cash outflows.

 

For those members of our community who are struggling to create net worth or who are having balance sheet problems with their household accounts, they are free to work with us so that together we can explore steps forward or ways out to these problems.

 

We can help you to increase your assets while reducing your liabilities.

 

We can provide the same assistance regarding for cash flow statements or projections.

To ask or get support to sort out the balance sheet, net worth and net cash flows for your family/household accounts, please contact CENFACS.  Also, to support Zero Income Deficit Campaign 2022, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Coronavirus-affected Children of Sub-Saharan Africa Desperately Need Your Help Right NOW

 

This Winter 2022 Halving Poverty campaign is still running.

You can donate £9 to halve poverty  in Sub-Saharan Africa.

You can halve health poverty for and with children at risk of loosing their life because of COVID-19.

To donate, gift aid and or support differently this life-saving campaign, please contact CENFACS:

*over phone

*via email

*through text

*by filling the contact form on this site 

 

For further details about this project, please go to: cenfacs.org.uk.supporting-us/

 

Dédicace de l’année 2022:

 

L’année 2022 a été déclarée comme l’Année de Connaissances sur les personnes nécessiteuses ou celles qui sont dans le besoin.   

Pour réaliser cette déclaration ou dédicace au sein du CENFACS, nous avons mis en place un projet d’accompagnement, qui est le Projet ‘Connaissances’. 

Le Projet ‘Connaissances’ est un ensemble de tâches interdépendantes qui ont pour objectif commun de mettre en œuvre l’engagement du CENFACS de l’année 2022 en tant qu’Année de la Connaissance des personnes dans le besoin.

A travers ce projet, nous essaierons autant que possible d’apprendre, de connaître et de comprendre les besoins et les attentes en matière de solutions pour ceux qui ont besoin d’aide et de soutien pour sortir de la pauvreté. 

Pour connaître les besoins et les attentes des gens, nous allons travailler avec eux sur un certain nombre d’activités.

Pour plus d’informations sur l’Année de Connaissances et son projet d’accompagnement, veuillez contacter le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Debt Sustainability For Highly Indebted Poor Households

 

To approach the theme of Debt Sustainability of our Sustainable Development Month, we are going to deal with the following: the key concepts shaping our theme and its notes, our plan of work on debt sustainability and the first notes to kick off our theme for the month.

 

• • Key Concepts

 

Let us briefly clarify the following four key concepts: Highly indebted poor households, household debt, debt sustainability and debt ratio.

 

• • • Highly indebted poor households

 

We are going to refer to over-indebted households instead of highly indebted households.  We put and kept the words ‘highly indebted households’ in framing the title of our theme because they are part of the working of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 17 and Target 4.   

We know that there is a difference between highly and over.  We have chosen over-indebted households as its definition matches with the kind of work we would like to do with our users and the message we are going to share with our audiences.  Then, what is an over-indebted household?

The European Commission (5) argues

“An over-indebted household is one whose existing and foreseeable resources are insufficient to meet its financial commitments without lowering its living standards, which has both social and policy implications if this means reducing them below what is regarded as the minimum acceptable in the country concerned”.

Although this definition could be disputable, it can be a working one in the context of dealing with poverty linked to household indebtedness.  So, we are going to refer to this definition when dealing with highly indebted poor households.

 

• • • Household debt

 

Household debt is an amount of money owed by an household; owing which could be related to home mortgages, home equity loans, car loans, student loan, and credit card/consumer credit.  In case of poor households, it can be related to the amount owed as a result of the inability to meet basic life-sustaining needs.  This means that the only way for those poor households to meet their basic needs is to be indebted.

The problem here is not about debt itself.  The problem is when the combined debt of all people making a household becomes unsustainable, either in terms of liabilities compared to its assets (when looking at the household’s balance sheet), or in terms of its expenses (that is, consumption plus debt service plus other expenses) compared to its income (i.e. labour income and capital income)  when considering the household’s cash flow, or both.

When this happens indebted households may need support for debt sustainability.

 

• • • Debt sustainability

 

Debt sustainability makes up the Target 4 of the Goal 17 of the United Nations (op. cit.) Sustainable Development Goals and 2030 Agenda.   According the International Monetary Fund (6), a country’s public debt is considered sustainable if

“The government is able to meet all its current and future payment obligations without exceptional financial assistance or going into default”.

Although this macro-economic definition of debt sustainability relates to countries, it can however be applicable at the meso- and micro-economic levels to include individuals, families and households.

If this definition is applied at the level of poor people, it could suggest that debt sustainability occurs when an indebted household can honour its payment obligations towards debt without defaults and bankruptcies.

Debt sustainability will equally happen when this indebted household has liquidity to pay debt and or is solvent (that is; likely to be able to pay it at any points of time).

To get a good understand of debt sustainability, households may need to have something to guide them in the form of quantitative measures or metrics.  One of the metrics or indicators could be debt ratio.

 

• • • Debt ratio

 

It is simply a measure expressed as a proportion, which shows the relative proportion of debt to total assets.

For example, if an ordinary household has a debt ratio of 0.50, it means that there is a balance between the ordinary household’s liabilities and its assets.  However, if this ratio is more than 0.50, this could mean that this household has more financial risk.

A highly indebted poor household would have this ratio significantly above 0.50; meaning it is unable to meet its current expenses.  This type of households whose most of spending goes to borrowing repayments will be living below the poverty line.

The requirements of debt sustainability and having a good debt ratio can be extended to the area of poverty reduction.

 

• • Debt Sustainability and Poverty Reduction

 

Any debt to be sustainable, it should not jeopardise the stability and integrity of any household.  It also needs not to put at risk or threaten any efforts that household is making to navigate its way out of poverty, especially intergenerational poverty. In other words, a sustainable debt should not lead to the transmission or transfer of poverty to future generations.

 

• • Work with the Community on Debt Sustainability

 

During this month of February 2022, CENFACS is going to work with the community members or households who need some advice or support regarding any debt sustainability issue.  This advice or support has to be placed within the two contexts of CENFACS’ Zero Income Deficit Campaign 2022 and Month of Sustainable Development.

The following working plan provides a glimpse of the way in which we are going to both carry out the Month of Sustainable Development and support the community’s households on the matter of debt sustainability.

 

 

 

• • February 2022 Working Plan on Debt Sustainability

 

From every Wednesday of this month, we will be dealing with each of the four elements making Target 4 of the United Nations SDG 17 as follows:

 

Wednesdays/Dates                     Notes/Sub-themes

 

1st Wednesday / 02/02/2022:        Debt financing

2nd Wednesday / 09/02/2022:      Debt relief

3rd Wednesday / 16/02/2022:       Debt restructuring

4th Wednesday / 23/02/2022:       Debt distress

 

Our work will be about the above issues in the relation to COVID-19 and poverty with respect to poor people.

 

 

• • First Wednesday (02/02/2022), In Focus: Debt Financing

 

Target 4 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 17 is to Assist developing countries in attaining long-term debt sustainability through coordinated policies.  Fostering debt financing is among these policies aim at.  But, what is debt financing?

 

• • • Understanding debt financing

 

From the literature review on debt financing, we have selected the definition of the online dictionary ‘financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com’ (7) which states that debt financing is

“The act of a business raising operating capital or other capital by borrowing.  Most often, this refers to the issuance of a bond, debenture, or other debt security.  In exchange for lending the money, bond holders and others become creditors of the business and are entitled to the payment of interest and to have their loan redeemed at the end of a given period”.

Although this definition applies to businesses, individuals and households can also try to raise their household capital by borrowing.  However, those of them who are poor may find it difficult.

 

• • • Debt financing options for poor households

 

Generally, debt financing will be challenging for indebted poor households since many of them do not possess collateral security or just are not in a position to issue promissory note or bond.

Those who will try can resort to the following means:

∝ Community loans

∝ Pawnbrokers (if households are able to pawn some of their belongings)

∝ Families and friends

∝ Charities and not-for-profit organisations

∝ Crowdfunding

Etc. 

 

• • • How CENFACS can work with those in need to finance their debts

 

Working with those in need to finance their debts is both part of this Month of Sustainable Development and our Zero Income Deficit Campaign 2022.  In our work with the community, we shall proceed the following:

 

√ Conduct debt sustainability analysis with indebted users  (this will imply the calculation of Debt-to-Assets Ratio)

√ Analyse vulnerability to debt

√ Carry out anatomy and composition of household debt

√ Assess household capital requirement and cash flow

√ Establish and check of indebted users’ balance sheets and cash flows

√ Advise on debt financing affordable options

√ Lead them to debt financing providers and resources (e.g. debt calculator and monitor)

Etc.

 

The ultimate aim of this work with those in need is not help them finance their debts.  Instead, it is about helping them to avoid intergenerational poverty via the debt financing mechanics or approach.  

For those members of our community who need advisory support regarding their debt financing problems, they are free to contact CENFACS.

For any queries or enquiries about Sustainable Development Month and Household Debt Sustainability, please contact CENFACS.

 

• References

 

(1) https://sdgs.un.org (accessed in January 2022)

(2) ttps://www.oecd.org/sti/inno/what-is-impact-assessment-OECDImpact.pdf (accessed in January 2022)

(3) https://unicef.org/globalinsight/media/1516/file/UNICEF-Global-Insight-5year-Outlook-2021pdf

(4) United Nations Development Programme and Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation (2021), Global Knowledge Index @UNDP and MBRF 2021

(5) European Commission (2010), Over-indebtedness: New evidence from the EU-SILC Special module, Research note 4/2010

(6) https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2020/09/what-is-debt-sustainability-basics.htm# (accessed in January 2022)

(7) https://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Debt+Financing (accessed in January 2022)

________

 

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 consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future or as a New Year resolution.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ PROJECTS, 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 2022 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

26 January 2022

 

Post No. 232

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Coronavirus-affected Children of Sub-Saharan Africa Desperately Need Your Help Right NOW

• Knowledge (K) Project 

• Donor and Stewardship Development Programme

 

… And much more!

 

Key Messages

 

• Coronavirus-affected Children of Sub-Saharan Africa Desperately Need Your Help Right NOW

 

You can halve poverty  in Sub-Saharan Africa; you can halve health poverty for and with children at risk of loosing their life because of COVID-19.

 

Evidence and studies shared by many infectious diseases epidemiologists show that children in Sub-Saharan Africa who are hospitalised with COVID-19 are dying at a rate far greater than children in other parts of the world (like United States and Europe).  This is worrying situation since Africa (including its Sub-Saharan part) has a large number of COVID-19 unvaccinated people.  Amongst these unvaccinated people are children.

Yet, it is possible to reduce or halve the number of hospitalised children dying with COVID-19.  It is conceivable to halve poverty for and with children at risk of loosing their life because of the coronavirus pandemic and its variants.

With and on behalf of these children of Sub-Saharan Africa, we would like to ask for the halving of health poverty and hardships they are facing.  CENFACS would like to work with those who are willing to halve poverty by supporting children who are in health emergency in Sub-Saharan Africa in order to meet their life-saving needs and dreams.

Under the Main Development section of this post, you will find some details about halving poverty for and with these children of Sub-Saharan Africa whose life is highly at risk.

 

 

• Knowledge (K) Project

 

Knowledge or ‘K ‘ Project is one of the new initiatives for 2022.  The following two elements help to understand this project: its meaning and its activities.

 

• • What is ‘K’ Project?

 

It is a set of interdependent tasks that have  a common goal of implementing CENFACS‘ dedication of year 2022 as a Year of Knowledge of People in Need.  Through this project, we will try as much as we can to learn, know and understand the needs and expectations to solutions of those who need help and support to navigate their way out of poverty.  To know people’s needs and expectations, we are going to work with them on a certain number of activities.

 

• • Activities and tasks relating to the ‘K’ Project

 

There will be twelve activities, each activity or task per month.  Each ‘K’  activity will be announced at the beginning of each month.  For this month, the ‘K’ activity is about knowing the consumption needs and habits of those in need so that they can be better supported on their road to reducing or ending consumption poverty and hardship.

 

• • Activity/Task 1 of the ‘K’ Project: Knowledge about the Consumption Needs of Those in Need

 

Being aware of and coming close to those in need can help to figure out their needs and wants.  It can also help to know their circumstances and conditions of life.  It can further promote some familiarity with the kinds of barriers and difficulties that block them in order to move out of consumption poverty.

After being familiar with their problems and barriers, one could find that it could be more appropriate (than without their knowledge) to work with them.  This knowledge on them and consumption needs will help needs-based solutions so that they can improve their circumstances and consume what it takes to reduce poverty and hardships.

For any queries and enquiries about this project and this year’s dedication, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Donor and Stewardship Development Programme

 

This programme consists of two areas: donor solicitations and donor products to match these solicitations.

 

• • Donor Solicitations

 

We are continuing our solicitation to some of you as donors and /or stewards of poverty relief as follows.

 

• • • Solicitation relating to CENFACS’ Donor Development Plan

 

Under this plan, donors can build quality donor-relations with CENFACS.

Donor developers can help us in a number of ways such as:

 

σ Get the right people engaged to and informed about our work

σ Make our donations to grow over time

σ Help with technology like donor management software

σ Increase the levels of involvement from users

σ Help us to manage donors expectations

σ Assist us in donor-development goals and tasks such as event support

 

• • • Solicitation relating to CENFACS’ Donor Stewardship Programme

 

Under this programme, you can help us in the following:

 

σ Steward donors

σ Build and maintain relationships and communications with those who gave to our users or us a gift

σ Enable access to and use of donor stewardship tools.

 

• • Donor Development Products on Offer

 

We are offering the following products to those who would like to engage, develop their interest, to build bond and loyalty to CENFACS and CENFACS’ work. 

We are offering to the donor development market a donor status to enable those who want to commit themselves on regular basis to giving or boosting their status as donor to have the opportunity to do so. 

We are inviting those who want to commit themselves as funder or donor to do so.    They can do it by supporting CENFACS with a silver donation, a great relief and a product booster.

 

• • • Free for Supporters: Silver Status

 

Silver status is the legacy of CENFACS’ “Quadranscentennial” Year (2019).  Support our projects as you can or as you choose if you visit them or if you happen to be within the area of them.  This will boost your support and help you to win a silver status as CENFACS’ Supporter in a CENFACS’ Knowledge Year. 

Alternatively, you can fund CENFACS’ Knowledge Year to win the same status and continue CENFACS’ legacy.

 

• • • Want to provide Great Relief as a Supporter

 

You can provide great relief by becoming a regular giver or supporter, adding value to you support and boosting your support. 

For example, at this challenging time of continuing coronavirus hardships, we need those who can provide that sort of relief to keep our action going and out of the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic. 

Many individuals and organisations stepped in to support their good deserving causes during this storming time of the health crisis; you can do the same by supporting CENFACS.

Please contact CENFACS for details about becoming Great Reliever.

 

• • • Need to boost your support or stewardship as a Product Booster

 

You can choose a particular sustainable initiative or programme or even CENFACS as your boost product.

You can support 3 projects or 2 projects and CENFACS

You can support 3 programmes or 2 programmes and CENFACS.

This will elevate your position as a Project or Programme Funder or a Product Booster

For further details about boosting your support or stewardship, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Gifts of Peace, Edition 2021-2022: Ends 31 January 2022

 

Gifts of Peace for Edition 2021-2022 are coming to an end on 31 January 2022.  If you have not yet supported, there is still five days to go.  You can still do something for poverty relief and for healing the scars of coronavirus pandemic and its associated effects.

Although the deadline for the Season of Donation for these gifts is 31 January 2022, we will still accept any donations made after this deadline as there are always pressing and urgent needs that desperately request support.

Please do not wait for the expiration of the deadline as the needs are pressing and urgent.

We know that many supporters of good causes have been affected by the adverse impacts of the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdowns.  However, for those who can please do not hesitate to support these noble causes of peace since the potential beneficiaries of them are doubly impacted by:

(a) The coronavirus pandemic which brought economic and social lockdowns

(b) The already extremely poor conditions in which they are living

Every support counts to help reduce and end extreme poverty.

For further details about these Gifts of Peace and or to support, go to http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

We look forward to your support.  Thank you!

 

 

 

• 2022 All Year-round Projects (Triple Value Initiatives): Play, Run and Vote for Poverty Relief and Sustainable Development

 

CENFACS’ Triple Value Initiatives, the All Year-round Projects, are now back for this year.  You can play, run and vote to reduce poverty this year again.

The 2022 Edition of All Year-round Projects has kicked off.

You can Run or Organise a Run Activity to Reduce Poverty in 2022. 

You can Play the CENFACS League for Poverty Relief.

You can Vote your 2022 African Poverty Relief Manager.

Before proceeding with one of the All Year Round Projects, it is good to speak to CENFACS.  We can discuss together your plan or the way you want to participate or engage with these initiatives.

 

• • How CENFACS can help you to engage with Triple Value Initiatives

 

The following examples show what we can discuss together before you start.

 

Example 1: Run Themes

For example, let’s take Run to Reduce Poverty.

There are Run Themes.  You can Run alone or Run as group or even Run for fun.  You can do Seasonal Run or Run to raise money or even Run to raise awareness.  However, due to the coronavirus pandemic and its variants, there are health and safety restrictions that everyone who will be involved in this Run activity must follow.

There are ways of making your Run event simpler.  To do that, you can contact CENFACS before you plan your event.  CENFACS can help you to select your theme.  You need to confirm the date and time with CENFACS.

There are other things to consider as well such as: location, engagement in activities, prizes (rewards for participants), COVID-19 health and safety issues, child protection policy if children are involved, insurance cover, budget, etc.

 

Example 2: Play Station Game

Let’s take another example: Playing CENFACS’ League for Poverty Relief

You can create your own play station game with CENFACS’ League and run your own tournament and matches.  You can even involve colleagues, friends and families sharing the same passion about how the selected African countries are working to reduce poverty.  You can group or rate these countries according to poverty reduction performance (showing which one comes on top, middle and bottom).  You can as well use game theories. Like for Run activity, you must include the coronavirus pandemic health and safety measures and guidance.

 

Example 3: People to Watch

Let’s take the last example: Voting your Poverty Relief Manager

You can create your own list of 22 Top People to Watch throughout the year.  One or two of them will be potentially the best managers of 2022.  You can collect data and facts about them, follow their annual performance and vote the best between the two at the end.

While you are running or organising a run activity, playing the CENFACS’ League and voting your Manager of the Year 2022; we would like you to share with us and others your progress, news, events, experiences, stories and reports regarding these projects.  The end product of your share will be a kind of Action-Results Report 2022.

 

• • What we would like to hear at the end of this process

 

We would like to hear from you the following three bests or stars of the year:

 

√ The Best African Countries of 2022 which will best reduce poverty

√ The Best African Global Games Runners of 2022

√ The Best African Development Managers of 2022

 

The deadline to tell us your bests or stars is 23 December 2022.

As we progress throughout the year, further information will be released for CENFACS’ Triple Value Initiatives.

Please remember, the early you start the better for you.

For more information about these projects, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Zero Income Deficit Campaign 2022 with a Focus on Balance Sheet

What is the net worth of my family/household accounts?

 

This year and Season of Light, we are keeping on working with the community members on income deficit issues so that they can better manage their income, particularly they can reduce the deficit (or excess of expenses over income or excess of liabilities over assets or even excess of outgoings over incomings) linked to their income.  

In the last two weeks of work with them, the focus has been on net income or net deficit.  This week, we are working on family balance sheet, particularly the net work account.   What do we mean by family/household balance sheet and net worth?

 

• • Family/household Balance Sheet and Net Worth

 

Balance sheet and net worth as financial statements in business accounting can be adapted and used in family or household situation.

In the context of family/household, a balance sheet for a family or household would show both assets and liabilities for that family or household.  The net worth for the same family or household would instead be the value of all the non-financial and financial assets owned by that family or household minus the value of all its outstanding liabilities.

What is important here is not the definition of these two concepts.  What matters is how CENFACS is going to work with the community members so that they can have their balance sheets right and find out their net worth, especially for those living in poverty.

 

• • Working with the Community on Balance Sheet and Net Worth

 

We will be working with our members on ways of improving their fixed assets and working capital.  We will as well work on their liabilities.  It is about helping them to increase their assets while reducing their liabilities.  In doing so, one can hope that they will be able to better understand both concepts and improve their financial situation.

For those members of our community who are struggling to create net worth or having balance sheet problems with their household accounts, they are free to work with us so that together we can explore steps forward or ways out to these problems. We can help them to increase their assets while reducing their liabilities.

To ask or get support to sort out the balance sheet and net worth of your family/household accounts, please contact CENFACS.  Also, to support Zero Income Deficit Campaign 2022, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

Un extrait de la parution numéro 74 de FACS (le bulletin trimestriel de CENFACS) : 

 

Des parts du marché de réduction de la pauvreté urbaine en Afrique pour des organisations africaines: Sont-elles significatives ou pas? (Page 5)

Quand on regarde l’éventail des problèmes que les pauvres urbains font face dans des cités africaines, on peut dire qu’il y a beaucoup de travaux à faire pour endiguer ou réduire la pauvreté ou précarité urbaine.  Par contre, quand on se référe à l’ensemble de ressources de ces organisations, il y a lieu d’affirmer qu’elles n’ont pas de capacités d’intervention ou de réponse requises aux enjeux ou problématiques urbains.

Compte tenu de cette limitation des moyens, leurs parts du marché ne peuvent qu’être peu ou pas significatives.  Bien entendu, cela dépend des cités et des pays africains et de la hantise (ou affection) qu’on a vis-à-vis des problèmes de pauvreté par ceux ou celles qui sont censé(e)s y pallier.

Ainsi, rehausser les parts du marché en faveur des organisations qui exercent le rôle qui est le leur dans le travail de réduction et d’élimination de la pauvreté ne serait qu’une bonne chose pour ceux ou celles qui veulent voir la disparition de la pauvreté urbaine.

Source: CENFACS, Le dilemme auquel sont confrontées les organisations soeurs basées en Afrique en aidant à réduire la pauvreté urbaine dans le contexte de l’augmentation de la population urbaine en Afrique, FACS, Parution No. 74, Hiver 2022

 

Main Development

 

• Coronavirus-affected Children of Sub-Saharan Africa Desperately Need Your Help Right NOW

 

You can halve poverty  in Sub-Saharan Africa; you can halve health poverty for and with children at risk of loosing their life because of COVID-19

 

The following summarises data, needs, request, use and outcomes that briefly make the case for halving poverty for and with children at risk of loosing their life due to the coronavirus pandemic.

 

• • The data

 

Further to their study on hospitalised children with COVID-19 and their report entitled as ‘Assessment of Clinical Outcomes Among Children and Adolescents Hospitalised With COVID-19 in 6 Sub-Saharan African Countries [i.e. Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda]’, Jean B. Nachega et al (1) argue the following:

“African children reported a high overall mortality rate of 8.3 per cent compared with 1 per cent or less reported from Europe and North America.

Infants younger than one year had nearly five times the risk of death than adolescents aged 15 to 19 years.

African children less than a year old and with pre-existing non-communicable diseases were more likely to have poorer outcomes, including intensive care requirements and death”.

The above data has led to this appeal.

Indeed, children in Sub-Saharan Africa have never faced a health crisis of this magnitude and scale.  There are no specialised doctors in some areas and, if there are, there is only a very limited number of them to deal with the situation.  In places stricken by the legacies of wars and civil insecurity or climate change, the medical situation is even worse.

 

• • The Needs

 

The  needs for emergency health and clinical support are 24 times than average in Sub-Saharan Africa where children are hospitalised with COVID-19.   These children need your life-saving help to meet their life-surviving need.

 

• • The Ask

 

For £9, you can provide an emergency and life-saving support to a COVID-19 infected child in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Your gift of £9 today will provide an emergency health-saving and enhancing relief to a COVID-19 infected child in need.

Your £9 will go to the cost of 1 treatment or 1 visit per COVID-19 infected and hospitalised child.

 

• • The Use

 

Your gift of £9 will be used as follows:

 

To…

√ Facilitate the access of COVID-19 affected children to paediatric intensive care

√ Reduce high child morbidity and mortality associated with hospitalised children with COVID-19

√ Increase facilities or equipment for paediatric intensive care

√ Support places without doctors and/or those without specialised doctors

√ Help access to COVID-19 vaccination and therapeutic interventions for at-risk eligible children and adolescent patients in Africa

√ Build capacity and support for paediatric intensive care

√ Reduce COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy amongst those related or surrounding children patients

√ Improve vaccine uptake via accessibility and trustworthiness to reduce threats within children’s social environment

Etc.

Please give today so that we can help children who are hospitalised with COVID-19 and have their life at great risk. 

Your gift of £9 will help to rescue them from tragic situation and help them get back home after feeling well.

 

• • The Outcomes

 

With the support to be received, the following changes will be expected:

 

√ Reduction in the number of child tragedies

√ Cut in numbers of child morbidity and mortality

√ Better equipped paediatric intensive care units

√ Improvement in doctors recruitment and retention

√ Increase in the number of COVID-19 vaccinated people, including vaccinated children

√ Rise in the number of rescued children from early death

√ More happy and healthy children of Sub-Saharan Africa

Etc.

 

• • How to donate

 

To donate, gift aid and or support differently, please contact CENFACS.

You can donate

*over phone

*via email

*through text

*by filling the contact form on this site 

 

On receipt of your intent to donate or donation, CENFACS will contact you.  However, should you wish your support to remain anonymous; we will respect your wish.

Thank you in anticipation for your willingness to give and help save lives of Hospitalised Sub-Saharan African Children with COVID-19.

 

_________

Reference

(1) Nachega, J.B., Sam-Agudu, N.A., Machekano, R.N., et al (2022), Assessment of Clinical Outcomes Among Children and Adolescents Hospitalised With COVID-19 in 6 Six Sub-Saharan African Countries at https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2788373 (accessed in January 2022)

_________

 

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 consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future or as a New Year resolution.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ PROJECTS, 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 2022 and beyond.

With many thanks.

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

19 January 2022

 

Post No. 231

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• FACS, Issue No. 74, Winter 2022: The Dilemma Faced by Africa-based Sister Organisations in Helping to Reduce Urban Poverty in the Context of Rising Urban Population in Africa

• 2022 as a Year of Knowledge about People in Need

• Opportunities and Openings for Poverty Reduction by Africa-based Sister Organisations in 2022

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

Key Messages

 

• FACS, Issue No. 74, Winter 2022: The Dilemma Faced by Africa-based Sister Organisations in Helping to Reduce Urban Poverty in the Context of Rising Urban Population in Africa

 

The 74^th Issue of FACS, CENFACS’ bilingual newsletter, addresses the dilemma faced by our Africa-based Sister Organisations (ASOs) in trying to help to reduce urban poverty while urban population is rising in Africa.  In this address, the attention is being put on two drivers: urban poverty reduction and urban cities’ population in Africa. 

The 74^th Issue is an urban journey or exploration about the problems that urban poor are experiencing in Africa’s growing and large cities (like Kinshasa, Lagos, Cairo, Alexandria, etc.); problems that can be found in any other big urban areas of developing countries.  These problems include the following:  overcrowding, air pollution, waste mismanagement, informal settlements, unsafe and unsustainable transport, polluting energy, etc.

The focus in this 74^th Issue is not really about whether or not these problems exist in urban cities of Africa.  What is at stake in this Issue is urban population continues to grow while Africa-based Sister Organisations are trying to work with those experiencing these problems in order to reduce or solve them. 

For example, the Business Insider Africa (1) argued in 2021 that

“Dakar will see a 50% rise in its population between 2005 and 2025 as its inhabitants increase from 2.8 million to a little over 4.2 million…

Just in 2005, Kinshasa had a population of about 10 million people.  In 2025, however, it is estimated that this powerful city will be hosting 18 million people”.

This is the dilemma for ASOs.  It is a dilemma relating to the growth of urban population that it is not matched with the means of Africa-based Sister Organisations in order to deal with the size and complexity of urban poverty or simply with the demand from urban poor amid the growing urban population (which includes poor people).

Therefore, the key message or statement here is how Africa-based Sister Organisations can find an appropriate ground to better work with urban poor and help reduce urban poverty despite urban population is on the rise in Africa’s urban cities.

Under the Main Development section of this post, we have provided the key summaries making up the 74^th Issue.

 

 

• 2022 as a Year of Knowledge about People in Need

 

COVID-19 has created physical and social distances or barriers between people, between families, between groups, between users and organisations, between those in need and those who could help them.  Despite this new socio-economic distancing world, it is possible to re-create and re-imagine a new way of relieving poverty and hardships. 

Part of this re-creation and re-imagination is about how we can better learn and know the needs of those who are suffering from all sorts of poverty so that their problems could be better unveiled and remedies to fix them could be appropriately matched.  Knowing people and their problems is also about how we can come close to them in finding their way of life or lifestyle.

To do that, it may require more and better learning and knowledge about them, their problems and lifestyles.  Those in need require to be known.  To know them one may need to try to find from them their problems, what keeps them under poverty. 

There are already quantitative and qualitative research techniques and/or methods (like focus groups in qualitative research) that can enable to handle this sort of knowledge and qualitative data about them.  But, we can still go further steps and perhaps try to re-invent the wheels by using rapprochement methods whereby we can renew or re-establish our closeness to them in order to get to know their real problems including the real solutions to their problems or what they want to be done for them.

So, 2022 will be dedicated as a Year of Knowledge of the People in Need within CENFACS,  Through this dedication, we can  expect that their needs will be better known and their expectations of the types of solutions or remedies will be revealed. 

2022 is also the year of rapprochement to those in need.  In dedicating this year in this way, one could hope to develop customised or tailor-made solutions to their problems instead of one size-fits-all solutions. 

It is a year of rapprochement between CENFACS and those in need in the process of working together to enhance their quality of life while keeping an eye on the spread of COVID-19 and its new variants or any events/diseases that may disrupt or disturb our/this rapprochement or togetherness.        

By the end of January 2022, there will be a project to implement this dedication.  The project will be a one-year initiative starting from week beginning 24 January to December 2022.  However, for those who would like to know more about this dedication, they are free to enquire from CENFACS.  Likewise, for those who would like to support it, they are welcome to do so.

 

 

• Opportunities and Openings for Poverty Reduction by Africa-based Sister Organisations in 2022

 

Every year brings along with it challenges and opportunities.  2022 does not make any exception as it brings both challenges and opportunities.  Africa-based Sister Organisations can do their own SWOT analysis to identify and determine the internal strengths and weaknesses of their organisations as well as the external opportunities and threats they may come across throughout 2022. 

By focusing on opportunities and openings rather than on the other three elements of SWOT analysis, they can appraise their external environment and their presence in African markets of poverty reduction as well as formulate a strategy and develop their services to work with those in need in a new or improved direction.

For example, they can use the following possibilities to help further reduce poverty in Africa in 2022 by:

 

√ Helping to sensitize people to get COVID-19 vaccine since Africa has largely COVID-19 unvaccinated people

√ Assisting disease sufferers to gain access to medical treatments as far as the management of other diseases (like HIV-Aids, malaria, TB and diabetes) are concerned

√ Advocating for the end of violence in order to contain violence in conflict hotspots like in African Sahel and others

√ Helping to cut down risks of worsening humanitarian crises like in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Mali, Niger, Cameroon, and so on  

√ Supporting urban poor in terms of their demand for land use, housing, consumer goods and services regarding urbanisation

√ Accompanying poor people in their recovery efforts from the lingering effects of COVID-19 and associated adverse impacts

√ Working with poor people to develop their digital skills via education and training in order to keep pace with digital revolution

√ Supporting indebted and income deficit poor people to restructure their income deficits and debts as far as the management of income deficits and debts are concerned

√ Assisting in African Diaspora’s money remittances or transfer schemes to those in need in Africa in the areas of international payments, travel and tourism   

√ Helping poor people to formulate their human rights request/demand to make 2022 elections and transitions in Africa as processes that leave none, no need and no place behind

Etc.

 

The above possibilities show that Africa-based Sister Organisations can cautiously grab the opportunities and openings of the 2022 year in order to further up their poverty reduction work and regain the lost hard-won poverty reduction results because of COVID-19 in Africa.

For those Africa-based Sister Organisations wanting to work on these opportunities and openings and finding some difficulties to do it; they can discuss the matter with CENFACS so that together we can plan a 2022 market development strategy.   

Need a market development strategy or plan in order to better engage with the 2022 opportunities and openings; please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

  

 

Extra Messages

 

• COVID-19 Campaign 2022

 

This January 2022, our COVID-19 Campaign continues.  We have not given up by repeating in saying to the community the following:

It is life-saving to keep following and implementing the coronavirus pandemic restrictions, advice and rules. 

All our community members should be aware of the nature of the current threat level posed by the COVID-19 and its variants (like the Delta and Omicron which are both in circulation). 

People need not only to follow but also to practise what the health authorities and professionals (e.g. World Health Organisation, the UK Government and the National Health Service) are advising.

The rapidly changing pandemic landscape means aggressive and sustained response.  Without interfering in our community members’ health life, we are kindly asking to all of them to help in the following:

 

√ Follow the voices, movies, signs and symbols of protection against the coronavirus pandemic and its variants 

√ Be ready to implement stringent COVID-19 safety protocols prior to attending any in-person events as long as the threat level of COVID-19 remains

√ Monitor your health with COVID-19 tests even if you are vaccinated

√ Check your COVID-19 vaccination status and test results before committing to any in-person events

√ If in doubt, please do not hesitate to opt out of any gatherings for in-person parties as a safeguard or precautionary measure

√ Avoid any in-person event that could become a source/centre of COVID-19 spread or contagion

√ Appropriately act upon information or data received on COVID-19 threats and risks

  

The above COVID-19 Campaign 2022 message should be added to the currently available COVID-19 restrictions, advice and rules such as social distancing, confinement, sanitation, face coverings, temperature screenings, disinfection or cleaning of personal items and of your living environment, etc.

For any enquiries and or queries about this life-saving message, please e-contact CENFACS as COVID-19 Campaigner.

 

 

 

• Gifts of Peace still running

 

Our Season of Giving through the Gifts of Peace has not yet finished.  We still have almost 1 week and 5 days to go until the end of this month. We are making a plea to those who have not yet managed to support to keep these gifts in their mind.

Although the deadline for the Season of Donation for these gifts is 31 January 2022, we will still accept any donations made after this deadline as there are always pressing needs that desperately request support. 

Please do not wait for the expiration of the deadline as the needs are pressing.

For further details about these Gifts of Peace and or to support, go to http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/  

We look forward to your support.  Thank you!

 

 

 

• The Season of Giving continues with SHOPPING and DONATIONS at http://cenfacs.org.uk/shop/

 

Every season or every month is an opportunity to do something against poverty and hardships.  January is too a good and great month of the year to do it.

You can donate or recycle your unwanted and unneeded goods gifts you received over the festive days to CENFACS’ Charity e-Store, the shop built to help relieve poverty and hardships. 

You can as well buy second hand goods and bargain priced new items and much more. 

CENFACS’ Charity e-Store needs your support for SHOPPING and GOODS DONATIONS.

You can do something different this Season of Goods Donations by SHOPPING or DONATING GOODS at CENFACS Charity e-Store. 

You can DONATE or SHOP or do both:

√ DONATE unwanted Festive GOODS GIFTS and PRODUCTS to CENFACS Charity e-Store this January and Winter

√ SHOP at CENFACS Charity e-Store to support noble and deserving causes of poverty relief this January and Winter.

Your SHOPPING and or GOODS DONATIONS will help to the Upkeep of the Nature and to reduce poverty and hardships.

This is what the Season of Giving is all about.

 

Vient de paraître:

Le 74e numéro de FACS vient de paraître. 

Ceux ou celles qui sont intéressé(e)s à lire en détail la version entière en français de ce nouveau numéro  peuvent contacter le CENFACS à notre adresse habituelle sur ce site internet. 

 

 

Main Development

 

• FACS, Issue No. 74, Winter 2022: The Dilemma Faced by Africa-based Sister Organisations in Helping to Reduce Urban Poverty in the Context of Rising Urban Population in Africa

 

The contents and key summaries of the 74^th Issue of FACS are given below.

 

• • Contents and Pages

 

∝ Determinants of urban poverty (Page 2)

∝ Opportunities and openings for poverty reduction for Africa-based Sister Organisations in African urban areas in 2022 (Page 3)

∝ ASOs’ work and the access of poor local city-residents to city-wide services (Page 3)

∝ Africa-based Sister Organisations, urban migration and poverty reduction (Page 4)

∝ Africa-based Sister Organisations, COVID-19 and reversal of urban poverty reduction (Page 4)

 

∝ Faire bouger les lignes pour réduire la pauvreté urbaine  (Page 5)

∝ Des parts du marché de réduction de la pauvreté urbaine en Afrique pour des organisations africaines: Sont-elles significatives ou pas? (Page 5)

√ Redistribuer les moyens et les cartes pour endiguer la pauvreté urbaine en Afrique (Page 6)

∝ Les organisations soeurs basées en Afrique face à la double donne dans des cités urbaines africaines:  Croissance de la population et celle de la pauvreté (Page 6)

 

∝ Africa-based Sister Organisations and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of Making Cities Inclusive, Safe, Resilient and Sustainable (Page 7) 

∝ Africa-based Sister Organisations’ action on informal settlements in Africa’s cities (Page 7)

∝ Africa-based Sister Organisations’ helping harms in the process of building climate resilient and sustainable living for the urban poor (Page 8)

∝ Community research and development about urban poverty and population (Page 8)

∝ Survey about ASOs’ capacity to help to reduce urban poverty in Africa’s cities (Page 9)

∝ E-focus group discussions on urban poverty (Page 9)

∝ Urban Poverty Reduction project (Page 10)

 

• • Key Summaries

 

Please find below the key summaries of the 74^th Issue of FACS from page 2 to page 10. 

 

• • • Determinants of urban poverty (Page 2)

 

In the extract of this 74^th Issue, we provided the definition of urban poverty to be considered in this Issue.  We are going to add to this definition the determinants of urban poverty, which come from Jo Beall (2).  From what Beall argued, one can identify the following determinants of urban poverty:

 

∝ The poorest are found among the unemployed and casually employed

∝ The urban poor pay more for their goods and services and are often more vulnerable than the rural poor to changes in market conditions

∝ The poor are disproportionally affected by insecurity of land tenure and insecure living conditions

∝ They are squeezed off valuable land and are forced into peripheral or marginal locations

∝ The urban poor experience poor living conditions such as appalling overcrowding, contaminated water, poor or absent of sanitation, lack of services and the constant threat of floods, landslides or industrial pollution

∝ The urban poor are exposed to severe environmental health risks.

 

The above elements can determine urban poor compared to rural poor. 

For example, urban poor in Africa’s cities like Kinshasa, Cairo and others would experience most of the above mentioned problems.  This is let alone the socio-economic pressure brought COVID-19 and its variants.

These determinants are also the ones Africa-based Sister Organisations may need to deal with in Africa’s cities (like Kinshasa, Cairo and others) where urban population is rising or has the potential to rise.

 

• • • Opportunities and openings for poverty reduction for Africa-based Sister Organisations in African urban areas in 2022 (Page 3)

 

Urbanisation and growing urban population in African urban cities form a major challenge in terms of poverty reduction for Africa-based Sister Organisations (ASOs).  However, where there is a challenge, there could be opportunities lying ahead as well.  These opportunities could be within and/or around the challenges that urbanisation can bring such as overcrowding, waste management, growing urban population, informal settlements, unsafe and unsustainable transport, lack of clean energy, air pollution, etc.

ASOs can seize these 2022 opportunities and work with those (e.g. urban dwellers or urban poor) suffering or who may suffer from these challenges or problems.  This work will depend on each country, urban area and where each ASO’s area of operation is located.  It will depend as well on each ASO’s internal strengths and weaknesses to be able to reap some benefits from these opportunities. 

 

 

• • • ASOs’ work and the access of poor local city-residents to city-wide services (Page 3)

 

One of the problems that poor city-residents, whether they are indigenous or immigrants from rural areas, face could be the lack of or inadequate access to city-wide services (such as water supply, sanitation, energy, health, etc.).  ASOs could work with those who are suffering from this access so that these services could reach them.

Working with these poor city-residents could include the following:  explaining them how the distribution of these city-wide services work, providing them with digital support where these services can only be accessible digitally, informing them about rights and obligations as city-residents in terms of these services, etc.

 

• • • Africa-based Sister Organisations, urban migration and poverty reduction (Page 4)

 

There are many reasons why people move into urban areas, whether this immigration comes from within a country (from its rural areas or other areas) or other places of the world.  One of the reasons is urban immigrants could expect a better life in urban areas.  If this expectation becomes a reality, then their dream could come true.  On the contrary, if it does not happen, some of them could end up in poverty.

If urban immigrants are or become poor, then there is a need to tackle this type of poverty.  And ASOs working on both urban and immigration matters could be better placed to work with this category of urban poor in order to manage the dilemma of having to help reduce poverty in the context of simultaneous growth of urban poverty and urban population.

 

• • • Africa-based Sister Organisations, COVID-19 and reversal of urban poverty reduction (Page 4)

 

The coronavirus pandemic and its far-reaching ramifications have not made things easy for urban poverty reduction in Africa’s urban areas or cities.  This is to an extent that the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (3) argues that

“[Poverty reduction in reverse] is especially evident in cities, where the pandemic has exacerbated the multiple deprivations already experienced by the urban poor.  In developed and developing countries alike, the pandemic’s health, economic and social impacts are falling most severely on marginalised and low income households” (p. 54)

The reversal of poverty reduction in urban areas of Africa could only mean that ASOs have to work harder with urban poor to regain the lost hard-won poverty reduction results during the pre-pandemic period.

 

• • • Faire bouger les lignes pour réduire la pauvreté urbaine (Page 5)

 

Les organisations africaines peuvent faire bouger les lignes et gagner une bonne place sur le chantier de réduction de la pauvreté urbaine dans l’ère post-COVID-19.

En effet, pour mieux reconstruire les societés et économies urbaines après les dégâts économiques et sociaux créés par la pandémie de coronavirus et ses variantes, il y a lieu de reconnaître et rehausser la place de tous les acteurs, notamment ceux du secteur à but non lucratif.  Les acteurs de ce secteur, particulièrement mais pas exclusivement les charités africaines, peuvent jouer un rôle non négligeable sur le recul ou l’élimination de la pauvreté urbaine.

Cela demande de faire bouger les lignes traditionnelles pour accorder davantage des rôles aux organisations africaines qui sont plus proches des problèmes urbains et des peuples urbains.  Cet octroi de rôles concernera aussi bien des projets d’investissements que la réparttion des parts du marché de réduction de la pauvreté.

En gros, faire bouger les lignes traditionnelles en accordant des moyens aux organisations à but non lucratif et en leur faisant partie intégrante de l’enveloppe économique et financière de la reconstruction urbaine ne pourra qu’avoir des effets bénéfiques pour les usagers pauvres urbains et atténuer, sinon à faire disparaître, les effets néfastes sur une population urbaine montante.

 

 

• • • Des parts du marché de réduction de la pauvreté urbaine en Afrique pour des organisations africaines: Sont-elles significatives ou pas? (Page 5)

 

Quand on regarde l’éventail des problèmes que les pauvres urbains font face dans des cités africaines, on peut dire qu’il y a beaucoup de travaux à faire pour endiguer ou réduire la pauvreté ou précarité urbaine.  Par contre, quand on se référe à l’ensemble de ressources de ces organisations, il y a lieu d’affirmer qu’elles n’ont pas de capacités d’intervention ou de réponse requises aux enjeux ou problématiques urbains.

Compte tenu de cette limitation des moyens, leurs parts ne peuvent qu’être peu ou pas significatives.  Bien entendu, cela dépend des cités et des pays africains et de la hantise (ou affection) qu’on a vis-à-vis des problèmes de pauvreté par ceux ou celles qui sont censé(e)s y pallier.

Ainsi, rehausser les parts du marché en faveur des organisations qui exercent le rôle qui est le leur dans le travail de réduction et d’élimination de la pauvreté ne serait qu’une bonne chose pour ceux ou celles qui veulent voir la disparition de la pauvreté urbaine.

 

• • • Redistribuer les moyens et les cartes pour endiguer la pauvreté urbaine en Afrique (Page 6)

 

Pour combattre la pauvreté urbaine en Afrique, cela demande des moyens.  Pourtant, avec le poids écrasant de la crise sanitaire du COVID-19 et ses ramifications économiques et financières néfastes, plusieurs organisations ont perdu leurs capacités d’intervention sur la scène urbaine.

Puisque les économies africaines, et en particulier les économies des cités urbaines, sont à reconstruire après les dégâts sanitaires et économiques liés au COVID-19; cela ne peut se faire efficacement qu’en y intégrant des organisations travaillant avec des pauvres urbaines.   Dans le contexte de cet article, celles-ci seront celles du secteur caritatif ou associatif ou à but non lucratif.

Par conséquent, redistribuer les moyens et les cartes urbaines en tenant compte de ces organisations peut permettre à relever le défi économique et sanitaire, et donc la nouvelle pauvreté urbaine qu’ont entraîné le COVID-19 et ses ramifications.

A l’entrée de jeux du marché de réduction de la pauvreté urbaine, ces organisations peuvent ne pas avoir des moyens nécessaires et suffisants.  Néanmoins, si les ressources financières et autres sont confiées à elles ou réparties équitablement, elles peuvent être à même de réunir des capacités requises et moyens de leur ambition ou mission urbaine pour combattre ou mieux réduire la pauvreté urbaine face à la montée à long terme de la population urbaine.

 

• • • Les organisations soeurs basées en Afrique face à la double donne dans des cités urbaines africaines:  Croissance de la population et celle de la pauvreté (Page 6)

 

Plusieurs études démographiques démontrent que la population africaine continue et continuera de grimper d’ici à 2030 et à 2050.  Les cités africaines ne sont pas épargnées dans cette croissance démographique.   A cette donne démographique, il y a lieu d’ajouter la pauvreté grandissante ou plus ou moins constante dans des cités africaines telles que Kinshasa, Bangui ou autre.

Face à cette double donne, les organisations soeurs basées en Afrique et oeuvrant dans le secteur de pauvreté urbaine sont prises en tenaille pour offrir des services à leurs bénéficiaires.  D’un côté, il y a une montée annuelle de la population urbaine; et de l’autre côté, la pauvreté urbaine va dans la même direction que celle de la population urbaine. 

Devant cette double progression, les organisations doivent parfois faire des choix difficiles en matière de lutte contre la pauvreté urbaine.  Depuis les deux dernières années, ces choix ont été écornés par des effets néfastes de COVID-19 qui ont quasiment balayé le progrès jusque là réalisé pendant les deux dernières décennies en matière de réduction de la pauvreté urbaine.

D’aucuns espèrent que l’année 2022 amènera un nouveau souffle pour que ces organisations soient à même de surmonter leurs difficultés de choix et répondre aux attentes des pauvres urbains.  Ce qui est vrai est qu’elles doivent se re-inventer pour trouver des nouvelles solutions contre la pauvreté urbaine cadrant avec la double donne susdite.

 

• • • Africa-based Sister Organisations and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of Making Cities Inclusive, Safe, Resilient and Sustainable   (Page 7)

 

From the Sustainable Development Goal 11 of the United Nations (4), making cities safe and sustainable means ensuring access to safe and affordable housing and upgrading slum settlements, including in urban spaces where extreme poverty is concentrated.

ASOs working in urban areas can contribute to the realisation of this goal by tackling extreme poverty where it is concentrated in Africa’s urban areas.  They can work with extreme poor so that the latter can access and meet their basic life sustaining needs of safe water, affordable housing, local integration, etc.

 

 

• • • Africa-based Sister Organisations’ action on informal settlements in Africa’s cities (Page 7)

 

Informal settlements are one of the problems found in many cities.  But, what is an informal settlement?

Avis (5) argues the following:

“Informal settlements are residential areas where…

Inhabitants often have no security of tenure for the land or dwellings they inhabit – for example, they may squat or rent informally;

Neighbourhoods usually lack basic services and city infrastructure;

Housing may not comply with planning and building regulations, and often situated in geographically and environmentally sensitive areas”.

Because of their features, informal settlements can come with them human settlement dimension of poverty.  Indeed, not having a defined living place or space in terms of accommodation is in itself a manifestation or proof of poverty and hardships.  Many urban poor experience this problem.

This issue of informal settlements puts Africa-based Sister Organisations in a position to act and work with informal settlers so that their needs could not only be recognized and advocated, but also be met in practical terms.

 

• • • Africa-based Sister Organisations’ helping arms in the process of building climate resilient and sustainable living for the urban poor (Page 8)

 

The impacts of climate change and weather events in many cities of Africa are well known.  These impacts are even regrettable when they hit urban poor since many of them do not simply have the means to live, let alone to survive these impacts.

To support urban poor impacted by these events, ASOs can work with many of them in the areas of resilience and sustainable living.  Their work on resilience is and will be about working to together with urban poor so that they can regain structure and functionality as a result of disruption or disturbance caused climate change events, such as flooding in Congo-Brazzaville towards the end of 2021.

In this respect, ASOs can work with urban poor of Africa’s cities to build coping or adaptive or even transformative capacity.  This could depend on the intensity of the shock of these events whether it is mild or moderate or severe.

The work of sustainable living includes making sure that the living conditions of these urban poor are continued over the long term without adverse effects, which may derive from various events including the health disaster like the coronavirus pandemic.

 

• • • Community research and development about urban poverty and population (Page 8)

 

CENFACS has two research projects relating to urban poverty and population to which people can participate, which are as follows:

(a) Evaluation of the work of Africa-based Organisations on Africa’s urban problems

(b) Testing the correlation between urban migratory inflows and poverty in one of Africa’s cities with growing population

 

(a) Evaluation of the work of Africa-based Organisations on Africa’s urban problems

 

This is an evaluative work through which participants can conduct an examination about the worth, quality, significance, amount, degree and condition of the work so far carried out by Africa-based organisations regarding urban poverty in Africa’s cities.  This work could be before or after the coronavirus pandemic. The evaluative work we are talking about is an empirical work, but not academic writing.  It is the applied work done on the grounds to support or work with urban poor so that they can help themselves in navigating their way out of poverty.

 

(b) Testing the correlation between urban migratory inflows and poverty in one of Africa’s cities with growing population

 

This is a theoretical study on the relation between two variables: urban migration and urban poverty.  The study will consist of finding if there is or not any relationship between migratory inflows to urban cities with the increase of urban poverty (or the number of urban poor) in Africa’s cities.  To test the correlation between the two, one will need data (about urban poor and urban immigrants) in a particular urban city of Africa.

To participate in either of the projects, please contact CENFACS.

 

• • • Survey about ASOs’ capacity to help to reduce urban poverty in Africa’s cities (Page 9)

 

Given that Africa’s population will continue to grow by 2050, including in Africa’s cities, do you think that ASOs have the means to keep pace with and sustain their work in the area of urban poverty reduction by 2030?

 

 

• • • E-focus group discussions on urban poverty (Page 9)

 

As part of supporting each other, we would like to e-discuss with those who may be interested in experience of the community members living in mega cities compared to those living out of cities or in small towns in terms of economic hardships or deprivations, especially at this time of the continuing adverse effects linked to the coronavirus and its variants.

The e-discussion will be on the following:

 

(a) Types of economic deprivations or hardships experienced

(b) Types and profiles of the economically deprived community members

(c) City’s or urban responses to urban poverty or deprivations where they live

 

Those who would like to participate they can contact CENFACS so that we can plan sessions about this e-discussion.

 

• • • Urban Poverty Reduction project (Page 10)

 

This is a sustainable development and inclusive initiative aims at reducing the economic and social difficulties or hardships experienced by urban poor (who could be city-dwellers and small scale urban farmers) living in Africa’s cities so that they can improve the quality of their living conditions.  The project will also help them to be included, feel safe and stay resilient against environmental, economic and social threats.

Through this project, there are expectations to meet the needs (i.e. social needs like shelter, economic needs such as income generation activities, environmental needs like net-zero-CO2-emissions consumer goods and services).

To support or contribute to this project, please contact CENFACS.

For further details including full project proposals and budget about the Urban Poverty Reduction Project, please contact CENFACS.

The full copy of the 74^th Issue of FACS is available on request.  For any queries and comments about this Issue, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

_________

 

References

(1) https://africa.businessinsider.com/local/lifestyle/top-10-fastest-growing-cities-in-africa-2021/1PVKr58 (accessed in January 2022)

(2) Jo Beall (2000), Life in the Cities, in Allen, T. & Thomas, A. (eds.), Poverty and Development into the 21^st Century, The Open University in association with Oxford University Press, New York

(3) United Nations Human Settlements Programme/UN-Habitat (2021), Cities and Pandemics: Towards a More Just, Green and Healthy Future at https://unhabitat.org/sites/default/files/2021/03/cities_and_pandemic-towards_a_more_just_green_and_healthy_future_un_habitat_2021.pdf (accessed in January 2022)

(4) https://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2015/09/24/undp-welcomes-adoption-of-sustainable-development-goals-by-world-leaders.html (accessed in January 2022)

(5) Avis, W. R. (2016), Urban Governance (Topic Guide), Birmingham UK: GSDRC, University of Birmingham

_________

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 consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future or as a New Year resolution.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ PROJECTS, 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 2022 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

12 January 2022

 

Post No. 230

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Light Season’s Resources, Projects and Programmes

• Zero Income Deficit Campaign 2022 with a focus on Net Income (or Deficit)

• Appeal to End Food Insecurity in the Eastern Horn of Africa

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Light Season’s Resources, Projects and Programmes

 

Last week, we listed projects and programmes to be carried out in January 2022.   This week, we are unveiling more projects and programmes including resources.  The last week’s listed projects and the ones to be unveiled below will all make our Light Season 2022.

However, amongst last week’s and this week’s projects and programmes, there are those (such as humanitarian appeals/projects) that are specifically designed to feature the Light Campaign/Advocacy,  to bring and carry the message of hope through a Blaze of Hope; whereas there are others that just fall within the Season of Lights, which is between December in the preceding year (e.g. 2021) and March in the following year (e.g. 2022).

Under the Main Development section of this post, we have provided further details about the Light Season’s Resources, Projects and Programmes.

 

 

• Zero Income Deficit Campaign 2022 with a focus on Net Income (or Deficit)

 

This year and Season of Light, we are keeping on working with the community members so that they can better manage their income, particularly they can reduce the deficit (or excess of expenses over income or excess of liabilities over assets or even excess of outgoings over incomings) linked to their income.  In our work with them, the focus will be on net income or net deficit.  But, what is net income (or deficit).

 

• • Basic understanding of net income (or deficit)

 

To make it easy but technical, we have selected these two definitions from the lawsinsider.com (1) which states that…

“Net Income (or Deficit) means with respect to any person (or any asset of any person) for any fiscal period, the net income (or deficit) of such person (or attributable to such asset), after deduction of all expenses, taxes and other proper charges, determined in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles”

Or

“Net Income (or Deficit) means, with respect to any fiscal period, the consolidated net income (or deficit) of the subject Borrower, after deduction of all expenses, taxes, and other proper charges, determined in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles”.

How these definitions can help the CENFACS Community.

 

• • Working with the Community on Net Income (or Deficit)

 

We will be working with our members on ways of improving their incomings and assets on the one hand; and of reducing or controlling outgoings and liabilities on the other hand.  In doing so, one can hope that they will be able to create a surplus or simply to better manage the net income (or deficit).

For those members of our community who are struggling to get the level of net income (or deficit) of their household accounts manageable or affordable, they are free to work with us so that together we can explore steps forward or ways out to the problem.

To ask or get support to sort out the net income (or deficit) from your household accounts, please contact CENFACS.  Also, to support Zero Income Deficit Campaign 2022, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Appeal to End Food Insecurity in the Eastern Horn of Africa

 

After completing the review of Horn-of-Africa Appeals which started at the beginning of December 2021, we are now appealing for an end to food insecurity in the Eastern Horn of Africa.  Indeed, due to the worsening drought in the region, many of those are living there will be at risk of severe hunger.   The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (2) in its food security platform alerted the world about this hunger situation by arguing on 29 December 2021 the following:

“Over 20 million people were in need of urgent food aid in the Horn of Africa amid severe drought and conflict”

In other words, nearly 20 million people, who would be forced into food insecurity due to drought caused by La Nina natural disaster, would need urgent humanitarian food assistance in 2022.

Additional data from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations  (3) tells the same hunger story in the Eastern Horn of Africa, particularly in these three countries: Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.  Data from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations  (ibid.) indicate the following:

“In Ethiopia, about 7.4 million people [were] severely food insecure between July and September 2021”

“In Kenya, about 2.4 million people [were] estimated to be severely food insecure between November 2021 and January 2022, reflecting poor rainy seasons”

“In Somalia, about 3.5 million people [were] estimated to be severely food insecure between October and December 2021” as a result of consecutive poor rainy seasons”

The above figures are not given for statistical purpose.  They are referred to in order for action to be taken.  They help to launch this first wave of appeal under the Light Projects, as way of sending a message of hope to those hungry people in the Eastern Horn of Africa.

One can hope that every effort will be made, by those who can help, so that logistics and channels for food assistance will be put in place in order to enable those in need to have access to food and other life-saving commodities.  One can as well expect that effort will be made to support locally grown food to meet the local food needs.

The above is our Blaze of Hope or Light Appeal to support the peoples of Eastern Horn of Africa. 

To support or enquire about this Light Appeal, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Digital and Social Media Campaign

Level 5: Apps that Help to Reduce Poverty

 

The next level of our Digital and Social Media Campaign will be about what online and internet applications (or Apps.) can do for those users who use a mobile phone or any other electronic devices (e.g. tablet or netbook) in terms of poverty reduction and of the enhancement of sustainable development.

 

• • What Level 5 of this Digital and Social Media Campaign can achieve

 

Through this level 5, we hope to achieve the following:

 

√ Identify more of those Apps with built-in poverty-relief facilities, tasks or functionalities even if their designers did not in the first place think of poverty reduction during their conception

√ Find out what they can or cannot do for people living in poverty

√ Match those Apps with the problems that people in need face

√ Check if Apps are free or paid

√ Disseminate information about these Apps within the community so that more people are aware about them in terms of reducing poverty and enhancing sustainable development.

 

• • Apps useful in reducing poverty

 

There are Apps that users can download to their electronic devices so that they can better perform a particular task.  However, not all those applications could enable to reduce or end a particular type of poverty.   In our Campaign, we would like to highlight those Apps that are useful in reducing poverty and hardships. 

 

For example, WhatsApp Messenger, which is a free messaging and video calling app, is a cross-platform mobile messaging app that enable people to send text messages and voice messages, make voice and video calls, and share images, documents, user locations and other contents.  WhatsApp can help to reduce both communication poverty and money poverty by enabling its income deprived users from different parts of the world to use its platform to run phone conversation as well as materials (e.g. videos and images) for free. 

One could hope that if anyone has more and better information about these Apps that help to reduce poverty and hardships, it could be a good idea to share this information with us and the rest of the community.

To share Apps information and/or support the level 5 of our Digital and Social Media Campaign, please contact CENFACS. 

 

 

 

• Poverty Reduction Show

 

Showing that poverty reduction is happening despite COVID-19 new variants is an extra message we would like to share with our users, Africa-based Sister Organisations and other stakeholders.

This 2022, we would like our local people and Africa-based Sister Organisations to show or showcase via a variety of evidences, testimonies, cases, films, videos, news and examples of poverty reduction that poverty reduction has happened and continues to happen despite the continuing challenge posed by COVID-19 and its currently running variants (like Delta and Omicron).  Poverty reduction show will add value to stories of poverty reduction we normally run.

Through this showing exercise, we hope to build a better picture of these poverty reduction cases with features, similarities, differences and patterns for learning and development experience about our system of poverty reduction.  It is about proofing that poverty reduction does happen in real life.

To show or share your experience on how poverty reduction has happened to you or those you know despite the mounting pressure of COVID-19 and its variants, please contact and share it with CENFACS.

 

 

 

 

• Net Zero Consumers’ Experience about Substitution Effect

 How many of net zero consumers are attracted by net zero consumer goods?

 

As part of the month of Responsible Consumption and of Net Zero Consumption, we are looking for net zero consumers’ experiences of substituting non-net zero consumer goods (or carbon footprint consumer goods) to the purchase of net zero consumer goods in their shopping basket.

We are precisely working on the elasticity of technical substitution between non-net zero consumer goods and net zero consumer goods.  In other words, our work is on the substitution of one non-net zero consumer product (or carbon footprint consumer product) for a net zero consumer one resulting from a change in their relative prices.   We are trying to find out the substitution effect of these two types of goods whether or not they are economically interchangeable by poor consumers in order to reduce poverty. 

The result of this work will help us to determine how many of poor consumers are attracted by net zero consumer goods or a particular one.  In doing so, we can improve our perception about net zero consumer goods/economy and the support we give through the Consume-to-Reduce-Poverty project/resource.

To take part in this study or to tell us your experience of the use of net zero consumer goods in relation to non-net zero consumer goods, please contact CENFACS.  Also, anyone who has reliable data on this matter; it will be good to let CENFACS know.

 

 

 

Le 10e numéro du CRP (Consommer pour Réduire la Pauvreté) met l’accent sur la consommation nette zéro.

Dans ce numéro, nous travaillerons sur la consommation nette zéro; c’est-à-dire une consommation qui n’ajoute pas d’émissions de CO₂ supplémentaires à la quantité de gaz à effet de serre dans l’atmosphère. 

La consommation nette zéro est un effort que tous les membres de notre communauté peuvent faire afin d’aider à atteindre l’objectif mondial de 1,5 degré Celsius tel qu’il ressort du Traité de Paris sur le climat. 

Pour évoluer vers une trajectoire de consommation nette zéro, il faudra avoir une stratégie de consommation nette zéro et des plans d’action personnalisés. Il faut également entreprendre des évaluations des gaz à effet de serre et une comptabilité carbone afin de déterminer l’impact de notre consommation en termes d’émissions de CO₂.

En gros, le 10e numéro du CRP est un outil de travail pour qu’ensemble avec la communauté CENFACS nous marchons vers l’objectif 1,5 degré Celsius.

Pour soutenir la consommation nette zéro et responsable aussi bien qu’obtenir le numéro complet de 2022 de cette ressource hivernale (Consommer pour Réduire la Pauvreté et les Changements Climatiques), veuillez contacter le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Light Season’s Resources, Projects and Programmes

 

The following highlights the Light Season’s Resources, Projects and Programmes.

 

• • What are Light Season’s Resources, Projects and Programmes?

 

They are a stock of assets (resources) together with a set of interdependent tasks (projects) and related activities (programme) designed to help meet the aim of poverty reduction either within the Lights Season and/or beyond it depending on the types of resource, project and programme.  In other words, whether it is about resources or projects or even programme, the unified aim is to help reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.

 

• • Types of Light Season’s Initiatives

 

There are two types, which are:

 

(a) Initiatives that are specifically designed to bring message of hope or a Blaze of Hope

(b) Initiatives that fall within the Season of Light

 

• • • Initiatives to bring message of hope or a Blaze of Hope

 

They include two waves of intervention or Blazes of Hope, which are:

 

(a) Appeals to deal with the unfinished business of previous destruction and disruption brought by the coronavirus, wars and natural disasters

(b) Appeals linked to seasonally erupted events or effects from health disasters (like the coronavirus), armed conflicts, economic slowdown, climate change and natural disasters

For example, the Appeal to End Food Insecurity in the Eastern Horn of Africa is at the same time for unfinished business of humanitarian and any eruption of food crisis in the New Year.

 

• • • Initiatives falling within the Season of Light

 

They consist of the following:

 

∝ Light (or energy) and poverty reduction projects (New)

∝ Programme of gradually phasing down coal as source of energy for Africa’s poor coal-dependent (New)

∝ Activities to adapt and mitigate transformational and structural changes to cope with changing uncertainty in the Anthropocence

∝ Advocacy and e-workshops about energy transition to carbon net zero or post-carbon economy, from polluting to clean and green energy and technology (New)

∝ Climate neutral projects (New)

 

The above initiatives are not the only ones for the Season of Light.  During the season, we may cancel or reduce the scope of some initiatives if we realise that the problem they were supposed to resolve are no longer there.  Likewise, we may add new or recurring initiatives depending on the events within the community we serve.  The worksheet below provides some indication in terms of initiatives implementation plan.

 

• • Basic implementation plan for the Light Season’s Initiatives

 

As we go along the Light Season, the following implementation plan consisting of ten initiatives will be effective.

 

10 initiatives to implement the Light Season 2022  

This initial implementation plan for the Light Season’s initiatives can change depending on the circumstances and conditions.  Some of the initiatives inserted in the plan/worksheet are not listed under Types of Light Season’s Initiatives.  This is not a big issue.  What is important is the deliverables of those scheduled within the plan.

For those who would like to discuss any of these planned initiatives or any aspects of the plan; they can contact CENFACS.  

To support and or enquire the Light Season’s Resources, Projects and Programmes for 2022, please contact CENFACS.

 

_________

References

(1) https://www.lawsinsider.com/dictionary/net-income-or-deficit

(2) https://fews.net

(3) https://www.fao.org/giews/country-analysis/external-assistance/en

_________

 

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 consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future or as a New Year resolution.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ PROJECTS, 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 2022 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Happy New Year and Welcome Back to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

05 January 2022

 

Post No. 229

 

 

 

The New Year’s Contents

 

• What is New at the Start of the New Year and What is on this January 2022?

• The 10^th Issue of Consume to Reduce Poverty, in Focus: Net Zero Consumption

• Coming up this Winter: The New Year’s and Next Issue of FACS (The 74^th Issue) to be entitled as The Dilemma Faced by Africa-based Sister Organisations in Helping to Reduce Urban Poverty in the Context of Rising Urban Population in Africa

 

 … And much more!

 

 

 

The New Year’s Key Messages

 

• What is New at the Start of the New Year and What is on this January 2022?

 

New Tool, New Relief & New Hope

 

We have got the following initiatives to look forward to in this January 2022 at CENFACS:

 

√ Consume to Reduce Poverty (Issue No. 10) with a Focus on Net Zero Consumption

√ 2021 Year-end Financial Control as a Tool for Poverty Reduction

√ Zero Income Deficit Campaign 2022

√ COVID-19 Campaign in 2022

√ Sustainable energy and Climate neutral Projects (New)

 

The above mentioned initiatives are amongst the ones we have selected to kick-start 2022. 

We shall soon unveil the other selected initiatives making the Season of Light at CENFACS.

 

 

 

• The 10^th Issue of CRP (Consume to Reduce Poverty), in focus: Net Zero Consumption

 

January is the month of Responsible Consumption for CENFACS.   The initiative featuring this month is our resource entitled Consume to Reduce Poverty and Climate Change.  The 10^th Issue of this resource will be on “Net Zero Consumption”.  However, before giving the message about the 10^th Issue of CRP, let us briefly re-explain what normally happen in January.

 

• • January as a Month of Responsible Consumption within CENFACS

 

Some of you are aware that January is our month of Responsible Consumption following CENFACS development calendar.  It means that the theme for January is Responsible or Sustainable Consumption and the monthly project carrying this theme is Consume to Reduce Poverty. 

It is the month we act against poverty due to the lack of consumption and we deal with measures of poverty reduction through consumption.  It is also an opportunity to act to preserve a good relationship between the way in which we consume products on the one hand and the reduction of climate change on the other.  In particular, January is a climate reminder month as it is the month during which we raise awareness of the relationships between humans and the nature through sustainable consumption; that is consumption that does not destroy the nature.

This January we will take an extra step by exploring the relationship between humans and net zero consumption; in other words between humans and the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and/or ensure that any on-going emissions are balanced by removals.

Consume to Reduce Poverty (CRP) is our users’ New Year supporting information and accompanying booster that focuses on Buying and Consumption elements conducive to the reduction of poverty and hardships.  It is indeed a complimentary support to our Autumn Festive Income Boost (FIB) resource.

The FIB is an income-generating resource while CRP brings in a consumption-led look in our fight against poverty.  The next Issue (Issue no. 10) of CRP will be on Net Zero Consumption as mentioned above.

For further details about CRP project, go to http://cenfacs.org.uk/services-activities/

 

• • The 10^th Issue of CRP (Consume to Reduce Poverty), in focus: Net Zero Consumption

 

We will be working on Net Zero Consumption; that is consumption that does not add extra CO₂ emissions to the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.  Net Zero Consumption is an effort that any of the members of our community can make in order to help achieve the global goal of 1.5 degrees Celsius under the Paris Climate Treaty. 

To move towards a Net Zero Consumption trajectory, one will need to have Net Zero Consumption strategy and personalised action plans.  One needs as well to undertake greenhouse gas assessments and carbon accounting in order to determine the impact of their consumption in terms of CO₂ emissions.

Under the Main Development section of this post, we have given some highlights about the 10^th Issue.

 

 

 

• The New Year’s and Next Issue of FACS (The 74^th Issue) to be entitled as…

 

The Dilemma Faced by Africa-based Sister Organisations in Helping to Reduce Urban Poverty in the Context of Rising Urban Population in Africa

How Africa-based Sister Organisations Can Help Reduce Urban Poverty as Urban Population Rises in Africa

 

The 74^th Issue of FACS will deal with two problems as cities or urban places in Africa try to modernise or develop, which are: urban poverty and urban population. 

 

• • Urban population in Africa

 

The African population has continued to grow, especially in urban cities or capitals.  According to the United Nations Human Settlement Programme (1),

“The Urban Population in Africa at Mid-Year by Country was 587,738 thousand in 2020 and will be 824,014 thousand in 2030” (p.305)

 

The above figure indicates that the urban population in Africa is growing.  If this growth continues, there are or could be urban problems.  One of these problems is urban poverty.  But, what is urban poverty?

 

• • Urban poverty in Africa

 

There are many definitions of urban poverty.  Amongst these definitions, we have selected the one given by Anna Belén Cano Hila. 

Anna Belén Cano Hila (2) argues that

“Urban poverty refers to the set of economic and social difficulties that are found in industrialized cities and that are the result of a combination of processes such as: the establishment of comfortable living standards, the increase of individualism, processes of social fragmentation, and the dualization of the labour market, which translates into social dualization. Urban poverty is seen as a type of poverty with the primary characteristic that it occurs in industrialized societies, according to Rowntree 1901, but also in the Global South, in accordance with Mitlin and Satterthwaite 2012”.

Urban poverty can also happen developing cities like those of Africa.  This set of economic and social difficulties or urban poverty has increased with COVID-19 and its socio-economic impacts in those developing cities. 

For example, the United Nations Settlement Programme (op. cit.) reports that

“The absolute increase in extreme poverty in Africa has implications for poverty in its urban areas given the rapid pace of urbanization.  Urban poverty in many African countries is increasing faster than national poverty” (p. 162)

The same United Nations Settlement Programme also contends that

“Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest incidence of urban poverty globally, with about 23 per cent of the urban population living below the international poverty line and 29 per cent experiencing multidimensional poverty” (p. 162)

 

The above quotes tell us that Africa has the problems of urban poverty and urban population, which need to be dealt with. 

 

• • Urban poverty and urban population as a dilemma for Africa-based Sister Organisations

 

If urban population is increasing and urban poverty is rising faster in Africa, how can Africa-based Sister Organisations continue to rise to the challenge of reducing poverty and how can they reduce poverty, particularly urban poverty?  Yet, population increase is always seen by many economists including some demographers as a good demographic indicator for labour as factor of production and a contributor to economic growth.

However, in places where there is already a high level of poverty and social deprivations, disproportionally rising population could be itself an impediment to the task of reducing poverty.  Rising urban population (mostly if it is mainly made of poor people) can lead to rising demand of poverty reduction as well as poverty reduction goods and services, whereas Africa-based Sister Organisations have very limited resources in order to respond to such high demand of urban poverty reduction.  So, it is a dilemma for these organisations.  This lets alone other urban problems such as environmental health decay, flooding, insecurity, homelessness, unemployment, etc.

The 74^th Issue will look at both urban poverty in the context of rising urban population in the way of doing the most and the best for those in need.  It is therefore about how Africa-based Sister Organisations can further reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development while urban population is growing or has the potential to grow, given the resources constraint these organisations have.

More details about this Issue will be given this Winter.  However, for those who would like to enquire about it before it appears, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.   

 

 

 

The New Year’s Extra Messages

 

• 2021 Year-end Financial Control as a Tool for Poverty Reduction

 

Year-in-review accounts are one of the financial tools we would like to work and share with our users as we explained in our last post of 2021.  They are part of year-end financial control project or exercise which includes income boost and other financial tools making our campaign to reduce and end poverty, particularly income poverty.

For those (individuals, families or households) who need help to manage or close their 2021 year-in-review accounts, they can contact CENFACS prior to the end of 2021-2022 tax year or by the 5^th of April 2022.

 

 

• Spending Limit Reports

 

During December 2021, we conducted Structured Activities or Micro-projects under Spending Limit Programme and Scheme.  As part of monitoring process, we would be pleased if those who managed to carried out these activities or exercises to report or share their experience regarding them.

Under Spending Limit Scheme, they can report or share on the following:

 

∝ Elaboration of an action plan for spending limit

∝ Building and understanding of cash flow statements or projections

 

Under Spending Limit Programme, they can report or share on the following:

 

∝ Setting up spending threshold

∝ Respecting spending restriction

 

To report or share your experience, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Africa-based Sister Organisations (ASOs) in 2022: One Year on with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)

One year on since the AfCFTA became operational, what our ASOs make of it in terms of poverty-relief creation or diversion effects.

 

It is now one year since the AfCFTA opened for trading activities.  Although it is too early to measure the impacts or implications of AfCFTA for poverty reduction (and more in the current situation and conditions of continuing COVID-19 disturbance), it is however possible for ASOs to start to give their first feelings or results.  The ASOs can provide their first impressions or feelings regarding the following:

 

∝ The materialisation of the assumed poverty-relief creation effects deriving from the AfCFTA

∝ Windows of opportunities in terms of market niches of poverty reduction

∝ The possibility to build poverty-relief alliances

∝ The improvement in links with poverty-reduction organisations of similar aims

∝ The delivery of cross-border poverty reduction outcomes

Etc.

 

To share and or discuss poverty-relief creation or diversion effects of AfCFTA for ASOs, please contact CENFACS.

 

A nos lecteurs (lectrices) et audiences francophones

Plus de détails sur ce numéro seront donnés cet hiver.  Cependant, pour ceux ou celles qui voudraient s’enquérir avant qu’il n’apparaisse, n’hésitez pas de contacter le CENFACS.

 

The New Year’s Main Development

 

• The 10^th Issue of Consume to Reduce Poverty (CRP)

 

 In Focus: Net Zero Consumption

 

• • Key highlights, Tips & Hints about the 10th Issue of CRP

 

• • • What is Net Zero Consumption?

 

To define net zero consumption, one needs to understand net zero greenhouse gas emissions.  The expression ‘net-zero-greenhouse-gas-emissions’ is often shortened to net zero within the climate literature.  Within the same literature, there are many definitions of net zero. 

In the context of this 10^th Issue, we are going to use the definition of net zero provided by the World Economic Forum.  According to the World Economic Forum (3),

“The term net zero applies to a situation where global greenhouse gas emissions from human activity are in balance with emissions reductions.  At net zero, carbon dioxide emissions are still generated, but an equal amount of carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere as is released into it, resulting in zero increase in net emissions”.

From this definition, one can try to define net zero consumption.  Net zero consumption is the types of consumption (whether the consumption is about consumer goods or other goods or even services) that do not add extra emissions of carbon dioxide to the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.  This matters at all levels of consumption, including at the level of poor consumers (like some of our users) even if their consumption can generate only a tiny amount of emissions.  

 

• • • Going Net Zero in your Shopping Basket

 

Using the internet, e-mail, social networks and other communication technologies; it is possible to get enough information about products and services that meet the requirements of net zero consumption while reducing poverty at the same time. 

It is conceivable for consumers including the poor ones to live a net zero life by shopping and filling up their shopping basket with goods or products that meet net zero requirements.  It is as well possible to find resources and websites that compare and contrast these kinds of products, services and prices.  People can then choose products and services that are good value for net zero consumption and add them to their online shopping basket.

 

• • • Reducing Poverty through a Net Zero Journey

 

Individual and family strategies of reducing the state of having little or no money or even no material possessions can be implemented via net zero consumption or use.  Individuals and families (including the poor ones) can consume net zero products and services that do not add extra emissions, but that help to reduce or even end poverty.  People and families can leapfrog poverty reduction to net zero consumption. 

 

• • • Net Zero Consumption and Circular Economic Model

 

Embracing the recipes of the economic model that decouples (bad) exploitation of natural resources and the desire to meet human needs and wants (circular economy), can help improve consumer behaviour via net zero consumption.  It is said that all processes create waste and sometimes emissions.  However, the circular economic model helps to direct consumption towards what is essential to maintain human life; in doing so it benefits humans to fix, reuse, reduce and save resources through their consumption. 

Briefly, the model can contribute to less production and consumption of products and services that are the result of extra CO2 emissions.

 

• • • Net Zero Consumption and the Climate Economy

 

The process of using resources without adding extra amount of greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere can goes hand in hand with an organised system for the production, distribution and use of goods and services that takes into account the changing weather conditions.  In other words, consuming net zero products and resources can help reduce adverse climate change. 

As climate economy continues to establish itself as an economy for the future, it can bring new climate educational opportunities, economic savings and improved well-being for the poor.  These attributes of the Established Climate Economy can help them consume goods and services that are net zero and non-polluting.

 

• • • Net Zero Consumption and Climate Change

 

Maybe enough has been said about the impacts of changing climate.  If not, then one area of work could be for humans to rethink about how their net zero consumption can help.  Their net zero consumption can help to adapt and mitigate the negative effects of climate change.  The consumption of net zero products and services would help the health and wealth of the environment and the nature on which we all depend.

 

• • • Net Zero Consumption and COVID-19

 

There is a body of scientific explanations about origins of the outbreak of coronavirus pandemic, which indicate that the coronavirus pandemic is a novel zoonotic pathogen or disease.  From this body, it is possible to argue that consuming net zero products and services will help to reduce human induced impacts of climate change and global warming; impacts that probably led to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic and other pandemics.

   

• • • Poor Consumers and their Affordability of Net Zero Goods

 

Not everybody can afford to buy net zero goods and services, especially many poor consumers who may even lack their access.  Since the first COVID-19 lockdown, many low income people and families are struggling to access even essential goods and commodities.  The asymmetry in the distributional effects of the lockdowns has denied to many of them even the access to essential consumption goods.  Their expenses budget has gone up with the new coronavirus-related health items.  This situation does not make easy for them to access net zero consumption even if these could be affordable.

Giving them advisory support in terms how to increase their income, to make some changes in their expenses budget and find affordable net zero consumption goods and services should be a priority amongst other ones.  In this respect, a list of where to find affordable net zero consumption goods in this CRP resource could be handy for them to go net zero for their consumption.

 

• • • Net Zero Consumption Good Practices within the Community

 

Despite the problem of affordability of net zero goods for low income poor people and families, there are nonetheless net zero consumption good practices within our community.  To back up these practices, the10^th Issue of CRP highlights some cases of net zero consumption good initiatives undertaken by the CENFACS Community that underpins net zero consumption accounts as part of every day’s human life.

In this respect, those who have cases of net zero consumption practices and who may find them worthwhile to share and be added to this issue of CRP, they can let CENFACS know.

 

• • • Demonstrative Projects of Net Zero Consumer Goods and Services

 

In net zero consumption economy, every shopper can demonstrate the ability to follow the rules of net-zero consuming world.  In those circumstances, there could be those consumers who do more by taking a proactive action to net-zero consume.

Likewise, there could be local projects (for example, local artists, local soap and face mask makers to support local net zero economy) that could display demonstrative talents and skills in promoting net zero consumption goods, services and habits as a way of living rather than as an accident.

For those members of our community who have developed this kind of demonstrative projects of net zero consumption products and services, it could be a good idea to let us know so that we can add them to this CRP resource.

 

• • • Barriers to Achieve Net Zero Consumption Goals

 

There could be some handicaps for people and families to achieve net zero consumption goals.  One of the barriers is the lack of income that extremely poor people experience that could push them out of reaching net-zero consumption products.  Despite that in charitable world and economy in which no one and no place are left behind, there could be still access for everybody and everyplace to net-zero consumption goods and services.

However, people and families do not like net-zero consumption to happen to them in this way since they would like to work and pay for their net-zero consumption.  Because of the barriers they face in finding opportunity to work and earn decent income, their prospect for meeting their net-zero consumption goals could become remote.

As part of tackling these barriers, the current resource provides some leads in terms of print and online resources that users can further explore in order to respond to some of their net-zero consumption problems.

 

• • • Budgeting for Net Zero Consumption

 

It is a good idea for users to budget for net zero consumer goods and services as part of the overall of household budget.  Users can do or learn to do their own carbon accounting.  This kind of preparation in terms of financial statements for any planned incomes and expenses for a particular period can help to maximise the clean use of resources and reduce spending in items able to gear towards greenhouse gas emissions in terms of what is polluting and non-polluting consumption.  It can as well provide alternative to net-zero consumption to reduce poverty and hardships due to pollution or CO2 emissions.

 

• • • Net Zero Consumption Indication on Products for Verification, Identity and Authenticity

 

It is a good idea for any consumer, rich or poor, to check net-zero features on their buys and other specifications as well as read other people’s testimonies, reviews or comments about it.  In this respect, selling the positive idea of net-zero consumption could be helpful for net-zero consumers.

 

• • • Net Zero Security and Guarantee 

 

When buying net-zero consumer products and services (whether using online or a physical store), one needs to check, compare and contrast products, terms and conditions of business, buying terms, prices, etc.  There is a need to check as well guarantees and safety policies for net-zero features in terms of the coronavirus pandemic.

If you are buying online, before you sign up, add to your net-zero consumer shopping basket and purchase an item; you need to read, discuss and check what you are agreeing on.  You may even take more precautions when selecting items, filling up buying forms to enter your personal, financial information and sensitive details.  Make sure that your online shopping does not limit itself to tick or cross out boxes only.

You should also be aware of scams, spams as well as illegal and malicious practices.  For own online security, use the e-safety tools and advice.

 

• • • Looking for Help and Support

 

For those users who would like to dive into net zero consumption, we can provide them with online and print resources relating to net zero consumption.  There is a lot of online resources and websites they can sign up and receive advice on the following matters:  net zero strategy, action plans, greenhouse gas assessments, carbon accounting, etc.

To support Net Zero and Responsible Consumption and get the full 2022 Issue of Consume to Reduce Poverty and Climate Change, please contact CENFACS.

 

 _________

 

References

 

(1) United Nations Human Settlement Programme (2020), World Cities Report 2020: The Value of Sustainable Urbanisation, UN-Habitat, 2020

(https://unhabitat.org/sites/default/files/2020/10wcr_2020_report.pdf)

(2) Anna Belén Cano Hila (2020): Urban Poverty – Urban Studies – Oxford Bibliographies at…

https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780190922481/…

Cano, Ana Belén. “Urban Poverty.” In The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Urban and Regional Studies. Edited by A. M. Orum, 1–7. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell, 2019.

(3) World Economic Forum at… https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/11/net-zero-emissions-cop26-climate-change/

_________

 

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 consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future or as a New Year resolution.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ PROJECTS, 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 2022 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

29 December 2021

 

Post No. 228

 

 

The Week’s Contents of the Last Post of 2021

 

• 2021 Year-in-review Report

• Year-end Fundraising Campaign

• Year-end Advice-giving Service

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

Festive Season’s Key Messages

 

• 2021 Year-in-review Report

 

The above mentioned report is an evaluation of what happened in this ending year (2021).  It is not an annual report or an annual return.  The report, which is a brief summary of 2021, will help to learn what went well and what did not get well within and around CENFACS, as well as how we can engage our charitable objects in 2022 and beyond. 

This year-end post, which is the 52^nd one, is therefore about covering the events of the year 2021 from the perspective of recapping the year for CENFACS’ audiences, followers and supporters, as well as from the point of view of CENFACS’ contribution to poverty reduction and sustainable development.

Under the Main Development section of this post you will find key highlights of CENFACS’ 2021 Year-in-review Report.

 

 

• End of Year Fundraising Campaign

 

Our End of Year Fundraising Campaign continues until the last day, hour and minute of 2021.  For those who would like to donate to our End-of-year Support, Festive Gift Set and any other festive projects or campaigns or even causes before 2021 ends, please do not hesitate to donate.   You can still make a helpful difference before 31/12/2021.

To donate, just contact CENFACS with your donation by any of these means of communications: text, phone, email and contact form on this website.

 

 

 

• End of Year Advice-giving Service

 

As we informed you in our 51st post of last week on this platform, we are in holiday break until the 5^th of January 2022.  However, some of our projects and campaigns are either self-running or designed to run throughout the holiday season like the festive holiday.  One of these holiday projects is the Advice-giving one. 

Indeed, during the festive period not everybody or member of our community can afford to celebrate on the New Year’s Eve.  There are people who still need accommodation, food, income, guidance, support against the new COVID-19 variant, help against loneliness, etc.  They may also need life-saving support of various kinds to cope and survive while other people, the lucky ones, are busy preparing themselves for the New Year’s Eve festivities.

Because of this on-going need and demand within the community, we have maintained a minimum level of advice-giving service to e-work with those who desperately need advice to reduce poverty or any type of hardships they are facing and do not have anywhere else to ask for help and advice, especially at this time of COVID-19 rebound with the Omicron variant.

If you are one of our members and facing serious hardship during the festive period, you can e-contact CENFACS for advice, guidance and support.  If you are not one of our members and would like to discuss this year-in-review project, please still e-contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

Festive Season’s Extra Messages

 

• Charity e-Store: Recycle and or Give away your Unwanted or Unneeded Presents

 

You can recycle and or give away your unwanted or unneeded presents during this festive period.  In doing so, one will not only support the noble cause of poverty reduction, but also will contribute to the Upkeep of the Nature while maintaining a fair balance between nature and festive presents, between climate and the season’s gifts.

To recycle and or give any unwanted or unneeded festive presents, please contact CENFACS to discuss the reuse of your items since we are under the constraint of renewed COVID-19 restrictions relating to the Omicron variant.

 

 

 

• Help for your Year-in-review Accounts

How to successfully close your end-of-year personal or family accounts and get prepared for the New Year accounts before the end of financial year

 

It is theoretically known that the financial year closes in April and the State budget starts in April of each year.   For example, the 2021-2022 tax year began on April 6^th 2021 and will run until April 5^th 2022 in the UK.

Understandably, the coronavirus pandemic and its adverse effects may impact everybody’s financial calendar and deadlines.  Despite that it is a good practice to use the opportunity of the end of the civil year to start to work out the balances of one’s personal or family accounts.

To help those who are struggling to close their year-end accounts of 2021, we will be looking at, from the start of January 2022 when we return, how to successfully close your personal or family financial accounts and prepare your new accounts in the New Year.

It is always a good practice to start early before the deadlines of the financial year!

It is wise to work out your year-end accounts early so that you could enter the New Year with a good understanding of your financial position while keeping financial control on accounts.  In doing so, one can know areas of financial improvement to sort out their financial situation in the New Year.

This year-end financial control project or exercise includes income boost and other elements making our campaign to reduce and end income poverty.  This is without forgetting the elements of Spending Limit Programme/Scheme and Zero Income Deficit Campaign we conducted.

For those who may be interested in this year-end financial control project, they can contact CENFACS in the New Year.

 

• COVID-19 Campaign over the Festive Holiday

 

Our COVID-19 Campaign continues during the Festive Holiday.  We have not given up by repeating in saying to the community the following:

It is life-saving to keep following and implementing the coronavirus pandemic restrictions and rules. 

All our community members should be aware of the nature of the current threat level posed by the COVID-19 and its variants (like the Delta and Omicron which are both in circulation).  People need not only to follow but also to practise what the health authorities and professionals (e.g. World Health Organisation, the UK Government and the National Health Service) are saying. 

The rapidly changing pandemic landscape means aggressive response.  Without interfering in our community members’ health life, we are kindly asking to all of them to help in the following during the festive period:

√ Follow the voices, movies, signs and symbols of protection against the coronavirus pandemic and its variants

√ Be ready to implement stringent COVID-19 safety protocols prior to attending any in-person events during the festive time

√ Monitor your health with COVID-19 tests even if you are vaccinated

√ Check your COVID-19 vaccination status and test results before committing to any festive events

√ If in doubt, please do not be hesitate to opt out of any gatherings for festive celebrations as a safeguard or precautionary measure

√ Avoid a festive event that could become a source/centre of COVID-19 outbreak or contagion

√ Appropriately act upon information or data received on COVID-19 threats and risks

   

The above COVID-19 Campaign message should be added to the currently available COVID-19 restrictions and rules such as social distancing, confinement, sanitation, face coverings, etc.

For any enquiries and or queries about this message, please e-contact CENFACS as COVID-19 Campaigner.  

 

 

Les images ci-haut contiennent un message, qui est celui de réduction de la pauvreté et du développement durable. 

Elles sont sélectionnées et placées dans la galerie CENFACS parce qu’elles montrent comment l’année 2021 s’est déroulée au sein et autour de CENFACS.

Pour plus d’informations sur ces images ou la rétro 2021, veuillez contacter le CENFACS.

Merci et Joyeuse Saison des fêtes!

 

 

Festive Season’s Main Development

 

• 2021 Year-in-review Report

How the year 2021 has gone within and around CENFACS

 

The following contents make this report: a brief summary of the year, the theme of 2021 year-in-review, the key takeaways of the year, and commitments for the year 2022.

 

• • The Year’s Brief Summary

 

We entered 2021 with in mind the following question: how can our users reduce income deficit and what can they do for not to carry forward 2020 income deficit balance into 2021?

The question helped us together with users on the way of approaching 2021 despite the coronavirus constraint.  From this starting point, there was a need to tirelessly work with those in need so that they can start 2021 with less income deficit and with income surplus regarding the opening balances of their family or household accounting books.  This was vital as a way of stopping or reducing the transmission of poverty to their next generations.  Throughout the year, we worked with them by helping them to resolve or reduce their income deficit.   

Besides the above question, we were arguing with Africa-based Sister Organisations about the 2021 opportunities for them in order to continue the work of poverty reduction and sustainable development.  This argument led us to believe that 2021 could be a year of uncovered opportunities for them; opportunities from the challenges they were facing from the coronavirus pandemic, financial uncertainty, economic impacts of COVID-19 lockdowns and global economic downturn.  Throughout the year, some of these organisations managed to seize these opportunities in terms of market niches.  Others are still suffering from the socio-economic effects of the above mentioned challenges.   

Both the answer to the question on users’ income deficit (or users’ need of income deficit reduction) and the argument about the 2021 opportunities for Africa-based Sister Organisations (ASOs) had shaped the contents and direction of our work with them (users and ASOs) throughout this ending year.

To respond to the income deficit problems of our users, we conducted together with them a Zero Income Deficit Campaign, which led to the Spending Limit Programme and Scheme in the end.  To enable ASOs to grab the 2021 opportunities, we developed Capacity Development Advice from which they could find answers to the problem of living and sustaining in the newly formed African Continental Free Trade Area. 

Briefly, to address both the question and argument we developed Build Forward Better Programme as well as Post-coronavirus Poverty Reduction Restructuring and Post-exit People’s Development projects.  Through these programme and projects we were able to work together with users and ASOs throughout 2021.

 

• • Theme of CENFACS’ 2021 Year-in-Review

 

The theme for this review is building forward better together greener and cleaner in the post-pandemic year.

 

• • How did the Year 2021 go through from within and around CENFACS?

 

To underline the way in which the year 2021 went from within and around CENFACS, we are going to highlight the key takeaways of 2021 and the contributions we made.

 

• • • Key takeaways of the year

 

The points or facts to remember about 2021 from within and around CENFACS are as follows.

 

• • • • 2021 as a Leafy Year

 

Through Leaves-based Advice service, users could address the root causes of multi-dimensional poverty (including intergenerational poverty), access basic needs and use assets for income generation.

 

• • • • 2021 a post-coronavirus poverty reduction restructuring year

 

Thanks to users’ own contribution, we were able to develop a series of activities, proposals, plans, processes and tasks that helped them to deal with changes within the components of poverty reduction systems or structures.

 

• • • • 2021 a post-exit users’ development year

 

To help raise users’ living levels, create conditions for their self-esteem and increase their freedom from poverty and hardships; together with them we developed a set of activities, processes and tasks (e.g. Journal of Happiness and Healthiness written by users over last Summer).

 

• • • • 2021 as a year of not-for-profit development and solutions to poverty

 

During 2021, not-for-profit investors were invited to invest or increase their share of investment in African organisations working with poor people and in poverty issues.

 

• • • • 2021 as a year of debt and deficit management

 

The soaring of COVID-19 induced debts and deficits, especially from income poor users, has been a handicap to reduce and end poverty they are and were facing.  Working with them on the issue of debt and deficit management was pivotal as many of them suggested sustainable solutions to COVID-19 induced financial debt and deficit they were facing.

 

• • • • 2021 as a year of generational economics

 

It has been a year during which we worked with users to explain and understand how their resources (including intergenerational share of non-renewables) have been allocated between them and future generations so that they could reduce or slow down intergenerational poverty.  Many of them understood the problem and started to implement intergenerational solutions or changes to their problems.

 

• • • • 2021 as a year of building forward better together with users

 

Through a set of projects and activities organised together, users were able to ensure that the recovery from COVID-19 pandemic could sit on sound and sustainable foundations that could build back better the poverty reduction gains hard-won while moving forward greener and cleaner.

 

• • • • 2021 as a year of analytics-based solutions to poverty

 

Thanks to the help we received from many of you, we were able to analyse raw data about poverty in order to make insightful conclusions about information.  Through data and contents generated by many of our users, we were in a position to communicate meaningful patterns and trends as well as actionable insights about poverty reduction.  The results of this analysis have helped feed this 2021 Year-in-Review Report.

The above key features of 2021 have to be considered with the results or outcomes they generated.

 

 

 

• • • 2021 Key Produce or Achievements

 

2021 has also been a year of poverty reduction produce or accomplishments.  After doing a round-up of all efforts we made to support the causes of those in need and work with them, we could name the following contributions.

∝) To support the severely socio-economic and health impacted of the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa, we conducted together with our followers and supporters these humanitarian relief appeals: Making Zero Hunger Grand Sud of Madagascar, Food Security Appeal to help tackle the food crisis and hunger situation in Tigray, etc.

∝) As we could not stay silent about human insecurity and displacement in the Ituri Region of the North-eastern in the Democratic Republic of Congo, we launched Ituri Peace Appeal and Re-appeal for the region.

∝) Through various e-discussions with interested users and African organisations, we produced a Guide for the Not-for-profit Investors in Africa.

∝) We could not be insensitive about what was happening in the African Sahel where innocent lives were unnecessary taken by food insecurity.  Together with our supporters, we launched an Appeal to Protect the Acutely Food-insecure in the Lake Chad Basin and Central African Sahel.

∝) We advocated for the reduction of asymmetrical distributional effects of COVID-19 and subsequent lockdowns concerning distance working and learning technologies and means to run them.

The above are just the few selected accomplishments or produce we wanted to share with audiences and supporters in this year-in-review campaign.  However, for those who would like get more insights into them and other achievements of the year 2021, they can still let us know.

 

• • Looking Forward to 2022

 

We shall undertake more sustainable initiatives about light (or energy) and poverty reduction since the global climate community has committed itself to phase down coal as source of energy whereas many energy poor people in Africa are coal-dependant. 

We will as well be developing post-pandemic projects and programmes with contents of Climate Neutrality and Poverty Reduction.  In other words, we shall plan and implement climate neutral projects to help keep us within the goal/trajectory of 1.5 Degree Celcius or below while also assisting in the reduction of poverty and the enhancement of sustainable development.

 

• • 2021 Gratitude

 

To end this year-in-review report, we would like to continue to thank our poverty reduction producers and enablers as we did in last week’s post. 

2021 was a memorable year for CENFACS for those who inspired us in responding to local and African needs at the challenging time of the continuing coronavirus pandemic.  We could not do it without their support. 

We thank them for making possible 2021 as another rewarding year of poverty reduction and of sustainable development as well as for what we accomplished together.  We hope to accomplish more in 2022 and beyond.

For further information or a full story of 2021 and to discuss any issues regarding this 2021 Year-in-Review Report, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

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 consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future or as a New Year resolution.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ PROJECTS, 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 2021 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

22 December 2021

 

Post No. 227

 

 

The Week’s Festive Contents

 

• Thanking 2021 Poverty Reduction Producers and Enablers

• Festive Season’s Arrangements

• Season’s Relief Triple Action Givings: Peace, Hope and Difference

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

 

 

Key Festive Messages

 

• Thanking 2021 Poverty Reduction Producers and Enablers

 

As 2021 comes to an end, we would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who produced poverty reduction with us and those who made poverty reduction possible for those in need and for us.  Amongst them are those who supported our work on poverty relief and sustainable development during this ending post-pandemic year.

For more information about this first key message, please read under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

• Festive Season’s Arrangements: from 23 December 2021 to 5 January 2022

 

The following are the arrangements we have made for the above stated period.

 

• • Queries and enquiries

 

During the festive holidays and the restrictions to slow down the spread of COVID-19 variants (Delta and Omicron), we will only handle online queries and enquiries until the 5th of January 2022.  However, our All-in-Development Winter e-discussion on Volunteering for Climate Neutrality and Poverty Reduction is still on until the 5th of January 2022 as planned.

 

• • Opening hours and days: 24/7

 

We are open online 24 hours and 7 days of week.

 

• • Visits

 

You can only visit us online.

 

• • Festive donations

 

Our festive campaigns highlight not only the projects and activities that are related to CENFACS’ demand, but also and mostly to the needs of those living in poverty around this time of the year and of the continuing coronavirus disruption.

Those who want to donate to our fundraising campaigns and projects (such as Gifts of Peace and End-of-Year 2021 Support); they are welcome to do so. 

Their festive support or donations will help bring a Blaze of Hope and Peace to those in need, particularly at this turbulent time of the new coronavirus pandemic variants.

As well as donating, there are other ways one can support.  These other ways range from spreading the message about CENFACS’ work and campaigns to visiting our online store for shopping.

All the above initiatives can create magical reliefs during this Festive Season and disturbing moment of restrictions relating to new COVID-19 variants.

 

• • Season of Light

 

Although our Season of Light has just kicked off, some of our services and activities (such as advocacy, in-person fundraising events, etc.) as well as development campaigns are scaled down until the 5^th of January 2022.  Also, they are even more reduced than the previous festive periods and years because of the coronavirus pandemic and the latest new COVID-19 variant (i.e. Omicron).

 

• • What’s on from 23 December 2021 to 5 January 2022!

 

We are breaking for the festive holidays while following the new COVID-19 restrictions.  However, there are projects that are essential in exceptional times like of the coronavirus pandemic and of the festive break.  One of them is advice-giving one which will still be run online. 

This is because evidence shows that in any difficult moments of human history or crisis, the poorest always suffer.  They do not have festive celebration as such, just as they could be the ones bearing the most negative socio-economic effects of the post-coronavirus pandemic and the return of COVID-19 restrictions.  Many of them need support which includes advice at any time. 

 

The above figure shows what is on between 23/12/2021 and 05/01/2022.  For those who want to get a further picture about what will be happening within CENFACS during the remaining days of December 2021, we recommend them to read our three last posts on the Blog page of this site.

 

• • Delays regarding call and e-mail responses

 

People should expect delay from us in responding to their calls and e-mails.  We heavily rely on volunteers for most of our services, who are sharing the Winter e-discussion with us during this Festive Time.  Some of them are already on holiday.   Also, the coronavirus pandemic and the restrictions relating to the new COVID-19 variants (i.e. Delta and Omicron) do not make things easier.

 

• • Emergency and exceptions

 

In case of emergency or exceptional circumstances, please do not hesitate to text, phone, e-mail and complete the contact form on CENFACS’ website.  We will respond to your message as soon as we can. 

We apologize for any inconvenience or upset this may cause. 

We thank you all for your invaluable and sustained support during 2021 and look forward to your continued and further support in the New Year.

We wish you a Very Healthy, Safe and Peaceful Festive Season!

 

 

 

 

• Season’s Relief Triple Action Givings: Peace, Hope and Difference

 

• • What is the Season’s Relief Triple Action Giving?

 

It is about fighting poverty and hardships in a number of fronts over the Festive Season, particularly by helping…

(a) to bring peace,

(b) to create hope

(c) and to make a difference. 

 

Let us briefly explain each of the three givings (that is, peace, hope and difference). 

 

 

• • • Peace via the Gifts of Peace

 

Our celebratory theme for the Season’s Reliefs is Peace and continues to be alive to the end of this season.  The Gifts of Peace, which are one of CENFACS‘ festive favourites, are the set piece of the Season’s Reliefs that provides the absence of conflicts within ourselves as well as between us and others.

In terms of projects and programmes in Africa, the Gifts of Peace try to support poor people and communities so that they can navigate their ways towards freedoms from wars, armed conflicts, coronavirus disturbance and disorder from natural events.

For those who are looking for fundraising appeals or projects to fund as festive gifts over this festive time, Gifts of Peace as an appeal is a valuable proposal they could consider.

To enquiry about and or fund the Gifts of Peace, please contact CENFACS and go to Support Causes at http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

 

• • • Hope through the Gift of Light

 

Our theme for the Season of Light is Hope and is still featuring what we have planned to achieve over this season.   The Gift of Light helps to bring hope to those who are in the darkness and need some lights to see life through other ways.  

Regarding the projects and programmes in our sphere of operation in Africa, through the Gift of Light we try to work with hopeless, desperate and destitute people and communities so that they can rebuild confidence and faith in themselves and continue to believe that they can find light and move away from darkness in the future.

 

• • • Difference by means of Charity e-Store

 

Shopping and donating goods at our Charity e-Store is the third giving.  Following the new COVID-19 variant and the current restrictions, CENFACS’ Charity e-Store is opened for goods donations.

We are asking goods donors and buyers to DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT THIS SEASON by using these following options:

 

∝ Safe collection of goods for recycling: We can arrange for goods to be safely collected at an agreed location, day and time under our Recycle and Give policy 

∝ Goods buyers can Click and Collect. 

 

Every time you shop at CENFACS’ Charity e-Store, you make a helpful difference to people in need over this festive time. Amongst these people are those who are trying to fight the coronavirus-induced poverty.

  

The above are the Season’s Relief Triple Action Givings.  Each of these action givings will help to reduce poverty over the festive period and beyond. 

We can only help reduce and possibly end multi-dimensional poverty as well as coronavirus-induced poverty if you help us to do so.   And this time of the year is a unique opportunity for you once a year to change lives through your invaluable action giving, however small it may be.

Please, don’t miss this marvellous opportunity of the post-pandemic year and the end of the year.  There is a high demand for poverty reduction.

To donate goods and/or shop, please go to: http://cenfacs.org.uk/shop/

 

 

 

Extra Festive Messages

 

• Campaign for Resilience against the Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19 Campaign) during the Festive Season

How to Integrate the New COVID Variant (Omicron variant) in the Shadowing Model of Fight against COVID-19

 

Our COVID-19 Campaign is also active and trending during the festive period and the new restrictions relating to the COVID-19 variants (i.e. Delta and Omicron) since the coronavirus has kept its sinusoidal shape as we thought it at the beginning of Autumn 2020.  The campaign is still in its Phase 3 of Post-COVID-19 Rehabilitation Strategies for our work in the UK and in Africa. 

This phase or stage includes the following sub-stages: recovery, repair, strengthened restoration and functional capacity.  We are dealing with the four sub-phases (i.e. recovery, repair, strengthened restoration and functional capacity) at the same time since these sub-phases are interlinked.  This concerns our actions relating to the two operations (in the UK and in Africa).

 

• • What is the COVID-19 Campaign by CENFACS during the festive season?

 

The COVID-19 Campaign by CENFACS during the festive period is about finding ways of integrating the new COVID variant or mutation in our shadowing model of fighting against the coronavirus pandemic. 

 

• • Keeping the momentum in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic

 

To keep and win the battle against the coronavirus, it is advisable to maintain a healthy relationship between hands, faces and space as we have been told by the health authorities and experts on COVID-19 matter.  It is better not to give up the basic healthcare principles and any life-saving advice during the festive season, even if one is double vaccinated against the coronavirus.

During this Festive Time, we are continuing to advocate for the community to stay resilient and vigilant against the coronavirus pandemic if one wants to win the fight against this deadly COVID-19 pandemic.  In this respect, it is in the best interest of everybody to act in a way that does not increase the health and economic threats and risks of the coronavirus pandemic and its variants on their and other people’s lives. 

For further details about the COVID-19 Campaign during the festive season, please check with CENFACS’ COVID-19 Hub for Poverty Reduction. 

 

 

 

• • Breaking out the vicious circle of the new economic inactivity

 

As many members of our community are living in the areas of COVID-19 restrictions, there could a need for some of them to find way to break out the vicious circle of the new socio-economic inactivity.  The exercises we have provided so far in relation to the COVID-19 lockdowns are still relevant and can be applied to manage the renewed socio-economic inactivity.  

For those who are looking for new types of activities including tips and hints, they can still let us know so that we can together e-work to come out with some new proposals to manage this challenging situation of COVID-19 changing faces and spikes which continue to occur during the Festive Season. 

Additionally, there are a lot of resources both print and online that can be used and accessed to deal with the renewed socio-economic effects of COVID-19 restrictions.

Need support to break out the vicious circle of the current socio-economic inactivity, please e-contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

 

• Festive Income Boost, All year-round Projects and the CENFACS Community

 

• • Festive Income Boost

 

For children, young people and families in need on whose behalf we relentlessly advocate; we can expect that they have managed to generate some little extra incomes they need to cover the extra expenses of the Season’s financial pressure. 

More importantly than anything else, they will manage to stay healthy and safe while exercising their basic human right to some forms of festive celebrations despite the coronavirus restrictions. 

Equally important, everybody in the community is doing what they can to better manage their spending limit and not to carry forward income deficit into 2022.

 

 

• • All Year-round Projects (Triple Value Initiatives)

 

Our All Year-round Projects or Triple Value Initiatives (i.e. Play, Run and Vote for poverty relief and development) will close on 23 December 2021 as planned.  One can hope that participants have been able to select their African Country or Game Runner or Development Manager of the Post-pandemic Year.  Those who have not done it, they have still 24 hours to do. 

We would like to take this opportunity to thank those who responded to our call for Action-Results 2021.

 

 

 

• • The CENFACS Community

 

We would like as well to express our gratitude to those who replied to the Community Value Chains, the CENFACS Community, by adding their talents and skills to our register.

 

 

• Natural and Climate Balances in Festive Celebrations (or Net Zero Festive Celebrations)

 

It is possible to offset one’s carbon foot print and to have a positive effect on the nature and climate by the way one will celebrate their Festive Season.  It is possible to have a net zero CO2 emissions festive celebration; that is a festive celebration that does not add extra emissions to the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. 

Already, COVID-19 lockdowns had beneficial effects on nature and climate to a certain extent in Summer 2019.  However, none needs everlasting lockdowns for these effects to happen.  This benefice can be increased in the way one may want to pass their Festive Season.

In this respect, our nature and climate campaigns continue as we are carrying on advocating about the maintenance of healthy balance between festive celebration and nature, between the season’s festivities and climate.  In other words, it is possible to have a festive celebration that is net zero CO2 emissions and climate-friendly while preserving the wealth and health of the nature.

Briefly, this extra festive message, which reinforces our commitment to the development of sustainable initiatives, can be translated into action at individual level.  The message is indeed about natural and climate balances by the way of approaching and celebrating the special days of the Festive Season (e.g. Christmas and the New Year’s Eve).

For more details and support about natural and climate balances in one’s festive celebrations, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.    

 

Remerciements et Voeux Festifs 2021

A tous ceux et toutes celles qui ont permis au CENFACS de réaliser le travail de  réduction de la pauvreté et du développement durable au cours de l’année 2021, le CENFACS vous dit…

 

 

infiniment.  

Le CENFACS vous souhaite une saison des fêtes saine, sécuritaire et paisible.

 

 

Main Festive Development

 

• Thanking 2021 Poverty Reduction Producers and Enablers

 

The work and produce of CENFACS are collective endeavour.  The end of the year gives us an opportunity of the many to thank all those who directly and indirectly contributed to the year 2021, either as poverty relief producer or maker or even enabler.

Perhaps, the best way of thanking could be to do it individually by naming every contributor.  There could be a risk of forgetting some audiences and supporters.  To avoid this risk, we are thanking them collectively although we may mention here and there some names. 

Year 2021 has continued the thread of 2020 in terms of historical challenge for CENFACS and many people/organisations in the world as the world is still battling against the coronavirus pandemic.  The toughening of restrictions in many places to slow down the spread of COVID-19 and its Omicron variant, the mandatory re-wearing of face masks and home working/studying as part of COVID-19 rules are all the indications of the challenge of the year including at this festive time.  

Despite this unparalleled challenge of the post-pandemic year, the commitment of various individuals and organisations to what we are trying to achieve has been indisputable and will be unforgettable. 

In particular, we would like to mention the following contributors: users, volunteers, web readers and commentators, web reviewers, local people and families, Africa-based Sister Organisations, charitable organisations, non-governmental organisations, community groups, third sector organisations, recycling organisations, individuals, etc.

Year 2021 has been dedicated as a “Leafy” Year, a Year of Leaves of Poverty Reduction within CENFACS.  During this year, we have tried as much as we can to reach out to those in need of relief from poverty and hardships through our Twelve Leaves of Poverty Reduction.  As it has been as well as a continuing pandemic year, we have deployed our efforts and resources to help and work with the community and our Africa-based Sister Organisations to protect themselves and others from the continuing life-threatening and –destroying impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

We would like to thank all those who have helped and worked with us in our COVID-19 Campaign to tackle the coronavirus pandemic and its destructive health and economic effects including the consequences of lockdowns.

Without undermining the other valuable and traditional sources of support we normally receive, we would like to thank, particularly but not exclusively, WordPress.com, Easily.uk and Twitter.com.  We thank them for providing us again with the opportunity to bring our ideas and work of poverty reduction to life to not only our audience but to a global audience as well.

WordPress.com, Easily.uk and Twitter.com with their platforms have continued to give us as a charity a tremendous opportunity and learning experience to engage the public and other supporters as well as to enable us to re-communicate our anti-poverty messages and undertake our work on sustainable development.  They helped us to create happy memories for our project users while enabling their wishes and dreams come true.

Small charitable organisations do not always have the financial means to put their messages across, to connect supporters with their causes.  Having the possibility of using free or sometimes affordable means of communications can enormously impact the work of these charities.   Free or cheap is not always poor quality or option, just as heavily paid option is not always the best one.  All depends on what you get and what it achieves.

2021 will be remembered by many including CENFACS as a post-pandemic year.  It is also a year of economic slowdown as many of the economic effects of the coronavirus disaster and shock have been accumulated this year.  The coronavirus pandemic and subsequent effects have forced us to shield ourselves as well as to remotely or distance work in order to achieve our mission and aims.  This has meant we had to go out our normal way and means to reinvent ourselves in order to deliver the same and new services in exceptional circumstances. 

Thanks to the support we have received from some of you, we have been still able to manage the bumps along the poverty reduction road.  We could punch above our weight in delivering poverty reduction outcomes and products for those in extreme and urgent need.  In this respect, CENFACS is thankful for all of you who gave so that together we have been able to produce poverty reduction.

This year, we would like to extend our gratitude to other living things.  To advocate for the peaceful relationship with the nature, the preservation of the biodiversity, the net zero CO2 emissions, the reduction of adverse impacts of climate change, the protection of endangered species of the fauna and flora and so on; we had to use images and pictures from the flora and fauna.  We would like to say thank you to those beautiful and scarce creatures of the nature that helped us to put our messages across.  We would like as well to express gratitude to our Africa-based Sister Organisations whose inputs have been instrumental in this advocacy.

To sum up, we are using the opportunity of the end of year to thank all those who produced poverty reduction, made and enabled the year 2021 work for CENFACS, its beneficiaries and other deserving and noble causes related to ours.

We would like to express all our feelings of thank you and best wishes of the Season’s Greetings to all our 2021 Poverty Reduction Producers, Makers and Enablers.

 

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 consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ PROJECTS, 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 2021 and beyond.

With many thanks.