Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

06 October 2021

 

Post No. 216

 

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• History Month with Making Memorable Difference Project – In Focus: The Congolese Rumba 

• “A la une” (Autumn Leaves of Action for the Upkeep of the Nature) Campaign with an Emphasis on the Safeguard of Crop Wild Relatives in Africa

• Leafy Year and the History of Leaves with CENFACS

 

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

Key Messages

 

• History Month with Making Memorable Difference Project – In Focus: The Congolese Rumba

 

This week, the lead story line of poverty relief and sustainable development at CENFACS is about Making Memorable Difference in October.  October is the history month in CENFACS development calendar.  We normally remember the African history through Making Memorable Difference (MMD) project. 

This year’s MMD, which is the 13^th one, is about the Congolese Rumba.  The 13^th MMD or MMD 2021 will be about learning and finding the heritage of rumba dance as a legacy and gift for poverty reduction and sustainable development, since it was introduced in the two Congos (Democratic Republic of Congo and Congo Brazzaville) in the late 1930s.

Rumba will be looked at in two ways:

(a) As a culture, art and patrimony

(b) As a legacy and gift for poverty reduction and sustainable development

For further information on this acknowledgement of the Congolese Rumba, read under the Main Development section of this post.  

 

 

 

• “A la une” (Autumn Leaves of Action for the Upkeep of the Nature) Campaign with an Emphasis on the Safeguard of Crop Wild Relatives in Africa

 

“A la une” campaign has already started with our work on the Great Beasts and the “Blue Spaces” theme.   During these October and November 2021, we shall continue these two areas of advocacy while dealing with our work on Sustainable Trajectories for the Nature where we left it.  In the campaign about the upkeep of the nature, we shall focus on the Safeguard of Crop Wild Relatives in Africa.  Before going any further step, let us try to understand the meaning of crop wild relatives.

 

• • Understanding Crop Wild Relatives

 

According to the New Phytologist Foundation (1), Crop Wild Relatives (CWR) are …

“Plant taxa closely related to crops and are a source of high genetic diversity that can help adapt crops to the impacts of global change, particularly to meet increasing consumer demand in the face of the climate crisis.  CWR provide vital ecosystem services and are increasingly important for food and nutrition security and sustainable and resilient agriculture.  They therefore are of major biological, social, cultural and economic importance.  Assessing the extinction risk of CWR is essential to prioritise in situ and ex situ conservation strategies in Mesoamerica to guarantee the long-term survival and availability of these resources of present and future generations worldwide”.

The same New Phytologist Foundation argues that 35% of species (like maize, potato bean, squash, chilli pepper, vanilla, avocado, husk tomato and cotton crops) are threatened with extinction.

 

• • Focusing on the safeguard of Crop Wild Relatives in Africa

 

This year’s “A la une” campaign will be about the upkeep of these plants and crops threatened with extinction.  An outline of the contents of our planned work on the Safeguard of Crop Wild Relatives that will make this year’s “A la une” campaign will be given in our future communication.

For any more information about this year’s “A la une” campaign, please contact CENFACS and or continue to read our posts over this Autumn season.

 

 

• Leafy Year and the History of Leaves with CENFACS

 

Our dedication of year 2021 as a Leafy Year continues in this history month.  After dealing with leaf activities and advice based on leaves, we are exploring the link between the Year of Leaves and the History of Leaves in the making of CENFACS.   

Indeed, the history of leaves with CENFACS dates since CENFACS was set up in 1994 when we chose a bunch of leaves to make up our logo and symbol of poverty relief.  Since then, our leaves of poverty relief have been instrumental in helping us to accomplish CENFACS’ mission and charitable objects.  The leaves of poverty relief have helped us to find communicative, meaningful and powerful way to work together with those in need in the UK and Africa, to help them navigate their way to a sustainable relief from poverty and hardships, and to enhance the quality of their lives in the long term.

The history and story of leaves with CENFACS are of making leaves to be an instrument to perform the following tasks:

 

√ To inspire us to develop ideas, thoughts and resources to better carry out our poverty reduction work

√ To give something to the community here in the UK and in Africa

√ To effectively communicate our poverty reduction message to a broad audience

√ To network for poverty reduction and sustainable development

√ To deal with eminent crises, risks and threats (like the global economic recession in 2008)

√ To manage the current coronavirus crisis and associated impacts

√ To work with users through advice service

√ To run our activities, projects and programmes

√ To enhance and sustain freedoms and capabilities of our users

√ Above all, to engage and work in partnership with local people to develop sustainable initiatives

 

Briefly, leaves have been supportive to us at all stages of development and milestones of CENFACS since the beginning.  So, this month is the history month.  It is also the month of the history and tradition of CENFACS with leaves since we are in a Year of Leaves or Leafy Year at CENFACS.

To support and or enquire about CENFACS’ 2021 as a Year of Leaves and Leaves of Poverty Reduction, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• October 2021 Food Security Appeal

 

This is an appeal to raise awareness and provide support to severely food insecure people in Africa.  This appeal, which is a part of CENFACS’ Making Zero Hunger Africa Campaign, is also about joining in the World Food Day initiated by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations on 16 October 2021. 

Through this appeal, one could support those who are severely food insecure, particularly but not exclusively in those African countries subject of this appeal.  These African countries include: Burundi, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo and Madagascar. 

According to the Food and Agriculture Organisations of the United Nations (2), the numbers of severely food insecure people were in the above named countries as follows:

 

♦ 2.3 millions in the Central African Republic between April and August 2021

♦ 1 million in Burundi between June and September 2021

♦ 27.3 millions in the Democratic Republic of Congo between February and July 2021

♦ 194,000 in Djibouti between January and August 2021

♦ 2.6 millions in Cameroon between March and May 2021. (pp. 2 & 3)

 

With the difficulties that these countries are experiencing to manage the coronavirus, these numbers could increase or at best be stationary. 

If one wants to build a zero hunger generation and act against hunger (as a way of backing World Food Day 2021), then supporting this appeal makes sense.

This appeal runs from now until the 16 October 2021; day on which we shall join others across the world to act against hunger.

You can support this appeal via CENFACS or directly help the severely food insecure in the above mentioned African countries.   

To support via CENFACS, please contact us now.

 

 

 

• Triple Value Initiatives (or All-year Round Projects) as Social Prescribing Activities

 

As CENFACS is preparing the State of Play, Run and Vote for Triple Value Initiatives that users have conducted so far, CENFACS is looking into the possibility of considering these initiatives as social prescribing ones. 

Social prescribing nature-based activities are known as those ones that support the health and well-being of the community.  These activities can be land-based (green prescribing) and water-based (blue prescribing).  The National Academy for Social Prescribing (3) describes social prescribing as

“Being about helping people getting more control over their healthcare to manage their needs in a way that suits them”.

For those who have been using the Triple Value Initiatives, it would be a good idea to share with us their experience in terms of health and well-being so that we know how social prescribing these initiatives can be.  The more people respond, the more we would know about the health and well-being outcomes from these initiatives, the more we could be recommending people or socially prescribing them to use these initiatives.   

To support CENFACS’ State of Play, Run and Vote as well as our work on social prescribing, please let us know your personal experience on Triple Value Initiatives in terms of health and well-being results.

 

 

 

• Fuel/Energy Budget for Families: Numeracy and Statistical Literacy Skills

 

Our work on the reduction of energy poverty continues this week by looking at energy or fuel budget for families. 

Energy or fuel budgeting is our support to the community in the context of and the implementation of CENFACS’ 2020s Poverty Reduction Programme and Development Agenda.  We are trying to support them to develop basic skills in numeracy and statistical literacy to understand energy or fuel budget and the implications for their entire family budgets.  Through this process, one can hope they will be able to navigate their way to reduce energy poverty and other types of poverty.

Last week, we argued that it was known that those who spend more than 10% of their income in energy could be considered as energy poor.  Also, through our energy poverty talks, we spoke about the sensitivity of energy share to household income.  This week, we would like to share some views on the energy share to household income by looking at fuel/energy budget for families. 

If you are a member of our community and would like to know more or exchange ideas about the right balance between your energy expenses budget and the other budgets for your household, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS. 

 

Le 73e numéro du FACS traitera …

∝ du prix pour organiser des activités endommagées et détruites par le coronavirus

∝ du coût associé à l’inactivité économique non-essentielle découlant des confinements prolongés

∝ des coûts financiers et non-financiers du COVID-19

 

Le 73e numéro donnera l’occasion aux lecteurs de…

∝ naviguer dans les processus et jargon comptables et financiers de base 

∝ comprendre le pocessus de construction en cours entrepris par les usagers et organisations bénéficiaires de CENFACS

 

Dans ce 73e numéro, il s’agira également de…

∝ faire des prévisions comptables et financiers de besoins futurs de la communauté

∝ fournir un aperçu non financier du coût de la construction sous forme d’une autre lecture de la pauvreté et de sa réduction

∝ intégrer le coût d’une construction meilleure ensemble plus verte et plus propre.

 

Pour passer votre commande et vous renseigner sur ce numéro, veuillez contacter le CENFACS.   

 

 

Main Development

 

• History Month with Making Memorable Difference Project – In Focus: The Congolese Rumba

 

• • What is MMD? 

 

MMD is

 

∝ a two-day event of Awareness, Thought and Recognition set up by CENFACS in 2009 to celebrate the Black History Month in our own way and feeling while preserving the tradition linked to this remembrance and standing on the shoulders of similar celebrations

 

∝ a historic project of collective memory about works carried out, heritage and legacies left by Africans

 

∝ all about collectively telling, acknowledging, studying and learning that every day Africans wherever they are (in Africa) or elsewhere (in the UK-Croydon and the world) are striving to improve the quality of their lives and of others. Through their historically valuable works, they are making memorable difference and the world a better place for everybody, including the generations to come.

 

∝ a celebration of African Abilities, Talents, Skills, Gifts and Legacies to Africa and the world.

 

 

 

 

This year’s dedicated two days (27 and 28 October 2021) are virtual days of historical study, analysis and skill recognition and celebration of the legacies left by Africans in dance, particularly the Congolese Rumba. 

 

• • The Congolese Rumba 

 

The history of Congolese Rumba dates from late 1930s and early 1940s in the Congos (Kinshasa and Brazzaville) when the Afro-cuban son groups (such as Septeto Habanero, rio Matamoros and Los Guaracheros de Oriente) were played over Radio Congo Belge in Léopoldville (now Kinshasa).  However, what does rumba mean?

 

• • • Etymological source of Rumba

 

The word rumba comes from the Spanish verb “rumbear”.  In Collins Spanish Dictionary by Colin Smith (4), “rumbear” is defined in Spanish spoken in Latin America as

“to dance rumba, to follow a direction, to find one’s way, to get one’s bearings” (p. 636)

Rumba means a party, celebration from the same dictionary (p. 636).

 

• • • Two Virtual Days of the history of Congolese Dance, Rumba:

 

∝ One Day of Rumba as Culture, Art and Patrimony

∝ One Day of Rumba as a Legacy and Gift for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development

 

• • • • Understanding Day (27 October 2021): Rumba as Culture, Art and Patrimony

 

In the first day of MMD, we shall work on how Rumba as an art, culture and patrimony helped many African people (particularly Congolese) to find their way, to express their feelings and thoughts through dance. 

Rumba will be looked at as a creative skill expressed by the body language supported by music and language.  It is a storytelling found in body language. 

It is also a cultural expression; that is customs of those engaged in dancing Rumba. 

It is finally a heritage or property inherited from those who started it in the late 1930s and early 1940s, and passed it to following generations.

During this virtual day, we shall look at some of the key historical figures who brought Rumba to the Congos in the late 1930s and early 1940s, as well as the dancers of the time without forgetting their messages to the Congolese and African societies.  It will be about decoding the message that Rumba sent and dealing with the transcendental aspect of Rumba between different generations.

 

• • • • Legacies and Gifts Day (28 October 2021): Rumba as a Legacy and Gift for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development

 

During the Legacies and Gifts Day of MMD, we shall go beyond the choreographic aspect and artship of Rumba to carry out an historical examination on how it contributed to poverty reduction and the enhancement of sustainable development.

For example, talking about the employment through language, music and dance; Alhassan Abubakar Musa et al. (5) argue that

“The social relevance of language, music and dance is profound. It is not only an abstract art, but as a force which affects the lives of the people who acquire it.  Such experiences help the acquirers to live and contribute positively towards the progress and development of the society.  This is an attitudinal, structural and cultural process whereby young and old people gain the ability, authority and agency to make decisions and implement changes in their own lives and the lives of other people in the society. 

Through language, music and dance the youths have been gainfully employed” (pp. 4 & 5)

On the legacy and gift day, we are going to historically investigate how Rumba has enabled poverty reduction and sustainable development within the Congolese and African societies.

Briefly, the overall purpose of the MMD materials from the Congolese Rumba will be to extirpate the historical legacies and foundations in terms of poverty reduction and sustainable development in Africa, particularly in the Congos.  They will be about finding out dancing messages about how Rumba has helped to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development since the late 1930s and early 1940s.

  

To engage with this year’s MMD theme and or support this project, please contact CENFACS on this site. 

 

• • Making Memorable Difference Timeline

 

MMD has a history and timeline.  The following is the timeline of MMD since its inception. 

 

2009: CENFACS recognised environmental sustainability.

2010: We acknowledged and honoured sports contributions and history in relieving collective poverty and improving community lives beyond fitness and beyond individualistic achievements.

2011: We recollected, remembered and revered caregiving talents and legacies of young carers in enhancing human development (their own development and other people’s development) by reducing the burden of poverty.

2012: We dedicated our historical recognition to Africa’s Global Game Runners and the Science of Running.

2013: Our two days were about the Memorable Difference Made and brought by Working Poor (Miners & Factory Workers) in relieving poverty. We consecrated them to the historical study of The Role of Working Poor Miners and Factory Workers of Natural Resources and Extractive Industries in the Poverty Relief in Africa since the Berlin Conference (1884-5).

2014: We celebrated the place of the African Music and Dance in the pre– and post-colonial eras, the late 1950s and the early 1960s.  This celebration focused on the African History of Singing and Dancing and their Impacts on Liberation and Freedoms.

2015: Making Memorable Difference focused on African Negotiators of the History. 

2016: We remembered the Protectors and Guardians of the African History and Heritage. 

2017: We acknowledged the Communicators of the African History 

2018: We learnt about African Communications and Oral History

2019: We searched on the African Health History

2020: We celebrated African Sculpture and Representation of African Historical Figures of the Pre-independence Era (i.e. Period before the 1960s)

For further details about these past MMD events, please contact CENFACS. 

_________

 

• References

 

(1) FAO (2021), Crop Prospects and Food Situation, Quarterly Global Report No.2, July 2021

(2) New Phytologist Foundation (2021), Extinction risk of Mesoamerican crop wild relatives, Paper first published 6 September 2021

https://doi.org/10.1002/ppp3.10225 (accessed September 2021)

(3) https://socialprescribingacademy.org.uk/about-us/what-is-socialpresscribing/ (accessed October 2021)

(4) Colin Smith (1997), Collins Spanish Dictionary, 5^th Ed., HarperCollins Publishers, Glasgow & New York

(5) Alhassan Abubakar Musa, Omada Margaret Onyekunin, Friday Encojo Ikani and Sadiq Muhammad (2019), Language, Music and Dance as Tools for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development among the Igala Peopleof Kogi State, Nigeria, British Journal of English Linguistics, Vol. 7, No. 5, pp. 1-6, Nov. 2019, Published by ECRTD-UK

________

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.

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

29 September 2021

 

Post No. 215

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Reduction of Energy Poverty

• Advice based on Leaves

• Autumn 2021 Humanitarian Relief Appeal

 

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Reduction of Energy Poverty

 

Our study and implementation of CENFACS’ 2020s Poverty Reduction Programme and Development Agenda continue via this week’s work on the Reduction of Energy Poverty, which is Goal No. 3 of this programme and agenda.

Dealing with the reduction of energy poverty at this time makes sense since some parts of the world, including Africa, are currently experiencing energy crisis.  And when there is this kind of crisis, often it is those who are in most need who usually suffer the most from it.  The energy crisis will not make any exception to this trend.  The energy crisis can only affect or weaken efforts so far made to reduce energy poverty.

In this post no. 215, we shall look at the various ways of helping to reduce energy and what else can be done to end this form of poverty for the current and future generations.

Under the Main Development section of this post, we have spelled out these ways of reducing energy poverty.

 

 

• Advice based on Leaves

 

CENFACS’ Advice Service is gone an amazing transformation as we have introduced leaves with some exciting features.  This is all done to reflect the needs of the community and the Year of Leaves for CENFACS.  This introduction has been done at the levels of different steps of advice giving and various advisory services we provide. 

For example, we have incorporated leaves in the following ways:

 

∝ to improve advice users’ feelings toward the goal advisees would like to achieve

∝ to change the situation in which advisees are in

∝ to help make their goal become problems-solving and solvable

∝ to reduce the trajectory to reach their desire future

∝ to develop a workable plan of action and implementation

 

The above leafy features are implemented whether we conduct face-to-face advisory sessions or deliver remote advice solutions.  They are meant to address users’ problems in a creative and innovative way via the image of leaves and what leaves can bring and enhance life, particularly by keeping our minds and bodies healthy and happy.

To find out more about how CENFACS’ Leaves-based Advice can enhance your life and help you better reduce poverty, please contact us.

 

 

 

• Autumn 2021 Humanitarian Relief Appeal

 

Our humanitarian appeal for Autumn 2021 has been launched and is live on the Support Us page of this website at Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)

This appeal is about supporting needy people, flora, fauna, communities and organisations in Africa.  It  includes the following five selected projects: 

 

1) Skills for Building Forward Better

2) Symmetry Project

3) Gender into post-COVID-19 Economic and Social Recovery in Africa

4) Back-to-School Support

5) Save Flora and Fauna projects

 

A brief summary of these projects can be found on the same page Support Us at  Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk) of this website. 

The full project proposals of each project making this appeal is available should any of the potential donor or funder makes a request. 

Donors and funders can directly and respectively donate or fund these projects. 

A message about this appeal can also be passed on to a person who is in a position and willing to support.  Many thanks to those who will be passing this message!

We understand that the world is still experiencing an extremely difficult time with the coronavirus pandemic which continues to enormously disrupt the functioning of many economies, including the ability of people to support good and deserving causes. 

The effects of this health crisis are even stronger in place where there is a high level of poverty like in Africa.  This is why we have launched this seasonal appeal to help not only to reduce poverty but also to save lives from the coronavirus disaster.

Therefore, we are inviting those who can to donate £2 to create 2 benefits (1 benefit for humans and 1 benefit for other natural livings) or any amount starting from £2 or more as you wish. 

You can gift aid your donation as well as support these projects in a way that is the most suitable and related to your situation, budget, capacity and willingness.

To donate, gift aid and support otherwise; please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Blue Spaces-focused Note for Week beginning 27/09/2021: Blue and Coastal Sustainable Development in Africa

 

This note, which is the last one of our Blue Spaces theme, is about how the aspects of sustainable development relating to the blue and coastal areas/zones can be improved in Africa for the commons as well as to help improve the lives of the current generations without depleting blue and coastal resources for future generations. 

In order to write this note, we have composed the following elements: the application of the definition of sustainable development to the blue and coastal spaces, the implications of this definition for the blue and coastal poor, and the work carried out by Africa-based Sister Organisations in helping the blue and coastal sustainable development in Africa.  Let us at these elements.

 

• • The application of the general understanding of sustainable development to blue and coastal spaces

 

The common understanding of the sustainable development, which is given by the World Commission on Environment and Development (1), is that it is

“a development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”

This definition has some implications, particularly for the blue and coastal poor. 

 

• • Implications of this definition for the blue and coastal poor

 

From the above definition, one can argue that it is possible to have a development that uses blue and coastal resources without depleting them for the generations to come.  The blue and coastal sustainable development can help to drive a low carbon emissions way of living and to enhance lives whether in the UK or in Africa or elsewhere.  This type of development can enhance the lives of the blue and coastal poor as long as it responds to their needs of poverty reduction.

 

• • Africa-based Sister Organisations and the blue and coastal sustainable development in Africa

 

The blue and coastal spaces in Africa are facing the same challenge like everywhere.  Part of this challenge is to meet the needs of sustainable development.  One of these challenges is sea level rise.  And Africa-based Sister Organisations working on blue and coastal areas are striving to make those ends meet for their users. 

For example, in the last three months, the rising level of Lake Tanganyika has displaced a considerable number of people around the area, particularly in Burundi.  It has also made many of them food insecure.  As a result, Africa-based Sister Organisations working in the sea-level rising area are trying to help as much as they can.

Besides that they are also dealing with other situations linked to environmental challenges or events (e.g., sea level rise) like the following:

 

√ Helping to stop the disruption of food (e.g., fish) from the blue and coastal spaces

√ Dealing with wildlife habitats in the area

√ Volunteering in the work of restoration of uprooted and destroyed trees and plants

√ Assisting homeless to get rehoused and resettled

√ Providing support for badly affected ecosystems by flooding

√ Offering counselling service for those who lost their love ones and properties in the area

Etc.

 

Their work contributes to the blue and coastal sustainable development in the African areas where they are intervening.  Through their work, they help in capacitating their users for blue and coastal sustainable development.

This note concludes our Blue Spaces Theme for this September 2021.  For any queries or enquiries about this note and the previous ones, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.  For those who would like to join in our work on the Blue Spaces, they can as well contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

 

• Boosting your Support as a Way of Getting Involved with CENFACS

 

Last week, we spelled out sixteen ways of getting involved with CENFACS by doing the work of poverty reduction.  Amongst these ways was Boosting your Support.

If someone is already supporting us and realise that there is still way of improving their support, they can look at again the way in which they can boost their support.  For example, they can examine the following ways of supporting CENFACS and decide if they can choose any of them and add it (them) to their existing support:

 

Donations, communications/media, public relations, volunteering/internship, training and skills development, research and development, legacies, gifts, sponsorship, premises, digital aid and equipment, events, direct marketing, recycling, website, advertisement, mobile and distance working technologies, etc.

 

Any of the above mentioned ways of supporting can help boost your support. 

To boost your support, just select any of them and let CENFACS know your selected way of boosting your support.

 

 

• CENFACS’ be.Africa e-discusses Resources below Water and Land-based Resources in the Fight against Poverty in Africa

 

Many African economies that have land-based resources and minerals (e.g. copper) heavily rely on them to fight against or reduce poverty.  Yet, some of them have enough sea/ocean and water (rivers, lakes and ponds) resources that can be utilised for the same purpose of reducing poverty.  CENFACS’ be.Africa is e-discussing this week on the following:

How to sustainably increase the value of and mobilise sea/ocean and water resources in the fight against poverty and hardships in Africa without depleting them

To join in and or add your thoughts, feelings and experiences to this e-discussion, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

Sept objectifs pour réduire la pauvreté pendant les années 2020:

 

1) Réduire la pauvreté monétaire et améliorer des capacités rémunératrices

2) Diminuer l’indigence de consommation

3) Réduire la précarité énergétique

4) Abaissser la pauvreté salariale

5) Couper la pauvreté intergénérationnelle

6) Atténuer la pauvreté numérique

7) Soulager la pauvreté situationnelle et d’origine climatique

Vous pouvez travailler avec le CENFACS afin de réaliser ces objectifs.  Pour travailler avec le CENFACS, veuillez le contacter.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Reduction of Energy Poverty

 

To study and implement the Reduction of Energy Poverty as our Goal No. 3, we are going to consider the following:

Meaning of energy poverty, energy poor, energy poverty data, reduction of energy poverty, CENFACS’ Energy Connections project, energy poor and poverty in Africa, Africa-based Sister Organisations and their work on energy poverty reduction, reduction of energy poverty and zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050.

 

• • Meaning of energy poverty

 

There are many definitions of energy poverty.  In the context of CENFACS’ 2020s Poverty Reduction Programme and Development Agenda, 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. (2)

(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. (3) 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 implement our agenda and programme as well as help those who need to reduce energy poverty, we shall refer to this sensitivity of the energy share to household income.  But, who are the energy poor?

 

 

• • Energy poor

 

Energy poor include those…

 

∝  With very low consumption of energy below their minimum requirement

∝ Who use dirty or polluting fuels

∝ Who spend excessive time collecting fuel to meet basic life-sustaining needs

∝ Who do not meet the minimum energy requirement for life

∝ Who spend more than 10% of their income on energy

∝ Who consume more inefficient energy sources like biomass energy and coal

∝ Who do not consume efficient and clean modern energy

∝ Who avoid meeting the fuel poverty level by not using energy in their homes

∝ Who are not consuming the energy they need as they are afraid that their energy bills will go up

Etc.

 

From the above listing or classification of energy poor, the key indicator for energy poverty is the consumption of efficient and clean modern energy. 

For example, energy-poor households may consume higher percentage of solid energy (like biomass energy and coal) in their household energy consumption.  But, that does not make them energy non-poor.  Because energy consumption is often location-specific, these types of energy poor can also be found in Africa and elsewhere.  

Since the main purpose of this post is the reduction of energy poverty, what can be done to reduce energy poverty?

 

• • Ways of reducing energy poverty

 

Energy poverty can be reduced in a number of ways including the following:

 

√ Helping CENFACS users to improve the energy efficiency of their homes

√ Assisting fuel poor households to meet the price caps given to energy suppliers or authorities

√ Financially supporting fuel poor households

√ Enabling energy poor to access or install smart meters in their homes

√ Campaigning with and on behalf of fuel poor to reduce and or end fuel poverty

√ Supporting pro-poor energy projects to address fuel poverty

√ Advising and guiding energy poor people on energy efficiency services and providers

√ Signposting energy poor users to organisations helping in fuel poverty

√ Last but not the least, supporting CENFACS’ Energy Connections Project

 

 

 

• • CENFACS’ Energy Connections Project (ECP) to help reduce energy poverty

 

ECP is a low carbon-intensive project that aims at reducing renewable energy poverty and hardships amongst poor people and communities in Africa by helping them to gain access to a network and development of renewable energy support (such as tools, skills, knowledge, capacity development, etc.) in order to reduce pressures on natural resources (forest resources and exploitation) and biodiversity.  

The user-perceived benefits in terms of results or consequences of the implementation of the ECP are as follows:

 

√ Reduction of the carbon footprint for ECP end users

√ Protection and restoration of local biological diversity (biodiversity)

√ Preservation of forest resources and values

√ Improvement in women’s health and protection, especially those exposed to fire and smoke or any polluting fuels while cooking a meal for example

√ Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions within and outside households

√ Improvement in the quality of air locally

√ Development of better skills, knowledge and capacity about renewable energy

√ People and communities will become better informed and have an increased access to energy solutions to energy problems they face

√ Reduction of energy poverty and precariousness

 

The long term impact or the desired result about ECP will be to bring change to the lives of people and communities to a better energy life.

Briefly, the overall goal of ECP is to connect poor people and communities to a wealth and network of information, services support and resources (including skills, knowledge and capacities) so that they can make informed decision and choice to transition from fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas) to renewables (solar, wind, geothermal, biomass and hydroelectric energy) while preserving their cultures, ways of life and values.  In this respect, ECP is an orderly and people-friendly energy transition project.

 

• • Africa-based Sister Organisations and their work on energy poverty reduction

 

Our Africa-based Sister Organisations are helping energy poor either where they are based or where they operate.  They are doing it in these ways:

 

√ Helping energy poor to access cheap and clean energy sources

√ Getting the supply of affordable energy

√ Helping the locals to understand energy tariffs and bills

√ Assisting them to replace polluting and dirty energy to clean and cheap energy

√ Supporting them to access energy during the coronavirus crisis and lockdowns

√ Working with them to reduce the burning of woods and use of coal while motivating them to cut greenhouse gas emissions to meet basic needs of cooking, heating, housing and transportation

Etc.

 

This work from Africa-based Sister Organisations depends on their location, local energy needs and local energy sources. 

For organisations working with locals who have a variety of sources of energy, it is easy to help them to switch from one source of energy to another to gain better access and reduce poverty. 

For organisations operating in places where there is a lack of sources of clean and cheap energy, it is difficult to get local energy poor to get rid of their poverty.   

 

• • Energy poverty data for Africa

 

One of the problems caused by the coronavirus is the deepening of the problem of the lack of data in certain areas of life in places where statistics are always a pending issue, like in Africa.  The little statistical information available does not say much about the current level and state of energy poverty in Africa for example.  Nonetheless, the statistics given by the World Health Organisation (4) indicate that

“The proportion of population with primary reliance on clean fuels and technology were 19% in the African region” (p. 112)

This figure is also an opposite indication of those who do not consume efficient and clean modern energy for the same African region.   Furthermore, the figure suggests the level and type of challenge that our Africa-based Sister Organisations face in their work about helping to reduce energy poverty.

 

• • Reduction of energy poverty as part of sustainable development goals

 

Ending poverty in all its forms everywhere is the first goal of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (5).  Energy poverty is one of these forms of poverty.  In this respect, reducing energy poverty should be part of our everyday life, whether we are at home or at work or on the move or at play.  We need energy or usable power in whatever we do.  Likewise, the current and future generations in our communities need energy.  Therefore, there is a need to work so that we do not transfer energy poverty to future generations.

 

• • Reduction of energy poverty and zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050

 

There could link between the reduction of energy poverty and the realisation of zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050.  In other words, the way in which one is trying to reduce or end energy poverty should not negatively affect the health and wealth of the planet.

The net-zero by 2050 is the target to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 if one wants to meet the Paris climate goal of 1.5 degrees C.   The reduction of energy poverty or any type of poverty should not be done by excessively emitting greenhouse gas.  One can follow a carbon-free path to reduce energy poverty while contributing to the realisation of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050,

The above points made summarise the topic of Reduction of Energy Poverty, which is CENFACS’ Goal 3 of its 2020s Poverty Reduction Programme and Development Agenda.  The points highlighted are also the different research tracks and implementation paths of this programme and agenda via its Goal No. 3.   

These points should not be treated in isolation.  There are interrelations between them in the context of this programme and agenda.  For example, in the future, we might look at the relationships between energy poverty and income poverty or between energy poverty and inter-generational poverty. 

We shall as well work on the mutual benefit of reducing both energy poverty and income poverty or both energy poverty and inter-generational poverty.  All this is part of the implementation of the above named programme and agenda.

For those who would like to further discuss the reduction of energy poverty with us or any aspects of the 2020s Poverty Reduction Programme and Development Agenda, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.    

 

_________

 

• References

 

(1) Brundtland et al. (1987) Our Common Future, World Commission on Environment and Development (The Brundtland Report), Oxford University Press, London

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

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

https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10090514/1/who%20is20energ%20poor.pd (accessed in September 2021)

(4) World Health Organisation (2021), World Health Statistics 2021: Monitoring Health for SDGs, sustainable development goals, Geneva: World Health Organisation; 2021

(5) http://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 September 2021)

 

_________

 

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.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

22 September 2021

 

Post No. 214

 

 

The Week’s Contents

  

• Autumn Fresh Start Help and Resources to Build Forward Better

• Build Forward Better Fauna and Flora

• Blue Spaces-focused Note for Week beginning 20/09/2021: Blue and Coastal Poverty Reduction in Africa

 

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Autumn Fresh Start Help and Resources to Build Forward Better

 

Let us briefly explain the following elements of Fresh Autumn Fresh Start.

 

• • Autumn Fresh Start Help and Resources

 

Autumn Fresh Start Help strikes or kicks off our Autumn programme and Starting XI Campaign.  It is our Autumn project striker.  Autumn Fresh Start Help and Resources are made of fresh start skills, tips, hints, tweaks, hacks, etc.; help and resources designed to overcome poverty and hardships.

Our advice-giving month of September continues as planned and will end next month.  Advice-giving is also part of our Autumn Fresh Start Help and Resources.  Although we put particular emphasis on advice-giving activity in our September engagement, other aspects of Autumn Fresh Start or striker are also important and will continue beyond September.

Autumn Fresh Start Help comes with Fresh Autumn Start (FAS) resources.  The highlights of the 2021 Edition of FAS, which are given below, take into account the era of COVID-19 post-vaccination and testing programme as well as the context of unforced COVID-19 restrictions. 

Therefore, our keywords for this Autumn are Fresh Start and Freshness to Build Forward Better.  The context in which we will be using these key words is of unforced COVID-19 restrictions in the era COVID-19 post-vaccination and testing programme.

 

• • Autumn Fresh Start to Build Forward Better

 

Autumn 2021 is also of fresh start or work to build forward projects, services, activities and any other areas of operations that may have been affected by the coronavirus and its associated health and economic impacts.   After building back better since last Autumn, we need to build forward better together with the communities in the UK and in Africa this Autumn.  To do that it will be good to take a low-carbon development and greener economic path as we are transitioning to a post-coronavirus development world.

Further details about these key words and contextual framework are given below under the Main Development section of this post.

To ask for Fresh Start Help and or access Fresh Start Resources to Build Forward Better, just contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Build Forward Better Flora and Fauna Projects 

 

Build Forward Better Flora and Fauna, which is a twin advocacy, is one of our Starting XI Projects.  Through this Starting XI Project, we are continuing to advocate for the protection of animal and plant species in Africa and elsewhere in developing world.  Animals get killed, traded and extinct to such extent that some animal species are at the brink of disappearing.  Some plants are also threatened and disappearing.

 

• • Build Forward Better Fauna

 

We continue to advocate for the protection of animals in Africa and elsewhere in developing world whereby animals get killed, traded and extinct to such extent that some species are at the brink of disappearing. 

Our fauna advocacy aims at dealing with ways of tackling the threats to survival in the wild facing by the world’s big cats (such as lion, tiger, leopard, jaguar, cheetah, snow leopard, puma, clouded leopard, etc.), the world’s majestic animals and symbols of power and courage.

Animals such as jaguars, tigers, elephants, snakes, alligators, rhinoceroses, etc. are under threat.  There are several reasons about it which include: hunting, illicit and illegal trade, over-harvesting, habitat loss, climate change, poaching, etc.

CENFACS’ Build Forward Better Animals or Fauna advocacy is to advocate for the re-enhancement of protection of endangered, threatened and vulnerable animal species. 

In this process, we are as well interested in efforts made to protect animals from diseases including the coronavirus.  For example, people can still remember how tuberculosis killed elephants in South Africa, a few years ago. 

In the process of Building Forward Better from the Covid-19 disaster, one should make sure that the other living beings (like plants) are not left behind. 

 

• • Build Forward Better Flora

 

We are as well extending our advocacy to other species in danger like trees, plans and flowers (flora).  It is about building forward these species that are threatened with extinction. 

For example, the New Phytologist Foundation (1) argues that 35% of the species are threatened with extinction.  They include maize, potato, bean, squash, chilli pepper, vanilla, avocado, husk tomato and cotton crops.

If this threat is true and continues, then one needs to protect and build forward better these threatened species. 

In the light of the above, our advocacy is a two-scope work on Building Forward Better Fauna and Flora.  This year’s advocacy for flora and fauna will include two actions:

(1) Life-saving action to maintain COVID-19 restrictions into the flora and fauna advocacy while exploring the needs for better protection of flora and fauna (e.g. vaccination).  This action is about saving the lives of flora and fauna while keeping on track health advice and COVID-19 restrictions as far as plant and animal species are concerned.

(2) Life-building forward action to ensure that the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic sits on sound and sustainable foundations that build back better flora and fauna while moving forward the same flora and fauna in a sustainable and threat-free future.  This action is about making sure that, plant and animal species regain, restore, rebuild and thrive their lives.

 

• • Build Forward Better Fauna and Flora to “A la une” Campaign

 

Building Forward Better Fauna and Flora is only an iceberg of the wide natural creature protection campaign run by CENFACS.  CENFACS’ Build Forward Better Fauna and Flora is run this week until the last week of September 2021 and will be soon after followed by our Autumn environmental umbrella campaign, “A la une” (Autumn Leaves of Action to the Upkeep of the Nature in Existence) project. 

“A la une” will take Build Forward Better Fauna and Flora advocacy to the other level of environmental communications and awareness raising.  It will focus on the Safeguard of Crop Wild Relatives in Africa.

To advocate and raise your voice to build forward better endangered plant and animal species, contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Blue Spaces-focused Note for Week beginning 20/09/2021: Blue and Coastal Poverty Reduction in Africa

  

Poverty can be found in the coastal and sea areas of Africa.  Poverty can be said to be blue and or coastal.  Poverty can be defined in many ways.  By using a dictionary definition given by Park (2), the later argues that

“Poverty is the state of having little or no money and few or no material possessions” (p. 353)

 

If poverty is about what Park argued, then what is blue poverty and what is coastal poverty?

 

• • Blue poverty 

 

There is no an established definition of blue poverty.  However, from the above definition of poverty one can argue that blue poverty is the lack of money or resources from the sea/ocean to meet life-sustaining needs of food, education, housing, health, information, internet, etc.  In this respect, the blue poverty is characterised by the lack of the basic necessities from the sea/ocean (like seafood, sea energy, sea species, other sea resources, etc.).  It could also be featured by the unsustainable patterns of use of valuable aquatic resources (e.g. fish stocks, marine biodiversity and ecosystems), the lack of fair share in the fruits of the blue growth and in renewable marine living resources, etc.

 

• • Coastal poverty

 

There is no a conventional definition of coastal poverty.  However, from the above mentioned dictionary definition of poverty, it is possible to argue that coastal poverty is the manifestation of lacks in terms of money and or material possessions found in some of the coastal people and communities.  These manifestations are featured by the lack of options for happy livelihoods, pollution and sedimentation from the sea and land, habitat destruction, being cut of service delivery, high vulnerability to the impacts of climate change, gender imbalances, and isolation from policy processes and so on. 

Both types of poverty (blue and coastal) need to be reduced and or ended.

 

• • Reduction of blue and coastal poverty

 

It is possible to reduce blue and coastal poverty.  Initiatives to reduce them could include the universal just as the specific ones.  Amongst them, one can list the following: 

√ Integration of the poor in the coastal society

√ Reduction of exclusion of the poor from the coastal and blue economies

√ Rehousing of coastal homeless

√ Rebuilding damaged and destroyed houses

√ Supply of freshwater

√ Desalination of plants for poor farmers

Etc.

 

Additionally, there could be a need to make the blue and coastal economies the net contributors to poverty reduction and sustainable development. 

 

• • Blue and coastal poverty reduction in Africa by Africa-based Sister Organisations

 

In this work of blue and coastal poverty reduction, Africa-based Sister Organisations can play a pivotal role.  They can drive the agenda about the reduction of blue and coastal poverty as follows.

Conventionally, they can continue to help in those initiatives relating to housing, education, water supply, health, sanitation, health, energy and so on. 

Unconventionally, they can campaign to be part of the process of sustainably using sea and marine resources (instead of heavily relying on land-based resources) in order to reduce poverty while evaluating the importance of investing in local water/sea-based resources in order to reduce poverty in Africa. 

They can finally continue to raise awareness on the extent to which the “Blue Spaces” together with the blue economy are helping people in Africa to alleviate or escape from poverty.      

The above is our third note for the Blue Spaces.  To add your input and or enquire about this third note, please contact CENFACS.     

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Fresh Start Capacity Development

 

Some people can easily and freshly restart life after a break (e.g. holiday, maternity or paternity leave, recovery from illness, COVID-19 lockdowns, etc.).   Others can manage their working life and take new initiatives at the start of a new season.  Other more may struggle or find it difficult to resume their activity or simply may take such a long time to restart.

So, as part of back-to-relief programme, we are looking forward to working with people in need to redevelop their fresh start capacity.  This is a set of Autumn support made of fresh start essentials.  It is a process through which their capacity (that is, their ability to perform functions of fresh start life) is re-established or redeveloped or even recreated.  This process includes fresh start skills, knowledge and resources.  

To enquire about Fresh Start Capacity Development, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Coming soon: Autumn 2021 Humanitarian Relief Appeal

 

As our Summer 2021 Humanitarian Appeal has come to an end, we will be soon launching the Autumn Appeal.  The latter is a regular seasonal compassionate sustenance which will deal with people, flora, fauna, communities and organisations in need in Africa.

As we explained in our last post about ways of engaging with CENFACS in the new season, supporting this coming appeal is one of the great ways of materialising this engagement.  Those who are looking for alternative way of philanthropic engagement, they can start to think and prepare themselves on how they can engage with this appeal.  When this appeal will be out, they can then decide whether or not to support it or recommend it to others.

In meantime, we would like to thank all those who have been supportive to our seasonal humanitarian relief appeals, including the Summer 2021 one which is ending this week. 

If there is a query about any of our appeals (both previous and the incoming ones), please do not hesitate to contact us.

 

 

• Happiness Survey and Questionnaire

 

As part of our Summer Reporting and Sharing of experiences and stories, we are running a Happiness and Healthiness survey. 

The survey, which is mostly about hearing your Summer experiences and stories, is also about improving on planning and delivery of summer projects and of enhancing the outcome of our advice on summer break and season.

For those who may be interested in this survey, there is a questionnaire to complete and return to CENFACS.  This questionnaire can also be found in our Fresh Autumn Start resource.  You can request the questionnaire as well.

To request and or complete the questionnaire, contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• End-of-Month Special Offer with Translation Day on 30/09/2021

 

As part of CENFACS’ Translation Service and the United Nations’ International Translation Day, CENFACS’ in-house bilingual translators will be offering special translation service on 30/09/2021 in French to English and vice versa.  This also echoes the open source World Press Translation Day of this month.

If you have texts, documents and stories to be translated from English to French and vice versa, please grab the unique opportunity of the end of the month and the beginning of the Autumn season to get your work translated. 

Translation is free service that we offer to our community.  However, we do not mind a voluntary donation to keep this service running and the all machinery of CENFACS.

Should anyone need translation; they can let us know two days before the Translation Day so that we could plan ahead. 

Please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS beforehand should you need translation and we hope you will join us on the Translation Day.   

 

 

 

Vous pouvez travailler avec le CENFACS à travers la collection de projets ci-dessus de nouveau départ ou de lancement de notre campagne XI.  Quels sont ces projets?

Ce sont des plans d’actions pour donner une feuille de soulagement assaisonné pendant cet automne et cette année des feuilles au sein de CENFACS.

Ces projets mettent en oeuvre des méthodes de travail nouvelles et améliorées avec les populations locales.

Ces projets permettent de répondre à l’évolution des besoins résultant des effets néfastes persistants de la pandémie de coronavirus dans une nouvelle ère et un nouveau paysage de politiques de réduction de la pauvreté et de développement durable.

Pour travailler ensemble à travers les projets nommés ci-dessus, veuillez contacter le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Autumn Fresh Start Help and Resources to Build Forward Better

 

• • Making Autumn Start and Season Easier 

           

• • • What is Fresh Autumn Start (FAS)

 

FAS is a continuation of our Summer Support projects into the Autumn season.  It is a building block or additional back up of useful survival tips and hints to embrace Autumn as smoothly and trouble-freely as possible. 

It includes real life situations that users may face when and as they return from their Summer break or season on one hand, and possible leads to proffer solutions to their arising Autumn needs on the other hand.

This FAS resource is not exhaustive or an end itself.  It needs other resources as complement.  It is a good basic insight into a Fresh Start as it provides helpful advisory tools for a Fresh Start and confidence building from the beginning to the end of Autumn season.  It could also be used as a reference for users to engineer their own idea of Fresh Start and the sustained management of autumn needs. 

At the end of this resource, there are some websites addresses/directories for help and support.  These sources of help and support are not exhaustive.  We have mainly considered third sector organisations and service providers as well as social enterprises.

For further or extended list of service providers for Autumn needs, people can contact their local authorities and service directories (both online and in print).

 

• • • Fresh Autumn Start in the context of unforced COVID-19 restrictions

 

This Autumn, we are approaching Fresh Start Help from the perspective and context of unforced COVID-19 restrictions.  It is the context in which some people have been COVID-19 vaccinated and tested while others aren’t.  It is also the situation in which COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted in many parts of the UK and/or where the use of restrictions is no longer mandatory.

It is in this context of unforced COVID-19 restrictions and terms that we are going to respond to users’ needs.  In other words, we are going to help meet basic life-sustaining needs and requests under the terms and conditions of unforced COVID-19 restrictions and of continuing of adverse impacts of climate change.  So, Fresh Start Help will deal with the needs arising from life-sustenance under the terms and conditions of unforced COVID-19 restrictions and continuing adverse impacts of climate change.

 

 

 

• • Key summaries of the contents of FAS 2021 Edition

 

• • • Contents for FAS 2021 Edition

 

The contents for 2021 Edition of FAS include:

∝ Autumn scenarios and actions to take

∝ Examples of Summer Break Expenses Track Record and Autumn Build-Forward-Better Budget

∝ People needs and Autumn leads

∝ Integration of threats and risks

∝ What you can get from CENFACS

∝ Autumn online and digital resources

 

• • • Possible Autumn Scenarios and Possible Actions

 

When returning from Summer break and/or season or coronavirus-induced lockdown, people can find themselves in a variety of situations depending on their own individual circumstances and life experiences.  This variety of situations may require or be expected to be matched with a diversity of responses in order to meet people’s Autumn needs. 

These variable circumstances and diverse responses or a course of actions can take the different shapes as well as can be framed in order to take into account the continuing adverse impacts of climate change.  One of these shapes could be to contextualise and customise back-to-relief, fresh start and build-forward-better support.  This is what CENFACS tries to do via the advice service.      

 

• • • Examples of Summer Break Expenses Track Record and Autumn Build-Forward-Better Budget

 

Tracking down and reassessing summer break/season expenses are a positive step to put one through a positive start for the Autumn season.  As part of this positive step, FAS is packed with an example of Summer Break Expenses Track Record.

Budgeting Autumn items and needs is also good for a Fresh Start and for overall control over the start and rest of autumn season expenses.  Since our focus is on building forward better, one can write a build-forward-better budget.  Such a budget will help in costing the activities planned in the process of building forward better. 

To support this financial control, FAS contains two examples of budgets: Autumn build forward better budget and fresh start budget.   

 

• • • People’s Needs and Autumn Leads 

           

Variable circumstances can obviously result in multiple needs.  One of these circumstances is the current unforced terms and conditions of Covid-19 restrictions in some parts of the UK.  To meet those needs, we may have to gather resources, tools and institutions to guide us.  The 2021 Edition of FAS provides a table that gives an idea of the likely leads to satisfy people’s needs or just to guide them.

 

• • • Integrating threats and risks from the adverse impacts of various factors into FAS

 

Since the coronavirus still poses a threat, the FAS 2021 edition integrates the life-threatening impacts of the coronavirus.  COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted in some parts of the UK; however COVID-19 has not yet gone away.  Likewise, the probable adverse impacts of climate change are nevertheless there.  This integration is at the levels of possible Autumn scenarios, Autumn budget and arising needs.  It is the integration of both life-sustaining needs and life-threatening impacts of the coronavirus and climate change. 

 

• • • What You Can Get from CENFACS in Autumn under Autumn Help to Build Forward Better

 

The set of help provided in the FAS 2021 to Build Forward Better is part of CENFACS’ UK arm of services and additional services we set up to overcome the negative side effects of the coronavirus and lockdowns.  Besides that it further takes into account specific needs of people that may require specialist organisations and or institutions to deal with them.  In which case CENFACS can signpost or refer the applicants to those third parties.

 

• • • Autumn online and digital resources

 

As explained earlier, FAS 2021 Edition contains a list of organisations and services that can help users in different areas covering basic needs.  Most the provided resources, which are from the charity and voluntary sector, are online and digital.  The list gives their contact details including the kinds of support or service they provide. 

We hope that the basic tips and hints making the contents of FAS 2021 Edition will help you in some aspects of your Autumn needs, and you will find the relief you are looking for.

We would like to take this opportunity of the beginning of the new season to wish you a Happy and Healthy Autumn, as well as good luck in your efforts to Build Forward Better!

 

 _________ 

 

• References

 

(1) https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ppp3.10225 (accessed September 2021)

(2) Chris Park (2011), Oxford Dictionary of Environment and Conservation, Oxford University Press, Oxford & New York

_________

 

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 http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

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!

15 September 2021

 

Post No. 213

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Autumn of Freshness to Build Forward Better

• Autumn Programme with Starting XI Projects/Campaign to Build Forward Better

• Blue Spaces-focused Note for Week Beginning 13/09/2021: Reduction of Sea-level Rise Impacts on the Coastal Poor in Africa

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Autumn of Freshness to Build Forward Better

 

This Autumn 2021, we are going to gradually start to return the nature of our Autumn, which is of Freshness or Fresh Start.  This is because last year, our Autumn lost its true nature due to the unbearable impacts of the coronavirus and associated containment measures.   

We have already accepted and integrated the coronavirus pandemic in our mind sets as the 1960s theory of the five stages of grief or model of change curve by Elizabeth Kübler-Ross (1) tells us.  We have accepted that change is inevitable; so we could now return to where we were before the coronavirus with changes rather than against them.  We can now move on.  If this is the case, what Autumn is about for us?

Autumn is the time of natural recycling process of plants and trees.  Leaves change colour and fall.  Without reinventing the wheels, we can say that Autumn of Freshness at CENFACS is the season after the long sunny weather and break of Summer during which our body and mind naturally recycle and engage in renewed energy, strength and thoughts. 

Autumn of Freshness is the season of

∝ making fresh start after returning back from Summer to resume our life routine, work, education and voluntary work, particularly poverty relief one

∝ restarting after having some life and/or work experience (e.g. voluntary work or experience over the Summer, project visits, holiday trips, tourism, travel/expeditions of all kinds, etc.)

∝ beginning to apply or introduce and share those new experiences, ideas and discoveries we had during the Summer break or holiday

∝ novelty, creativity and innovation to try to resolve the old, new, challenging and emerging issues of poverty and hardships

This Autumn will be of Freshness or Fresh Start to Build Forward Better Together.  It will be of working together with our local people to build forward better from the side effects of the coronavirus and lockdowns.  This building process started since last March when we published the underlying principles of our Build Forward Better Programme.   During this Autumn, we are going to continue to apply these principles. 

So, we are going to work together to build forward from where we were before the coronavirus pandemic struck, and where possible, we will introduce new initiatives.  Therefore, the key words and phrases for our sharing and engaging contents over this Autumn are Freshness or Fresh Start to Build Forward Better; words and phrases which will underpin all our work over this period.

 

 

• Autumn Programme with Starting XI Projects/Campaign to Build Forward Better

 

Report, Refresh, Renew, Develop and Thrive with Fresh Start Projects from the Autumn Programme

 

Autumn of Freshness is about working together with our users and stakeholders through helpful collection of Fresh Start projects blended together to give a new seasoned leaf of relief during this Autumn and Year of Leaves. 

These projects will implement new and improved ways of working with local people to meet changing needs mainly led by the persisting adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic in a new era and landscape of poverty reduction and development policies. 

The Autumn 2021 Fresh Start Programme is made of 

(a) Build Forward Better skills, tips, hints, tweaks and hacks 

(b) Transformative experiences

(c) The Season’s appeal to stand up again against poverty and hardships

(d) A Slice of Africa’s history

(e) A post-vaccine and post-testing COVID-19 campaign

(f) Blue and green realignments of initiatives to the principles of greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals and targets 

(g) Build Forward thoughts and inspirations for a coronavirus-free poverty relief and development agenda

All this is flavoured with hopes, dreams and reasons to believe in the future; a poverty-free, sustainable and coronavirus-free world. 

 

So, the line up for CENFACS’ Build Forward Starting XI Projects and Campaign (or Build Forward Better Projects) for this Autumn is as follows:

(1) Women, Children and Foresight Skills

(2) Literacy and Numeracy Skills for Debt and Deficit Management – NEW

(3) Guide for Investing in African Not-for-profit Organisations – NEW

(4) Making Memorable Difference with the Congolese “Rumba”  

(5) Build Forward Better Flora and Fauna

(6) Advice that Includes Leaves – NEW

(7) “A la Une” (Autumn Leaves of Action for the Upkeep of the Nature in Existence)

(8) International Advice Service

(9) Help to Build Forward Better

(10) Campaign to End COVID-19-induced Poverty

(11) Autumn Humanitarian Relief Appeal

For more on these projects, read below under the Main Developments section of this post.

 

 

• Blue Spaces-focused Note for Week Beginning 13/09/2021: Reduction of Sea-level Rise Impacts on the Coastal Poor in Africa

 

In Africa, poverty is also found amongst certain peoples living in the coastal zones.  Not everybody who lives in coastal areas is rich.  When sea levels rise in those areas, the adverse impacts could be stronger amongst these African coastal poor than others.  To understand this, we are going to briefly highlight the following two points: impacts of sea level rise on African coastal poor people and the reduction of its impacts on these coastal poor people.

 

• • Impacts of Sea Level Rise on African Coastal Poor

 

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (2) argues that “about 56% of the coastlines in Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal and Togo are eroding and this is expected to worsen in the future”.

This coastal erosion could be the result of sea level rise.  Sea-level rises, which are part of climate change, affect people living in poverty.  If you are poor and lives by the sea, you would be even more affected by sea-level rises than what some would have thought.  They also deepen inequality where they happen.

Generally speaking, African coastal countries have very tiny resources to cope with the level of damages that sea level rise can cause.  Let alone, what environmental events (such as flooding, drought, storm surges, heavy rain falls and so on) can create.  Sea-level rises can create refugees, displaced persons, homeless, migrants, orphan and abandoned children, etc.  This is without forgetting other damages like environmental ones (e.g. soil salinity and contamination of plants and crops). 

For example, in 2019 when sea level rose in the Western coast of Africa (from Mauritania to Cameroon), coastal poor were mostly affected than others.  In the same year, sea-level rise happened in Senegal (particularly in Saint-Louis) and destroyed houses and crops as well as flooded streets.  The most sufferers were the poorest ones. 

Yet, it is possible to reduce the impacts of sea level rises on the African coastal poor.  How?

 

• • Reduction of the Impacts of Sea Level Rise on Africa’s Coastal Poor

 

There are both general and specific initiatives that can be undertaken to reduce the impacts of sea level rise on the African coastal poor.  Without distinguishing general from specific initiatives, let us number the following:

√ Support of those poor people working in the tourism industry as flooding and erosion can put off tourists

√ Repairing damages caused by coastal flood and erosion for those (coastal poor) who cannot afford the cost of repair

√ Compensation for agriculturalists’, pastoralists’ and farmers’ livelihoods as their land can be contaminated by high salt from sea water

√ Helping coastal poor to access safe drinking water and sanitation

√ Rehousing or rebuilding homes for coastal flood-related homeless

√ Providing health and healthcare-related support to the stricken coastal poor   

√ Recreating income-generative activities and capacities for coastal economic inactive people because of coastal floods

Etc.

Additionally, coastal Africa-based Sister Organisations can help by working with local coastal poor to alleviate many of these issues, including developing policies and strategy with coastal people so as to minimise or reduce the adverse impacts of future flooding and erosion like it happened in Senegal.

The above is our second note for the Blue Spaces.  To add your input and or enquire about this second note, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Happiness and Healthiness Journal, Creative Activity No. 6: Create Your Journal of Freedom to Choose

 

The last episode of our Summer series of Journal of Happiness and Healthiness is about Freedom to Choose.

Indeed, the coronavirus pandemic, climate change and other factors have restricted the choice one can make about their happiness and healthiness over Summer 2021.  To reflect these restrictions, one can create or write a journal of freedom or the lack of freedom for the things that have made them to feel happy, healthy and free during this Summer 2021.  Alternatively, one can consider writing a journal of the things that have made them unhappy, unhealthy and confined this Summer 2021.    

Since, the work of CENFACS is on poverty reduction, one can as well think of writing a journal that explains the freedom and ability they have to choose solutions to reduce or end poverty and hardships.  Such a journal can include things like being able to choose items within the basic necessities of life (e.g. kinds of food, shelter, education, information, health, etc.).   

You can create your journal for any aspects of Summertime linked to freedom to choose.  You can explain your experiences, feelings and thoughts in terms of happiness and healthiness about freedom to choose over this Summer of enduring COVID-19. 

In short, you can create or write a journal of the following:

∝ Things that have made you to feel happy, healthy and free over this Summer 2021

∝ Things that have made you unhappy, unhealthy and confined over this Summer 2021

∝ Explaining the freedom and ability you have to choose solutions to reduce or end poverty and hardships over this Summer 2021.

You can share with the community your experience of happiness and healthiness regarding the freedom to choose.  This can be recorded in your journal and be shared by the end of Summer 2021.

To share the contents of your happiness and healthiness journal relating to happy, healthy and free livelihoods during this Summer 2021 as well as to help build a better Summer holiday experience, you can contact CENFACS. 

 

 

 

• Starting or Renewing your Involvement with CENFACS’ Work this Autumn 2021

 

The beginning of every season is an opportunity either to continue to do the things we always do as they work or to think of taking on new initiatives in the new season or to do both.  Likewise, in times of post-crisis like the post-coronavirus pandemic there are not only damages to account about and reparations to do; there are as well opportunities and possibilities to do things differently.  One can use the opportunity of the post-COVID-19 crisis to change things.  One way of doing it is to start or continue to build forward.  There are many ways in which one can build forward better this Autumn.

For example, one can use the opportunity after the COVID-19 crisis and rethink on the types of organisations and projects they support.  One may find appropriate to start or increase or even reduce their support to a particular development cause.  One could also think of getting involved in CENFACS’ work or renewing their commitment to it if they have ever got involved in it before.  The decision is theirs.

Under the Main Developments section of this post, we have spelled out various ways in which one can enhance CENFACS’ cause and make a useful impact on poverty alleviation with us.

 

 

• Analytics-based Solutions to Poverty via Triple Value Initiatives (All-Year Round Projects)

 

Our experience of tracking data about the Triple Value Initiatives (or All-year Round Projects) and of studying the relationships between the three of them (Play, Run and Vote projects) continues this Autumn 2021.  We are analysing possible correlations between the different sets of data from these projects and carrying out predictions of probable events from them. 

The aim of this data tracking exercise is to combine data about them to generate an increased or add-on relief against poverty and hardships.  We are indeed conducting analytics-based solutions to poverty via these three initiatives.  In other words, we are exploring and interpreting meaningful data about them in order to drive good decisions on poverty reduction.

It would be highly appreciated that for the running of this tracking data exercise, those who have managed to undertake the three of them to share information relating to them.  The data to be shared could be qualitative and/or quantitative. 

With data tracked, we will be able to discover if there are some interactions or correlations between them.  Our analysis will not stop there, we will as well study the patterns in data collected and treated.

For further details about this data tracking and or to communicate your actions-results about these projects, please contact CENFACS. 

 

En ce temps du coronavirus durable, vous pouvez ensemble avec le CENFACS…

∝ Accéder aux moyens pour mieux construire vers l’avant

∝ Participer à notre appel humanitaire saisonnier

∝ Renouveler vos idées et inspirations

∝ Acquérir et prendre part à des expériences transformatrices

∝ Apprendre et partager une tranche de l’histoire africaine

∝ Continuer à combattre le COVID-19 et ses effets durables

 

Pour aider à réduire la pauvreté et mieux construire vers l’avant, svp contactez le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Autumn Programme with Starting XI Projects to Build Forward Better (Build Forward Better Projects)

 

The XI projects we are talking about will allow us to start our overall Autumn Season’s poverty reduction campaign.  This is why we call them as Starting XI Projects or Campaign.  

Please find below key highlights of these projects making CENFACS’ Autumn 2021 of Building Forward Better.

 

11 PROJECTS TO BUILD FORWARD BETTER: 11 WAYS OF HELPING TO REDUCE AND END POVERTY THIS AUTUMN 2021

 

September 2021

 

(5) Build Forward Better Flora and Fauna projects (including the Big Beasts sub-advocacy) will continue our advocacy work on the protection of plants and animals while we are carrying on to implement new ways of working with local people and organisations in Africa to build forward better flora and fauna in the era of the coronavirus pandemic (Advocacy)

(6) Advice based on Leaves: an innovative step forward within the framework of the advice service we provide to the community.  This element within our local advice package, which is designed to mark CENFACS’ Year of Leaves, will use leaves in the process of helping to reduce poverty.   (Advice)

(7) A la Une (Autumn Leaves of Action for the Upkeep of the Nature in Existence) will include our sub-advocacy work on nature, which is Sustainable Trajectories for the Nature.  This year, A la Une project will focus on the Safeguard of Crop Wild Relatives in Africa (Campaign)

 

October 2021

 

(11) Autumn Appeal to Support projects: a renewed engagement with supporters via an appeal to deal with the persisting side effects of the coronavirus on poor people in Africa. (Humanitarian appeal)

(4) Making Memorable Difference: The focus for this October History Month will be on African dance with emphasis on the Congolese Rumba, Rumba will be looked at as culture, art and patrimony for poverty reduction and sustainable development while including its legacies for the current generations’ cultural development. (History project)

(10) End of Covid-19-induced Poverty: Although the coronavirus is not yet over, this is a COVID-19 post-vaccine and post-testing campaign designed to help reduce and mostly end poverty and hardships brought by the coronavirus pandemic and its associated effects. (Poverty-relieving campaign)

 

November 2021

 

(9) Autumn Help to Build Forward Better: a new and enhanced support to the CENFACS Community returning from the lockdown and long Summer break 2021.  The resource will contain new information, tips and hints to help the community meet their changing needs as legacies of  the coronavirus pandemic.  This initiative or resource may start or come out this September 2021, although it is scheduled for November 2021.  (Resource)

(1) Women & Children FIRST Development Day: This year our Development Day will prolong our Reflection Day of last April as we will be celebrating and thinking of Foresight Skills to help correctly judge future risks and crises (similar to the coronavirus) and plan actions based on this knowledge.  Also, by dealing with skills, this year’s Development Day will resonate with the November month of Skills Development within CENFACS. (Thoughts)

(8) International Advice Service: Our support to Africa-based Sister Organisations via advice will continue to operate to help these organisations to overcome many challenges they face as the coronavirus is still at large in Africa.  Although this service is open since we launched it, we have planned to conduct more activities about it this coming November 2021. 

(2) Literacy and Numeracy Skills to Manage Debts and Deficits: This initiative, which continues the key messages of our July 2021 Festival of Thoughts, will provide to those who are illiterate and innumerate from the perspective of financial skills, some basic skills to understand what debts and deficits are about and how to use these skills in personal and or family life in order to avoid or reduce debts and deficits. (Financial Advocacy & Skills)

(3) Guide for Investing in the Not-for-profit African Organisations and causes: This will be our first booklet (a 2021/2022 one) on the matter that will be issued by CENFACS to provide some basic information, guidance and advice for those who would like to invest in Africa-based Sister Organisations engaged with the African Continental Free Trade Area. (Resource) 

 

Note:

As said earlier, the above XI projects will allow us to start our overall Autumn Season’s poverty reduction campaign.  This is why we call them as Starting XI Projects or Campaign.

Although they are scheduled for Autumn 2021, we may slightly alter our initial plan and or introduce occasional initiatives to cope with the reality of the unpredictability and complexity of development situations (e.g. coronavirus uncertainty, side effects of the economic exit of the UK from the EU’s single market, humanitarian and emergency situations), in which case we shall let you know as early as we can.

 

 

 

• Getting the Most of your Involvement with CENFACS into Poverty Alleviation Work from Autumn 2021 and Beyond

 

Where to start: Sign up!

√ Register with us and or update us with your contact details

√ Respond to our communications and communicate with us when occasion arises

 

Stay in touch with our…

√ Newsletter and other paper and free-paper communication materials

√ Regular updated and upgraded resources and supporting information

 

Involve us in raising awareness of the poverty relief issue

√ Advertise with us for helpful good and deserving causes

√ Pass our relief messages on to interested third parties 

 

Share your transformative experience

√ Tell us what you think and or your development story

√ Help us improve with your voices, comments, reports and feedbacks

 

Boost your support

√ Support us according to your means and limits as every support counts

√ Add value to your support, if you can, by improving your support to us to support you and or others

 

Get noticed to go further with your involvement

√ Register and keep up to date with information about your event, project, activity and so on

√ Join up our network of poverty relief and development work

 

Stay ahead of the game with us

√ Communicate with us before hands and when the needs arise

√ Often read our news alerts, tweets and switch to our new developments 

 

Deliver on your promises 

√ If you promise to do something for or with CENFACS and others, please do it

√ If you can’t do it, please let us know.  Don’t just stay silent!      

                           

Make our communications with you to be a two-way process and multi-channel approach

√ Talk to CENFACS and CENFACS will talk to you as well and vice versa

√ Help us improve the flow of information on poverty relief and development using a variety of channels and platforms 

 

Be contactable and present via

√ E-mail, (tele or mobile) phones, physical address and social media platforms

√ Word-of-mouth recommendations, outreach and other means of contact (like video calls)

 

Get the word out on your communication channels

√ Spread words about CENFACS’ work on your social media links

√ Promote CENFACS’ work in what and where you think we can fit in

 

Keep your involvement with CENFACS digitally and on papers

√ Up-to-date information on to your mobile by our free text alerts and messages

√ Check CENFACS’ website and make enquiries online 24 hours 7 days a week

 

Act upon information received from us

√ Don’t just read or hear them and do nothing about them.  Please react and be vocal!

√ If they are irrelevant to you, please pass them onto an interested and committed party

 

Build and protect standards of trust in CENFACS

√ Correct inaccuracies and misinformation, stop the spread of false information about CENFACS and its community/network

√ Tackle with us disinformation and distrust about our poverty reduction work and initiatives

 

Continue the legacy of CENFACS’ work

√ It is now 19 years and two months that CENFACS has been working on poverty relief and sustainable development since it was registered in 2002.  You can continue this legacy with us.

√ You can be the face of CENFACS to those who are looking for a lifeline of support from us.

The above ways of getting involved in CENFACS’ work may not be exhaustive.  Should you have any other way, please let us know.

To get involved with CENFACS into poverty reduction work, just let us know.

 

_________

 

References

(1) Kübler-Ross E., 1969: On Death and Dying, New York: Simon and Schuster, Inc.

(2) https://unfccc.int/news/climate-change-is-an-increasing-threat-to-africa (accessed September 2021)

________

 

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 http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

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!

08 September 2021

 

Post No. 212

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Back-to-school Poverty

• Back to the Upkeep of the Nature with the Theme of “Blue Spaces”

• Coming in Autumn 2021: The 73rd Issue of FACS Newsletter, to be entitled as The Cost of Building Forward from the Coronavirus Pandemic

 

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Back-to-school Poverty

 

The post no. 212 of our blog page goes an extra mile in discussing the back-to-school poverty as the first key message and main development.  This key message and main development takes stock of what we argued last year about the same topic while dealing with back-to-school challenge in 2021, poverty issue, support that CENFACS can provide during the back-to-school period, expenses budget and the particularity of this year’s back-to-school. 

This particularity is that back to school is still overshadowed by a certain number of factors which are:

∝ The continuation of caution about the enduring coronavirus pandemic and its new variants (such as Delta) despite the COVID-19 vaccine rollout and testing programme

∝ Back to school is caught by hybrid working and learning, between at-home and in-person learning/working

∝ Cure of activities, services and infrastructures as a result of COVID-19 damages

∝ Counselling sessions for those who need them to manage the pain caused the coronavirus to cope with back-to-school process and pressure

∝ Blurred sanitary conditions in which restrictions have been lifted but there are constant messages reminding people to observe COVID-19 protection measures in public spaces.

Back to school is a challenging time for many families and parents especially for those on low income brackets or just poor.  It is even controversial for many of them as they are trying to build back and forward educational life for children while they have still to deal with the legacies of the coronavirus pandemic.  The controversy between rebuilding lives and being careful about the enduring coronavirus is shared by both our project beneficiaries here in the UK or in Africa.

The greatest challenge for these families is back-to-school poverty.  Back-to-school poverty is what we are trying to help reduce or eradicate within our back-to-relief programme this Autumn 2021.  We are tackling it while carrying on back-to-relief programme and services. 

For more on back-to-school poverty, please read under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

 

• Back to the Upkeep of the Nature with the Theme of “Blue Spaces”

  

We are taking stock of the theme of “Blue Spaces” we developed in 2019 and 2020 in the context of protection of oceans and seas.  This year, we are adding new topics or notes to this theme.  These new notes will be about the expansion of oceans and seas (as a result of global warming) and the effects on the poor, particularly coastal poor people in Africa.  Additionally, we are carrying on in looking at blue poverty reduction and blue sustainable development. However, before presenting this week’s notes, let us clarify the theme statement.

 

• • Theme statement 

 

The theme of “Blue Spaces” under the back to the upkeep of the nature (which is part of our back-to-relief programme) is about protecting blue spaces while using these spaces to help reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.  There are two aspects in this statement. 

The first aspect of this statement is about sea level rise and its impacts.  This first aspect prolongs the work we have done so far on oceans and seas.  The second aspect of this statement is what we called blue poverty reduction and blue sustainable development. 

In labelling poverty reduction and sustainable development blue, we are trying to look at the extent to which the “Blue Spaces” together with the blue economy are helping people in Africa and elsewhere to alleviate or escape from poverty.   This is what one can call “blue poverty relief“. 

We are as well revisiting the sustainable development goals by re-exploring the role and place that the “Blue Spaces” are playing in capacitating poor people’s sustainable development.  This is what one can term as “blue sustainable development“. 

To materialise what we have said above, we have planned four key notes or topics (as shown on the above figure relating to blue space theme) which include:

(a) the impacts of sea level rise

(b) the reduction of these impacts

(c) blue poverty reduction

(d) blue sustainable development. 

The notes or topics will be the vehicle by which we shall illustrate the central theme or message of blue spaces.   Through these notes, we hope users in their journey with us to undergo change in the way they approach blue spaces.

Let’s now summarise the first note or topic of our September 2021 work on blue spaces; note which started from 06 September 2021.

 

 

• • Blue spaces-focused note for week beginning 06/09/2021: The impacts of seal level rise on poverty reduction in Africa

 

Sea level rise can adversely impact African coastal countries, especially the poor coastal people and communities of these countries, as well as the way in which the work on poverty reduction is conducted.

 

• • • The impacts of sea level rise on African coastal countries

 

Almost 33 out of 55 countries in Africa have coastlines.  Amongst these 33 countries, 19 of them have port cities.   For example, the State capitals of Dakar, Banjul, Conakry, Abidjan, Lomé, Accra, Lagos and Brazzaville are port cities. 

According to Ibe and Awosika (1),

“If sea level rise on the African Coastal Zones like the above name port cities, there could be loss of wetlands, increased rates of beach erosion, flooding, salt water intrusion and higher water tables, deforestation, disruption in transport and communication and so on.” 

There could be net adverse effects of sea level rise on coastal zones as these authors argued.  Among these effects include the creation and or worsening of poverty for some and the challenge to reduce it.

 

• • • Effects of sea level rise on poverty reduction

 

One of the effects of sea level rise is the creation of situational or transitory poverty.  What is situational or transitory poverty relating to sea level rise?

  

• • • • Situational or transitory poverty

 

Situational or transitory poverty can be defined in many ways.  On the website Richmondvale.org (2), it is defined as

“a period wherein an individual falls below the poverty line because of a sudden event”.

There are many events that can push people or communities towards transitory poverty.  In this context, transitory poverty is caused by climate change events (e.g. sea level rise) and environmental disasters like earthquakes, storms, floods, etc.

Sea level rises can lead to situational or transitory poverty or transitory poor.  They can as well complicate the on-going work on poverty reduction.

 

• • • • Effects of sea level rise on the work on poverty reduction

 

Given the limited resources and capacities that our Africa-based Sister Organisations have, it could be challenging for them to intervene when sea level rise happens.  They have to work hard to help those affected by sea level rise to get shelter, food, health service, sanitation, hygiene, etc.    This is because an event like sea level rise requires a gigantic level of investments in order to save and preserve lives.

There is more to argue and prove about sea level rise and its effects in Africa.  For those who would like to further discuss the matter with us, they are welcome to contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Abstract for the 73^rd Issue of FACS

 

It costs to build forward better from the calamitous impacts of the coronavirus pandemic and associated non-essential economic inactivity.  It costs for individuals like our users, for organisations such as our Africa-based Sister Organisations and for CENFACS itself.  In other words, there is a cost to bear in the process of building back and forward from what it has been damaged, lost and destroyed by the coronavirus pandemic.    

The 73^rd Issue of FACS will deal with the price of curating activities damaged and destroyed by the coronavirus pandemic while exploring the cost associated with non-essential economic inactivity from prolonged lockdowns.  In doing so, the Issue will give the opportunity to readers to navigate basic accounting and financial processes and jargon in order to grasp the building forward process that has been undertaken by CENFACS‘ users and organisation beneficiaries.

In this Issue, we shall try to collect and illustrate examples and/or models on how users and organisations working with CENFACS are trying to manage the cost of building forward from the legacies of the coronavirus pandemic. 

Far from being a simple part of financial translation of CENFACS‘ Build Forward Better together Programme, the Issue will go further by treating both financial and non-financial costs from COVID-19.  It will look at these costs from the perspective of project planning and development in terms of cost-benefit analysis. 

Besides looking at the cost of building forward as a financial operation, it will provide a non-financial look of the cost of building forward in the form another reading of poverty and poverty reduction.  In this respect, there could be hidden or forgotten or even unaccounted costs that the process of building forward needs to consider.     

Moreover, the Issue will be about how to work with users and Africa-based Sister organisations in order to not only account for these costs from the accounting and financial perspective since accounting is often about recording transactions that happened in the past; but also doing basic accounting and financial forecasting of the needs of the community as we are trying to build forward, for the future.  

Finally, since we are in the era of delivering climate change pledges, the Issue will touch on the cost of building forward better greener and cleaner.  It means that in our process of building forward better, we (users, African Sister Organisations and CENFACS) need to include the cost of taking green and clean paths.   

The above gives a bit some flavour or general idea about the next issue of FACS, the 73^rd Issue of FACS Newsletter. 

For any enquiries and or queries about this Issue, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Leafy Year and Advice Month

 

Leafy Year is our dedication of 2021 as a leafy year or a year of leaves of poverty reduction.   Advice Month is the month of the year during which advice is more pronounced within CENFACS compared to other months of the year.  In other words, we invest more resources in advice in September than at any other times of the year.  We can use this month of advice to support 2021 as a year dedicated to leaves via helping in poverty reduction.

 

• • Integrating leaves and advice to produce poverty reduction

 

Leaves of poverty reduction can be combined with advice on poverty reduction to achieve a good result.  There are many ways in which this combination can be done.  For example, if one considers advice on leaves, a lot can be said about how autumn leaves can bring relief and to clean the environment (e.g. collecting leaves, burying them, mulching them, etc.)

In terms of advice to use leaves to reduce poverty, there is much to argue and remember about leaves for food, health, shelter, body care, etc.  Likewise, leaves can be used for wildlife, compost ingredients, bedding for chickens and ducks, etc.

This advice about the use of leaves can come from various professions and professionals including gardeners, farmers, doctors, nutritionists, etc.  The integration of leaves and advice can also come from organisations working on leaves and advice on a regular or circumstantial basis.  For example, CENFACS is working on the integration of leaves and advice in order to produce or help poverty reduction during this month of September 2021. 

 

• • CENFACS’ Advisory Support that integrates Leaves

 

We hope through this support to work with our users and those who are looking for advice that involves leaves of poverty reduction.  Leaves of poverty reduction will be featured and included in our advice sessions during this month of September.  Users and others will figure out the benefit of poverty reduction approach that involves natural leaves.

To find out more about our Advisory Support that includes Leaves, please contact CENFACS.  To enquire about Leafy Year and or Advice Month, please also contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Happiness and Healthiness Journal, Creative Activity No. 5: Create Your Journal of Trust

 

After last week’s pause, we can continue creating our Summer Journal of Happiness and Healthiness. 

The coronavirus and associated effects may have perhaps made some people to lose trust in poverty reduction.  Yet, there is a need or reason to keep faith in the reduction and end of poverty.

You can create your journal for any aspects of Summertime linked to trust.  You can explain your experiences, feelings and thoughts in terms of happiness and healthiness about trust over this Summer of enduring COVID-19. 

Your journal of trust can cover any of the following three areas: trust in poverty reduction, trust in people/communities and initiatives that build trust.  Let us give some examples of what one can include in each of these journals.

 

• • Journal of trust in poverty reduction

 

You can record your thoughts, feelings, experiences and memories about the following:

promoting trust where trust is lost, dealing with disinformation and distrust about poverty reduction, struggling to cope with trust in poverty reduction, etc.

 

• • Journal of trust in people and communities

 

You can record your thoughts, feelings, experiences and memories about the following:

correcting inaccuracies and misinformation, stopping the spread of false information within your community/network, building trust with people through transparency, speaking about the most trusted person in your community, etc.

 

• • Journal of initiatives to build trust

 

You can record your thoughts, feelings, experiences and memories about the following:

building and protecting standards of trust, rebuilding trust in each other, explaining interactive initiatives you have taken to protect trust, etc.

The above three areas are just an example of the many about trust and journals of trust.  If you have a different area of interest in trust that you would like to write for your Summer journal, please feel free to do it. 

Briefly, you can share with the community your experience of happiness and healthiness with trust.  This can be recorded in your journal and be shared by the end of Summer 2021.

To share the contents of your happiness and healthiness journal relating to happy, healthy and trustful Summer 2021; as well as to help build a better Summer holiday experience, you can contact CENFACS. 

 

 

 

• Summer 2021 Reporting in Your Own Words, Numbers and Information Graphics

 

Last week, we started to unlock or unpack our Summer holiday data and to prepare to tell our Summer holiday stories.  This week, we are going further in putting into practice our unlocked or unpacked data in support of Summer experiences or stories. 

From this week until Saturday the 21^st of September 2021, we are simply asking those who can to share with us and others their Summer experiences; experiences about what they did during the Summer break and think that it is useful for sharing. 

The 2021 Summer Experiences Reporting activity is a further experience of reporting, sharing, learning and development opportunity for those who have not yet informed us about the outcomes of projects; projects pending for reporting, personal experiences to be shared, lessons to learn and development trends to spot.

 

• • Sharing Development Experiences, Stories, Tales and Reports about Summer 2021

 

As we are nearly reaching the end of Summer 2021, we would like our users and supporters as well as those who sympathise with CENFACS’ cause to share with us and others their experiences, stories and reports about the following:

√ Run, Play and Vote projects (Triple Value Initiatives): You can feedback the outcomes or Action-Results of your Run, Play and Vote projects.

√ Volunteering and Creation Stories: You can also share your volunteering stories with us and others if you did volunteer during the Summer break.

√ Summer programmes: Happiness, Healthiness and Appeal projects: You may prefer to report on your use of Happiness and Healthiness projects and your response to our Humanitarian Relief Appeal projects.

√ August 2021 Trending Activities: You can as well report on your experience of following the direction of poverty reduction through natural capital assets.

√ Leaf Activities: As we are in CENFACS’ Leafy Year, we would be more than happier to hear any stories related to this year’s dedication.

√ Journal of Happiness and Healthiness: You can share the contents of your happiness and healthiness journal relating to happy, healthy and trustful Summer 2021; as well as to help build a better Summer holiday experience. 

√ Other Experiences and Stories Reporting: You can feedback on any moving experience or transformative story you have had during Summer 2021.

You can report your experience via e-mail, over phone and through social media networks or channels of communication (e.g Twitter).  

Thank you for supporting us with your Summer 2021 experience, story and report In Your Own Words, Numbers and Information Graphics.

 

 

 

Le mois de septembre est celui de conseils au sein de CENFACS: conseils pour des individus et des organisations africaines.

Si vous avez un problème et besoin de conseils, s’il vous plaît n’hésitez pas de contacter le CENFACS. 

 

 

Main Development

 

• Back-to-school poverty

 

In order to approach back-to-school poverty, the following items will be considered: back-to-school challenge, poverty, back to school disrupted by the coronavirus, back-to-school budget and support, and back to school greener and cleaner.

 

• • Back-to-school time as a challenging period for a basic human right and a deserving cause

 

For some, back to school/college is a normal time to prepare and do normal purchase whether it is for school uniforms or books or even any other school items.  However, for those who are struggling to make ends meet, back-to-school time could be a very challenging moment as they may not always have enough financial resources or support to cope with the requirements of the start of the new school year.  Yet, education is a basic human right and a deserving need for children and the all society.

Back to school/college for them is characterised by the following: the struggle to afford the costs linked to school/college, the inability to meet basic life-sustaining needs (including of education, food, fuel, shelter, skills development, etc.), deprivation of cleaning and disinfecting household items, the lack or poor access to internet broadband, etc.

This year’s back to school/college is still challenging as the side effects of the  coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdowns have not stopped to disrupt the normal preparation of back to school/college.  This disruption started since lockdowns happened, from the purchasing of what pupils and students need to the format or formula of the school/college start.

 

• • Back to school disrupted by the continuing effects of coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdowns

 

This year’s back to school is still under the shadow of coronavirus as the crippling effects of the coronavirus and lockdowns continue to disrupt the entire organisation of the back to school for this September school entry 2021/2022.

The coronavirus pandemic has completely changed the way in which back to school has to be perceived and approached in many aspects and respects by including enhanced health and safety measures such as social distancing rules, disinfection of educational materials and establishment, daily number of people allowed by square meter in any educational infrastructures, etc.  This year, the school return is even confusing as restrictions have been lifted while in some places there are messages telling people to continue to apply them.

The coronavirus pandemic has introduced new items while increasing the level of spending for other existing items in the back-to-school budget.  It has brought new social rules such as the wearing of face coverings, the regular use of sanitising products, the requirement of vaccination and regular testing.  This can only affect the togetherness and school community life.

The coronavirus pandemic has changed the patterns and habits of working life and socialisation while introducing or reinforcing the virtual and online dimensions in the back-to-school preparation and delivery.

Briefly, due to the coronavirus pandemic the all health and safety policies and practices have to be redesigned and tested against the pandemic.  While this has been done, some of those less well-off parents and families (those who do not have enough for their children) can find themselves in a back-to-school poverty with them.  They could be in the back-to-school poverty while still struggling against sanitation poverty caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

 

 

• • Back-to-school poverty

 

• • • What is back-to-school poverty?

 

Back-to-school poverty is the inability to afford the educational requirements of the start of the new school year.  It is the inability for parents and carers to meet the basic life-sustaining needs of education for their children in terms of purchasing school items (such as uniforms, clothes, books, electronics, etc.) and providing the basic infrastructures and necessities (whether it is at home or outside) to support the education of their children.

This incapacity can include other expenses that compete against or with educational materials; expenses that are school fees, living expenses to start a new school year, transport cost to travel to schools, food, a place to study at home, family relocation, adequate meal to study, a proper bed to sleep well, basic healthcare at home, etc.

Besides these universal costs, there are new costs due to the coronavirus.  They can include the following: buying soaps and often wash children’s clothes to disinfect them from the traces of the coronavirus, preparing special lunchboxes with items to disinfect hands and tools before eating, providing to each child personal school utensils to avoid any exchange with other school mates, etc.

 

• • • Back to school for families and parents living in poverty

 

Families and parents living in poverty or on a tight family budget may not be able to afford these additional expenses budget.  They are forced to currently deal with two types poverty: back-to-school poverty and sanitation poverty. 

The first type of poverty is related to the start of the new school year whereas the second is caused by the pressure from the coronavirus pandemic.  As the Global Care (3) puts it on their website:

“The cost of coronavirus has been high for all our children – not least, a year of disrupted education.  But, sadly, we believe the highest price is being paid by the poorest children”.

Children from families and parents living in poverty are likely to be the most affected by the adverse continuing impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

There could be support for them for some of the vital educational and sanitation needs to be met; just as there is no support for others.

 

 

 

• • • Back-to-school support at CENFACS

 

Any type of poverty needs response.  As far as CENFACS is concerned, we can support those falling into back-to-school poverty trap by providing advice through our advisory package under the back-to-relief programme.  This package includes activities such as advice, advocacy, information, guidance, signposting, etc.

Since the coronavirus pandemic started, we enhanced health and safety aspects in this programme.  We are also providing support related to the adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic and economic inactivity for those who are looking for this type of support.

Although our support to fight both back-to-school poverty and sanitation poverty is small and limited, it can nevertheless help beneficiaries to get something and keep moving towards of a BIG relief.

Since the battle against the coronavirus pandemic is not yet over, there are limitations on the ways our support can be accessed.  It can be accessed as follows:

√ Only virtually on a no face-to-face physical basis, but on a one-to-one basis or as a group

√ Over phone 

√ Via e-mail 

√ and by filing the contact box on our website saying the type of support you need.

Where beneficiaries have access to video technology, we can arrange a meeting via a video scream.

Where in-person meeting with beneficiaries is unavoidable, extra precautionary health and safety measures will be taken before the advice can happen.

To seek advice or support regarding your back-to-school poverty or hardships, please contact CENFACS.

 

• • • Back-to-school COVID-19-induced Budget

 

The 2021/2022 Back-to-school COVID-19-induced Budget is a COVID-19-induced one for many parents and families as they have to cost and integrate the aforementioned aspects of protection related to the coronavirus pandemic into the educational budget of their children.  It is also a budget of building forward from the coronavirus, although the fight against it is not yet over.

Although young children may not be wearing face masks, there are still some levels of investment that parents and families may have to do to keep the education of their children to an internationally agreed standard.  They may have to proceed with the following initiatives:

∝ Invest in distance learning technologies (such as tablets, laptops, mobile phones, etc.)

∝ Improve their access to internet and broadband supplies

∝ Reorganise space at home to create an office-like desk environment for remote learning and video calling for the educational purpose of their children

∝ Improve or upgrade existing home infrastructures for e-education

All these types of investment will create additional costs in the back-to-school plans, although some of these costs will not be at the start of the school.

For poor families and parents, it is even more difficult for them to keep the educational level of their children to a good standard unless they get financial support to their back-to-school budget.

For those parents and families who are struggling to write their back-to-school budget, we can help them to do that.  We can as well advise on some of the aspects related to the back-to-school budget preparation.  Furthermore, we can lead them to specific advice services related to back-to-school matters.

To seek advice or support regarding your back-to-school budget, please contact CENFACS.

 

• • • Back to school greener and cleaner

  

Back to school in 2021 is also subject to the requirements of greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals and targets as well as clean environment.  It means that for parents and children whether well-off or less well-off, they need to make sure they take an eco-friendly path in the back-to-school preparation and delivery.

In practical terms, it means that in their preparation and delivery of back to school, there should be a zero waste consumption, recycling items, following the principles of circular economic model, avoiding depleting the environment, etc.  Likewise, in their approach to reduce back-to-school poverty, it is better for them to adopt solutions to back-to-school poverty that do not adversely affect the nature and environment.

To support CENFACS’ back-to-school initiative, please also contact CENFACS.

_________

 

References

 

(1) Ibe, A.C., and L.F.  Awosika (1991), Sea level rise impact in African coastal zones, In a change in the weather: African perspective on climate, ed. S. H. Omide and C. Juma, 105-12, Naïrobi, Kenya: African Centre for Technology Studies

(2) https://richmondvale.org/en/blog/situational-poverty-definition-and-types (accessed February 2021)

(3) https://www.globalcare.org/2021/back-to-school-in-poverty/ (accessed September 2021)

________

 

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 http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

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!

01 September 2021

 

Post No. 211

 

 

Welcome back Message

 

Before starting the contents of the blog and post of this first Wednesday of September 2021, we would like to welcome back all those who are returning this month. 

We are welcoming back the following:

 

∝ All those who are returning from the coronavirus self-isolation

∝ Our users, supporters and other stakeholders who came back from Summer break and holiday

∝ Those who are or have been working during the Summer time

∝ Those who lost touch with us for various reasons and would like to come back again.

  

This welcoming back message also applies to those using or helping or supporting our UK and Africa Development programmes.

Welcome back to all of you and healthy return! 

 

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Back-to-relief Programme: Programme for Pre-autumn Season 2021

• September: Advice-giving Month

• Making Zero Hunger Grand Sud of Madagascar

 

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

The key message from our weekly communication and menu, which is often made of three courses, is as follows.

 

• Back-to-relief Programme: Programme for Pre-autumn Season 2021 

 

Back-to-relief Programme is a set of related activities and services with an aim of reducing poverty amongst multi-dimensional poor children, young and families (MDPCYPFs) by working with them to meet their needs after summer break and economic unlocking so that they can start September 2021 without or with less hardship.   

The programme is made of a number of supportive elements like the following:

Capacity and skills development, advice, advocacy, translation, information, guidance, support to child educational needs in Africa, signposting, etc. 

The programme is generally run around September and can be extended to October depending on the needs in the community and available resources.

This year’s programme will slightly follow the pattern of last year’s since the coronavirus pandemic endures.  Many of our project and programme beneficiaries have experienced many months of economic inactivity since the coronavirus pandemic and lockdowns happened.  Now that some of them are returning or resuming or still struggling with their outdoor activities, they may need some advice to adjust their lives or build back and forward better from the legacies of the coronavirus and subsequent lockdowns.

The Back-to-relief 2021 programme is designed to include the needs of these returnees.  It is also conceptualised to anticipate any changes of situation due to any potential spikes of Covid-19 and lockdown resumption as the battle against the coronavirus has not been yet won despite COVID-19 vaccine rollout and testing programme. 

For more on CENFACS’ Back-to-relief Programme, please read the details under Main Development section of this post.

 

 

 

• September: Advice-giving Month

 

We run Advice service as part of our activities throughout the year.  However, Advice is CENFACS’ main theme in September.  Because that, it is more pronounced in September compared to other months of the year.  In other words, we invest more resources in advice in September than at any other times of the year.

We provide advice to both individuals and organisations as mentioned above.  Advice can be given in the context of Back-to-Relief Programme and outside this context.  When Advice is given in the context of Back-to-Relief Programme, it becomes constituent part of this programme like other elements making this programme.

Under the Main Development section of this post, there is much more information about this year’s advisory support.

 

 

 

• Making Zero Hunger Grand Sud of Madagascar

 

Our campaign about Making Zero Hunger Africa continues this September 2021 as we are appealing to step up support for the Grand Sud of Madagascar to reduce and, if possible, to end hunger there.  Stepping up efforts will help add value to what has been done so far, such as drones that are supplying food and vaccines to people living in remote areas of Madagascar.

Indeed, climate change and hunger continue to threaten and endanger lives in the South of Madagascar – the Grand Sud of Madagascar.  Currently, the peoples in the Grand Sud of Madagascar are experiencing the following life-threatening events:  prolonged drought, food insecurity, crop failures, in brief humanitarian crisis. 

As part of this crisis, the following data and facts have been recorded from local sources and various development agencies working on the ground:

 

√ Hundreds of thousands of people are suffering from prolonged drought

√ 3 million people suffered from droughts

√ 14,000 people are on the brink of famine

√ Women and children are amongst these victims

Etc.

 

You can make zero hunger support or help to the peoples of the Grand Sud of Madagascar.

Your support can help them …

 

√ To eat

√ To pay for health services

√ To send their children to school

√ To get clean water

√ To access sanitation facilities

√ To get the seeds to plant

√ To manage the hunger season                                        

Etc.

 

To make zero hunger happen for the people of the Grand Sud of Madagascar, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Unlock your Summer Holiday Data and Tell your Story

 

Throughout our July and August 2021 communications, we have been asking everybody to store and keep their Summer data so that when we all return we can report back or share parts of our Summer experiences that are shareable and spreadable.

Now some of you are back, we can try to feedback our poverty-relieving and development experiences of using Happiness and Healthiness projects and of the economic unlocking as well as of the coronavirus restrictions and rules over the Summer period.

One can also feedback any creations, any experiences with natural capital assets, any community practices and any volunteering stories, if they volunteered, they had over the last two months.  One can report back a personal Summer experience as well. 

For those who managed to store their Summer data and who would like to share their experiences, this is the time to start unlocking their Summer data and preparing to tell their Summer story.

Sharing your experiences with us in this way helps to keep the CENFACS Community active, engaged and grow together.  It also contributes in carrying out prescriptive analytics that enables to use smart data discovery capabilities to predict market developments and trends to help relieve or possibly end poverty and hardships within our community and beyond.

Please share your poverty-relieving and development experiences and contents with us; parts of your experiences and contents that you think are shareable.

Should anyone have any concern about data protection issues regarding the sharing of their information, please let CENFACS know.  We will be able to assist.

 

 

• COVID-19 Campaign Update: Post-COVID-19 Rehabilitation Strategies (Phase 3)

  

The Campaign for Resilience against Covid-19 (or the Covid-19 Campaign) is still in Phase 3.  After our Summer report on this campaign, the following update will enlighten the progress made about the Phase 3 of the campaign.

 

• • What is Phase 3 of our COVID-19 Campaign?

 

Phase 3 is the Post-COVID-19 Rehabilitation Strategies, which are processes of planning and conducting cure and restoration in order to bring back our programmes, projects, activities, services and products to their original or normal condition.  It is a restoration or build-back campaign as well. 

 

• • What did happen in this Phase 3?

 

As part of these processes, we have curated activities and services so that they get fully and healthily back on track.  This move goes in tandem with the unlocking of the economy as well as COVID-19 vaccine rollout and testing programme.

Let us repeat ourselves.  By speaking about Post-COVID-19 Rehabilitation Strategies, we do not mean that the coronavirus pandemic is over.  We just imply that in our mind set COVID-19 is a reality but not a fiction.  We have to understand it and live in the COVID-19 environment until a medicine is found against it.   So, the idea of the existence of COVID-19 has been already passed in our mind set.

 

• • What do we need do as part of these rehabilitation strategies?

 

What we need to do is to develop strategies to restore our work while taking into account the new coronavirus-led environment or reality (including the new COVID-19 variants).  In this respect, we are trying to Build Back Better our lives through a Build-Back-Better Campaign. 

Once we build back better, we could build forward better.  This means, we can move to the next level of our Build Campaign, which is a Build-Forward-Better Campaign.  We can build back and forward at the same time as the process of building in this context is backward and forward one.

 

• • Strands of thought on COVID-19 Campaign

 

Some of you know that in our COVID-19 Campaign, there are two strands of thought. There are initiatives that we took that are related to our work in the UK.  There is a set of campaigning initiatives that have been linked to our work in Africa.

 

• • COVID-19 Campaign Update relating to CENFACS’ work on Africa

 

Regarding the COVIDd-19 Campaign in relation to our work on Africa, the COVID-19 extra message of this week is as follows.

We are continuing to follow the development of the epidemiological curves of the coronavirus pandemic in Africa where cases keep on increasing.  We are doing it via our shadowing model. 

From the Health Emergency Dashboard of World Heath Organisation (1), it is stated that

“as of 31 August 2021, there were 5,634,831 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Africa”.

The rise in the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 and increasing trend of the “epi-cruves” can only mean to us to keep up shadowing them (“epi-curves”) while motivating our Africa-based partners to carry on in rebuilding health systems to keep tight control on the COVID-19.  

Finally, we are monitoring the evolution of the coronavirus vaccine rollout and testing programme in Africa.  In this checking process, we are looking at the involvement of our Africa-based Sister Organisations in supporting their local users.  Where our hands are needed, we would be pleased to help when we can.         

The above is our COVID-19 Campaign update, particularly the 3^rd Phase of this campaign.  This update can be found at CENFACS’ COVID-19 Hub for Poverty Reduction. 

To support and or to enquire about this COVID-19 Campaign update and COVID-19 Hub for Poverty Reduction, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• This September’s Special: Working with the Untargeted and Unqualified for support

 

As special feature of our Back-to-relief programme for this year, we will be working with those members of our community who have not been targeted for help and or who are not meeting the criteria for support.

For unknown and unjustified reasons, there could be members of our community who have been refused or denied or slept through the net in order to receive poverty reduction service they deserve from services or institutions which are supposed to support them.

We will work with them, re-examine their cases and explore together the level of support they need in navigating their journey toward qualification and eligibility to services and activities available on the market.

If you are a member of our community and not have been targeted or have been told you do not meet criteria for support whereas you have genuine need of poverty reduction, you could contact CENFACS to explore together your case for poverty reduction support.  

 

 

 

Pour cette rentrée de septembre 2021, le CENFACS a préparé des activités, projets et programmes pour travailler ensemble avec ses usagers.  Ces activités, projets et programmes permettront de répondre à leurs besoins existants, changeants et émergents de l’ère du coronavirus. 

Pour en savoir plus et/ou y avoir accès, s’il vous plaît contactez le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Back-to-relief Programme: Programme for Pre-autumn Season 2021

 

• • Back-to-relief Projects 

 

As previously mentioned, most of our projects and programmes are organised to take into account the lives and needs of our beneficiaries; supporters as well.  Some of them will be back this week after Summer break and the prolonged coronavirus disruption.  They are back for the New Academic Year and New Relief, year for which we have prepared projects and programmes to work with them so that they can meet their existing, challenging, changing and coronavirus-emerging needs – the back-to-relief projects and programmes in a September of double-jabbed COVID-19 waning immunity.

Amongst the back-to-relief projects and programmes, there are these two ones:  Virtual Open Days and Support to Children 

 

• •  Virtual Open Days under Back-to-Relief Programme

 

Due to the continuing impacts and other crippling effects of the coronavirus pandemic, many of our services are run in hybrid way: virtually/online and in-person run.  Besides that, it is not always easy for people, especially those who have some physical handicaps and parents with small kids, to in-person move and meet service providers if this service provision cannot physically come to them even if the need is pressing. 

This is why we are carrying on in organising these virtual days to enable those in need to virtually access services despite the continuing legacies of the coronavirus disruption and any physical inconvenience they may have.

 

• • • What are virtual open days?

 

Virtual Open Days (VODs) are a back-to-relief initiative organised by CENFACS during this September 2021 to enable people in need to access our advice service and other similar services in order to reduce or end poverty linked to their situations or conditions of life.

 

• • • How VODs Work

 

Our Virtual Open Day, which will be every Fridays of September 2021, will be held from 10 am to 2 pm.

You can access VODs by contacting CENFACS.

You do not need to register with us.

Every Fridays, you can either email or phone or even text between 10 am and 2 pm.

For more on CENFACS’ Virtual Open Hours and Days as well as how they work, please contact us.

 

• • Support for Children of Conflict-stricken and Climate Change-affected Areas in Africa this September

 

Another back-to-relief initiative for this September 2021 is Support for the Children of Conflict-stricken and Climate Change-affected Areas of Africa in this September and beyond.  This initiative relates to the humanitarian appeals we launched this year (such as Tigray, Ituri and African Sahel appeals).  All these appeals were launched under the Light projects.   

The appeals were related to countries with displaced persons and victims of conflict (e.g. Tigray appeal for Ethiopia); children victims of conflicts (e.g. the Ituri appeal for the Democratic Republic of Congo); under acutely food-insecure people (e.g. the appeal for African Sahel and Lake Chad Basin).

While one can still ask the progress made to save and rebuild lives in these stricken countries and areas, one can also question about the support that the children of the affected areas/countries are receiving and/or received, especially at this challenging time of building forward better together from the coronavirus pandemic. 

This questioning is relevant as we are in September when a new school or academic year starts in many parts of the world.  This questioning is even founded at this time when educational systems in many countries have been affected by the adverse impacts of the coronavirus and subsequent lockdowns.  This negative effect is even greater for children from poor places in developing countries (like of Africa) where educational opportunities have been denied to many of them regardless of the coronavirus situation. 

So, during this September we will be working on this back-to-relief initiative to explore ways of keeping education alive for these unfortunate children living in those stricken areas or places.

For further details about this initiative, please contact CENFACS.  

 

• • Back to the Upkeep of the Nature this September 2021

 

September is also the month we resume our advocacy work on the upkeep of the nature.  Normally, this advocacy starts from the protection and care of animals in Africa from illegal killings, extinction and poaching.  In the last week of September 2021, we shall focus on saving endangered animal species through our “Big Beasts” advocacy, which has already kicked off.

In September 2019, we worked on the Protection of the Oceans (particularly the waters surrounding Africa and the rivers and lakes in Africa).  In September 2020, we carried on with the advocacy on waters through the theme of “Blue Spaces”. 

This September, we shall have a 3-week work on sea level rise as new notes for the “Blue Spaces” starting from the 6^th of September 2021.  To conclude the month, we will have some e-discussions on circular economy.

Briefly, Back to the Upkeep of the Nature this September 2021 will include the “Big Beasts” advocacy, protection against “Sea Level Rise” as a new note for the “Blue Spaces” theme and an e-discussion on circular economy.

 

• • Back to Advisory Support this September 2021

 

As above mentioned, Advice is CENFACS’ main theme for September.  We provide advice to both individuals and organisations.

 

 

• • • Advice service for Individuals

 

Some of you are aware that most of CENFACS services in the UK are designed to support multi-dimensional poor children, young people and families (CYPFs).  After the summer break, many of them will come back to start their life again.  From September onward, they will go back to school for CYPs and to work and training for parents and guardians. 

They may need support to restart or look for occupational opportunity or even just resume their routine activity in September.  Their needs could include the following:

 

√ Finding a new school or a nursery for children

√ Registration to health services

√ Finding accommodation or relocating

√ Accessing training opportunity or employment

√ Looking for a new occupation to deal with the economic effects of the coronavirus and lockdown

√ Finding help to adjust their life after lockdowns

√ Looking for direction in an unlocking economy 

Etc.

 

We can provide advisory support to them. Where our capacity is limited, we can refer and/or signpost them to relevant specialist services and organisations to help them meet their needs.

We do it under CENFACS’ Capacity Advice service which was established since 2003 (through CENFACS’ Capacity Advice and Development project for Croydon’s African and Minority Ethnic People) to help individuals gain various types of help.

  

The types of help we provide include: 

 

√ Translation (English to French and vice versa)

√ Interpreting

√ General advice

√ Guidance

√ Signposting

√ Referral

√ Advocacy

Etc.

 

As we are in a digital era, we adapted the provision of this help while still retaining its essence. 

In the last two years, we even went far with our Advice service as we were trying to deal with the coronavirus pandemic effect.  We included the coronavirus restrictions and rules into our Advice service. 

You can contact CENFACS for the range of issues included in this service and to find out if your problem can be dealt with.

 

 

• • • Advice service for Organisations 

 

The same advice service applies to overseas and Africa-based Sister Organisations. 

Under our international advice service, we can advise them on the following matters:

 

√ Capacity building and development

√ Project planning and development

√ Poverty reduction within the context of Africa Continental Free Trade Area

√ Not-for-profit investment and development

√ Absorption capacity development

√ Fundraising and grant-seeking leads

√ Income generation and streams

√ Sustainable development

√ Monitoring and evaluation  

 

Again, where our capacity to advise is limited, we can refer and or signpost them to relevant international services and organisations. This advisory support for Africa-based Sister Organisations is throughout the year and constituent part of our work with them.  However, they can take advantage of our advice-giving month to seek further advice on any of the above matters.

To access advice services, please contact CENFACS.  To register for or enquire about advice services, go to www.cenfacs.org.uk/services-activities.

________

Reference

(1) https: //covid19.who.int (accessed September 2021)

________

 

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 http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

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!

25 August 2021

 

Post No. 210

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• CENFACS Annual Review 2020/2021

• Following the Direction of Poverty Reduction this Summer via Natural Capital Assets, Trending Topic from Week beginning 23/08/2021: Minerals 

• Street Children in Africa: How to Bring Happiness and Healthiness for Children Living on the Street in Africa at this Time of Enduring COVID-19

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

 

 

Key Messages

 

• CENFACS Annual Review 2020/2021

 

CENFACS Annual Review 2020/2021 is a snapshot of what we did between 1 July 2020 and 30 June 2021.  As it is stated, it is neither a statutory annual report nor an annual return.

It is a summary of the year 2020/2021 in the life of CENFACS that reports back to our supporters, users and other stakeholders the impact we have made; impact through stories, quantitative and qualitative data. 

It highlights accomplishments made and recollects milestones for the above stated year.

It is as well a performance review and annual review story of our finances.

For more on this review, please read under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

• Following the Direction of Poverty Reduction this Summer via Natural Capital Assets, Trending Topic from Week beginning 23/08/2021: Minerals

 

The last episode of our trending series in following the direction of poverty reduction via natural capital assets will be on minerals (that is solid and naturally occurring inorganic substances).  Examples of minerals can include copper, diamond, cobalt, zinc, etc.

There is a long history and various stories about minerals with poverty reduction in Africa and elsewhere, particularly in places that are rich-minerals.  Since we cannot deal with all of the issues surrounding minerals and poverty reduction in this short piece of trending analysis, we are going to focus on three areas:  direct dividend transfers (from the income realised through sale of minerals) to reduce poverty, local crackers looking for minerals and child exploitation.

 

• • Following the direction of poverty reduction via minerals, in focus: direct dividend transfers

 

There are calls that passing on the dividends from the sale of minerals to the poor can help to reduce poverty.  There are those who disagree with this.  What is true is that this kind of transfer can give a direct stake to the poor people in minerals as natural capital assets.  These transfers can be in the form of cash via biometric cards or various subsidies (to food, education, housing, health, transport, etc.).

As Marcelo M. Giugale (1) puts it:

“If a typical African government (think Gabon’s) distributed, say, one-tenth of its hydrocarbon or mineral revenues, each one of its citizens could get about US$100 per year.  That may not be much for the well-off; they may not even bother to collect it.  But it would be a huge help for poor households – a day-and-night difference in their efforts to climb out of poverty.  And if you are not just poor but also a female, the transfer would carry a welcome dose of personal independence.” (p. 112)  

In the context of the current trending topic and from what Giugale argued, we are looking at whether or not direct dividend transfers where they exist in Africa are helping poor people to come out poverty.  We are as well finding out what it has been done to help these poor people to access those transfers.   

 

• • Following the direction of poverty reduction via minerals, in focus: unofficial crackers

 

There is always a difference between the official exploitation of minerals and unofficial exploitation of the same minerals.  In the context of these notes, we are interested in the unofficial exploitation of minerals which is mostly represented by local mineral crackers.  In many places, the crackers tend to be poor and informal.  They can be found in many mining sites in Africa. 

For example, in the North, East, West and South-west of Burkina Faso; crackers search for gold.  Likewise, in the Democratic Republic of Congo crackers carry out their activities in mining cobalt and copper in Kamatanda.  In Mauritania, crackers also look for gold.

Our following up activity is about how these crackers are trying to reduce poverty amongst them by searching for minerals and selling them to dealers.

 

• • Following the direction of poverty reduction via minerals, in focus: child/labour exploitation

 

Child or labour exploitation has always been a big issue when it comes to minerals and mining companies.  This is despite international laws against child or labour exploitation.  Child and labour exploitation continues to exist. 

For example, there are stories about big mining companies that try to take advantage of child labour in the Congolese cobalt mines.

As part of the process of following the direction of poverty reduction via minerals (which are natural capital assets), we are looking at the nexus or interconnection between minerals (mining activities) and child labour in the time of enduring COVID-19.

The above is our way of following the direction of poverty reduction through minerals.

To enquire about this trending activity and/or to follow the direction of poverty reduction with us, just contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Street Children in Africa: How to Bring Happiness and Healthiness for Children Living on the Street in Africa at this Time of Enduring COVID-19

 

As part of our Humanitarian Appeal Projects and Summer of Happiness and Healthiness, we would like to include Street Children in Africa.  Particularly, we would like to associate the challenging work that Africa-based children organisations are doing in this area.

Indeed, at the time of enduring COVID-19, the situation of the children (boys and girls) living on the street can only become worse.  It is known that many of these children live on begging.  However, the hardship that the coronavirus and its associated effects have created can only harshly impact on the lives of these vulnerable and poor children. 

To bring happiness and healthiness to these children, one needs to take them out the street and provide them with a decent home while supporting the organisations that have been supportive to them so far.  In this respect, we would like to acknowledge the work carried out by our Africa-based children organisations which are doing a fantastic and well deserving job for these children.  Amongst these organisations, there are for example:

√ Le Réseau des éducateurs des enfants et jeunes de la rue (Reefer) in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo

√ L’Oeuvre de reclassement et de protection des enfants de la rue (Orper) in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo

One can hope that these organisations and mostly these street children will receive the support they badly need and deserve so that the number of children living on street and child poverty in Africa could be sensibly reduced and possibly ended.

For those who would like to support or discuss with CENFACS about street children in Africa, they are welcome to contact us.

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Happiness and Healthiness Journal, Creative Activity No. 4: Create Your Journal of Income

 

The coronavirus has threatened and destroyed many people’s incomes and income-generating capacity and opportunities.  Despite that one can create a journal that explains their experiences, feelings and thoughts in terms of happiness and healthiness about income over this Summer of enduring COVID-19.

For example, one can explain how with restricted or limited income they have been able to meet Summer 2021 holiday expenses or simply do the things they wanted or planned to do with happiness and healthiness.  They can as well include in their journal the financial help they received or given.

They can record their thoughts, feelings, experiences and memories in relation to income and income-generating capacity or opportunities.  They can share with the community their experience of happiness and healthiness with income.  This can be recorded in their journal and be shared by the end of Summer 2021.

To share the contents of their happiness and healthiness journal relating to happy and healthy financial life, and help build a better Summer holiday experience, they can contact CENFACS. 

 

 

 

• All-in-one Impact Feedbacks: Report on Reports

 

Last month was our Analytics month.  As part of the Analytics month, we asked some of you to report or give some feedback in your words, numbers and infographics on the experiences you had about the projects and programmes we delivered in the last financial year. 

We asked for two feedbacks: feedback from individuals as programme and project supporters and users, as well as feedback from organisations (Africa-based Sister Organisations).  Some of you responded and others did not.  We would like to thank those who responded.  

For those who responded and gave us their mailing address, they will be contacted and will receive a copy of the above mentioned report.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank them again for their testimonial and experiential support.

 

 

• Appeal for Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu

 

Our appeal to end 25 years of sexual and gender-based violence and abuse on women, children and men in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo continues.

You can help to end the kidnappings, killings and collective rapes of women, children and men in Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu regions.

You can help to share happiness and healthiness with the victims of these atrocities.

You can make a helpful difference by removing vulnerability; bringing peace, safety and sustainability to the beneficiaries of this appeal.

You could for example support the Congolese organisation by the name of ‘Mouvement national des survivant.e.s. de violences sexuelles en République Démocratique du Congo’.

To support and or enquire, please contact CENFACS.

 

Vous pouvez travailler avec le CENFACS afin de réaliser les objectifs de réduction de la pauvreté pour les années 2020.  

Si vous êtes intéressé (e), s’il vous plaît contactez-nous pour recevoir nos guides sur ces objectifs.

 

Main Development

 

• CENFACS Annual Review 2020/2021

 

This review aims at explaining to those who are interested in the work CENFACS does to get a glimpse of what happened during the financial year 2020/2021.  It is a summary of our activities, performance, achievements and accounts for the financial year 2020/2021.

However, before starting this review we would like to mention three factors which were at play during the above stated period and which made the context of our poverty relief work.  They are: life-threatening impacts of climate change, economic consequences of the exit of the UK from the EU regional economic integration model, and the enduring impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

 

• • The Contexts of Poverty Reduction of the 2020/2021 Financial Year

 

As just said above, there are three key factors which affected or impacted our resources, plans and the way we conducted our poverty reduction work, which were:  the changing climate, economic transition due to the UK exit from the EU, the enduring coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. 

Like any organisation that could face this type of daunting challenges, we had to develop a strategy or plan on how to approach our work differently during the year knowingly or unknowingly that events beyond our own control were going to happen.

 

• • • What we did

 

To continue to deal with the threats posed by the changing climate, we green and blue aligned our projects and programmes.  To handle the unexpected economic consequences of the UK exit from the EU, we continued to work on our post-exit people’s development model.  To keep pace with the effects of the enduring COVID-19 on our work, we developed a post-coronavirus poverty reduction restructuring strategy.

 

• • • Links between climate change, exit economy and COVID-19

 

Although this review has to be interpreted within these three key contexts of our work, one should not think that they are separate or exclusive.  Let us explain.  When we speak for example about poverty reduction in the context of COVID-19, it does not mean that the climate change factor has disappeared.  We just want to mean and put emphasis on the dominant factor or the factor that impacted us the most at a particular time.   In this respect, the three factors were all linked in the way our activities and services were affected.

Having clarified the contexts of work, let us now review our financial year 2020/2021.

 

 

 

• • Activities Review

 

As part of this review, we are going to highlight six activities we undertook, which are: COVID-19 campaign, the implementation of CENFACS’ 2020s Development Agenda and Poverty Reduction Programme, essential economic activities, sustainable alignment, humanitarian appeals and poverty reduction follow-up activities.

 

• • • 2020-2021 as a Continuing COVID-19 campaign year

 

As COVID-19 did show very little signs of abating despite the rollout of vaccine and test, we had together with the community to continue to campaign against the enduring coronavirus while following the evolution of the epidemiological curves of the same coronavirus. 

To facilitate the running of this campaign, we set up a COVID-19 Hub for Poverty Reduction.  We had to do it together to protect our services, our users and the general public.

 

• • • 2020-2021 as a programme implementation year

 

We started the implementation of CENFACS’ 2020s Development Agenda and Poverty Reduction Programme.  The seven goals (income, consumption, energy, in-work, intergenerational, digital and situational poverty) of these agenda and programme have been subject of our advocacy during this year in review. 

To name just one of them, the reduction of intergenerational poverty, which helped to raise awareness about the need not to transfer poverty to future generations, received a positive feedback within the CENFACS community.

 

• • • 2020-2021 as an essential economic year

 

Since almost the entire year non-essential economic activities were restricted, essential economic activities could only be the one to help in the reduction of poverty.  Translating in terms of the running of services and activities, we had to rely upon the essential aspects of our service provisioning (such as Advice-giving service) to work with the community in the UK and in Africa during this ended financial year.

Advice was given to the community to manage the situational poverty caused by the coronavirus, to build back better from it, to make the return from the lockdown possible and work, to control COVID-19 and Summer happiness budgets for an ordinary family, etc.

 

• • • 2020-2021 as a green and clean year of building back and forward

 

During the outlined financial year, one of the concerns for many in our community was how to resume outdoor life and move on at the time of enduring COVID-19.  In order to respond to this pressing and life-saving need, with the support we received we set up a build better together programme which consisted of two parts: build back and build forward from the legacies of COVID-19.

However, there was no any other way of building back and forward together unless we did it greener and cleaner.  This meant; we had to align our programme to greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals and targets.  Since then, the report we received from the members of our community in applying the programme in reduction their own carbon emissions and in using the circular economic model is encouraging.

 

• • • 2020-2021 as another humanitarian relief year 

 

With what was happening in places and or regions (like African Sahel, Lake Chad Basin, Horn of Africa, Ituri and Tigray), we could not stay silent as human life was endangered and in some circumstances destroyed.  With the support of the community in terms of data and stories from these places/regions, we had to appeal so that lives could be saved from civil violence, attacks, gender-based violence, severe climate conditions and other life-threatening and destroying conditions (such as the coronavirus).  In total, we launched eight humanitarian appeals. 

 

• • • 2020-2021 as a leave-no-one-behind year through follow-up activities

 

Reaching out to those who are difficult to reach, following the direction of poverty reduction and sustainable development via ‘Social’ and ‘Virtual worlds’, making zero hunger Africa, taking action for the upkeep of the nature and so on; helped not to forget anybody (including flora and fauna) in the process of helping to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.  Through these follow-up activities, we were able to bring the life-saving needs of those unreachable to the poverty reduction supporters and enthusiasts.

 

 

• • Achievements of the year

 

We would be indebted if we end this review without mentioning or adding to the above summary of work carried out these three achievements: CENFACS’ COVID-19 Hub for Poverty Reduction, Build Back and Forward Better Programmes, and Ability to Serve the Community both virtually and in-person. 

 

• • • CENFACS’ COVID-19 Hub for Poverty Reduction 

 

CENFACS’ COVID-19 Hub for Poverty Reduction is a newly set up point where most of CENFACS’ work on COVID-19-induced poverty and hardships are regrouped.  The new hub holds and provides information as well as serves as a directory of inquiries about CENFACS’ work on COVID-19 for both internal and external purposes.

The Hub also holds the state of progress about CENFACS work on COVID-19 (such as the Campaign for Resilience against Covid-19 and the various follow-ups of the evolution of the epidemiological curves of the coronavirus).

 

• • • Build Back and Forward Better Programmes (BBFBPs) 

 

BBFBPs are made of two parts: Build Back Better Programme (BBBP) and Build Forward Better Programme (BFBP) 

Build Back Better Programme considers the three classical elements of Build Back Better model which are: recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction.

Build Forward Better Programme is a set of projects and activities designed with the aim to ensure that the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic sits on sound and sustainable foundations that build back better the poverty reduction gains hard-won so far and help beneficiaries to move forward better cleaner and greener.  The programme is scheduled for two years depending on the duration of the coronavirus pandemic, with a possibility of rolling it out.

It is hoped that through this programme, beneficiaries will make steady progress in their journey and work of reconstruction from the COVID-19 impacts while preparing to stay resilient to future similar shocks and crises. 

Building forward better is also about correcting the asymmetrical and disproportional legacies of COVID-19 containment measures and lockdown restrictions since many of our community members have been unevenly hurt during this current crisis compared to other economic crisis such as the global recession of 2008/9. 

Building forward better is finally about adopting green and clean pathways for poverty reduction and low carbon emissions development.

 

• • • Ability to Serve the Community both virtually and in-person

 

The coronavirus and associated lockdowns have deepened the process of digital transformation within CENFACS as most of our services (e.g. advice) to the community have moved to online platform.  The community can access our services virtually regardless of any face-to-face contact.  This offers the community additional and healthy choice.  Likewise, we can undertake hybrid work with the community; that is working with the community virtually and/or in-person, at home and/or away.

 

 

• • Performance review

 

After a year of net spell of our cash funds as it passed from 22% in 2018/19 to 33% in 2019/2020 financial year, it went down during this financial year under review.  Our cash funds dropped by almost 89%.  The aftershock effects of the coronavirus and exit economy started to appear in our finances.  The savings we made on payments accounts on items (such as in-person networking and meetings, transport and travel, postage stamps, outreach, printing and photocopying) were wiped out by the enduring coronavirus, prolong lockdowns and uncertain exit economy. 

Also, the additional investment we made in online and virtual technologies and infrastructures (as we were trying to respond to an unprecedented health crisis and finding other ways of still helping to reduce poverty and hardships) has not yet materialised or translated into a positive return.  

On the receipts side, we could not raise the needy funds we were expecting since the pockets of most of supporters were affected by the dramatic and drastic effects of the coronavirus shock and the prolong lockdowns.

We hope that with the post-coronavirus restructuring and build forward better programmes we set up, together with the unlocking of economies, the ascending trends of our cash funds will resume sooner or later during the 2021/2022 financial year.

 

• • Thank you

 

The work of CENFACS is a collective endeavour that relies upon the voluntary contribution of others, a key to our success.  As such, there is a number of people and organisations who contributed to the realisation of our financial year 2020-2021, especially in a year marred by the pandemic. 

We would like to indiscriminately acknowledge them.  Without their helpful and life-saving support, we would not be able to achieve the above.  We are grateful to our volunteers, users, website/blog readers and supporters. 

We would like to thank all of them for their unwavering commitment and impactful support for helping us to voice and bring once again our poverty reduction message into the world in development, especially at the very daunting time of the coronavirus pandemic and economic unlocking.

Many thanks for making 2020-2021 another deservingly memorable year at CENFACS.

 

_________

 

Reference

 

(1) Marcelo M. Giugale (2014), Economic Development: what everyone needs to know, Oxford University Press, Oxford & New York

_________

 

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 http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

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!

18 August 2021

 

Post No. 209

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• African Not-for-profit Investment Fund Project

• Following the Direction of Poverty Reduction this Summer via Natural Capital Assets, Trending Topic in Focus from Week beginning 16/08/2021: Freshwaters

• Happiness and Healthiness Journal, Creative Activity No. 3: Create Your Journal of Happy and Healthy Life Expectancy

 

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• African Not-for-profit Investment Fund Project

 

We are carrying on with the work on not-for-profit investment in Africa, particularly with the planning process of African Not-for-profit Investment Fund Project (AN4PIFP).

AN4PIFP is project designed to support our Africa-based Sister Organisations and African organisations of similar aim so that they can find the means in terms of investment to continue to help to lift more people out of poverty while surviving and sustaining the game of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

Although it is called investment fund, the project is more than just a fundraising drive as it is about helping organisational beneficiaries to develop their capacity to sustain in the game of the AfCFTA.  Amongst the capacity they need to develop is that of absorbing the quantity and quality of investment they would like to get.

Under the Main Development section of this post, we have given the key summaries or highlights making proposals linked to this project.  For any queries about this project, including funding it, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.   

 

 

 

• Following the Direction of Poverty Reduction this Summer via Natural Capital Assets, Trending Topic in Focus from Week beginning 16/08/2021: Freshwaters

 

Freshwaters (i.e. rivers, lakes, ponds, ground-water and wetlands), which are part of natural capital assets, can be studied in the process of following the direction of poverty reduction.  In order to do that we are going to consider the following:  the meaning of water poverty, freshwater in Africa and how people are trying to reduce water poverty at the time of enduring COVID-19.

 

• • What is water poverty?

 

To define water poverty, we have selected the following definition given by the Digital Economy Act of 2018 (1):

“A person living in water poverty is a member of a household living on lower income in a home which cannot be supplied with water at a reasonable cost or cannot be supplied with sewerage services at a reasonable cost”.

From the above definition, it is clear that when a person or household is at risk of not being able to afford water and or sewerage bills, one can argue that this person or household is water poor.  Many water poor people are found in places or regions of the world that suffer from drought or dryness.  Africa is not exempt from these places or regions.  Some of CENFACS’ Africa-based Sister Organisations work in those places where they run water projects.

 

 

• • Freshwater resources and poverty reduction in Africa

 

It emerges from the United Nations World Water Development Report (2) that

“Africa’s freshwater resources are estimated to be nearly 9% of the world’s total.  However, these resources are unevenly distributed, with the six most water-rich countries in Central and Western Africa holding 54% of the continent’s total resources and the 27 most water-poor countries holding only 7%” (p. 6)

In the same report, it is argued that

“About 73% of the total population of Sub-Saharan Africa did not use safely managed drinking water services in 2017 (WHO/UNICEF, 2019a).  An estimated 14% of Africa’s population (about 160 million people) currently live under conditions of water scarcity (Hasan et al., 2019), due in part to the uneven distribution of water resources as well as inequalities in the access to clean and potable water services (UNEP, 2002)” (p. 108)

Although some of these figures relate to many years down the line, it is possible to argue that the ability of many people to access safe drinking water is still a stiff challenge.  Many places are lacking basic water services.  

Many people and communities are trying to collect water from the following: improved sources of around 500 metres of their premises, unprotected dug wells or springs, surface water sources, rainwater, packaged or delivered water, etc.  

At this time of the coronavirus, the situation in terms of accessing water could even be worse since the coronavirus has wiped out hard-won many years of poverty reduction, including those of water poverty reduction. 

 

• • How people are trying to reduce water poverty at the time of enduring COVID-19

 

Water is essential for sustaining agriculture, the ecosystems and security for the community.  The lack of water can lead to conflicts and insecurity.  Yet, water poverty is still a major issue since many poor people may not have secure and sustainable access to water resources and are not involved in the governance of water resources.

At the time of the coronavirus pandemic, water helps to fight the virus and protect everybody against the spread and transmission of this disease.  We need water to wash our hands and disinfect our properties in the process of fighting the coronavirus pandemic.  This is let alone to fight the water borne diseases. 

Concerning the way in which people are trying to reduce water poverty, let us simply argue that we have many examples about how the beneficiaries of Africa-based Sister Organisations are trying to collect (either from a water collection point or from the river or from the rain) and share water in the fight against the coronavirus.  They are doing it while being asked to follow the coronavirus restrictions and rules.  To this, one needs to add irrigation projects to bring water to communities deprived from water resources.

Many African local authorities made efforts to help local population to access safe drinking water in the fight against the coronavirus.  However, these efforts are still short to cover the entire water poor population.

To sum up, there is more to argue when following and studying the direction of poverty reduction via fresh water as a natural capital asset.  In this argument about freshwaters, one can  speak about customary rights for access to water, blue alignment to greenhouse gas emissions reduction, the relationship between human and animals regarding the share of freshwaters or water resources, etc.  For those who would like to speak about or go in depth about this, they can discuss freshwaters with CENFACS. 

To support CENFACS’ trending topic of freshwaters and or any other trending topics developed so far, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Happiness and Healthiness Journal, Creative Activity No. 3: Create Your Journal of Happy and Healthy Life Expectancy

 

COVID-19 has challenged, threatened and in some situations destroyed many lives and livelihoods.  Life expectancy (that is the statistical measure of the average time someone is expected to live) has also been tested as many people got ill from the coronavirus pandemic or had to get double vaccinated or tested against COVID-19 germs.  This can make people unhappy while feeling unhealthy.

So, as part of Summer of Happiness and Healthiness, one can create a journal for the things that and people who are bringing or have brought expectation of living a happy and healthy life during this Summer of enduring COVID-19.

They can record their thoughts, feelings, experiences and memories in relation to their life expectancy or the expectation of it.  They can share with the community their experience of happy and healthy life expectancy.  This can be recorded in their journal and be shared by the end of Summer 2021.

To share the contents of their happiness and healthiness journal relating to happy and healthy life expectancy, and help build a better Summer holiday experience, they can contact CENFACS. 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Summer 2021 Activities, Projects and Programmes

 

We believe that everybody is enjoying their Summer break wherever they are and whatever they are doing, despite the enduring COVID-19 circumstances. 

We also hope that those who are working over this Summer are getting on well with their work. 

We finally trust that Summer 2021 Happiness and Healthiness Projects, including other Summer activities and programmes we have offered so far, are helping the community to happily and healthily pass this Summer. 

For those who need any help or advice regarding any of the aspects of the Happiness and Healthiness Projects or any other Summer activities or programmes which are on offer, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

We would like to reiterate our wish to all multi-dimensional Poor Children, Young People and Families of Happy, Healthy, Vulnerability-free, Peaceful, Safe and Sustainable Summer Days. 

 

 

• Summer Triple Pack is Still Running

 

Our Summer Triple Pack made of Track, Trip and Trending continues this week.  The key message we would like to get across this Triple Pack is to try to help reduce poverty by undertaking any of these three activities: running, visiting projects and analysing trends.  Let us make some reminding points about each of them.

 

• • COVID-19 Secure track to help reduce continuing sanitation poverty

 

This activity of the pack is about COVID-19 Secure Run 2.5 miles (nearly 4 km) to save healing leaves and support those who get or got relief from poor health or poor sanitation via herbs, leaves and plants in a Summer of enduring Covid-19.

For those who have completed their 2.5 miles of running, please do not hesitate to share with us your experience.  This activity is also performed under August 2021 Leafy Activities.

For those who are deprived to physically run, they can virtually run to help reduce poverty with CENFACS.  Among them are people who may be experiencing handicap to do physical activity of running to help reduce poverty.  One could include the following:

People or parents caring for very young children, pregnant women, elderly people, disable people, those who are not physically fit or mobile to run, those who do not have opportunity to physically run, etc. 

If you are organising this kind of virtual activity or event, let us know.  It is also better to advise us that the people participating in the virtual run are the physically deprived ones we have listed above or they have a serious handicap prohibiting them from undertaking any physical engagement.

 

• • Virtual or In-person Trips to Hybrid Running Projects and Covid-19 hit locals

 

As part of Leafy Activities of the month, we have suggested to undertaking virtual or in-person Visits or Tours of 3 leaf projects or activities relating to Covid-19 hit local people or communities.

These virtual visits are not only online recreational activities.  They are also a learning and development process in terms of understanding the following:

√ The way in which Covid-19 hit people or communities, particularly those who are undertaking coping and survival strategies via leaves to eradicate Covid-19-induced poverty and vulnerability

√ What is needed to help them overcome the problems they have

√ What lessons that can be learnt and shared from their coronavirus pandemic experience and from those using leaves to improve future actions, planning and decision-making

√ The demand in terms of policy development and response to meet similar needs in the future

Furthermore, Virtual Trip as part of our Summer Triple Pack includes field work research in Africa and anywhere else in the context of poverty relief and sustainable development projects. 

For those who are having or have had these experiences and results of field work research, please do not hesitate to share them.

 

• • Online Trending by following the direction of poverty reduction via natural capital assets

 

The focus for this third part of our Summer Triple Pack is on Fresh waters for this week.  We are looking at how better management of freshwater resources can contribute to livelihoods of poor local communities.  It is about finding out how access to fresh water and fresh water supply can be a way of eradicating poverty and hardships. 

Through this trending activity one can come to know how many people have been lifted out of poverty during this Summer of changing climate and enduring COVID-19.

Additionally, as part of CENFACS’ Leafy Year and Project, we have asked to those who can to carry out online search to find 6 natural leaf Trends in the contexts of leaf-related poverty alleviation and leaf-enhancing sustainable development.

In all this Summer Triple Pack, Covid-19 restrictions and rules must be followed, respected and maintained in terms of regular hand washing with sanitizer, social distancing and wearing a face covering regardless of whether one is fully jabbed or negatively tested against the coronavirus pandemic.

 

 

• Activities about the Not-for-profit Investment and Development

 

There are four activities we are conducting in the context of not-for-profit investment and development.  They include: market research, survey, e-discussion and investors’ platform of talks.  They are also part of the planning process of the project of African not-for-profit Investment Fund.

 

∝ African-focused not-for-profit investors’ platform

 

To encourage not-for-profit investment drive for not-for-profit organisations, CENFACS can facilitate investors to talk to African not-for-profit organisations.

 

∝ E-discussion on capacity development

 

Not-for-profit organisations that need capacity development (including investment absorption capacity development) can e-discuss the matter with CENFACS.

 

∝ Online focused support

 

You can support CENFACS with your gift ideas about scopes and limits about poverty-reducing effects of not-for-profit investment.

To support, just contact CENFACS.

 

∝ Survey on the role model of not-for-profit investees

 

You can take a challenge by describing, in twenty seven words, the portrait or prototype of African not-for-profit organisation that would be the best user of not-for-profit investments in the African Continental Free Trade Area.

To take part in these activities and or to discuss any issue about them, please contact CENFACS.

 

Vous pouvez suivre avec le CENFACS l’orientation de la réduction de la pauvreté au moyen d’actifs immobilisés naturels.  Pour le faire, s’il vous plaît contactez le CENFACS.

 

Main Development

 

• African Not-for-profit Investment Fund Project

 

The following are the key summaries/highlights of the African Not-for-profit Investment Fund Project (AN4PIFP).  To make it easier for our potential funders and readers, these summaries/highlights do not include project management tools (such as the logical framework approach/analysis, project cycle, etc.).

 

• • The AN4PIFP in brief

 

The AN4PIFP offers information, guidance, advice, support, fundraising and networking opportunities to not-for-profit African organisations based in Africa to access investment opportunities while developing their capacities.  Through this project, these organisations can increase their poverty reduction results and presence/participation to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

 

• • Project overall aim

 

Its overall aim is to create and expand poverty reduction services and products within the AfCFTA.

 

• • Project components/activities

 

The AN4PIFP is about pooling money from not-for-profit investors and spreading risk associated to poverty reduction intervention by running the following activities:

√ Translate the contents of poverty reduction services and products into and to meet local needs

√ Support the capacity development of not-for-profit African organisations, including their investment absorption capacity and multi-national capacity

√ Attract and direct investments towards not-for-profit African organisations

√ Keep pace with the implementation of sustainable development goals at the level of African not-for-profit organisations

√ Promote green and blue alignments to greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals and targets of any initiatives to lift more people out of poverty

√ Include poverty reduction aspects in any investments protocol and agenda

√ Build and improve the profile of not-for-profit African organisations to attract foreign direct investments

√ Develop an investments plan and strategy via a business plan

√ Link investments to nature-based solutions to poverty

√ Access investments that reduce gender and generational disparities and poverty

√ Help in the generation of poverty reduction in bulk

√ Advance human development agenda from investments received or granted

√ Preserve and conserve the planet’s environmental regeneration through the terms of reference of investments to be acquired

Etc.

 

• • Project outcomes

 

As a result of the implementation of this project, one can anticipate the following changes and effects may happen:

√ An increase in the number of people lifted out of poverty and or poverty reduction in bulk

√ Reduction of gender and generational disparities and poverty

√ Closure of the investment gaps generated by COVID-19

√ Not-for-profit African organisations will become capacity-built and better armed with skills to handle the game of the AfCFTA

√ Better access to investment opportunities to deal with multi-dimensional and cross-border poverty

√ Greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals and targets reachable within deadlines

√ Better and more implementation of the United Nations sustainable development goals

√ Increase in the number of localised poverty reduction services, products and outlets

√ Boost in the multi-national capacity of not-for-profit African organisations to deliver poverty reduction services and products in more than one country

Etc.

 

• • Project indicators

 

The following qualitative and quantitative variables will help to produce reliable means to measure achievement, reflect changes and assess the performance of this not-for-profit investment project:

√ The index of contribution of the not-for-profit investment and development to poverty reduction

√ Rate of reduction of gender and generational disparities and poverty

√ Carbon foot print calculator resulting from green and blue investments

√ The number of not-for-profit African organisations that have gained access to investment as a result of the AN4PIFP

√ The percentage or number of people lifted out poverty because of not-for-profit investment and development agenda

√ The number of not-for-profit African organisations that will become skilful and capacity built

√ The expected multiplier effect leading to poverty reduction in bulk within the AfCFTA

 

• • Project beneficiaries

 

Generally, the beneficiaries of this project will be investment-deprived not-for-profit African organisations.

Specifically, the project will benefit Africa-based Sister organisation, their end-users and new users as a result of the game of AfCFTA.

 

• • Project funding status

 

So far, this project is unfunded.  This means we are open to any credible funding proposals or proposition from potential funders or donors.  It is known that the coronavirus pandemic has put a toll on everybody.  However, those who would like to support this project will be more than welcome.  Furthermore, because this project is a kind of investment fund we expect and invite many various donors to intervene.

To fully or partly fund this project, please contact CENFACS.

 

• • Impact monitoring and evaluation

 

As part of impact monitoring, there will be routine and systematic gathering and collection of information on all aspects of the project on specified indicators.  This will enable to trace the on-going project development with identified clues in terms of progress and achievement.  In other words, we will systematically collect and analyse information to keep regular checks and balances on the project in terms of progress in the use of investments or funds granted or given.

Likewise, we shall assess what the project will achieve in relation to the overall aim it was set up of creating and expanding poverty reduction services and products within the AfCFTA.  This is to say that evaluation will be conducted regarding the efforts spent on this project to find out whether or not these efforts are value for relief from the lack of not-for-profit investment fund.  This evaluation will help to determine the efficiency, effectiveness, impact, sustainability and the relevance of this project.

In proceeding in this manner, we will be able to measure the impact or at least the outcomes from this project.

The full project proposals including budget are available on request.  It is known that this time of the coronavirus pandemic is a difficult one.  The health and economic crisis instigated by the coronavirus pandemic has perhaps negatively impacted the flows of inward investment to Africa.  However, for those who may be interested in this project, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

_________

 

References

 

(1) Digital Economy Act of 2018, quoted by the Neighbourhood Energy Action at https://www.nea.org.uk

(2) United Nations (2021), The United Nations World Water Development Report 2021: Valuing Water, Paris

_________

 

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 http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

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!

11 August 2021

 

Post No. 208

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• FACS, Issue No. 72, Summer 2021: Investing in the Not-for-profit African Organisations within the African Continental Free Trade Area

• Following the Direction of Poverty Reduction this Summer via Natural Capital Assets, Trending Topic in Focus from Week beginning 09/08/2021: Soils

• Happiness and Healthiness Journal, Creative Activity No. 2: Create Your Journal of Summer Generosity

 

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

 

Key Messages

 

• FACS, Issue No. 72, Summer 2021: Investing in the Not-for-profit African Organisations within the African Continental Free Trade Area

How to reduce more poverty in the African Continental Free Trade

 

As the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) keeps its momentum, many keep calling on investors to pour in their capital.  However, given the size of poverty in Africa, would not be better for investors motivated by other motives than profit to move towards those areas of AfCFTA or African market that are not-for-profit making but that take poverty reduction as their core mission? 

For example, when navigating the impact of COVID-19 in Sub-Saharan Africa, the International Monetary Fund (1) argues that

“In Sub-Saharan Africa, estimated employment fell by about 8½ per cent in 2020; more than 32 million people were thrown into poverty…” (p. 11)

This estimated number of COVID-19 induced poor has to be added to the pre-pandemic poor.  If there are so many people living in poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa, it makes sense to appeal to not-for-profit investors to chip in. 

Another COVID-19 impact is given by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (2) which claims that

“Foreign direct investments to Africa declined by 16 per cent in 2020, to $40 billion, as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to have a persistent and multi-faceted negative impact on cross-border investment globally and regionally” (p. 40)

This decline could mean less opportunity for those who could have benefited from these investments in Africa.  This information could also send a message to the not-for-profit African organisations in need of investment to find alternative ways of meeting their investment needs in a climate of investment decline.

The 72^nd Issue of FACS examines how not-for-profit driven international investors can support not-for-profit organisations and development in the AfCFTA.  Especially, this Issue looks at the climate and conditions in which this could bring more and better poverty reduction outcomes in Africa. 

Through this Issue, we are going to discuss a new direction or re-orientation of investments in Africa with a mission to lift more and better people from poverty and hardships.  This will help to add value to poverty reduction work already carried out via the classic route or channel of investments in Africa.

The 72^nd Issue is indeed a progressive way of thinking as it perceives investment beyond African special economic zones to instead consider the possibility of scaling up investment towards African areas of high level of poverty.  The Issue is in itself a vindication for an investment recovery for Africa’s not-for-profit development sector in the post-pandemic era.

The 72^nd Issue is therefore a journey with those in need in a new area of enhanced trade integration in Africa with new types of investors ready to meet their own altruistic interests, while responding to local needs of those in most need and build forward better from the COVID-19 induced poverty and hardships.  Amongst those investors are social ones.

As Muhammad Yunus with Karl Weber (3) put it in the introduction to their book:   

“In a social business, an investor aims to help others without making any financial gain himself” (p. xvii)

They also argue in the same introduction the following:

“No doubt humans are selfish beings, but they are selfless beings, too.  Both these qualities coexist in all human beings” (p. xv)

It is this selfless motivation or dimension driven by investors, here not-for-profit investors, that will be about in the 72^nd Issue of FACS in order to lift more people out of poverty.

Under the Main Development section of this post, we have given Key Summaries making the contents pages of FACS Newsletter, Issue No. 72.

 

 

 

• Following the Direction of Poverty Reduction this Summer via Natural Capital Assets, Trending Topic in Focus from Week beginning 09/08/2021: Soils

 

The 2^nd trending topic of our activity in following the direction of poverty reduction via natural capital assets is about soils, particularly about the relationship between soils (or lands) and poverty.

Before going any further let us give this precision on the concepts of soil and/or land.

 

• • Conceptualising soil and/or land

 

We shall use the word soil or land without making any specific distinction between the two, although economists tend to focus on land (as a resource) while pedologists put emphasis on soil (as a natural body).  We are not going to enter the debate between economists and pedologists on this matter.

Both land and soil are natural capital assets.  In the context of this 2^nd trending topic, we are following the direction of poverty reduction via soil (or land) as a natural capital asset.

 

• • Following the direction of poverty reduction via soil (or land) as a natural capital asset

 

Let us beginning this following up activity with what Martin P. Heger et al (4) argue in their article about land and poverty.  In their article, they draw three main conclusions as follows:

“First, land improvements are important for poverty reduction in rural areas and particularly so for Sub-Saharan Africa.  Second, land improvements are pro-poor: poorer areas see larger poverty alleviation effects due to improvements in land.  Finally, irrigation plays a major role in breaking the link between bad weather and negative impacts on the poor through reduced vegetation growth and soil fertility”

Indeed, if land improvements or any alteration to the land that makes it more usable and increases land value are done fairly or equally, this can help to reduce poverty, conflicts and insecurity.  These land improvements include roads, landscaping, fences, etc.  They can also be referred to land ownership, laws, rights and obligations that can impact the conditions of life of those living in poverty in terms of produce from land (e.g. crops, staples, raw materials, houses, etc.)

For example, the lack of land improvements in many places in Africa (such as the Central African Republic, Mali, Sudan, etc.) has led to ethnic conflicts, violence, insecurity, hunger and poverty. 

So, this week’s trending topic is all about following the direction of poverty reduction via soils or lands as natural capital assets.  It is known that at this time of changing climate and enduring COVID-19, it is challenging to gather information and data about how land improvements are helping those living in poverty to escape from it.   This is let alone the knowledge of exact number of poor people who really benefited from land improvements or reforms against the backdrop of COVID-19.

To follow the direction of poverty reduction via natural capital assets with us, just contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Happiness and Healthiness Journal, Creative Activity No. 2: Create Your Journal of Summer Generosity

 

Generosity is one of the six predictors of happiness and healthiness.  One can create a journal about what they are giving (or gave) or are receiving (or received) unselfishly.

Like last Summer, this Summer is tough for many ordinary people and families as COVID-19 endures.  Many of these poor people and families are looking for unselfish help and support.  For those who would manage to give or receive this generous support; they can create a journal for the things, organisations and people who have been unselfishly supportive to their happiness and healthiness during this Summer 2021.

They can record their thoughts, feelings and experiences in relation to the generous support they have received or given.  They can share with the community their experience of happy and healthy generous support.  This can be recorded in their journal and be shared by the end of Summer 2021.

To share the contents of their happiness and healthiness journal relating to generous support, and help build a better Summer holiday experience, they can contact CENFACS. 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Integration or Factorisation of Le Dernier Carré (the Last Square of Poverty Relief) into Build Forward Better Programme

 

The Last Square of Poverty Relief (or le Dernier Carré) is CENFACS’ four step model of poverty relief that deals with four types of poverty: income poverty, consumption poverty, energy poverty and in-working poverty.  It is also the square of escape or inescapability from poverty, a four-dimensional poverty. 

Multi-dimensional poverty requires multi-dimensional approach to tackle it.  CENFACS’ Le Dernier Carré (the Last Square of Poverty Relief) model is an example of multi-dimensional approach to poverty reduction.  The model is mostly in action when using CENFACS’ League of Poverty Reduction as it enables to classify team countries according to their efforts in reducing poverty.

As we set up Build Forward Better Programme to manage the post-COVID-19 era, it would be a good try to include this model in the process of building forward better together greener and cleaner from the legacies of COVID-19 and lockdowns.  In practical terms, it means building forward better income, consumption, energy and work.  This is a positive outlook of Le Dernier Carré. 

For further enquiries or any queries about integration of Le Dernier Carré (or the Last Square of Poverty Reduction) into Build Forward Better Programme, please contact CENFACS. 

 

 

• Online TRACK to CENFACS e-charity Summer Shop for Summer Goods Donations and Buys

 

Every season is an opportunity to do something about the environment and poverty.  You can recycle or donate your unwanted or unused goods and presents to do something about the environment and or poverty.  You can also buy goods to meet the same ends.

This Summer you can online track CENFACS e-charity shop to help the environment and poverty relief.  If you are a fun of online tracking and shopping, you can take an online course of action or online path or even course of travel to save the environment and reduce poverty with CENFACS.

Instead of you in-person going to physically shop or donate your goods, you can from the comfort of your home buy or donate goods to CENFACS e-charity shop to help the deserving cause of poverty relief and sustainable development.

To support us either by shopping or supplying us with products or goods you no longer want or use so that we can sell and raise the money for the good cause of poverty relief, please go http://cenfacs.org.uk/shop/

 

 

• Virtual and In-person Trips for Field Research

 

Trips to the local need this week include as well those travels made or to be made to conduct fieldwork research in Africa and anywhere else in the context of poverty relief and sustainable development projects. 

Because of the coronavirus pandemic and lockdowns it has generated, we recommend to those who want do trips for field research to only do them virtually.  In exceptional circumstances whereby people have to in-person visit coronavirus-affected people or related projects, it is in the interest of everybody that they should take care of the following:

√ They have to be fully vaccinated and or negatively tested against the coronavirus 

√ They should wear appropriate personal protective equipment to protect themselves and others against the Covid-19. 

√ They should follow local, national and international rules related to the protection against Covid-19 such as social and physical distancing rules, personal hygiene (washing of hands with soaps at least 20 seconds), disinfecting of their own properties if they have been in any site, etc.

These fieldwork researches or practical experiences to gain knowledge and skills could be of varying forms such as observation and collection of raw data, interviews, group discussions, practical activities to support overseas development projects, etc. 

If you are a researcher and did or are doing some fieldwork research on sustainable development and poverty reduction, and think that your work can enhance CENFACS’ work, you could share with us your experience, research findings or outcomes.

To share the experiences and results of your fieldwork research, just contact CENFACS and CENFACS will get back to you.

 

A lire et vous accompagner cette période estivale, le 72e numéro de FACS:

 

Les pages 5 et 6 de ce numéro, que nous vous prions de trouver sous la section ‘Main Development’ de cette poste, vous donnent une idée succincte des thèmes développés. 

Pour ceux ou celles qui veulent prolonger ou approfondir leur lecture de ce numéro 72 de FACS en français, ils/elles peuvent contacter le CENFACS. 

 

 

 

Main Development

 

• FACS, Issue No. 72, Summer 2021: Investing in the Not-for-profit African Organisations within the African Continental Free Trade Area

How to reduce more poverty in the African Continental Free Trade

 

The contents and key summaries of the 72^nd Issue of FACS, which is the sole development of this post, are given below.

 

• • Contents and Pages

 

Relationship between not-for-profit investment and poverty reduction (Page 2)

Theory of poverty reduction in bulk within the context of AfCFTA (Page 2)

Construction of an index of contribution of not-for-profit development to poverty reduction (Page 2)

Investing in Not-for-profit African Sister Organisations (Page 3)

Reducing investment gaps to reduce gender disparities and poverty in the AfCFTA (Page 3)

Investments in nature-based solutions to poverty in the not-for-profit organisations (Page 4)

Green and blue alignments of investments with ASOs within the AfCFTA (Page 4)

Des règles du jeu équitables dans la répartition des investissements entre les organisations africaines à but non lucratif et organisations à but lucratif au sein de la Zone de libre-échange continentale africaine (Page 5)

Que peut-on faire pour attirer plus d’investissements directs étrangers vers les organisations africaines à but non lucratif? (Page 5)

Pallier au déclin des investissements directs étrangers dû au COVID-19 au sein des organisations africaines à but non lucratif (Page 6)

Partenariat équilibré avec les organisations africaines à but non lucratif pour un protocole d’investissements réducteur de la pauvreté (Page 6)

Sustainable Development Goals enabling investments and African not-for-profit organisations (Page 7)

The African Investment Bank and not-for-profit investments (Page 7)

Investments in energy, food security, the protection of nature and biodiversity (Page 8)

Investing in localisation via the not-for-profit development (Page 8)

African-focused not-for-profit investor events (Page 9)

E-discussion: Investment absorption capacity development (Page 9)

Online focused support (Page 9)

Survey on the role model of not-for-profit investee (Page 9)

Not-for-profit investment quiz (Page 9)

African not-for-profit investment fund project (Page 10)

 

• • Key Summaries

 

Please find below the key summaries of the 72^nd Issue of FACS from page 2 to page 10. 

 

• • • Relationship between not-for-profit investment and poverty reduction (Page 2)

 

There are empirical studies that generally assert that poverty reduction can be proportionally or disproportionally be associated with levels of investments.  This impact or association can happen with both foreign and national direct investments.

As to not-for-profit investments, they should normally have a positive impact on poverty reduction because of their nature.  On principle, they are meant to advance human development causes rather than simply aiming at achieving business goals (such as maximising profit or income or a high return on investment).  The not-for-profit investments would aim at good or high result on poverty reduction. 

However, to know if there is any relationship between not-for-profit investments and poverty reduction in the context of the AfCFTA, there should be quantitative data and analysis that can help to find this relationship.  One can hope as the AfCFTA develops, there would be opportunity to collect enough data and to test this correlation between the not-for-profit investments and poverty reduction.

 

 

• • • Theory of poverty reduction in bulk within the context of AfCFTA (Page 2)

 

One of the long running problems that the African continent faces is huge poverty.  COVID-19 has not made things easy for the continent.  Not only it has led to mass unemployment, mass closing down and mass lockdown; it has wiped out many years of hard-won poverty reduction results in Africa. 

In this post-pandemic era of recovery, it is possible to reverse the downward trend of poverty reduction.  It is likely probable that if investment is fairly oriented and distributed within the AfCFTA, there could be a chain of poverty reductions across African countries.  If the pattern of poverty reduction repeats itself and becomes consistent and continuous, this could lead to a poverty reduction in bulk or in mass.  However, for this to happen, the goal of poverty reduction should be central to any investment initiative.

 

• • • Construction of an index of contribution of not-for-profit development to poverty reduction (Page 2)

 

To know that the not-for-profit is contributing to poverty reduction within the AfCFTA, it would be better to create and develop a method to track the performance of not-for-profit investments and assets in an institutionalised or properly defined way.  Perhaps, establishing an index of contribution of not-for-profit investments could be the useful way of measuring this performance. 

Those who have already built or would like to build this kind of index; this is an interesting research ground or path to embark on.  Those who would like to discuss the index of contribution of the not-for-profit to poverty reduction, they can contact CENFACS.

 

 

• • • Investing in Not-for-profit African Sister Organisations (Page 3)

 

African Sister Organisations (ASOs) can be an alternative route for investing in the AfCFTA for those investors having other motives than only making profit.  Investing in this sort of organisations is a way of thinking differently and approaching poverty from a different and new perspective. 

Indeed, there is a difference between investing in organisations that consider poverty reduction as a residual or appended aspect of their main trading activity compared to those organisations that take poverty reduction as their main or core mission or activity.  So, if one wants to see real improvements in reduction of poverty in quality and quantity; then putting their money into ASOs that take poverty reduction as their core mission could be a viable option.

 

• • • Reducing investment gaps to reduce gender and generational disparities and poverty in the AfCFTA (Page 3)

 

Investing in the not-for-profit development is also about investing in equal way in women and men, girls and boys, young and old people projects in order to reduce investment gaps between the two sexes, between generations.  This is important especially in places where the majority of projects are discriminately run by one single gender or generation.

In closing investment gaps between women and men, girls and boys, younger and older generations; this will help not only to address gender and generational disparities and inequalities, but also to reduce gender and inter-generational poverty within the AfCFTA.  And the African not-for-profit organisations working on gender issues could be the better organisations to invest in if one wants to end gender and inter-generational poverty in the AfCFTA.     

 

• • • Investments in nature-based solutions to poverty in the not-for-profit organisations (Page 4)

 

Investments in nature-based solutions (like those in the protection of biodiversity, sustainable forestry, re/afforestation, etc.) can help to stop or reduce human activity that threatens and damages the planet’s environment to regenerate.  These types of investment can also assist in moving away from solutions to poverty that threaten and endanger the health and life of nature.

Not-for-profit organisations that are already working in the nature-based solutions need investments to keep their work going.  They need support so they can keep holding responses to poverty that maintain the health and wealth of nature in good condition, to keep harmonious relationship with nature’s capital or natural capital assets.  

 

• • • Green and blue alignments of investments with ASOs within the AfCFTA (Page 4)

 

Aligning investments to the principles of greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals and targets can be better done with the engagement of ASOs within the AfCFTA.  Likewise, aligning investments to fresh, safe and clean waters can also be conducted with ASOs within the context of AfCFTA. 

The double alignment of investments with ASOs will be beneficial not only for nature within the AfCFTA, but also for users making this trade area and the world.  This double alignment will help reduce the enormous pressure on natural resources (as trade integration grows) while decreasing poverty amongst people, especially the poor ones.  And ASOs working on the health of nature and the reduction of poverty would be in a better position to expand the benefits of their work to keep nature healthy and lift more people out of poverty within the space provided by African trade integration.

 

• • • Des règles du jeu équitables dans la répartition des investissements entre les organisations africaines à but non lucratif et organisations à but lucratif au sein de la Zone de libre-échange continentale africaine (Page 5)

 

Quand il s’agit de réduire et d’éliminer la pauvreté, il serait mieux de faire jouer les règles de l’équité et d’égalité dans la répartition des investissements.  Des organisations qui ont fait leur preuve et qui ont une longue tradition ou expérience de réduction de la pauvreté peuvent faire l’objet de plus d’attention dans cette entreprise. 

Le respect de l’équité et celui de l’égalité, parfois en fonction de résultats atteints dans le passé, permettront d’éviter des gaspillages en matière d’investissements au détriment de la réduction de la pauvreté.  Car, ce qui est recherché ici est la réduction et l’élimination de la pauvreté plutôt que l’efficacité ou l’efficience de l’organisation bénéficiaire des investissements.

En fixant des règles de jeu transparentes et vérifiables sur les mécanismes de répartition et distribution des investissements visant la réduction de la pauvreté, on peut aboutir à des résultats encourageants sur la réduction de la pauvreté.

 

• • • Que peut-on faire pour attirer plus d’investissements directs étrangers vers les organisations africaines à but non lucratif? (Page 5)

 

L’un des problèmes que les organisations africaines à but non lucratif font face est leur capacité d’attirer plus les capitaux ou investissements directs étrangers.  Pour qu’elles y arrivent, elles doivent entreprendre des efforts sur beaucoup de plans. 

L’un de ces efforts est l’amélioration de leur image gestionnaire auprès des investisseurs directs étrangers et au-delà de la zone du libre-échange continentale africaine.  L’amélioration de cette image passe par la démonstration des méthodes de gestion efficace, efficiente et sereine; sans oublier leur propre histoire en matière de gestion des investissements.  A cela, il convient d’ajouter leur vision à long terme.

Elles ne doivent pas surtout se poser comme des demandeuses d’investissements sans pour autant ayant quelque chose à offrir, particulièrement en matière des garanties explicites et exceptionnelles sur leurs méthodes et résultats de leur gestion.  En d’autres mots, cette amélioration de l’image pour accéder aux investissements doit être accompagnée par des preuves palpables et vérifiables, et dans le cas échéant être appuyée par des agences de crédit international spécialisées en matière d’investissements régionaux.  

Brièvement parlant, c’est en donnant l’assurance sur leur gestion et leur stratégie d’avenir que les organisations africaines à but non lucratif pourront attirer advantage des capitaux étrangers et non africains vers elles et vers l’espace de l’intégration commerciale africaine.

 

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According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development,

Foreign Direct Investment inflows in AfCFTA were 38 billions of dollars in 2020 and 45 billions of dollars in 2019; that is nearly -15.4% in terms of 2019-2020 negative change. (Source: UNCTAD FDI/MNE database)

---

 

• • • Pallier au déclin des investissements directs étrangers dû au COVID-19 au sein des organisations africaines à but non lucratif (Page 6)

 

Bien avant que le COVID-19 arrive, il y avait des problèmes pour les organisations africaines à but non lucratif d’accéder le niveau requis des investissements afin d’accomplir leurs travaux et mission.  Avec l’arrivée de COVID-19, il y a eu un recul significatif des investissements directs étrangers vers des organisations africaines à but non lucratif, y compris des soutiens de la diaspora africaine. 

En effet, tout le monde s’est replié sur soi-même, vers ses propres problèmes plutôt que d’aider les autres.  Certains investisseurs du monde riche se sont cantonnés dans leur territoire d’origine pour affronter les problèmes sanitaires et économiques que le COVID-19 a causé.  Les quelques investissements qui ont été déployés n’arrivent pas aux petites et moyennes organisations africaines à but non lucratif.  Ces quelques investissements ont été conçus pour faire face au COVID-19 plutôt que de résoudre le problème de pauvreté spécifiquement.  Ç’a été un contexte du déclin généralisé des investissements de réduction de la pauvreté entre 2019 et début 2021.  Ç’a été un déclin des investissements directs étrangers à l’intérieur et à l’extérieur de l’Afrique.

Avec le développement du marché de libre-échange continentale africaine, d’aucuns peuvent espérer qu’il y aura une nouvelle dynamique pour attirer les investissements pour le besoin de financement des organisations africaines à but non lucratif.  On peut compter sur le marché pour ainsi pallier au déclin du capital étranger vers le besoin de financement des organisations africaines à but non lucratif pendant la période post-pandémique.

 

• • • Partenariat équilibré avec les organisations africaines à but non lucratif pour un protocole d’investissements réducteur de la pauvreté (Page 6)

 

S’il on veut un protocole d’investissements qui est vraiment réducteur de la pauvreté, il y a lieu de développer un partenariat équlibré avec les organisations africaines à but non lucratif. 

En effect, en entreprenant des efforts d’investissements dans le cadre de la zone du libre-échange continentale africaine, les organisations africaines à but non lucratif ne doivent pas seulement être considerées comme des bénéficiaires des investissements, mais plutôt des vraies parties qui veront leur point de view respecté et tenu.  Pour cela, il faut établir les principes de création et du maintien d’un partenariat équlibré entre elles et les investisseurs dans le cadre de réduction de la pauvreté.  C’est pourquoi le protocole d’investissements doit être celui qui include la réduction de la pauvreté.

Grosso modo, ce genre de partenariat permettra d’atteindre les objectifs de réduction de la pauvreté au sein de la zone de libre-échange continentale africaine dans un context d’équilibre. 

 

• • • Sustainable Development Goals enabling investments and African not-for-profit organisations (Page 7)

 

Investments that enable and promote the realisation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2030 are needed during the COVID-19 and post-COVID-19 times.  And the African not-for-profit organisations that are already working with local people within the sphere of AfCFTA to realise these goals should also be taken into account amongst the beneficiaries of these investments. 

Not leaving behind the African not-for-profit organisations in the distribution of those investments to keep implementing these goals should be part of the agenda and priority.  This could imply that the direction and flows of these investments are fairly and symmetrically distributed between for-profit and not-for-profit organisations in terms of products and services designed to achieve these goals within the AfCFTA.   

 

• • • The African Investment Bank and not-for-profit investment (Page 7)

 

The African Investment Bank is one of the three financial institutions of the AfCFTA.  As the implementation work of the AfCFTA project progresses, it would be interesting to see if the African Investment Bank will promote the not-for-profit investments within the AfCFTA in order to boost the work of poverty reduction.

Many banks across the world are now investing in poverty reduction projects via their not-for-profit arms.  One can anticipate that the African Investment Bank will follow suite and will be amongst the biggest investors in poverty reduction in Africa.  One could as well expect that the African Investment Bank will take the lead on the poverty reduction matter since Africa (together with South Asia) is the region of the world with a high number of poor people.  One could finally hope small and medium scale sized African not-for-profit organisations will not be forgotten in terms of investments.

 

• • • Investments in energy, food security, the protection of nature and the biodiversity (Page 8)

 

Energy, food security, protection of nature and biodiversity are attractive areas for new investments within the AfCFTA.  They are also those areas related to the respective types of poverty: fuel poverty, food poverty, human insecurity, depletion of natural resources and threats to biological diversity. 

Many African not-for-profit organisations work on the above mentioned areas.  Investments in those areas could mean addressing poverty and hardships relating to these issues.  African not-for-profit organisations working on these issues can do their best to capture any investments covering these issues since they have experience in dealing with poverty and hardships linked to these issues.

 

• • • Investing in localisation via the not-for-profit development (Page 8)

 

The content of poverty reduction services and products need to be translated for local users and localised contents.  There is a need to invest in the localisation work via the not-for-profit development in order to put the contents of poverty reduction services and products to better serve local needs and local people.

The not-for-profit development organisations working on local issues in Africa can be eligible to this sort of investments, meet local needs and facilitate the process of integration within the AfCFTA.

 

• • • African-focused not-for-profit investor events (Page 9)

 

In order to encourage not-for-profit investment drive for the not-for-profit organisations, online events or platforms gathering and inviting African-focused not-for-profit investors could be a way forward for sharing ideas between international investors and African organisations to stimulate not-for-profit investments for the AfCFTA.

For those who are in favour of such an initiative they can discuss it with CENFACS.

 

 

• • • E-discussion: Investment absorption capacity development (Page 9)

 

One of the problems when it comes to utilise investments or capital wanted is to have the capacity required to do so.  This is because organisations may genuinely need investments or funds; however they may not have the capacity required to absorb some levels of investments or funds.  Therefore, developing investment absorption capacity is crucial for African not-for-profit organisations in the context of AfCFTA.

Those who would like to e-discuss with us on investment absorption capacity development, they are welcome to contact CENFACS.

 

• • • Online focused support (Page 9)

 

Poverty-reducing effects of not-for-profit investments: scopes and limits

 

You can help CENFACS deepen its research work on the not-for-profit development by participating to its online focus work on the effects of not-for-profit investments on poverty, particularly in terms of their amount of contribution and limits.  In other words, you can argue the extent to which this contribution can happen and where this contribution, if any, can stop.

This online focus work is running throughout this month.  To take part in it, just contact CENFACS.

 

• • • Survey on the role model of not-for-profit investee (Page 9)

 

This survey is to establish the profile of African not-for-profit organisations that are likely to make good use or succeed if investors invest in them.  The survey focuses on organisations dealing with green and blue projects or activities.

As part of this survey, we are running a questionnaire.  One of the questions is: How can you describe, in twenty seven words, the portrait of a prototype African not-for-profit organisation that would be the best user of not-for-profit investments in the AfCFTA?

You can directly send your answer to CENFACS.

 

• • • Not-for-profit investment quiz (Page 9)

 

Do you think that investing in the African not-for-profit organisations operating within the AfCFTA can help reduce?

Yes or No

If yes, will it reduce poverty more or less or averagely?

Please tick below:

Ο More           

Ο Less             

Ο Averagely  

 

• • • African not-for-profit investment fund project (Page 10)

 

This is a fundraising project aiming at reducing income poverty amongst African not-for-profit organisations operating within the boundaries of the AfCFTA.  The fund to be raised via this funding pot or scheme will enable those income-deprived organisations to acquire the financial capacity and strength to deliver poverty reduction projects, particularly but not exclusively in areas with high level of poverty within the AfCFTA.

To support or contribute to this investment fund project, please contact CENFACS.

For details including full project proposals and budget for the African not-for-profit investment fund project, please contact CENFACS.

The full copy of the 72^nd Issue of FACS is available on request.  For any queries and comments about this Issue, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 _________

 

References

 

(1) International Monetary Fund (2021), Regional economic outlook. Sub-Saharan Africa: navigating a long pandemic, World Economic and Financial Surveys, April 2021, Washington, D.C.

(2) United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (2021), World Investment Report 2021: Investing in Sustainable Recovery, Geneva, 2021

(3) Muhammad Yunus with Karl Weber (2011), Building social business: the new kind of capitalism that serves humanity’s most pressing needs, Public Affairs, New York

(4) Martin Phillip Heger, Gregor Zens and Mook Bangalore (2020), Land and Poverty: the role of soil fertility and vegetation quality in poverty reduction, Cambridge University Press

https://doi.org/10.1017/S135570X20000066 (accessed August 2021)

_________

 

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 http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

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!

04 August 2021

 

Post No. 207

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Track, Trip and Trending in a Summer of Changing Climate and Enduring COVID-19

• Track, Trip and Trending in a Leafy Year and Project

• Happiness and Healthiness Journal: Creative Activity No. 1: Create Your Journal of Happy and Healthy Social Support

 

 

… And much more!

 

 

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Track, Trip and Trending in a Summer of Changing Climate and Enduring COVID-19

  

August is CENFACS’ Track, Trip and Trending month.

We do Track at CENFACS as we think that every one of us can undertake basic physical activity of running or racing to help reduce poverty. Our project known as Run to Reduce Poverty is designed to meet that end.

This Summer, we are going to do COVID-19 Secure Track.  This is due to the coronavirus and its continuing adverse impacts and effects.

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

This Summer, we are going to undertake Virtual or in-person Trips depending on the COVID-19 circumstances and climate change situation.  This is also due to the coronavirus pandemic and its continuing associated impacts and effects on CENFACS’ budget.

We thirdly deal with Trending in August as we spend time looking at what is popular at CENFACS in the context of poverty reduction.  This is what what we can call Trendy Development.  Trending in Poverty Reduction helps us to follow the direction of poverty reduction work. This August we are going to follow this direction of poverty (or poverty reduction) via natural capital.  Natural capital can help reduce poverty, particularly sanitation poverty, and enhance health and safety aspects of sustainable development.

Again, due the coronavirus pandemic and its related impacts and effects, we are going to follow this direction via online, video, phone, screen and digital technological means of communication and on papers (print).  Where there is COVID-19 secure environment, in-person visits or following will be considered.

The COVID-19 story continues and its ramifications persist in this Summer in every aspect of life.  Therefore, we are going to integrate Covid-19 and the theme for Summer into these three activities of August as follows: Track, Trip and Trending in a Summer of Enduring Covid-19. 

This Summer is also about changing climate.  Because of that, we are going to apply the changing climate feature to these three activities of August as follows: Track, Trip and Trending in a Changing Climate.

More details about CENFACS’ Track, Trip and Trending month for this year is given under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

 

• Track, Trip and Trending in a Leafy Year and Project

 

As part of CENFACS’ Leafy Year and Project and of the month of Track, Trip and Trending; we would like those who can and want to proceed with either of the following Leafy Activities:

(a) COVID-19 Secure Run 2.5 miles (nearly 4 km) to save healing leaves and support those who get or got relief from poor health or poor sanitation via herbs, leaves and plants

(b) Undertake Virtual or in-person Visits or Tours of 3 leaf projects or activities relating to Covid-19 hit local people or communities

(c) Carry out online search to find 6 natural leaf Trends in the contexts of leaf-related poverty alleviation and leaf-enhancing sustainable development

The above three types of Leaf Activities are our way of linking our Leafy Year/Project and the month of Track, Trip and Trending together.

To undertake any of the above mentioned Leaf Activities, please contact CENFACS. 

CENFACS will be pleased if you could share with the experience you would build in undertaking these Leaf activities.

 

 

 

• Happiness and Healthiness Journal: Creative Activity No. 1: Create Your Journal of Happy and Healthy Social Support

 

Social support is one of the six predictors of happiness and healthiness.  One can create a journal for having someone to count on in time of trouble like of COVID-19 crisis or any other personal matter over this Summer.  They can create a journal for the things and people who have been socially supportive to their enjoyment and good conditions of life during this Summer 2021.

They can record their thoughts, feelings and experiences in relation to the social support they have received or given.  They can share with the community their experience of happy and healthy social support as recorded in their journal by the end of Summer 2021.

To submit the contents of their happiness and healthiness journal relating to social support, and help build a better Summer holiday experience within the community, they can contact CENFACS.  

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Summer 2021 Humanitarian Appeal Projects

 

The 2021 Edition of our Summer Humanitarian Appeal has now been completed and is ready for support.  We have added to Distress-free Life from Enduring Coronavirus in Africa the other four remaining projects making this appeal. The addition includes:

√ All Gifts for All Poor to Build Forward

√ International Networking and Protection against Enduring COVID-19

√ Iconic Young Carer and Builder

√ COVID-19 Secure ELCLASSICO International

We have provided extracts from these added projects, extracts that can be found at Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk).  Their details including proposals can be requested from CENFACS.

To support and or enquire about these appeal projects, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

 

• Record your Summer Telling Moments to Report Back

 

Whether one has a Summer break or is working over this Summer, it is always a good idea to record your memorable moments or just what you are doing.

After Summer, we often ask people or the community to report their Summer experience back.  If you record what you are doing this Summer, after Summer it will be easier to share what you may judge is a shareable part of your Summer experience or story. 

If you decide to record your Summer activities or experiences, please do not forget to take photos and pictures, make a video, record your voice, podcast, etc.    It is also useful to write down dates, places and names of people involved in your projects or experiences.  You can plan the way you want to report back whether you want to use words or numbers or information graphics (e.g. tables or graphs, figures, etc.).

Before including people around you in your recorded experience, please take care of Data Protection Regulations.  This extra care will help to protect yourself and others.  If necessary, please check the policy on handling people’s information and data.

Reporting back your experiences can sometimes inspire others, especially if your experiences contain poverty-relieving elements.  Sometimes what you may think is not important in your life experience could be very useful or even life-saving for others in the community.

We hope you will seriously take our message of recording to report back. 

Thank you!

 

 

 

• Mid-year 2021 Review of Actions and Results of Triple Value Initiatives (i.e. Play, Run and Vote Projects)

 

It is now more than six months since the kick-off of this year’s Triple Value Initiatives (All-year Round Projects) which are made of Play, Run and Vote Projects.  As a result, we are undertaking a review or examination of actions carried out and results achieved so far by participants to these projects.

For those who have been engaged with these initiatives, this is the time to start looking at the journey they have taken so far.  It is also the time to fix what is not working and enhance what is working in implementing these projects.  

Since participants to these recreational and life-enhancing projects may have other better things to do for their own lives, they can use the opportunity of Summer holiday or any other holiday to revisit or look back on them.  In this reviewing process, they can say what they like and dislike in the implementation of these projects.

Since these projects kicked off, we offered extra support about them in the form of Questions and Answers, Green and Sustainable Alignment of these projects to greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals and targets, Start-up tips and hints, etc.  Those who still need any help and support to better implement these projects and or to conduct the six-month review, CENFACS is willing to assist.

To ask for help regarding these projects, just contact CENFACS by indicating the kind of help you need.  You can also contact CENFACS to inform and or share your progress, actions and results about these projects.

 

 

 

Main Development

 

• Track, Trip and Trending in a Summer of Changing Climate and Enduring COVID-19

 

Our thematic and working model of Summer of Happiness and Healthiness in a Summer of Changing Climate and Enduring Covid-19 will continue this month through the three activities of…

(1) COVID-19 Secure TRACK to help reduce poverty

(2) Virtual or In-person TRIPS to Hybrid Running Projects and Covid-19 hit locals

(3) Online TRENDING in poverty reduction by following the direction of poverty reduction via natural capital

 

• • Track, Trip and Trending 2021 Activities

 

• • • COVID-19 Secure Track to help reduce poverty in a Summer of Changing Climate and Enduring Covid-19

 

This is delivered through the project Run to Reduce Poverty, Gaming to Reduce Poverty and Vote your African Manager of Poverty Reduction. These are All-year Round Projects or Triple Value Initiatives.

However, because of the weather conditions (sunshine) and nature of August (holidays time for many of our supporters) we put a particular emphasis on the Run aspects of these all-year round projects, over this month. 

This Summer, this emphasis has changed due to the coronavirus pandemic.  Because of that, one can only do physical run out and indoor if they respect the coronavirus guidance in terms of security and rules.  

We expect those who sign up to the Run element to take actions and run it by themselves while following to letter the UK Government restrictions, the National Health Service advice and the World Health Organisations guidance regarding COVID-19.  After summer or at any convenient time before the end of the year, they can report back to us.

 

• • • Virtual or In-person TRIPS to Hybrid Running Projects and Covid-19 hit locals in a Summer of Changing Climate and Enduring Covid-19

 

This is the second aspect or part of work over the month of August at CENFACS.  We expect and advise our supporters to visit some of our projects and initiatives whether in the UK or in Africa during and around the month of August. 

However, due to the coronavirus pandemic there are restrictions and travel bans about non-essential trips although some parts of the world are easing the lockdown.  For those who cannot in-person or physically visit projects on the grounds, arrangements can be made between the physical visitors and the organisations to be visited so that they can organise a virtual trip, tour or viewing. 

This requires that the visitors and visiting organisations have the technology that enables this virtual tour to happen.  If this is possible we expect and advise our supporters to virtually visit some of projects and initiatives whether in the UK or in Africa during and around the month of August.  Because of the circumstances we are all in at this time of Covid-19, it could be a good idea if this trip can be done to Covid-19 hit areas, people and communities. 

Because we are also talking about Trip to the needs in a changing climate, our Trip this year will be to see how climate change affects local people and local needs as well.

Trip to the need and project includes some of the experiences undertaken by CENFACS All in Development Volunteers through field work involvements and project visits, to reach out to unreached, underserved and unserved people and communities, particularly those living in remote areas of Africa.  It is the kind of experiences that we recommend to future invertebrate and vertebrate volunteers to have and report back in September or after. 

These trips also help us to check if we are on the right track at helping to reduce poverty and at tracking our records for the work on the ground.

Since we cancelled all non-essential physical trips, CENFACS All in Development Volunteers can do virtual trips. These virtual trips can still help us to check if we are on the right track at helping to reduce poverty and at tracking our records for the work on the ground.

Because the theme of trending for this Summer is about Natural Capital, we are going to link Trip to the need on the ground of preserving and conserving Natural Capital Assets.

 

• • • Online TRENDING in poverty reduction by following the direction of poverty reduction via natural capital in a Summer of Changing Climate and Enduring Covid-19

 

Sustainable development does not need to be trendy, but we can follow the trends in sustainable development and poverty reduction. 

During this August we are dealing with Trending in poverty reduction by following the direction of poverty reduction via natural capital and its capacity of lifting people out poverty. We mean by that we are following the direction of poverty reduction via natural capital assets and investments.  

The coronavirus pandemic and climate change have led to the surface of discussion on natural capital.  To deal with the challenges posed by both the coronavirus pandemic and climate change, natural capital needs to be better considered.  We cannot only rely on other forms of capital such as manufactured, financial, human and social capitals.  Likewise, to reduce poverty one needs to bring in natural capital as well.

Natural capital assets include species, ecological communities, soils, freshwaters, land, atmosphere, minerals, oceans, coasts, etc.  Natural capital stock and flows can contribute to poverty reduction and hardships; just as they can enhance sustainable development.

We will be observing how the use of natural capital assets and investments are doing to hep to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.  We will be looking at the extent to which natural capital can be poverty reducer and sustainability enhancer.

We will be doing it while integrating the COVID-19 as it affects the way in which we are happy or not happy, healthy or unhealthy; we eat; we entertain ourselves; we pass our summer holiday; we dress; we socialise; etc. to reduce any form of on-going and intergenerational poverty.  COVID-19 also affects the state of natural capital. 

So, natural capital and its respective impacts on poverty reduction and sustainable development in a Summer of Changing Climate and Enduring Covid-19 are what will be trending at CENFACS, as given below.

 

• • August 2021 Trending Activities/Programme

 

August 2021 Trending Activities or Programme will focus on four selected types of natural capital assets to help reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development, which are: species, soils, fresh waters and minerals.  The following is our August 2021 plan of work.

∝ Week beginning Monday 02/08/2021; Trending: Species

∝  Week beginning Monday 09/08/2021; Trending: Soils

∝  Week beginning Monday 16/08/2021; Trending: Fresh waters

∝  Week beginning Monday 23/08/2021; Trending: Minerals

If you are interested in this trending programme, please share with us your experience or comments about it.

Further explanation about this August month’s activities can be obtained from CENFACS.

 

 

 

• • In Focus from Week beginning 02/08/2021: Species

 

Before saying how we are following the direction of poverty reduction here, let us define natural capital and species.

 

• • • Basic understanding of natural capital and species

 

What is natural capital?

 

To basically understand natural capital, we have referred to the definition given by the Natural Capital Committee (NCC).  This is what the NCC (1) says:

“Capital can be defined as a resource used / available for use in the production of goods and services. … Natural capital is that part of nature which directly or indirectly underpins value to people, including ecosystems, species, freshwater, soils, minerals, the air and oceans, as well as natural processes and functions. Natural capital underpins the four types of capital [manufactured, financial, human and social capital].  In combination with other types of capital, natural capital forms part of our wealth; that is, our ability to produce actual or potential goods and services into the future to support our well-being” (p. 3)

Let us argue that the ability to produce actual or potential goods and services into the future to support our well-being will help to reduce and possibly to eliminate the inter-generational poverty or the transfer of poverty to future generations. 

 

How can we define species?

 

They are defined in many ways depending on the kind of connotations (e.g. biological, ecological, etc.) one wants to put forward. 

The same NCC (op. cit) argues that species are

“All living organisms including plants, animals, fungi and micro-organisms; the product of ongoing evolutionary processes” (p. 4)

In the similar line of reasoning, Chris Park (2) defines species in his Oxford Dictionary of Environment and Conservation as

“A population of organisms that reproduce one another but not with other populations” (p. 422)

In the context of our online trending, we are going to follow the direction of poverty reduction via species of organisms like animals, plants, fungi and micro-organisms for the baseline set for our work.  Additionally, this trending could involve studying the interactions or conflicts between human and species (e.g. animals) in the process of reducing poverty and enhancing sustainable development.

 

• • • Following the direction of poverty reduction via conflicts between human and animals over natural resources

 

There are conflicts between human and animals over the use and access of natural resources or other natural capital assets in the process of reducing poverty for both beings. 

An example of these types of conflicts is what is happening in Cameroon around the national park of Campo-Ma’an.  In the vicinity of this park, there is a discontent amongst local villagers as animals (like elephants, chimpanzees, gorillas, etc.) keep destroying their cocoa and banana plantations.

Animals are trying to make their ends meet although in this process they may accidentally or incidentally damage fields.  As for local villagers or farmers, they are also trying to grow their staples and meet food subsistence and sustenance in order to avoid food poverty and other types of poverty.  Their interest to reduce poverty can conflict against animal species one.

There is a possibility to reduce or avoid this conflict over natural resources between human and animals in order to help each side to meet their own needs, particularly of reducing poverty.  One of dealing with this problem is to have a legal framework that acknowledges conflicts between fauna and human over natural resources. 

Acknowledging or raising awareness of something is one thing.  But, setting up legal terms and conditions to resolve these conflicts is much better and life-saving for both conflicting sides.  Perhaps, to resolve this on-going dispute between human and animals over natural resources in the process of reducing poverty, legislators need to provide some guidance regarding both human and animal rights and obligations on this matter.

The above is our trending work for this week; work which has already started.

To follow with us the direction of poverty reduction via natural capital, please contact CENFACS.

 

_________

 

References

 (1) https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/upload/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/909202/ncc-terminology.pdf (accessed July 2021)

(2) Chris Park (2011), Oxford Dictionary of Environment and Conservation, Oxford University Press, Oxford & New York

_________

 

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 http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

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.