Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

10 July 2024

 

Post No. 360

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• July 2024 All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment (Level 1): Impact Monitoring and Evaluation of 2023-2024 Programmes, Projects and Activities

• Data Insight and Analytics of User-generated Content

• Coming this July 2024: Summer Festival of Thoughts and Actions with a Focus on Lack of Economic Opportunity

 

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• July 2024 All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment (Level 1): Impact Monitoring and Evaluation of 2023-2024 Programmes, Projects and Activities

 

The first level of work regarding our Analytics and Impact Month 2024 is All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment.  As mentioned last week in our July 2024 analytics and impact working plan, we shall have three activities within our July 2024 All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment; activities which are:

 

a) Impact Monitoring and Evaluation of 2023-2024 Programmes, Projects and Activities (Activity 1)

b) Impact Assessment of CENFACS’ Programme of Building Forward Better Together to a Greener, Cleaner, Safer, Inclusive and Climate-Resilient Future (Activity 2)

c) Impact Feedback of XX236.3 F Programme (Activity 3).

 

This week, we are kicking off the first activity.    In this first activity, we have already started with Impact Feedbacks.  These feedbacks are part of the level one of our July 2024 All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment.  They feedbacks are about carrying out tasks in order to get the early results or impacts of the programmes and projects we ran during the financial year 2023-2024.    But, what are feedbacks?

 

•  •  Understanding Feedback 

 

Perhaps, the best way of looking at impact feedbacks is to define the word ‘feedback’ itself.  To clarify it, we would like to refer to the quotation of ‘imperial.ac.uk’ (1).  The latter quotes Carless (2015, p.192) saying this:

“Feedback is a dialogic process in which learners make sense of information from varied sources and use it to enhance the quality of their work or learning strategies”.

Although Carless speaks about learners, we are instead dealing with project users or beneficiaries.  The feedback here is a process, a conversation between CENFACS and project users/beneficiaries.  It is also information or indicative tool telling how we are doing in our efforts to reach the goals of reducing poverty and enhancing sustainable development.  This information or tool will help to measure or get the impact of our work with project users/beneficiaries (for example, the number of people reached or served by CENFACS‘ programmes and projects).

 

• • Impact Feedbacks

 

We are holding two types of feedback: one from individuals as project supporters, beneficiaries and users; and another one from organisations, particularly Africa-based Sister Organisations.

 

1) Project Supporters’, Beneficiaries’ and Users’ Experiences (Feedback I)

 

This week’s Say by Project Supporters, Beneficiaries and Users will continue our Analytics and Impact Month 2024.  Project Supporters, Beneficiaries and Users can start to tell us the experiences they have had with the programmes and projects we have selected to conduct monitoring, evaluation, review, assurance and analytics.

We are asking Project Supporters, Beneficiaries, Users and other stakeholders to provide their views using their own words rather than we asking them to respond to open or close questions.  To facilitate the feedback process, we are using feedback tools or methods, forms and channels below.

 

~ Feedback tools/methods, forms and channels

 

To make it easy for them we are using the following user feedback tools or methods: survey, interview, focus group and observation. 

To get feedback, we are as well employing the following feedback channels to reach out to them: e-mail, phone, online platforms, and social media (e.g., Twitter).  

Their feedback could take one or two of the following forms: a response, an idea, advice (although feedback is not advice), a comment, an opinion, etc.

They can as well rate us and the service we provided, raise awareness of areas of improvement and identify actions to be taken to improve our performance.

To ease the feedback process and plan, we have singled out 12 initiatives from which they can pick and choose to provide their feedback.

They can give us feedbacks (responses and reactions) in the form of rating (numbers), statement (words), sounds (voices) and information graphics (infographics like charts, graphs, etc.).  This Say is about how they perceived and interacted with the products and services we presented to them over the last 345 days.

Their Say will help to understand their needs, expectations and preferences while identifying issues, gaps and areas of improvement.

 

2) Africa-based Sister Organisations’ Voices (Feedback II)

 

African sustainable development projects (ASDPs) are too initiatives that we ran in the last financial year; initiatives that directly or indirectly aimed at supporting Africa-based Organisations or just advancing poverty reduction causes and sustainable development agendas in Africa. 

These initiatives (ASDPs) were in the form of humanitarian appeals, fundraising and campaigns, advocacy work, project planning and advice, discussions under CENFACS‘ be.Africa Forum, guidance on not-for-profit investments and impact investing in Africa, responses to global crises (like the earthquake in Morocco, floods in Libya, conflicts in north-eastern parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the cost-of-living crisis, climate crisis, and polycrises), etc.

 

~ What we want to hear

 

We would like to hear the voices of Africa-based Organisations that interacted with our programme and project deliverables, especially the voiceless ones, so that we can know where things went well and where they did not.  This will enable us to reflect their needs in future programmes and projects development, while improving the way in which we are working with them in general and tackling the poverty issue in Africa in particular.

 

~ Why it is important to hear their voices

 

Their voices are important to us since we can only help to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development unless those who are concerned with these issues own the process by telling us what kind of help they need and how they perceive their own problems rather than we telling them what is good for them.

Like for individuals responding to our request, organisations do not need specific questions to provide their feelings about our work.  They can freely give their feedback in numerical, textual, voiced and information graphic statements.

To facilitate this feedback process, we have selected 9 initiatives from which they can pick and choose to provide their feedback.

The selected 2023-2024 programmes and projects for the purpose of feedback making our Impact Monitoring, Evaluation, Review, Reporting, Assurance and Analytics are given in the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

• Data Insight and Analytics of User-generated Content

 

As explained last week, there will be three activities of insight and analytics, which we are:

 

a) Data Insight and Analytics of User-generated Content (Activity 1)

b) Data Insight and Analytics for CENFACS’ Programme of Building Forward Better Together to a Greener, Cleaner, Safer, Inclusive and Climate-Resilient Future (Activity 2)

c) 2023-2024 Data Insight and Analytics (Activity 3).

 

Let us start with the first activity of data insight and analytics.

 

• • Data Insight and Analytics of User-generated Content

 

This is about the analysis of raw and semi-structured data provided or generated by users and other vested parties involved in the delivery of 2023-2024 programmes and projects.  This type of insight and analytics requires the use of data literacy and methodology as well as analytical skills.  As scheduled, this analytics has started today the 10th of July 2024. 

Before going any further in this presentation, let us briefly explain user-generated content, data insight, data analytics and what we are going to do or are doing in this respect.

 

• • • Brief understanding of User-generated Content

 

To explain User-generated Content, we are going to refer to Jose Angelo Gallagos’ online article.  Gallagos (2) argues that

“User-generated content is any content that has been created, published and/or submitted by users of a brand”.

The content that Gallagos is arguing about can be in the form of images, tweets, videos, texts, audios, social media posts, reviews, comments, blog posts, testimonials, feedbacks, etc.

As far as CENFACS is concerned, we are going to carry out the insight and analytics of user-generated content during their journey to poverty reduction with us.  In this respect, we are going to analytically process the content provided by CENFACS’ users, beneficiaries, fans, enthusiasts and audience to support CENFACS‘ brand or as they navigate the road to poverty reduction.

 

• • • Data insights

 

Data insights refer to the deep understanding an individual or organisation gains from analysing information on a particular issue.  To add value on what we are saying, the website ‘datarobot.com’ (3) argues that

“Data insights are the knowledge gained through analysing data, generating conclusions from data that can benefit your business.  Data are the input.  Insights are the output”.

In our case, we are trying to gain knowledge through the analysis of data provided by or collected from programmes and projects users/beneficiaries.  To do that, we are going to use data insight skills.

 

• • • Meaning of data analytics

 

To make things easily understandable for our readers and supporters, we have selected the following definition from ‘Master’s in Data Science’ (4) which states that

“Data analytics is the process of analysing raw data to find trends and answer questions”.

According to ‘Master’s in Data Science’,

“A successful data analytics initiative will provide a clear picture of where you are, where you have been and where you should go”.

‘Master’s in Data Science’ also distinguishes four primary types of data analytics, which are: descriptive, diagnostic, predictive and prescriptive.

We are going to turn to the above mentioned definition, primary types and other notions read within the literature survey about the concept of ‘data analytics’ in order to conduct the analytics of data or content generated by users of our programmes, projects and activities.

For example, we can use predictive analytics for data analytics projects relating to households making the CENFACS Community to intervene in appropriate time.  We can as well employ data analytics tool like Microsoft Excel for data wrangling and reporting.

 

• • Data Analytics in Practice and Progress

 

We are going to combine information technology, statistics and the life of CENFACS over 2023-2024 to discover meaningful patterns in data.  In doing so, this will help us to improve performance in terms of the kind of work we do in order to help reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.

In our data analytics process, we are going to undertake the following tasks:

 

(a) Data mining: extraction of data from unstructured data sources

(b) Data management: creation and management of databases

(c) Statistical analysis: creation of insights from data

(d) Data presentation: sharing of insights with stakeholders through data visualisation tools.

 

Where necessary and possible, we may involve online affordable analytics programmes to help in this exercise.  For instance, we may consider the possibility of using some qualitative data analysis tools (like NVIVO, MAXQDA, etc.) to conduct this data analysis work. 

For those users who did not yet respond to our previous requests regarding any of the projects or events they took part or came across, this is the opportunity to share their content and provide their SAY or content or even  data so that they can fit it into our analytics work.

For example, the users of Triple Value Initiatives (or All Year Round Projects) can inform us about the progress they have made so far.  They can as well share results of collaborations and synergies across these projects.  This information or data can be fitted into our Data Analytics Dashboard.

To sum up, user-generated content or data insight and analytics will help to provide actionable data insights and user trend analysis.  It will help to review deliveries and analyse the end-of-financial year performance regarding work undertaken with users.  The result of this insight and analytics will feed and align with the contents of our annual review 2023-2024.

To give and share your SAY or content or even data to help us in this insight and analytics, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Coming this July 2024: Summer Festival of Thoughts and Actions with a Focus on the Lack of Economic Opportunity

 

The focus for our Summer 2024 Festival, which is the 16th Event of this kind, will be on the Lack of Economic Opportunity.  

Poor people have less economic opportunities than others to achieve various outcomes in their life.  CENFACS’ Summer 2024 Festival will look at the state of economic opportunity and concentrate on how to expand economic opportunities and possibilities with and for poor people.  To do that one may need to understand economic opportunity.

 

• • What is Economic Opportunity?

 

According to ‘economics11.com’ (5),

“Economic opportunity is the situation that makes it possible to achieve something desired or necessary, or the possibility of doing so”.

From this definition, it can be argued that people experienced lack of economic opportunity are those undergoing the following situations:

 

no access to labour market; no resources and technologies to improve their lives; no means to develop new skills and competencies; being financially excluded; no gender equality; no equal access to economic opportunities for women; no access to credit, assets, productive resources and digital technologies; etc.

 

CENFACS’ Summer 2024 Festival will discuss the above-mentioned situations, in particular it will try to look at what can be done to enable economic achievements for the people in need, to improve the link between equality in economic opportunity and economic mobility.  To be effective, the festival will raise issues and explore solutions surrounding the topic of the Lack of Economic Opportunity.

 

• • Dealing with Problems and Exploring Solutions Together

 

CENFACS’ Summer 2024 Festival will deal with the following problems that the people in need face:

 

~ persistent barriers to the realisation of economic potential and security for those in need

~ a number of issues (like the ones named above) linked the lack of economic opportunity for them/all

~ how pressing economic and societal risks are contributing to the lack of opportunity for those in need.

 

CENFACS’ Summer 2024 Festival will as well try to explore solutions to the lack of opportunity, in particular it will

 

~ prospect ways of turning this lack to the creation of economic opportunities for the poor

~ investigate situations that make things possible to achieve desired or planned outcomes for and by those in need

~ look at together whether or not poor people’s goals and needs are aligned with economic achievements of the time and if not, how to make this alignment possible.

 

Briefly speaking, our Summer 2024 Festival will focus on problems and solutions surrounding poverty as a lack of economic opportunity by exploring ways of reducing it and enhancing sustainable development.  Therefore, this festival will also be of equality of economic opportunities.

This above is the theme of our Seven Days of Development in July 2024 or Summer 2024 Festival of Thoughts, Actions, Tweets, Shares and Spreads. 

 

• • What Are the Seven Days of Development in July 2024?

 

The Seven Days of Development in July are the days of thoughts and actions against poverty; in this case thoughts and actions about poverty as a lack of economic opportunity.  

These Seven Days of Development in July are organised around Seven Themes of Thoughts and Actions.  The Seven Themes are not an end of themselves.  Instead, they are the entry points in order to stimulate thoughts and actions.

This year’s festival will not make any exception.  They will be seven themes for thoughts for seven days, one theme per day, starting from the 22nd to the 28th of July 2024.

We shall soon publish the daily themes and supporting information regarding this year’s Summer Festival of Thoughts, Actions, Tweets, Shares and Spreads. 

For further details about our Seven Days of Development in July or Summer 2024 Festival, please contact CENFACS.

 

Extra Messages

 

• Data and Insight Skills to Manage Your Household

• Cover Basic Spending for the Distressed Children in Africa This Summer

• Holiday with Restricted Budget

 

 

• Data and Insight Skills to Manage Your Household

 

We are rolling out again our project ‘Data and Insight Skills to Manage Your Household‘.  We are offering support about Data Insight and Analytics for Households to households making our community, as part of the Analytics and Impact Month 2024 within CENFACS.

This kind of insight and analytics will help household to better deliver a data user experience for their own wellbeing and wellness.  To work with us, each household can agree its own data insight and analytical process.

Many households do this sort of exercises to understand their lives without sometimes knowing they are carrying out data insights and analytics.  To better undertake data insights and analytics, it may require some skills.  Not everybody has this sort of skills or can do these exercises by themselves.

 

• • Working Together with Households on Data Insight and Analytics to Run their Households

 

CENFACS can work with those who need help and support regarding the management of their data so that they can effectively and efficiently run their households.  We can work with them on data insight and analytics matters so that they can be in a position to better understand data that run their lives.  We can conduct with them basic data insights and analytics using the tools of poverty reduction we have in our box and our analytics and impact dashboard.  The dashboard will help them to tell the story of their households through charts and visuals.

 

• • Extra Support to Households on Data Insight and Analytics to Run Their Households

 

Where our capacity is limited in comparison to households’ demand or specific needs, we can signpost or refer them to relevant data insight and analytics services or organisations that are available on the market and can be accessible to them.

For those members of our community who will be interested in Data Insight and Analytics to Run their Household, they can contact CENFACS.  CENFACS can work with them to enhance the quality of their lives via the Data that Run their Household.

 

 

• Cover Basic Spending for the Distressed Children in Africa This Summer

 

Cover Basic Spending for the Distressed Children, Young People and Families in Africa is one of the Summer Appeal projects making the first part of our Summer Programme, which will be published soon. 

The appeal is about supporting children, young people and families (CYPFs), in places in Africa where there is already high level of poverty, particularly in spaces where governments have lost sovereignty or control because of continuing and polarising conflicts and insecurity in some parts of Africa.

Supporting this appeal means helping CYPFs to minimise and mitigate the impacts of continuing conflict and insecurity on them. Your support will help to reduce the risks and impacts that the polarising conflicts and insecurity can make in terms of tragedy, intergenerational poverty, etc.  Your assistance is required to respond to CYPFs’ distress signals.

One can think of a child or young person without any dreams and expectations, what will be his/her future, especially in spaces (like north-eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo) where there is enduring deterioration of security conditions in conflict-affected areas.

 

Can you help this child?  Yes or No!  If you say yes; then you can help…

 

√ that child to dream and expect a better life and future 

√ end polarised conflicts to become a structural constraint and handicap for that child

√ stop endless insecurity to create lifelong adverse impacts on children and young people

√ halt children’s and young people’s lives being reduced back below the poverty line

√ prevent the lost generation of polarised conflicts to happen in Africa.

 

To make the above happen, support ‘Cover Basic Spending for the Distressed Children, Young People and Families in Africa’.

To support, please contact CENFACS on this website.

 

 

• Holiday with Restricted Budget

 

Need help and/or support to deal with restrictions on your holiday budget? CENFACS can help.

 

CENFACS can work with the members of its community to find ways of handling restrictions on their holiday budget.  We can guide them/you to find help for restrictions removal from their/your holiday budget.  We can arrange for them/you to speak to specialists around restricted funding for holiday related to vulnerable people.  We can as well signpost them/you to organisations offering holiday funding service to those in need.

Additionally, there are charities and voluntary organisations that can help around holiday budget matters such as

 

∝ paying for a holiday via restricted or unrestricted support for holidays

∝ finding the right holiday for families with a member with a chronic condition

∝ finding a break and or respite.

 

CENFACS can as well work with the members of its community to streamline holiday budget processes and achieve better results in terms of spending by guiding them on the following matters:

 

∝ what to do with unused holiday funds

∝ how to use unrestricted/unassigned/undesignated/designated fund balance to help balance your holiday budget

∝ how to coordinate your needs of raising funds for your holiday and the necessities of accounting for the holiday money raised to be received

∝ what to do with unspent holiday grants

etc.

 

For those users who would like to dive into Holiday with Restricted Budget, we can provide them with online and print resources (e.g., a list of organisations providing holidaying support for those in need) relating to Holiday Budget.

For those users who would like information about ways of dealing with Holiday with Restricted Budget, they can contact CENFACS.

For those who would like to support ‘Holiday with Restricted Budget’ as holiday project, they can also communicate with CENFACS.

 

 

Message in French (Message en français)

 

• Compétences en matière de maniement de données et d’informations pour gérer votre ménage

Nous déployons à nouveau notre projet «Compétences en matière de maniement de données et d’informations pour gérer votre ménage».  Nous offrons un soutien en matière d’analyse et d’analytique des données pour les ménages aux ménages qui composent notre communauté, dans le cadre du mois de l’analyse et de l’impact 2024 au sein du CENFACS.

Ce type d’informations et d’analyses aidera les ménages à mieux offrir une expérience des utilisateurs de données pour leur propre bien-être.  Pour travailler avec nous, chaque ménage peut convenir de son propre processus d’analyse et d’analytique des données.

De nombreux ménages font ce genre d’exercices pour comprendre leur vie sans parfois savoir qu’ils effectuent des analyses de données.  Pour mieux entreprendre l’aperçu et l’analyse des données, il peut être nécessaire d’acquérir certaines compétences.  Tout le monde n’a pas ce genre de compétences ou ne peut pas faire ces exercices par lui-même.

• • Travailler avec les ménages sur l’aperçu et l’analyse des données pour gérer leur ménage

Le CENFACS peut travailler avec ceux ou celles qui ont besoin d’aide et de soutien concernant la gestion de leurs données afin qu’ils/elles puissent gérer efficacement leurs ménages.  Nous pouvons travailler avec eux/elles sur les questions d’aperçu et analyse des données afin qu’ils/elles puissent être en mesure de mieux comprendre les données qui régissent leur vie.

Nous pouvons mener avec eux/elles le maniement des informations et des analyses de données de base en utilisant les outils de réduction de la pauvreté que nous avons dans notre boîte et notre tableau de bord d’analyse et d’impact.  Le tableau de bord les aidera à raconter l’histoire de leurs ménages à travers des graphiques et des visuels.

• • Soutien supplémentaire sur l’aperçu et analyse des données pour gérer leur foyer

Lorsque notre capacité est limitée par rapport à leur demande ou à leurs besoins spécifiques, nous pouvons les orienter vers des services ou des organisations d’analyse de données pertinents qui sont disponibles sur le marché et qui peuvent leur être accessibles.

Les membres de notre communauté qui seront intéressés par l’aperçu et analyse des données pour gérer leur ménage peuvent contacter le CENFACS.  Le CENFACS peut travailler avec eux pour améliorer leur qualité de vie grâce aux données qui gèrent leur ménage.

 

 

Main Development

 

• July 2024 All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment (Level 1)

 

Activity 1: Impact Monitoring and Evaluation of 2023-2024 Programmes, Projects and Activities

 

Last week, we said that the name of the July game at CENFACS is Impact Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting, Assurance, Review and Analytics.  In other words, July is the tracking month during which we conduct our Impact monitoring, evaluation, reporting, assurance, review and analytics of the projects and programmes we delivered during almost last 11 months and 2 weeks.

The following is what we have planned to cover this activity 1 of our Analytics and Impact work:

 

∝ Impact Monitoring, Evaluation, Review, Assurance and Analytics in progress

∝ All-in-One Impact Feedbacks: Tell it in your own words, numbers, voice and info-graphics!

∝ Summer Selection and Collection of 12 Initiatives for Feedback One and 9 for Feedback Two.

 

Let us summarise each of these points of our Analytics and Impact work.

 

• • Impact Monitoring, Evaluation, Review, Assurance and Analytics in Progress

 

We are still routinely gathering information on all aspects of these programmes and projects related to the above named period. 

Likewise, we are assessing what these programmes and projects have achieved in relation to the overall objectives we set up for them. 

Also, we are critically examining, reappraising or reconsidering our objectives and policies to achievements, and figuring out whether there is any progress or set back. 

Additionally, we are trying to gain a deep understanding from analysing information on data we have collected so far. 

Furthermore, we are making sure that the impact process is independently carried out and can help us to assess the health and viability of programmes and projects delivered.

Besides the above five activities (monitoring, evaluation, data insight, assurance and review), we are working to find out, interpret and communicate patterns in data in a meaningful way to the work of CENFACS, as part of the analytics activity.

Once we have completed the July Impact monitoring, evaluation, assurance, review and analytics; we shall proceed with impact reporting or communicate the findings to our respondents and any vested interested parties (users and supporters).

In meantime, we are inviting supporters and users as well as Africa-based Sister Organisations to engage with us in responding and reacting to the work we carried out together and to our poverty relief work in their own words, voices and numbers. 

Their feedback could take one or two of the following forms: a response, an idea, advice (although feedback is not advice), a comment, an opinion, etc.

They can as well rate us and the service we provided or the work we did together, raise awareness of areas of improvement and identify actions to be taken to improve our performance.

They can provide a statement about these programmes and projects.  Where possible, they can give information graphics (such as charts, graphs, images, etc.).

 

• • All-in-One Impact Feedbacks: Tell it in your own words, numbers, voices and info-graphics!

 

There are many types or models of feedback.  In this exercise of feedback about the 2023-2024 programmes and projects, we are referring to impact feedback. 

 

• • • Impact feedback

 

Impact feedback is about giving responses or reactions from the perspectives of users and African organisations by commenting on the programmes and projects delivered by CENFACS from their points of view.  It is an observation or information, but not an evaluation from their part.  They could describe the influence or impact these programmes and projects have on them and what they like to be different.

For example, if our users want to know the intergenerational impact of a service we provided to deal with the cost-of-living crisis, they can comment on how our intervention would have affected themselves and other generation or their children.  Likewise, if they would like to get cyclical impact of the same service provided, they can provide information about the effects occurring in regular intervals.

From the perspective of impact analysis, we are going to establish a chain of causation or theory from the cost-of-living crisis to impact as well as to measure or describe the changes induced along that chain.  Briefly, we are going to refer to cause-and-effect approach and to the theory of change.  

We will as well be employing impact metrics and indicators.  What are they?

 

• • • Impact metrics and indicators

 

According to ‘sopact.com’ (6),

“Impact metrics are a set of measures that help you evaluate the effectiveness of your organisation’s activities, programmes, and projects.  They allow you to determine whether or not a project has achieved its desired results”.

The same ‘sopact.com’ (7) argues that

“An impact metric is a measurable variable or metric used to assess the progress and effectiveness of an organisation’s activities in achieving its intended impact.  It provides quantitative and qualitative evidence of the outcomes or changes resulting from implementing programmes or initiatives”.

From our All-in-One Impact Feedbacks, we shall generate a number of impact metrics or indicators to help us find out if our programmes and projects have achieved their planned results or outcomes.

For example, we may refer to output metrics (e.g., the number of appeals we launched together with those in need in Africa), outcome metrics (e.g., the quality of life improvement for households that benefited from our Festive Structured Finance Activities), etc.

 

• • • All-in-One Impact Feedbacks as an opportunity to share and learn

 

The above-mentioned exercise is meant to enable Supporters and Users (you might be one of them) as well as Africa-based Sister Organisations to share with us and others the outcomes and learning experiences resulting from the use or application of the projects we have chosen from our programmes for feedback purpose.

Please seize this opportunity to provide your own lines of thought and observation for improvement, adjustment and development by sharing with us and others the outcomes and/or experiences resulting from the communications we have had with you and or your use/application or participation/support concerning the programmes and projects below.

We would like to know how helpful, effective and efficient did you find in these programmes and projects, and what lessons, experiences did you learn and what can be done for the development or the future of our poverty relief work in coming years.

 

• • Summer Selection and Collection of 12 Initiatives for Feedback One and 9 for Feedback Two

 

We would like to inform you that some of the projects selected may have the same title like the year before.  However, the focus and contents for this year and each year are completely different.  In other words, what matters is not the title of the project or programme, but what is inside them or their insight.

As part of our feedback action plan, we have selected the following programmes and projects for Feedback I and II.

 

 

Feedback I: Projects and Programmes for Feedback from Individuals (Supporters and Users’ Experiences)

 

There are 12 selected initiatives for Feedback I as follows:

 

1) Summer 2023 Festival with a Focus on Financial Inclusion to Improve the Quality of Poor People’s Lives

2) August 2023 Trending Activities of Following the Direction of Poverty Reduction through Marine and Coastal Ecosystem Services

3) Data and Insight Skills to Manage Your Household

4) Grey Spaces-focused and Spacing Analysis to Reduce Poverty

5) “A la une” Campaign with an Emphasis on the Safeguard of Critically Endangered Insects and Invertebrates

6) Self-efficacy Skills to Refresh Ways of Tackling Crises 

7) Financial Controls 2024 for Households

8) Matching Organisation-Investor Programme

9) Tricennium

10) Financial Resilience Programme for Households

11) Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households

12) African Children’s Climate, Nature & Sustainable Development Goals with a Focus on Coming out Crises with Children.

 

 

Feedback II: Projects and Programmes for Feedback from Organisations (Africa-based Sister Organisations’ Voices)

 

We have selected 9 initiatives for Feedback II as follows:

 

1) Libya-Morocco Joint Influence Appeal

2) 2023-2024 Discussions on Africa Matters held within CENFACS’ be.Africa Forum 

3) Support Children Impacted by Crisis in Africa

4) Giving Hope for the Humanitarian Needy of the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2024

5) Halving Child Poverty in the G5 Sahel

6) Lighting a Blaze of Hope for the Rain-Hit and Food Insecure in Chad, Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo

7) Burundi’s Flood Victims Ask for Your Aid

8) Africa Not-for-profit Investment 2024

9) Conflict- and Natural Disaster-related Internally Displaced Persons in Africa Need Your Influence Now!

 

The above selected 2023-2024 programmes and projects are the result of a difficult arbitration in decision-making about initiatives to retain for both Feedbacks I and II.  They may seem a lot for a feedback purpose. However, what we have done is to give to people and organisations the opportunity to choose or pick the one (s) they know or associate with to feedback.

For the effectiveness of the feedback, we suggest that people or organisations to pick only 1 or 2 initiatives to give their feedback.  Also, it is better to provide an independent feedback, that is specific, timely, respectful and aligned with the work of poverty reduction that CENFACS does.

 

• • • How do you provide your feedback?

 

There are online feedback collection tools (such as survey monkey, visual feedback, type form, online review, etc.).  For the simplicity of our Impact Feedback model, we would very much appreciate if you could provide us your feedback…

 

(a) via e-mail, text, phone, web comments or reviews

(b) in your own words, numbers, voices and information graphics (info-graphics).

 

Please do it by saying the way in which the above named programmes and projects have affected you or the people you recommended to use them or your organisation or sister organisation.

We would much appreciate if your feedback could be specific, timely, respectful and aligned with CENFACS‘ mission, goals and values.

You could rate (by using numbers or percentages or ratios) these programmes and projects or provide a statement (by using words) or even give a chart or table (as information graphics). You can as well record your voice and run a video or short film.   This is aptly up to you.

Please remember, we can only help reduce poverty and do the changes we all want if you tell us what you think; not us only telling you what we do.

Please consider our request for an independent feedback and for your testimonial support.  

 

• • • Need further information about the above programmes and projects before your feedback 

 

Those who have been following the work that CENFACS does will be familiar with the above mentioned projects and programmes.  They may not need further details about them.

Those who want to provide feedback and would like to request the details or summaries of the above selected programmes and projects prior to their feedback, they are free to make their request to us.

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

This feedback is due by the END OF JULY 2024.

_________

 

• References

 

(1) https://www.imperial.ac.uk/stuff/educational-development/teaching-toolkit/assessment-and-feedback/introduction-to-assessment-and-feedback/ (accessed in July 2023)

(2) Gallegos, J. A. (2016), What is User Generated Content: Complete Guide to UGC & Why you need it  

(3) https://www.datarobot.com/blog/what-are-data-insights/ (accessed in July 2023)

(4) https://www.masterindatascience.org/learning/what-is-data-analytics/ (accessed in July 2023)

(5) https://economics11.com/economic-opportunity/ (accessed in July 2024)

(6) https://www.sopact.com/guides/monitoring-and-evaluation-tools (accessed in July 2024)

(7) https://www.sopact.com/perspectives/impact-indicators (accessed in July 2024)

_________

 

• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going This Year

 

We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis.  Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.

One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.

Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS.  Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE AND BEAUTIFUL CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.

JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)

Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.

Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.

We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2024 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

03 July 2024

 

Post No. 359

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Analytics and Impact Month 2024

• Activity/Task 7 of the Transitions (t) Year/Project: Check and Measure the Transition Progress Made by Those in Need

• Goal of the Month: Reduce Poverty with Measurable Impact

 

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Analytics and Impact Month 2024

 

July is CENFACS’ Analytics and Impact Month as it is the time of the year during which we conduct the impact assessment, monitoring, evaluation, review, assurance, reporting and analytics of our programmes and projects.  Through these exercises, we analyse what we did over the last 345 days, seize the outputs and, if possible, capture the early impacts made.

It is the time we focus on the effects of our intervention while reviewing what worked well, what badly worked and what did not work at all.  We do it by bringing all together the programmes and projects as well as activities that made the preceding financial year.  This is what we usually call All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment.

It is a feedback because we ask all our stakeholders (our beneficiaries) to give their opinions about our work.  This beneficiary or participatory monitoring aims to track the perceptions of project and programme beneficiaries.  We expect them to provide us with their unbiased, independent, true and fair views and feelings about our work.  From what they feedback and what we have collected as data, we can assess or judge our performance against aims, goals and targets of poverty reduction and sustainable development we set up at the beginning of the financial year.

July is also a time to deep dive into numbers and to listen to what these numbers (numerical data) are telling us; for example if we have been on track or running behind or even tracking ahead.  This tracking exercise (or financial monitoring) helps us to discover patterns in numbers achieved and to spot trends.

The analytics activity further guides us to know if we hit targets or not, and to focus time and energy on our core mission while adjusting and redeveloping our programmes and projects in improved direction.  From data analysed, we can get information about users’ experience and undertake products/services design and development.  In doing so, this gives us the opportunity to predict and plan future activities while reconnecting with stakeholders and stewarding new donors.

The impact activity helps us to start getting early signs or signals of the systematic change that we would like together with our users to instil into long term change.  This activity enables us to begin foreseeing the broader and long-term change or effects of the programmes and projects we implemented in the last 345 days.

For more information about All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment or CENFACS’ Analytics and Impact Month, please read under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

• Activity/Task 7 of the Transitions (t) Year/Project: Check and Measure the Transition Progress Made by Those in Need

 

Our transition analysis and metrics to track transition continue with Activity/Task 7.  Indeed, those who are transitioning need sometimes their progress to be checked or discussed and measured so that they can be aware that they are in the right direction of their transition goal, project and plan.

As part of the Transitions (t) Year and Project, we will be working with those in need to discuss their transition progress and measure it.  To do that, we are going to use transition metrics.  These are measures of performance skills and speed in any action they are carrying out during transitions or turns.  These capturing metrics to track transition can include transition time, turn rate, push-off time, etc.

The above is what activity/task 7 is about.  Those who would like to undertake it can go ahead.

For those who need some help before embarking on this activity/task, they can speak to CENFACS.

For any other queries and enquiries about the ‘t‘ project and this year’s dedication, please contact CENFACS as well.

 

 

• Goal of the Month: Reduce Poverty with Measurable Impact

 

As we are in CENFACS’ Analytics and Impact Month 2024, we are looking for initiatives of poverty reduction with measurable impact.

There are times when poverty reduction come with measurable impact on other areas of life, while there are other times it does not.  What many people living in poverty and hardship would like to see is poverty reduction with impact.  What is poverty reduction with impact?

 

• • Explaining Poverty Reduction with Impact

 

Poverty Reduction with Impact or Impactful Poverty Reduction is about getting reduced the state in which resources are lacking, but achieving that reduction with a positive change in the long term for those in need.  If there is poverty reduction without long term positive change, then there could be no impact or very little impact on the poor people.  Yet, those living in poverty would like to reduce poverty with positive impact or a relatively stronger or higher positive impact on other areas of their life.

Changes or impact may take time to happen or appear.  However, indication or signs need to show that we are heading the right direction following poverty reduction activities.  If not, one may try to use a results chain model (e.g., input>output>outcome>long-term change) to deal with impact or establish cause-effect relations between poverty reduction actions and impact.  In other words, one needs to use measuring impact framework to check if there has been an impact or not.

 

• • Measuring the Impact or Difference as a Result of One’s Intervention

 

To capture the impact of an intervention, one can refer to the five dimensions of impact as provided by Sopact.com (1), dimensions which include what (outcomes to achieve), who (the target population), how much (the scale, depth, and duration of the impact), contribution (difference made with intervention), and risk (external factors and assumptions that influence results).

These dimensions will help to measure the impact or difference as a result of one’s intervention or work with or help to the poor.  Measurable impact would be the quantifiable outcome attributed to any intervention activities over a set period of which contribute to reducing poverty.  To this purpose, one can employ impact indicators or metrics to measure success in reducing poverty or their ability to serve a currently unserved or underserved people.  

As part of the poverty reduction goal for July 2024, our supporters and audiences can help Reduce Poverty with Measurable Impact for the needy.  We expect them to support this goal.

For any queries and/or enquiries regarding this goal including its support, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Shop at CENFACS’ Zero-Waste e-Store during Summer Season

• World Anti-poverty System: Does the World Need Too Many Crises to Have an International System for Poverty Reduction or to Carry on with Minor Adjustments to the Current International System?

• CENFACS’ be.Africa Forum E-discusses African State Sovereignty and Poverty Reduction in Africa

 

 

• Shop at CENFACS’ Zero-Waste e-Store during Summer Season

 

CENFACS e-Store is opened for your Summer goods donations and goods purchases.

At this time, many people have been affected by the lingering impact of the high cost of living mostly driven by the hikes in prices of basic life-sustaining needs (e.g., food, energy, transport, housing, council tax, phone, etc.).

The impacted of the high cost of living needs help and support as prices and bills are significantly above real household disposable incomes for many of those living in poverty.

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

You can donate or recycle your unwanted and unneeded goods to CENFACS’ Zero-Waste e-Store, the shop built to help alleviate poverty, lift people out of poverty and prevent poverty and hardships to happen.

Donating or recycling goods will not only help to reduce poverty.  It will also improve your household circularity and circular transition indicators while creating spaces.

You can as well buy second hand goods and bargain priced new items and much more at CENFACS’ Zero-Waste e-Store.

CENFACS’ Zero-Waste e-Store needs your support for SHOPPING and GOODS DONATIONS to reduce poverty with measurable impact.

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

You can DONATE or SHOP or do both:

√ DONATE unwanted GOODS, GIFTS and PRODUCTS to CENFACS Zero-Waste e-Store this Summer.

√ SHOP at CENFACS Zero-Waste e-Store to support the noble and beautiful cause of poverty reduction with measurable impact this Summer.

Your SHOPPING and or GOODS DONATIONS will help to the Upkeep of the Nature and to reduce poverty and hardships with measurable impact; poverty and hardships exacerbated or brought by the higher cost of living.

This is what the Season of Giving or Summer of Giving is all about.

Please do not hesitate to donate goods or purchase what is available at CENFACS Zero-Waste e-Store.

Many lives have been threatened and destroyed by the higher cost of living. 

We need help to help them come out poverty and hardships caused by the higher cost of living.

To donate or purchase goods, please go to: http://cenfacs.org.uk/shop/

 

 

• World Anti-poverty System: Does the World Need Too Many Crises to Have an International System for Poverty Reduction or to Carry on with Minor Adjustments to the Current System?

 

The world can choose to wait for many crises to happen before having an International System for Poverty Reduction or to carry on with minor or aesthetic adjustments to the current international system.  As far as CENFACS is concerned, the world needs to hear and give the voice of the poor through an International System for Poverty Reduction. 

The world can re-create and innovate the international system through the Creation of an International System for Poverty Reduction, which does not exist.   Too many crises that make the world’s poor to bear the brunt of them can only mean that an International System for Poverty Reduction is required; a system that can give them a voice instead of patchy adjustments to the global system.

Too many crises and minor adjustments to the current system are yet a further evidence to raise the question of an international or global system to deal with poverty.

If we had an International System for Poverty Reduction (that is a World Anti-poverty System comparable to the institutions of Bretton Woods System), would this system makes the world a better place for the poor? 

Every time, there is a global crisis or overlapping crises, this question comes back, time and time again. 

If you think that an International System for Poverty Reduction could have protected the world’s poorest from too many crises, please let us know your arguments.  If you do not think so, still let us know what you think.

An International System for Poverty Reduction is a missing piece in the world’s institutional systems.  This is CENFACS‘ campaign point, which is the creation of an International System for Poverty Reduction.

You can support the campaign or movement for a World Anti-poverty System or International System for Poverty Reduction with your VOICE, by E-SIGNING petition, E-MOBILISING your energy, BRANDING EVENT, etc.

You can join CENFACS’ Campaign for an International System for Poverty Reduction.  To join, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

• CENFACS’ be.Africa Forum E-discusses African State Sovereignty and Poverty Reduction in Africa

 

This is a discussion about the link between state sovereignty or control and poverty reduction in Africa.  It is also a debate between state power and poverty for those living in spaces that their state cannot control.  Yet, their state is supposed to have power on those spaces which are part of state territory.  Perhaps, the starting point of this discussion is clarify the concepts of state sovereignty and poverty reduction.

 

• • The Concepts of State Sovereignty and Poverty Reduction

 

The concept of sovereignty is perceived in terms political theory like ‘britannica.com’ (2) defines it as

“The ultimate overseer, or authority, in the decision-making process of the state and in the maintenance of order”.

State sovereignty is thus the legal authority and responsibility of an independent state to govern and regulate its political affairs without foreign interference.

As to the concept of poverty reduction, it will be approached as any measures or efforts to support those who are unable to meet the necessities for subsistence, in particular those who are deemed to receive benefit payments.  Hypothetically, these unable to support themselves live in those spaces.

Like in a discussion of this kind, there are proponents and opponents about this link, as the terms of this discussion highlight it.

 

• • Terms of be.Africa Forum E-discussion

 

It is argued that where states or governments have lost control or sovereignty of a particular area of its territory or land, this loss could lead to the deterioration of economic conditions and possibly an increased poverty if that area is run by forces that are not interested in the prosperity of that area.  Loss of territorial control can happen in various situations like during conflicts, insecurity, natural catastrophes, health disaster, etc.  These events can challenge state or government authority, capacity and capability to control its territory and keep the work of poverty reduction going.

When these events happen whatever the reason, the link between the work on poverty reduction and state control over spaces stricken by these events could become loose in certain situations.  This is the case for some countries that are undergoing some major crises like conflicts that led to the loss of control over some of their spaces.  The people living in these lost spaces are finding life difficult to cope or survive.  This difficulty to cope or survive can suggest that there could be a relationship between loss of sovereignty and poverty.  In other words, control of sovereignty can be associated with poverty reduction.

The above is the argument for discussion.  There could be counterarguments.  CENFACS would like to know what you think.  If you have argument about African State Sovereignty and Poverty Reduction in Africa, please do not hesitate to let CENFACS know.

Those who may be interested in this discussion can join in and or contribute by contacting CENFACS’ be.Africa, which is a forum for discussion on matters of poverty reduction and sustainable development in Africa and which acts on behalf of its members in making proposals or ideas for actions for a better Africa.

To communicate with CENFACS regarding this discussion, please use our usual contact details on this website.

 

 

 

Message in French (Message en français)

 

• Couvrir les dépenses de base pour les enfants en détresse en Afrique cet été

Couvrir les dépenses de base pour les enfants, les jeunes et les familles en détresse en Afrique est l’un des projets de l’appel d’été qui constitue la première partie de notre programme d’été, qui est déjà publié.

L’appel vise à soutenir les enfants, les jeunes gens et les familles (EJGF), dans des endroits d’Afrique où le niveau de pauvreté est déjà élevé, en particulier dans les espaces où les gouvernements ont perdu leur souveraineté ou leur contrôle en raison des conflits et de l’insécurité persistants et polarisants dans certaines parties de l’Afrique.

Soutenir cet appel signifie aider les EJGF à minimiser et à atténuer les impacts de la poursuite du conflit et de l’insécurité sur eux.  Votre soutien contribuera à réduire les risques et les impacts que la polarisation des conflits et de l’insécurité peut avoir en termes de tragédie, de pauvreté intergénérationnelle, etc.  Votre aide est nécessaire pour répondre aux signaux de détresse des EJGF.

On peut penser à un enfant ou à un jeune sans rêves ni attentes, quel sera son avenir, en particulier dans des espaces (comme la partie nord-est de la République Démocratique du Congo) où les conditions de sécurité se détériorent durablement dans les zones touchées par le conflit.

Pouvez-vous aider cet enfant?  Oui ou Non!
Si vous dites oui; alors vous pouvez aider…

√ cet enfant à rêver et à espérer une vie et un avenir meilleurs

√ à faire en sorte que les conflits polarisés ne deviennent une contrainte structurelle et un handicap pour cet enfant

√ à mettre fin à l’insécurité sans fin et créant des impacts négatifs à vie sur les enfants et les jeunes

√ à empêcher la vie des enfants et des jeunes de passer sous le seuil de pauvreté

√ à arrêter la génération perdue de conflits polarisés de se produire en Afrique.

Pour que cela se produise, soutenez «Couvrir les dépenses de base pour les enfants, les jeunes et les familles en détresse en Afrique».

Pour soutenir cet appel, veuillez contacter le CENFACS sur ce site Web.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Analytics and Impact Month 2024

 

The name of the July game at CENFACS is Impact Assessment, Monitoring, Evaluation, Review, Assurance, Reporting and Analytics.  July is the month during which we conduct our impact assessment, monitoring, evaluation, assurance, review, reporting and analytics of the projects and programmes we delivered during almost last 11 months and 2 weeks.

This July, the way in which we have organised ourselves to conduct the Analytics and Impact Month 2024 is summarised under the following sub-headlines:

 

∝ Key Words for the Analytics and Impact Month 2024

∝ Analytics and Impact Activities

∝ The Analytical Process within CENFACS

∝ What Is CENFACS Analytics Dashboard?

∝ Analytics of the Year of Transitions as an Example of Analytical Process within CENFACS

∝ Impact Monitoring of Monthly Goals

∝ All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment for July 2024.

 

Let us look at each of these sub-headlines.

 

• • Key Words for the Analytics and Impact Month 2024

 

There are seven key words we are using which are: impact, monitoring, evaluation, assurance, review, reporting and analytics.

Let us briefly explain these key words.

 

1) Impact

 

Normally, it takes a considerable amount of time to get the real impact of any intervention, project and programme.  However, because we are talking about finding out what projects and programmes have achieved, it makes sense to clarify what we mean by impact.

To do that, we are going to consider different terminologies surrounding impact; terminologies used within the impact literature or field.  These terminologies are impact analysis, impact assessment, impact monitoring and impact reporting.   Let us briefly explain these terms.

 

1.1 & 1.2) Impact Analysis and Assessment

 

To explain these two concepts, we are going to borrow the definition of impact from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).  The OECD (3) differentiates ex ante impact from ex post impact.  This is what it argues.

“Ex ante impact analysis is the needs analysis and planning activity of the policy cycle.  It is a prospective analysis of what the impact of an intervention might be, so as to inform policy making”.

“Ex post impact assessment is the evaluation and management of the policy cycle.  Evaluation aims to understand to what extent and how a policy intervention corrects the problem it was intended to address.  Impact assessment focuses on the effects of the intervention, whereas evaluation is likely to cover a wider range of issues such as the appropriateness of the intervention design, the cost and the efficiency of the intervention, its unintended effects and how to use the experience from this intervention to improve the design of future interventions”.

The above definitions help to understand the scope and scale of the impact of most interventions.

As far as CENFACS is concerned, we will be doing evaluation activities for some programmes and projects; and impact assessments for others.  This is because impact assessment is mostly a theory-based activity and has a narrow and tightly-defined focus.  Where we need to design evaluation questions and use evaluation techniques, we will do evaluation.  Where there is a need for a tightly-defined focus, we will do impact assessment.

We are as well considering that the initiative for change comes from project users or beneficiaries not from CENFACS or CENFACS’ projects or programmes.  This is because the impact analysis model of change we are using is a non-linear one.  Despite this non-linearity of the theory of change used, our impact analysis will still be based on causality and attribution approach.

 

1.3) Impact Reporting

 

After carrying out the analytics and impact of our programmes and projects, we need to report our findings or results.  Although we have not yet reached this step, we need to start thinking of the way we shall report.  In technical parlance, we need to proceed or think of impact reporting.  What is impact reporting?

The website ‘sopact.com’ (4) states that

“Impact reporting is a powerful tool that organisations use to showcase the positive changes they bring to communities and the environment.  A well-constructed impact report tells a story of transformation, capturing the outcomes achieved and the significance of the impact”.

During this July 2024, we will be thinking of the various pieces that will make our impact reporting as we are analysing the data from the last twelve months.

 

2 & 3) Impact Monitoring and Evaluation

 

We are going to use the definition of monitoring and evaluation as given by Kersty Hobson, Ruth Mayne and Jo Hamilton (5) in their “A Step by Step guide to Monitoring and Evaluation”.

Regarding monitoring, Hobson et al. define it as

“The collection and analysis of information about a project or programme undertaken while the project or programme is on-going”. (p. 5)

Arguing about monitoring, Intrac (6) considers that there are many types of monitoring which include process or performance monitoring, results or impact monitoring, beneficiary monitoring or beneficiary contact monitoring, situation monitoring or scanning, financial monitoring, administrative or logistics monitoring management information.

During our Analytics and Impact Month 2024, we will be working on three monitoring activities which include performance, impact and financial monitoring.

Concerning evaluation, Hobson et al. (op. ct.) explain it as

“The periodic, retrospective assessment of an organisation, project or programme that might be conducted internally or by external independent evaluators”. (p. 5)

In reality, there are many types of evaluation which include formative evaluation, summative evaluation, outcome evaluation, impact evaluation, etc.

The July 2024 evaluation will help CENFACS to evaluate the appropriateness of CENFACS‘ intervention design, the cost and efficiency of its intervention, the unintended effects of this ending financial year’s intervention and the need to improve the design of future interventions.

The Analytics and Impact Month 2024 will be mostly concerned with impact evaluation.  An impact evaluation can be defined in many ways. 

For example, the website ‘betterevaluation.org’ (7) explains that

“An impact evaluation provides information about the impacts produced by an intervention.  The intervention might be a small project, a large programme, a collection of activities or a policy”.

From the above-mentioned definitions of monitoring and evaluation, it is understood that monitoring is an on-going process whereas evaluation is a periodic or discrete one.

 

4) Assurance

 

July is also the month to revisit our commitment to the detection and prevention of quality problems that can hinder the quality of our poverty reduction produce or service.  Put it simply, assurance is part and parcel of CENFACS‘ July analytics and Impact work.  What is assurance?

By assurance, we simply mean what His Majesty Treasury (8) argues, which is

“Assurance is an objective examination of evidence for the purpose of providing an independent assessment on governance, risk management and control processes for the organisation.  An assurance framework is a structured means of identifying and mapping the main sources of assurance in organisation, and co-ordinating them to best effect”.

Assurance can be internal and external.  In our analytics work, we are conducting internal assurance.  What does it mean?

It means what for example ‘anngravells.com’ (9) argues about internal quality assurance, which

“Seeks to ensure that assessment activities have been conducted in a consistent, safe and fair manner”.

This internal quality assurance, which took place since our programmes and projects started, will continue and be deepened this month as it is the Analytics and Impact Month.  This will be done via impact feedbacks.

 

5) Review

 

We have referred to the online source ‘method123.com’ (10) for the meaning of this key word.  This online source defines review as

“An assessment of the status of a project at a particular point in time”.

From this online perspective, we have been performing a project management review at the end of each phase of our projects and programmes.  We have been verifying whether or not we have met the objectives.  If so, then a decision needed to be approved to proceed to the next project or programme phase.

July is the month we put together all these small project reviews conducted while doing the last reviews for those projects and programmes pending for a final review.

 

6) Analytics

 

There are many approaches to analytics.  In the context of our July work, we have selected an explanation from ‘dictionary.com’ (11) which is as follows:

“The patterns and other meaningful information gathered from the analysis of data”.

The website ‘oracle.com’ (12) goes further by explaining that

“Analytics is the process of discovering, interpreting and communicating significant patterns in data.  Quite simply, analytics helps us see insights and meaningful data that we might not otherwise detect”.

The website ‘bmc.com’ (13) goes broader by stating that

“Data analytics is a broad term that defines the concept and practice (or, perhaps science and art) of all activities related to data…Data analytics is broader in scope and refers to the process of using data and analytical tools to find new insights and make predictions”.

The same web ‘bmc.com’ gives the activities relating to data analytics, which are: data collection, refining, storage, analysis and delivery.

Like any charity analytics, CENFACS Analytics helps to make informed decisions, drive and increase poverty reduction services or sales, reduce costs and improve poverty reduction outcomes/produce.  It finally helps us to better deliver a user experience for our projects and programmes by hearing the voice of the project beneficiaries.

 

• • Analytics and Impact Activities

 

In order to carry out the activities relating to Analytics and Impact Month 2024, we have organised them between analytics and impact activities.  To explain these types of activities, let us start with activities.

Activities are according to ‘intrac.org’ (14),

“Actions taken or work performed through which inputs, such as funds, technical assistance and other types of resources are mobilised to produce specific outputs”.

From this definition of activities, we can now explain impact and analytics activities.

 

• • • Impact activities

 

Impact activities are actions that led to changes.  Impact activities enable creation, innovation, reflection, negotiation and support for those in need.

An example of Impact activities could be informing and stimulating support or debate – via humanitarian appeals – on the conditions of people stricken by conflicts like in the north-eastern parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

 

• • • Analytics activities

 

Analytics activities are those that provide an idea about user engagement on our programmes and projects.  Through this activity, we can track and analyse user interactions with our programmes.

For example, Analytics activities can help us to find out the number of people who used our advice service or the different resources to support them to develop their capacity throughout the year.

Both Impact and Analytics activities stem from impact plan and analytics plan we developed to carry out Analytics and Impact Month 2024.

 

• • The Analytical and Impact Processes within CENFACS

 

We have been continuously and at discrete points in time tracking what has been happening within our programmes and projects while using the data collected to inform programme and project implementation as well as day-to-day management and decisions during the above named period.  However, in July this monitoring exercise becomes more intense.

Likewise, we have been periodically assessing the objectives of our planned, on-going, or completed projects, programmes, or policies.  During these evaluation processes, we have tried to selectively answer specific questions related to the design, implementation, and results of our programmes and projects.

In July, these evaluation activities become further pronounced as we assess what these programmes and projects have achieved in relation to the overall objectives we set up for them.  The results of this evaluation are fed back to improve these programmes and projects, or alternatively to design and develop new ones.

Still in July, we critically examine, reappraise or reconsider our objectives and policies to achievements, and see if there is any progress or set back.  This review enables us to improve as well.

What’s more in July, we look at again our loyalty to the detection and prevention of quality issues.  This assurance assists in maintaining and improving the quality of our poverty reduction produce.

Throughout the year, we work to finding out, interpret and communicate patterns in data in a meaningful way to the work of CENFACS.  We apply those patterns in our decision making process.  In July, we put extra emphasis on this analytics which becomes very profound.

Briefly, July is the time we do our Summer tracking by reconsidering the value and relevancy of our work, let alone the overall state of our charitable work.  It is in this period of the year that we carry out what we call All-in-One Impact Feedback and Assessment.  In other words, we try to listen to our stakeholders while tracking the effects of our intervention and capturing the early impacts of our work by considering all the pieces together as one.

One of the key information management tools we use to do our impact analytics is CENFACS Analytics Dashboard.

 

 

• • What Is CENFACS Analytics Dashboard?

 

CENFACS Analytics Dashboard is an information management tool that tracks, analyses and displays key performance indicators, poverty reduction diagnostics, poverty relief metrics/dashboards, results from CENFACS’ poverty relief league, etc.

 

• • • What else does CENFACS Analytics Dashboard offer?

 

√ It monitors the health of CENFACS in terms of the relationships of support received to outputs and outcomes generated.

√ It provides as well infographics and summaries about some of the campaigns conducted.

√ It enables to discover and identify poverty reduction problems from the examination of symptoms it helps find.

√ It assists in engineering analytical solutions to the problem of reducing poverty.

√ It finally helps to retrieve information from CENFACS repository about the resources to help users and supporters.

For example, during the early stage of the coronavirus pandemic, we used CENFACS Analytics Dashboard to check the health of CENFACS and state of running of CENFACS’ projects and programmes.  This checking enabled us to know the extent to which the coronavirus pandemic affected the running of CENFACS and its services.  Knowing the distributional effects of the coronavirus pandemic on our projects and programmes, this knowledge helped us to reorganise these projects and programmes differently.

For more on CENFACS Analytics Dashboard, please contact CENFACS.

 

• • Analytics of the Year of Transitions as an Example of Analytical Process within CENFACS

 

Analytics of the Year of Transitions will be done following the processes of data analytics, which include collecting and ingesting, categorising, managing, storing, performing ETL (extract, transfer and load), analysing and sharing data.  Knowing these processes, we can define the Analytics of CENFACS’ Year of Transitions.

The analytics or tracking of Transitions Year is the 6-month analysis and turning of raw data insights for making better decisions in terms of helping to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.  To make this possible, we have created a booklet or journal of creative activities or tasks carried out so far to mark 2024 as a Transitions Year.  This booklet/journal is also a record of data.

 

• • • Booklet/Journal of 2024 Activities as Year of Transitions

  

Inside this Booklet/Journal of Year of Transitions, there is one activity or task per month to be carried out by users.  Alongside this activity or task, there is a metrics or analytics indicator to enable the owner of the booklet or journal to measure their performance as shown below.

 

January 2024

 

Activity/Task 1: Support People in Need to Transition out of Consumption-based Poverty

Selected analytics quantitative indicator for Activity/Task 1: The number of people into and out of poverty because of lack of or less consumption for a given period (to get this number we looked at entry and exit to poverty linked to consumption, poverty line, incidence poverty and the depth of poverty)

 

February 2024

 

Activity/Task 2: Work with People to Transition to Sustainable Production

Selected analytics quantitative indicator for Activity/Task 2: The number of poor households that process and produce efficiently (e.g., level of decrease in indoor pollution or greenhouse gas concentrations or number of households using non-polluting stoves, cooking meal with clean energy and less indoor pollution by moving from brown economy/energy to green economy/energy)

 

March 2024

 

Activity/Task 3: Help Combat Inequality in Climate Transitions

Selected analytics quantitative indicator for Activity/Task 3: The reduction of gender inequality linked to policies, the disproportional loss of assets and income suffered by disadvantaged groups because of inequalities in the dissymmetrical impacts of climate change, greater exposure and vulnerability of disadvantaged groups to climate change. 

 

April 2024

 

Activity/Task 4: Protect People who Are Transitioning

Selected analytics quantitative indicator for Activity/Task 4: The number of people protected who are transitioning towards climate-resilient water access and land use in rural and urban areas.

 

May 2024

 

Activity/Task 5: Provide Inspiring Stories of Out-of-Poverty Transitions

Selected analytics quantitative indicator for Activity/Task 5: The storytelling metrics (i.e., reach and engagement, retention and completion, conversion and action, loyalty and advocacy, insight and learning, and emotion and connection) for the people transitioning out of poverty.

 

June 2024

 

Activity/Task 6: Work with the Needy to Improve Creations and Innovations Linked to Transition

Selected analytics quantitative indicator for Activity/Task 6: The number of creative and innovative arts, crafts and/or design objects produced by the needy to transition out of poverty and hardships, or their transition into content creation and innovation to reduce poverty they are facing and/or enhance sustainable development.

So, we can use leading and lagging transition indicators or metrics to help in understanding the main benefits of the transition process. 

One can journal, quantify and gain insight of the meaning of the data about the last 6 months of Transitions Year from this booklet/journal of creative activities and make good decision on how to better help to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.

 

• • • Impact Monitoring of Monthly Goals

 

Every month we set up a poverty reduction goal to be achieved for the month.  As part of the Analytics and Impact Month, we are starting to assess the changes brought about or by the poverty reduction goals we set up since January 2024.  We can use poverty reduction monitoring metrics to conduct this assessment.

The following are the poverty reduction goals we set up from January to June 2024.  We have also included besides these goals impact monitoring metrics that can be used.

 

January 2024

 

Goal for the Month: Reduction of Consumption-based Poverty

Impact monitoring metric for January 2024 goal: Expenditure-based poverty measures, households in expenditure poverty

 

February 2024

 

Triple Goal for the Month: Reduction of Poverty Linked to Inequality, Inaccessibility and Landlessness

Impact monitoring metrics for February 2024 triple goal: The number of poor households homeowners, the number of women landowners, and the number of poor people with access to basic life-sustaining services (such as clean and safe drinking water, sanitation, health, digital technology, etc.) 

 

March 2024

 

Goal for the Month: Reduction of Transitory Poverty

Impact monitoring metric for March 2024 goal: The number of people in temporary, adverse income shocks or the number of people resilient to income shocks or even the number of people in a slow ascent form of poor initial conditions

 

April 2024

 

Goal for the Month: Reduction of poverty as a lack of protection linked to spending

Impact monitoring metric for April 2024 goal: The number of people receiving income protection from government or third parties (e.g., charities)

 

May 2024

 

Goal for the Month: Make Poverty Reduction Happen through Stories

Impact monitoring metric for May 2024 goal: The number of people who came out of poverty because of inspiring and motivating stories they heard

 

June 2024

 

Goal for the Month: Poverty Reduction through Entrepreneurship

Impact monitoring metric for June 2024 goal: The number of poor people in income-generating activities or who became entrepreneurs.

This tracking is about getting beneficiaries’ results or outcomes.

 

• • All-in-one Impact Feedback and Assessment for July 2024

 

This month, we will be conducting three levels of ex post Impact Assessment:

 

(a)  Impact monitoring and evaluation of the programmes and projects we ran in the last financial year

(b) Impact assessment of CENFACS’ Programme of Building Forward Better Together to a Greener, Cleaner, Safer, Inclusive and Climate-Resilient Future

(c) Impact feedback about our XX236.3F Programme.

 

As said above, this Impact Assessment will be ex post.  And the evaluation related to this exercise will aim to understand the extent to which and the way in which our projects and programmes corrected the problems of poverty and unsustainable development amongst our intended beneficiaries.

Let us briefly summarise the three levels of impact assessment to be conducted.

 

(a) Impact monitoring and evaluation of the programmes and projects we ran in the last financial year

 

As the title of impact indicates, it will be about putting together in the form of one piece of work all the results of monitoring and evaluation activities we have conducted for programmes and projects we ran in the last financial year.

 

(b) Impact assessment of CENFACS’ Process of Building Forward Better Together to a Greener, Cleaner, Safer, Inclusive and Climate-Resilient Future

 

We are going to seize the impact of “Build Forward Better Together to a Greener, Cleaner, Safer, Inclusive and Climate-Resilient Future” but within the context of Squeezed Household Spending.  We shall look at the impact of the 2023-2024 process of Building Forward Better Together on our system of poverty reduction, particularly on CENFACS’ 2020s Poverty Reduction Tools and Programme, and Development Agenda (15).

 

(c) Impact feedback about our XX236.3F Programme

 

Like last year, this year’s All-in-One Impact Feedback and Assessment will be extended to include our XX236.3F programme as we are in the month of Monitoring and Evaluation.

XX236.3F is our 2020 to 2030 to 2063 Follow up Programme.  We are following the implementation of the following:

 

∝ The International Climate Change Agreement (or the Paris Treaty)

∝ The Istanbul Declaration (the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women)

∝ The Maputo Protocol (the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa)

∝ The United Nations 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals

∝ Africa’s Agenda 2063.

 

The five of them make up our XX236.3F programme.

 

In brief, we shall conduct a follow-up and examination, look back and analyse data on the overall projects and programmes delivered during the above stated period, while keeping implementing our XX236.3F programme.

We shall soon publish the programmes and projects making this year’s Analytics and Impact.  In meantime, for any enquiries about the Analytics Month 2024, please contact CENFACS.

_________

 

• References

 

(1) https://www.sopact.com/perspectives/five-dimensions-of-impact# (accessed in July 2023)

(2) https://www.britannica.com/topic/sovereignty (accessed in June 2024)

(3) https://www.oecd.org/sti/inno/what-is-impact-assessment-OECDImpact.pdf (accessed in July 2022)

(4) https://www.sopact.com/impact-reporting (accessed in July 2023)

(5) https://www.geog.ox.ac.uk/research/technologies/projects/monitoringandevaluation.html (accessed in July 2023)

(6) https://www.intrac.org/wpcms/up-content/uploads/2017/01/Monitoring.pdf (accessed in July 2023)

(7) https://www.betterevaluation.org/methods-approaches/themes/impact-evaluation (accessed in July 2023)

(8) https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/270485/assurance_frameworks_191212.pdf (accessed in July 2023)

(9) https://www.anngravells.com/information/iqa (accessed in July 2023)

(10) https://www.method123.com/initiation-phase-review.php (accessed in July 2023)

(11) https://www.dictionary.com/browse/analytics (accessed in July 2023)

(12) https://www.oracle.com/business-analytics/what-is-analytics/ (accessed in July 2024)

(13) https://www.bmc.com/blogs/data-analytics-vs-data-analysis/ (accessed in June 2024)

(14) https://www.intrac.org/upcms/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Monitoring-and-Evaluation-Series-Outcomes-Outputs-and-Impact-7.pdf (accessed in June 2024)

(15) cenfacs.org.uk/2020/03/11/the-2020s-agenda-and-programme/ (accessed in July 2024)

 

_________

 

• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going This Year

 

We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis.  Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.

One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.

Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS.  Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE AND BEAUTIFUL CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.

JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)

Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.

Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.

We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2024 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

26 June  2024

 

Post No. 358

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Season of Happiness 2024

• Project 30 – Act 3: Enhancement of the Quality of Life (24 to 30/06/2024)

• Execution of CEDM (Creative Economic Development Month) 2024 Sub-themes: Fourth Codes (from Week Beginning Monday 24/06/2024)

 

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Season of Happiness 2024

 

The Season of Happiness within CENFACS starts with Summer Season.  During the Season of Happiness 2024, we shall work with users to help them find out what can satisfy their lives during this Summer.  Our work with them will be about implementing existing initiatives while developing new ones that can make them feel happy or satisfy their lives.

So, our Season of Happiness or Summer of Happiness will be about the following three items/values:

 

1) How the CENFACS Community can spread happiness between its members to narrow the gap in happiness inequalities (value of spreading happiness)

2) How best to help those most in need within the CENFACS Community to feel happy, to achieve successful outcomes this Summer (value of sharing happiness)

3) How to create and innovate happiness-enhancing activities and projects to reduce poverty linked to the lack of happiness (creative and innovative value of happiness).

 

Additionally, we shall work with Africa-based Sister Organisations on ways of reducing inequality in happiness in the communities they serve.  Indeed, according to Helliwell et al. (1),

“Happiness inequality in Sub-Saharan Africa has increased by more than 50% for all age groups, and only slightly less so for those of middle age than for the old and the young.  For those under 30, inequality of happiness is by far the greatest in Sub-Saharan Africa”.

Although happiness is about the interplay between gene and environment, it is possible to work with the members of CENFACS Community to find happiness cure, become happy and feel well.  It is possible to help them overcome inequalities in happiness and achieve well-being.

To do that, we are going to consider what the science of happiness tells us.  We shall as well approach happiness as both an independent and interdependent concept.  In other words, happiness could be a personal or subjective experience for any member of our community.  Happiness can also be a collective participation for any of these members as belonging to a community, the CENFACS Community.  It is in this interaction between happiness as individual practice and happiness as collective experience that they can find their true balance or harmony or even resilience.

To sum up, during this 2024 Season of Happiness we are going to work with our users so that they can have aspects of their life in balance and feel at peace with their life despite the feeble economic revival.  The above is the way in which we would like to approach our 2024 Season of Happiness or Summer of Happiness.

Under the Main Development section of this post, we have provided further details including the projects and programmes making the 2024 Season of Happiness.

 

 

• Project 30 – Act 3: Enhancement of the Quality of Life (24 to 30/06/2024)

 

Working with local people and developing sustainable initiatives can only be meaningful if we had a vision or foresight.  Our ability to perceive what was/is likely to happen and systematically plan for it was/is the enhancement of the quality of life with and for those in need.

In this Act 3 of CENFACS‘ creation, we are recalling what we did together with the people in need or local people and Africa-based Sister Organisations to improve the quality of lives (that is, of people’s life and other living beings’ life).  This recall starts with what we mean by improving or enhancing the quality of life.

 

• • What Does Mean to Enhance the Quality of Life?

 

To understand what it means, one needs to first know the quality of life.  There are different definitions of the quality of life which tend to convey the same message.  One of these views comes from the World Health Organisation (2) which explains that

“The quality of life is an individual’s perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards and concerns”.

From the World Health Organisation’s perspective, the quality of life refers to a subjective evaluation which is embedded in a cultural, social and environmental context.

Another view on the quality of life stems from Teoli and Bharawaj (3) who explain that

“The quality of life is a concept which aims to capture the well-being, whether of a population or individual, regarding both positive and negative elements within the entirety of their existence at a specific point in time”.

Teoli and Bharawaj also refer to the World Health Organisation’s argument on the quality of life as a subjective evaluation of one’s perception of their reality relative to their goals as observed through the lens of their culture and value system.

Knowing what the quality of life is, it is possible to explain the expression ‘improving the quality of life’.

The explanation we have retained here for improving the quality of life comes from psychologists.  According to ‘relaxtheback.com’ (4), psychologists define improving the quality of life as

“The achievement of satisfaction across several aspects including emotional and psychological well-being, social relationships and engagement with others, personal and professional development including learning new skills, determining and living by our own lifestyle choices and values, participating in and contributing to society in meaningful ways”.

Many elements of this definition on ‘improving the quality of life’ are part of CENFACS‘ vision.  But, having a vision is one think, implementing it is another thing.

 

• • Recalling the History of the Enhancement of the Quality of Life

 

Thanks to the support of our stakeholders (i.e., donors/funders, volunteers, members, Africa-based Sister Organisations, project and programme users, etc.), we were able to implement the contents of our vision.  We used the standard indicators of the quality of life like wealth, employment, the environment, nature, health, education, housing, urbanisation, recreation and leisure, security, freedom, capability, safety, social belonging, income, etc.  In particular, we utilised the five core dimensions of the quality of life provided by Doris Fuchs et al. (5), which are political conditions, social conditions, economic conditions, environmental quality, and intra- and intergenerational equity/planetary boundaries.  These measures to capture the quality of life relate to well-being and sustainable development.

We assessed them by looking at how the people in need were doing in terms of these indicators or dimensions of the quality of life.   Where we noticed that poor people were failing to meet the average levels expected from these indicators, we took actions in the forms of humanitarian appeals, project planning and delivery, advocacy, campaign, advice, guidance, networking, outreach, referral, general support and signposting services to help them meet these indicators.

As part of this Act 3, we would like those who helped in improving lives with us to talk about topics relating to the following questions:

 

∝ What aspects of life did we help improve from what services did we provide?

∝ Whose lives did we assist together to improve and who did benefit?

∝ How many lives did we serve or improve and in what parts of Africa (e.g., country, region, locality, etc.)?

∝ How and what can we do to even help improve more lives in the future?

∝ What can we do to adapt or develop our mission and vision in today’s world and the coming years?

∝ How can we innovate to stay on course from the many challenges and threats ahead?

 

To talk with us , they can use the different ways of contacting us on this website.  For example, they can discuss with us via Twitter to voice their feelings or views about the above-mentioned topics or questions.

Briefly speaking, Act 3 is about all the changes and effects that happened as result of the work we did together with project and programme beneficiaries.  Since we are talking about a period of 30 years, it is also about seizing the broader, long-term changes in the lifetime of programmes we put in place together to work for the relief of poverty and hardship amongst the local people.  In terms of evaluation and monitoring of the project of Creation of CENFACS, we are looking at the tricennial outcomes and impact that the Creation of CENFACS has brought.

As explained above, Project 30 is about learning from this past and spot the future trends for poverty relief in an ever changing development landscape.  From the experience we had together with the locals and Africa-based Sister Organisations, we can together spot ways of improving the mission and vision of enhancing the quality of lives here in the UK and in Africa.

The above is the third and last Act of the Tricennium.  For those who would like to support this Act and/or Project 30, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Execution of CEDM (Creative Economic Development Month) 2024 Sub-themes: Fourth Codes (from Week Beginning Monday 24/06/2024)

 

The last decoding activity for our CEDM Working Weeks and Plan is on the following codes for each sub-theme:

 

√ CENFACS as a Creation for Hope and Future

√ Creations and innovations that are related to people’s/households’ transition model

√ Creations and innovations to change our poverty reduction system

√ Creations and innovations linked to household consumer protection.

 

Those who would like to engage with the CEDM 2024 can choose amongst the above-mentioned codes and contact CENFACS for decoding them.

 

• • Ways of Engaging with CEDM 2024

 

If one wants to know more about CENFACS as a Creation for Hope and Future, they can contact.  CENFACS will explain them and provide evidence why it is a good force for hope and future.  They can also take the opportunity of the Tricennium to participate or support any events linked to CENFACS as a Creation for Hope and Future.

Likewise, to transition to a climate-resilient future, it requires creations and innovations to find a good transition model.  There are many transition models.  One may needs to choose the appropriate model of transition that is suitable to them.  Those who would like to work with CENFACS on their transition model, they can contact CENFACS.

Equally, to change our system for poverty reduction, it demands creations and innovations.  Those who will be interested in working with us to change our/their system for poverty reduction through creations and innovations, they should not hesitate to communicate with CENFACS.

Finally, consumer protection can always to be improved in the light of the experience consumers (like household making the CENFACS Community) have with their daily consumption and shopping habits.   They can help make changes to this protection by feeding us and those who the responsibility to changes consumer laws with their queries or information or even complaints.  Those households that would like to work with us on creations and innovations to improve consumer protection, they can as well contact us/CENFACS.

The above is the fourth execution of our CEDM 2024 Working Weeks and Plan.

For those who may be interested in any of the fourth codes of each sub-theme of this plan, they can contact CENFACS for decoding them.

For those who would like to learn more about CEDM 2024, they can also communicate with CENFACS.

 

• • Concluding Remarks about 2024 CEDM

 

During this month, we have been working to form responses from nothing and bring them into existence to deal with the 2024 CEDM sub-themes.  Equally, we have been trying to introduce new ideas or methods as well as make changes to what has been tried and tested to deliver these kinds of sub-themes.

We have explored the kinds of creation and innovation the CENFACS Community (and alike our Africa-based Sister Organisations) need in order to find ways of  Building Forward Better Together to a Greener, Cleaner, Safer, Inclusive and Climate-Resilient Future.

We hope that those who have engaged with us throughout this process would have found from some of the creations and innovations or simply ideas we put together forward so far how useful they could be.  Those who have their creations and innovations on this matter and would like to share them with us and the community, they should not hesitate to contact us and the community on this matter.

 

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Creative Arts, Crafts and Design-based Development Project – In Focus: Unknown, Unreported and Unnamed Artists, Craft Persons and Designers of Poverty Relief and Sustainable Development with the Example of Young Creators and Innovators

• Coming This Summer 2024:  Financial Choices Made by the Poor 

• Other Areas of 2024 CEDM: Research and Development, Advertising and Social Media

 

• Creative Arts, Crafts and Design-based Development Project –

In Focus: Unknown, Unreported and Unnamed Artists, Craft Persons and Designers of Poverty Relief and Sustainable Development with the Example of Young Creators and Innovators

 

Artists and designers play an active role in helping to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.  So, this week we are working on some of the works carried out by artists and designers especially those from small scale and charitable backgrounds, the local arts and design products and services undertaken by local people and communities sometimes to make ends meet.

These kinds of work can include the following:

 

√ Those carried out by poor families, children, young people and those who are left out of the economic growth or upturn

√ There are works undertaken by unknown, unreported and unnamed artists, craft persons and designers who may be amateurs or not professionals or not just celebrities.

 

Every year, we try to find out unknown, unreported and unnamed artists and designers, as part of Creative Arts, Crafts and Design-based Development Project.  This finding exercise helps to know and name them as well as advertise their works.  We can advertise their work as advertising is an area of creative industries making CENFACS’ 2024 CEDM.

All these small pieces of art, craft and design works can help relieve poverty and enhance the process of sustainable development.  They can help to win the battle against crises such as the cost-of-living crisis or any other crisis.

 

•  •  Example of Unknown, Unreported and Unnamed Artists, Craft Persons and Designers: Young Creators and Innovators

 

Some Young Creators and Innovators can be classified as unknown, unreported and unnamed artists and designers.  Who are they?

They are of all sorts of talents and abilities who can create and innovate to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.  They can as well help to build forward better together cleaner, greener and safer.  Their works can help reduce poverty induced by the cost-of-living crisis while keeping the progress of the realisation of sustainable development goals.  They could be the finders of the today’s solutions for tomorrow’s problems.

So, this week we are continuing our Creative Arts, Crafts and Design-based Development project by looking at the contribution that unknown, unreported and unnamed artists, craft persons and designers, and amongst them are Young Creators and Innovators, who are helping in reducing poverty and hardships as well as in enhancing sustainable development.

If you are a young creator and/or innovator and has some feeling that you would probably fall under the category of unknown, unreported and unnamed artists and designers; CENFACS would like to hear from you as well as your creative or innovative work.  You could be the Creative Mind of Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development of June 2024; the Mind we are looking for.

 

 

• Other Areas of 2024 CEDM: Research and Development, Advertising and Social Media

 

This week, we are as well dealing with the other areas of the creative industries.  In particular, we are looking at the work in research and development, advertising and social media for reducing poverty.

 

• • Research and Development for CEDM 2024

 

It is about creating and innovating solutions in the following matters: to deal with transitions (e.g., energy transition), to reset and change systems (e.g., poverty reduction system), and to deal with squeezed basic life-sustaining spending.  To manage transitions of any kind, to reset or change systems, and to improve spending for those in need; they all require creations and innovations.  These creations and innovations could come from researching and developing ideas.

So, this month is also of inventing or creating new products and services while developing or improving existing ones to make helpful difference to our users and fill gaps in the poverty reduction market.

By putting it in the words of Christopher Pass at al. (6), it is the month of discovery of new techniques and products and their commercial application, together with the refinement and improvement of existing technologies and products.

However, this Research and Development activity must be novel, creative, uncertain, systematic and transferable and/or reproducible; according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation (7).

 

• • Advertising and Poverty Reduction

 

Another interesting area of the creative industries we are looking at is advertising.  Advertising is, according to ‘online.csp.edu’ (8),

“The process of making a product and service known to an audience.  It involves the development of messages that present products, services, ideas, and brands to the world.  These processes generally entail advertising campaigns in the media”.

Advertising can and does contribute to the reduction of poverty.  This week, we are studying how the development of advertised messages take into account the needs and demands of the poor.  In particular, we are focussing on advertising campaigns, their offers, positioning and catch-phrases to ensure that their messages and advertised products are aligned with poor consumers’ needs.  We are as well reviewing  CENFACS‘ adverts regarding some of the humanitarian relief campaigns we conducted and how we can (re)create and re(innovate) our advertising campaigns to bring more support for those in need.

 

• • Social Media to Reduce Poverty

 

As a media awards winner, CENFACS is always interested in media.  This week, our interest is on social media, particularly in its capacity to reduce poverty and hardship.  In this respect, we are investigating the link between social media and poverty reduction.

There are many studies that found that there are relationships between social media and poverty reduction.  For example, ‘borgenproject.org’ (9) argues that

“Social media and poverty reduction can be connected by harnessing the power of information to foster development in a technologically advancing world”.

The same ‘borgenproject.org’ explains that social media provides an inclusive platform and an open form to share the views and concerns of people living in vulnerable situations.

For example, a video can help to disseminate information about poverty reduction.  Sharing video images of poverty can lead to actions.

As part of this week work on CEDM 2024, we are looking at how images sharing on poverty reduction via social media (e.g., sharing poverty-relieving images via Twitter) can help us to create and innovate solutions to poverty as well as improve outcomes for those living in poverty.  It is about recognising, valuing and supporting the contribution of the social media in reducing poverty.

Those who may be interested in these Other Areas of 2024 CEDM (i.e., Research and Development, Advertising and Social Media), they can contact CENFACS.  Those who have any queries about these other areas of 2024 CEDM, they can as well communicate with CENFACS.

 

 

• Coming This Summer 2024:  Financial Choices Made by the Poor

 

Choice is the act of choosing between two or more possibilities.  To have financial choices, it means having financial knowledge and decision-making skills to decide on your financial matters, according to ‘consumerfiance.org’ (10).  Do poor people have financial choices or not? If they have them, how big are they?

The 2024 Edition of Summer Financial Updates (SFU) will focus on the role of choice that can play in financial matter for those who have little or no choice to make because of poverty they experience.

 

• • What This Edition Wil Be about

 

The 2024 Edition of SFU will be about the following:

 

∝ understanding the process inherent in financial decision-making for them

∝ working with those who have little or no choice to make when it comes to financial matter

∝ helping them to make good financial choices or decisions about their finances, however little they may be

∝ supporting them in the process of making financial decisions by evaluating different options while selecting the best one based on their financial conditions and circumstances.

 

For those members of our community who may interested in the 2024 Edition of SFU, they are welcome to enquire to CENFACS  about it.

 

 

Message in French (Message en français)

 

• Projet de développement basé sur les arts créatifs, l’artisanat et le dessin –

Pleins feux sur: Des artistes, des artisans et des dessinateurs (trices) inconnus, non déclarés, pas reportés et anonymes de la lutte contre la pauvreté et du développement durable avec l’exemple de jeunes créateurs et innovateurs

Les artistes, artisan(e)s et les dessinateurs (trices) jouent un rôle actif dans la réduction de la pauvreté et le développement durable.  Ainsi, cette semaine, nous travaillons sur certaines des œuvres réalisées par des artistes, des artisan(e)s et des dessinateurs (trices), en particulier ceux ou celles issu(e)s de milieux caritatifs et à petite échelle, les produits et services locaux d’art, d’artisanat et de dessin entrepris par les personnes et les communautés locales parfois pour joindre les deux bouts du mois.

Ces types de travail peuvent inclure les éléments suivants:

√ Chefs-d’oeuvre réalisés par les familles pauvres, les enfants, les jeunes et ceux/celles qui sont exclus de la croissance ou de la reprise économique

√ Il y a des œuvres entreprises par des artistes, des artisan(e)s et des dessinateurs (trices) inconnu(e)s, pas reporté(e)s et anonymes qui peuvent être des amateurs (trices) ou des non professionnel(le)s ou pas seulement des célébrités.

Chaque année, nous essayons de découvrir des artistes, des artisan(e)s et des dessinateurs (trices) inconnu(e)s, pas reporté(e)s et anonymes, dans le cadre d’un projet de développement basé sur les arts créatifs, le métier artisanal et le dessin.  Cet exercice de recherche permet de les connaître et de les nommer ainsi que de faire connaître leurs œuvres.  Nous pouvons faire de la publicité pour leur travail car la publicité est un domaine des industries créatives qui fait partie du Mois du Développement Économique Créatif (MDEC) 2024 du CENFACS.

Toutes ces petites œuvres d’art, d’artisanat et de dessin peuvent contribuer à réduire la pauvreté et à améliorer le processus de développement durable.  Elles peuvent aider à gagner la bataille contre des crises telles que la crise du coût de la vie.

• • Exemple d’artistes, d’artisan(e)s et de dessinateurs (trices) inconnus, non déclarés et anonymes: jeunes créateurs et innovateurs

Certains jeunes créateurs et innovateurs peuvent être classés comme des artistes, des artisans et des dessinateurs (trices) inconnus, pas reporté(e)s et anonymes.  Qui sont-ils ou qui sont-elles?

Ils/elles sont toutes sortes de talents et de capacités qui peuvent créer et innover pour réduire la pauvreté et renforcer le développement durable.  Ils/elles peuvent également contribuer à construire ensemble un avenir plus propre, plus écologique et plus sûr.  Leurs travaux peuvent contribuer à réduire la pauvreté induite par la crise du coût de la vie tout en maintenant les progrès de la réalisation des objectifs de développement durable.  Ils/elles pourraient être les découvreurs (ses) des solutions d’aujourd’hui aux problèmes de demain.

Ainsi, cette semaine, nous poursuivons notre projet de développement basé sur les arts créatifs, l’artisanat et le dessin en examinant la contribution d’artistes, d’artisans et de dessinateurs (trices) inconnus, pas reporté(e)s et anonymes, parmi lesquels de jeunes créateurs et innovateurs, qui contribuent à réduire la pauvreté et les difficultés ainsi qu’à renforcer le développement durable.

Si vous êtes un jeune créateur et/ou innovateur et que vous avez le sentiment que vous appartiendriez probablement à la catégorie des artistes, des artisan(e)s et dessinateurs (trices) inconnus, pas reoprté(e)s et anonymes, le CENFACS aimerait avoir de vos nouvelles ainsi que de votre travail créatif ou innovant.  Vous pourriez être l’esprit créatif de la réduction de la pauvreté et du développement durable de juin 2024; l’esprit que nous recherchons.

Finalement, l’occasion faisant le larron, nous aimerions profiter de  l’occasion des journées de grâce de CENFACS (du 24 au 30 juin 2024) pour réitérer nos pensées, nos expressions et nos sentiments de profonde gratitude à tous nos suporters et soutiens.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Season of Happiness 2024

 

The following items will help to understand the way in which, together with our users and beneficiaries, we would like to wish the 2024 Season of Happiness to happen:

 

∝ Rebuilding Season to Happiness Season

∝ What Is Summer for CENFACS’ Users and Beneficiaries?

∝ 3 Properties of 2024 Happiness

∝ Preview of 2024 Summer of Happiness and Well-being Programmes.

 

Let us briefly explained these items.

 

• • Rebuilding Season to Happiness Season

 

Jmesci (June Month of Environmental and Sustainable Creative Initiatives) and Creative Arts, Crafts and Design-based Development Project are the projects that have made the last part of Spring 2024 programme.  Both projects make our Creative Economic Development Month.

In practice, Jmesci is the project that is ending our Rebuilding or Life Renewal Season to start Happiness Season or Summer of Happiness.  After creating and innovating to build forward better together cleaner, greener, inclusively and safer as well as to help reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development; we are now looking forward to enjoy the sunshine of Summer with Happiness.   We look forward to Summer holiday, although the warm weather has already started.

 

• • What Is Summer for CENFACS’ Users and Beneficiaries?

 

Summer is a period of the warm sunny weather that we would like to associate with it at CENFACS.  It is the time of happiness that we all expect, after a long period of full time work and education.  We look forward to a break after such a long time of routine working life, especially as most of CENFACS’ projects and programmes are framed around the school timetable to suit and reflect the needs and living patterns of our users and beneficiaries.  This is despite the fact that during Summer holiday people are still working to keep their households and the economy running.

 

• • 3 Properties of 2024 Happiness 

 

As highlighted in the key messages, our Season of Happiness or Summer of Happiness will be about the following three elements/values:

 

1) Our capacity to spread happiness between the members of CENFACS Community to narrow the gap in happiness inequalities (value of spreading happiness)

2) The help we can provide to those who are in most need within the CENFACS Community to find happiness cure and feel happy, to achieve successful outcomes in the current economic context (value of sharing happiness)

3) Our ability to create and innovate happiness-enhancing activities and projects to reduce poverty linked to the lack of happiness (creative and innovative value of happiness).

 

It is possible to help CENFACS’ users and beneficiaries overcome inequalities in happiness and achieve well-being.

Therefore, the key note of our theme for Summer of Happiness will be: How to Create, Enjoy and Sustain Happiness in the Current Economic Context.

To support those struggling with economic pressures over Summer 2024, we shall work with them so that they can navigate their way to resilience, happiness and well-being.  In practical terms, it means that we shall provide Happiness Tips and Hints relating to the current economic context.  We will provide them through the following Summer initiatives.

 

 

• • Preview of 2024 Summer-of-Happiness and Well-being Programmes

 

Summer Programme at CENFACS is mainly made of two sets or broad areas of projects for and with Multi-dimensionally Poor Children, Young People and Families; which consists of:

 

(a) Happiness Projects (Part 1) and

(b) Appeal Projects or Humanitarian Relief to Africa (Part 2).

 

 

Besides this main Summer seasonal regular feature, we have also planned other initiatives as side menus.  We shall gradually release the contents of these Summer projects as we progress towards Summer Holiday 2024.

Our development calendar/planner already indicates what is planned for July and August 2024.  However, should anybody want to find out more, they are welcome to contact CENFACS.

 

• • • Summer 2024 Programmes, Projects and Activities (Summer calendar/planner)

 

How to Make This Summer 2024 as of a True Happiness 

 

July 2024

  

∞ Financial Updates: Financial Choices Made by the Poor People

 

The 2024 Edition of Financial Updates (a CENFACS’ Individual Capacity Building and Development resource for Summer) will provide advice, tips and hints about Financial Choices Made by the Poor People

The 2024 Edition of Summer Financial Updates (SFU) will focus on the role of choice that can play in financial matter for those who have little or no choice to make because of poverty they experience.

The 2024 Edition of SFU will be about

 

~ understanding the process inherent in financial decision-making for them

~ working with those who have little or no choice to make when it comes to financial matter

~ helping them to make good financial choices or decisions about their finances, however little they may be

~ supporting them in the process of making financial decisions and evaluating options while selecting the best one based on their financial conditions and circumstances.

 

∞ All-in-one Impact Assessment

 

July, which is the Analytics month within CENFACS, is the month to be at CENFACS for those who are working on project and programme impacts.

We will be doing two levels of impact assessment as follows:

 

1) Our usual July Impact Monitoring, Evaluation, Review and Analytics for projects and programmes that we run in the preceding financial year

2) Impact assessment of the different activities linked to the polycrises (e.g. activities to tackle rising prices of food, energy, geo-economic crisis, conflicts, etc.).

 

∞ Virtual Summer Festival with Seven Days of Development in July

 

The focus for our Summer 2024 Festival will be on Lack of Economic Opportunity.

Poor people have less opportunities than others to achieve various outcomes in their life.  CENFACS’ Summer 2024 Festival will concentrate on how to expand economic opportunities and possibilities with and for them.

CENFACS’ Summer 2024 Festival will deal with the following problems that the people in need face:

 

~ persistent barriers to the realisation of economic potential and security for those in need

~ a number of issues linked the lack of economic opportunity for them

~ how pressing economic and societal risks are contributing to the lack of opportunity for those in need.

 

CENFACS’ Summer 2024 Festival will as well try to explore solutions to the lack of opportunity, in particular it will

 

~ prospect ways of turning this lack to the creation of economic opportunity for the poor

~ investigate situations that make things possible to achieve desired or planned outcomes for and by those in need

~ look at together whether or not poor people’s goals and needs are aligned with economic achievements of the time.

 

Briefly speaking, our Summer 2024 Festival will focus on problems and solutions surrounding the lack of opportunity by exploring ways of reducing poverty and enhancing sustainable development by reducing poverty due to the lack of opportunity.  Therefore, this festival will also be of equality of economic opportunities.

 

July – August 2024

 

∞ Children, Young People and Families (CYPFs) Summer Programme (Part I): Appeal Projects

 

Summer Humanitarian Appeal projects are a set of projects to help alleviate multi-dimensional poverty experienced by CYPFs during the Summertime.  We normally launch one umbrella appeal that brings under one roof these projects.  This year,  we are going to launch selected appeals for most of them with special emphasis on the impacts of the polycrises on CYPFs.

One of the selected appeals will be about helping CYPFs to be free from distress caused by the polarising conflicts in Africa.  The appeal – Cover Basic Spending for the Distressed in Africa – is about helping poor CYPFs to mitigate the negative affects of polarising conflicts in Africa.

Another appeal project that will have a particular attention and that is needed during this period of the polycrises is the Iconic Young Carer Project (iYCP). 

 

∞ Children, Young People and Families (CYPFs) Summer Programme (Part II): Happiness Projects

 

Happiness projects are another set of Summer projects making the second part of our Summer Programme.  We shall release more details about Happiness projects in due course.

 

∞ Summer 2024 Run, Play and Vote to Reduce Poverty

 

Our Triple Value Initiatives (Run, Play and Vote) for this year have already kicked off.  Through e-workshops, we have provided some guidance and help about them.  And we are still available to talk to those who need some help.  Those who started them should be half-way through with them.

These activities can be run in hybrid manner; that is in-person or virtual depending on the circumstances of participants.

Since we are already in the middle of the year, half-year actions and results about these activities will be sought from those who are practising them.

We shall ask those who undertook exercises relating Triple Value Initiatives such as e-workshops and recreational activities to report on their actions and results as well.

 

∞ Integration of Le Dernier Carré into Build Forward Better Programme

 

Our four step model of poverty relief (that is the Last Square of Poverty Relief or Le Dernier Carré) will be included in some of the elements of the Summer-of-Happiness Programme.

 

∞ Summer Track, Trip and Trending

 

Track and Trip activities will be run as normal.

Regarding Trending activity, we are going to follow the direction of poverty reduction via aquatic foods.  In other words, we are going to find out how aquatic food systems and sector are helping in lifting people out of poverty.

The above is just an indicative plan of work for our Summer of Happiness.  This Summer work plan will be reviewed depending on the circumstances and events that may occur as we move throughout the summertime.

We hope you find a happy, helpful and hopeful relief from the above programmes and projects on offer at CENFACS over this Summer!

For details or clarification about the above programmes and projects, including ways of accessing them, please contact CENFACS.

_________

Note: Although the above is scheduled for Summer 2024, we may slightly alter our initial plan and or introduce occasional initiatives to cope with the reality of the unpredictability and complexity of development situations (e.g. humanitarian and emergency situations), in which case we shall let you know as early as we can.

_________

 

• References

 

(1) Helliwell, J. F., Layard, R., Sachs, J. D., De Neve, J.-E., Aknin, L. B., & Wang, S. (Eds.). (2024). World Happiness Report 2024. University of Oxford: Wellbeing Research Centre.

(2) iris.who.int/bitstream/handle/10665/77932/WHO_HIS_HSI_Rev.2012.03_eng.pdf?sequence=1 (accessed in June 2024)

(3) Teoli D., Bharawaj A., Quality of Life. [Updated 2023 Mar 27] In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024 Jan. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK536962/(accessed in June 2024)

(4) relaxtheback.com/blog/news/how-to-improve-quality-life# (accessed in June 2024)

(5) Fuchs, D., Schlipphak, B., Treib, O., Nguyen Long, L. A., Lederer, M.; Which Way Forward in Measuring the Quality of Life? A Critical Analysis of Sustainability and Well-Being Indicator Sets. Global Environmental Politics 2020; 20(2):12-36.doi: https://doi.org/10.1162/glep_a_004 (accessed in June 2024)

(6) Pass, C., Lowes, B. & Davies, L., (1988), Collins Dictionary of Economics, HarperCollins Publishers, London Glasgow

(7) Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Frascati Manual 7.0, Chapter 2, The full Frascati Manual and current and upcoming online at http://oecd/frascati (accessed in June 2023)

(8) https://online.csp.edu/resources/article/marketing-vs-advertising/ (accessed in June 2024)

(9) https://borgenproject.org/social-media-and-poverty-reduction/ (accessed in June 2024)

(10) https://www.consumerfinance.gov/consumer-tools/educator-tools/youth-financial-education/learn/financial-knowledge-decision-making-skills/ (accessed in June 2024)

_________

 

• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going This Year

 

We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis.  Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.

One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.

Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS.  Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE AND BEAUTIFUL CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.

JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)

Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.

Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.

We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2024 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

19 June  2024

 

Post No. 357

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop Business Plan – Activity 4 for the Match Period 19 to 25/06/2024

• Project 30 – Act 2: Development of Sustainable Initiatives (17 to 23/06/2024)

• Cover Basic Spending for the Distressed Children in Africa This Summer

 

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop Business Plan – Activity 4 for the Match Period 19 to 25/06/2024

 

The financial and monitoring tests of the charity shop project have been conducted to find out the financial viability of the project.  In project appraisal parlance, it means that the charity shop project has shown some positive results since it has passed some of the financial test criteria, including vulnerability test.

However, there is still a sticking point which is the not-for-profit (n-f-p) impact investor would like the Africa-based Sister Organisation (ASCO) to provide some evidence in terms of probable sales to indicate that there are palpable supplies of goods donations.  So, the sales test is still pending.

To resolve the matter, both parties (i.e., ASCO and the n-f-p investor) have decided to engage in looking at the business plan for the charity shop project.  What is a business plan?

According to ‘coursera.org’ (1),

“A business plan is a written document that defines your business goals and tactics to achieve those goals.  A business plan typically explores the competitive landscape of an industry, analyses a market and different customer segments within it, describes the products and services, lists business strategies for success, and outlines financial planning”.

The business plan will help to provide some answers to some of the questions that came out about the sales test.  This is because from the perspective of the n-f-p impact investor it is too risky for ASCO to open up a charity shop without having at least a list of people who will donate products or items that will make the initial stock for the charity shop.  Therefore, ASCO needs to demonstrate that it has a good number of potential goods donors.  It is required to provide their names and addresses including the types, quantity and quality of the items they will donate to build start-up stock for the charity shop.

Because of this sticking point, the n-f-p impact investor would like to see in detail the project of creating the charity shop.  In other words, he/she wants to look at the business plan (that is, the complete plan including all the financial forecasts) for the charity shop to make an informed judgement on the financial forecasts, budgets and the business model of the charity shop.

To reach an agreement at the end of this Activity 4, the stumbling block  relating to the sales test must satisfy the two parties (i.e., charity shop founder and charity shop investor).  Where the two (i.e., investee and investor) need support, CENFACS will work with each party to fill the gap.

More details about Activity 4 can be found under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

• Project 30 – Act 2: Development of Sustainable Initiatives (17 to 23/06/2024)

 

For all the problems that people faced and that led to the creation of CENFACS, the responses to their problems lied on the development of sustainable initiatives with them.  In this Act 2 of CENFACS‘ creation, we are looking at the forms and types of responses we worked together with local people in order to respond to their problems or simply their needs.  We did it together through the development of sustainable initiatives.

 

• • What Are Sustainable Initiatives from CENFACS’ Perspective?

 

They are the practical and actionable steps we took together with local people and Africa-based Sister Organisations to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development via the reduction of environmental foot print and the promotion of long-term ecological balance.

From this perspective, the development of sustainable initiatives was about advancing relationships, practices and procedures that we thought would become a lasting part or legacy of our work on sustainability.  To enable us to develop those initiatives, we needed programmes and plans of action so that we could increase or maximise the impact of our work with both the locals and Africa-based Sister Organisations.  They make up and explain Act 2 of the Tricennium.

 

• • What Act 2 Will Be about?

 

Act 2 is about answering (with those who work with us during the tricennial time) the following questions:

 

∝ Did we achieve our goals during the tricennial period?

∝ What were our initiatives?

∝ Did our initiatives respond to the expectations of or bring an impact to those in need?

∝ What were the problems that our initiatives faced and how did we get around them?

∝ Did we have enough money for the realisation of the grandiose idea of enhancing sustainable development?

∝ Did these initiatives help our noble and beautiful cause of poverty reduction?

 

In this Act 2, we would like to answer the questions relating to the development of sustainable initiatives.  We would like as well those who came across CENFACS‘ sustainable initiatives to share their feelings about them.  They can participate in the discussion about them.

As explained above, Project 30 is about learning from this past and spot the future trends for poverty relief in an ever changing development landscape.  From the experience we had together with locals and Africa-based Sister Organisations, we can together spot ways of improving the design and development of our sustainable initiatives.

The above is the second Act of the Tricennium.  For those who would like to support this Act and/or Project 30, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Cover Basic Spending for the Distressed Children in Africa This Summer

 

Cover Basic Spending for the Distressed Children, Young People and Families in Africa is one of the Summer Appeal projects making the first part of our Summer Programme, which will be published soon. 

The appeal is about supporting children, young people and families (CYPFs), in places in Africa where there is already high level of poverty, particularly in spaces where governments have lost sovereignty or control because of continuing and polarising conflicts and insecurity in some parts of Africa.

Supporting this appeal means helping CYPFs to minimise and mitigate the impacts of continuing conflict and insecurity on them. Your support will help to reduce the risks and impacts that the polarising conflicts and insecurity can make in terms of tragedy, intergenerational poverty, etc.  Your assistance is required to respond to CYPFs’ distress signals.

One can think of a child or young person without any dreams and expectations, what will be his/her future, especially in spaces (like north-eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo) where there is enduring deterioration of security conditions in conflict-affected areas.

Can you help this child?  Yes or No!

If you say yes; then…

√ you can help that child to dream and expect for a better life and future 

√ you can help stop polarised conflicts to become a structural constraint and handicap for that child

√ you can help stop endless insecurity to create lifelong adverse impacts on children and young people

√ you can help stop children’s and young people’s lives being reduced back below the poverty line

√ you can stop the lost generation of polarised conflicts to happen in Africa.

To make the above happen, support ‘Cover Basic Spending for the Distressed Children, Young People and Families in Africa’.

To support, please contact CENFACS on this website.

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Thanksgiving Days: Supporters’ Days (24 to 30 June 2024)

• Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households – In Focus from Week Beginning Monday 24/06/2024: Outcome and Evaluation about Resilience Intervention for Households

• Execution of CEDM (Creative Economic Development Month) 2024 Sub-themes: Third Codes (from Week Beginning Monday 17/06/2024)

 

 

• Thanksgiving Days: Supporters’ Days (24 to 30 June 2024)

 

The last week of June is a thanksgiving one in accordance to CENFACS development calendar.  From 24 to 30 June 2024, we will be thanking all our supporters (current and past ones).

We would like to take the opportunity of the end of June to thank them (and you if you are one of them) for helping…

 

CENFACS IN ENHANCING AND SUSTAINING FREEDOMS AND CAPABILITIES BY WORKING IN ALLIANCE WITH LOCAL PEOPLE TO DEVELOP SUSTAINABLE INITIATIVES.

  

• •  What Do Mean by Thanking Days or Supporters’ Days?

 

These are Special Days of Thank You within CENFACS we would like to dedicate to all those who contributed to our work for any types of support they have given us over this financial year.  This dedication is normally held in the last week of and by the end of June.  For this year, Thank-you Days will be held from 24 to 30 June 2024 in order to keep our tradition.

As we are in CENFACS’ Creative Economic Development Month and Year of Transitions, we shall find all sorts of creative, innovative, transitioning and communicative ways of thanking our invaluable supporters and backers.

These thanking ways may include the following:

 

√ Conversing with our supporters over phones

√ Signing and sending thank-you prints or e-cards to them

√ Telling them the stories or outcomes about the people and communities they helped through their support

√ E-mailing, texting and tweeting them with messages of gratitude

√ Telling and sharing thank-you stories

√ Playing and listening with them music and songs of thank you

√ Making and playing thank-you videos and films

√ Giving back to them by volunteering our time to the cause they deeply care about

√ Undertaking a free translation service (French to English and vice versa)

√ Reading African poems and poetry

√ Sending to them digital, generative AI (Artificial Intelligence) and technologically animated thank-you messages

√ Doing creative and design works symbolising thank you

√ Sending out designed and hand crafted made objects and crafts of acknowledgement

√ Making video calls if we cannot have in-person contact with them

Etc.

 

If you are one of the CENFACS’ supporters, please we would like to let you know the Thanking Days at CENFACS are your Days.  Do not hesitate to get in touch, if you do not mistakenly hear from us.

We will welcome you, reconnect with you and thank you on the occasion for the helpful difference you made to our work and project beneficiaries, and for being with us on the side of those in need especially during this challenging year of the lingering effects of the polycrises.

Your invaluable support has meant a lot for our programmes and project beneficiaries over this ending financial year.

We would like to express all our sincere gratitude to you for helping us to help reduce poverty – CENFACS’ noble and beautiful cause.

We would like as well to say thank you for making our voice heard especially in ever challenging world of polycrises and where the voices of the small are sometimes ignored or simply forgotten.

For further details, please contact CENFACS’ Thanksgiving-End-of-June-2024 Team.

 

 

• Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households – In Focus from Week Beginning Monday 24/06/2024: Outcome and Evaluation about Resilience Intervention for Households

 

Outcome and Evaluation about Resilience for Households is about finding out if the system intervention (here Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households) has improved or will improve the capacities and addresses the vulnerabilities of the households making the CENFACS Community.   To know that, there are questions to ask and to answer.

 

• • Questions Relating to Outcome and Evaluation

 

Two of the questions many households would ask about a project like Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households are:

 

a) what is the outcome from this project?

b) how do you evaluate this project?

 

In project planning and delivery languages, these two questions fall under outcome monitoring and impact evaluation.  It means getting all the changes and effects that may result from this project and forming the judgement about the worth of this project.

From the project users’ view, households would want to know what is the result from this project in terms of strengthening resilience of households and the extent to which this project would improve the capacities and addresses vulnerability issues.

 

 

• • Responses Relating to Outcome and Evaluation

 

The responses to the above mentioned questions can be provided by the project participants themselves.  They can explain the following:

 

a) the conversion of project inputs (resources put into project to deliver outcomes) into outputs (services and facilities delivered)

b) if the project met their requirements and needs

c) whether or not the benefits of this intervention will continue in the future.

 

The above is the fourth way of working with households on resilience matter.

For those households that need support regarding their resilience matters and in particular to Outcome and Evaluation about Resilience Intervention for Households, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

• • Final Word about Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households

 

This project or resilience process of support to households is CENFACS‘ way of working with households to support them.  It is part of informing them and working with them to stay resilient in face any shocks or stresses or polycrises they may come across.  It is difficult to avoid the impacts of some types of shocks, stresses and polycrises; but resilience rebuilding techniques can help reduce these impacts.

Many of these households have their own resilience skills and capacity as well as defensive capability.  However, this does not stop them to improve or add more tools to stay even more resilient than they are.  Also, the project has provided the opportunity to share amongst them, and between each other resilience experience.

 

 

• Execution of CEDM (Creative Economic Development Month) 2024 Sub-themes: Third Codes (from Week Beginning Monday 17/06/2024)

 

We are continuing to decode the codes for our CEDM Working Weeks and Plan.   The current codes, which need to be decoded, for each sub-theme  are

 

√ CENFACS as an inspiring and transformative creation

√ Creations and innovations that are related to people’s/households’ transition operations for a climate-resilient future

√ Creations and innovations to change our poverty reduction system

√ Creations and innovations linked to household spending protection run by institutions and organisations.

 

Those who would like to engage with the CEDM 2024 can choose amongst the above-mentioned codes and contact CENFACS for decoding them.

For example, if one wants to know more about CENFACS as an Inspiring and Transformative Creation, they can contact.  CENFACS will explain them and provide evidence how it inspired and being the force of changing lives from poverty to reduced poverty.  They can also take the opportunity of the Tricennium to participate or support any events linked to CENFACS as an Inspiring and Transformative Creation.

Likewise, to transition to a climate-resilient future, it requires creations and innovations in terms of transition operations.  For example, one of the areas of transition is to embrace the circular economic model.  If they are struggling to embrace it, they can work with CENFACS to improve the way they operate to reuse, recycle and refurbish their household items.  These operations will help materials not to be wasted and contribute to the upkeep of the nature.  Those who would like to work with CENFACS on their transition operations (that is, the methods of working to transition), they can let CENFACS know.

Equally, to change our system for poverty reduction, it demands creations and innovations.  Those who will be interested in working with us to change our/their system for poverty reduction through creations and innovations, they should not hesitate to communicate with CENFACS.

Finally, to improve the way some institutions and organisations deal with your spending protection matter, certain creations and innovations may be needed.  You can help them improve those changes that affect your life.  Those households that would like to work with us on creations and innovations to improve the way different institutions and organisations deal with their spending protection, they can as well contact us/CENFACS.

The above is the third execution of our CEDM 2024 Working Weeks and Plan.

For those who may be interested in any of the third codes of each sub-theme of this plan, they can contact CENFACS for decoding them.

For those who would like to learn more about CEDM 2024, they can also communicate with CENFACS.

 

 

Message in French (Message en français)

 

• Ateliers en ligne sur les arts et le dessin

Nous avons deux ateliers en ligne pour le Mois du Développement Économique Créatif.

• • Atelier en ligne 1: Fabrication et envoi d’une carte papier ou d’une carte électronique exprimant le thème de la restauration des terres, de la désertification et de la résilience à la sécheresse

La construction fera écho au thème de célébration de la Journée Mondiale de l’Environnement (2) du 05/06/2024.

Les participants à l’atelier en ligne peuvent créer et envoyer une carte postale ou une carte électronique exprimant le thème de la restauration des terres, de la désertification et de la résilience à la sécheresse.

Pour ceux ou celles qui essaient de concevoir et d’envoyer ce type de carte papier (carte-p) ou une carte électronique (carte-e) comme moyen de participer au Mois du Développement Économique Créatif, veuillez vous assurer que le message de lutte contre la pauvreté que vous transmettez est sans confusion.

• • e-Workshop 2: Fabrication et envoi d’une carte papier (carte-p) ou d’une carte électronique (carte-e) à l’appui de la Journée Mondiale de la Désertification et de la Sécheresse 2024 qui s’est tenue le 17 juin dernier

Le deuxième atelier en ligne porte sur la construction et l’affichage de cartes similaires en tant qu’expressions ou moyens de faire face à la sécheresse pour faire écho à la Journée Mondiale de Lutte contre la Désertification et la Sécheresse qui s’est tenue le 17/06/2024.  Le thème de la Journée de la Désertification et de la Sécheresse 2024 (3) est « Unis pour la terre. Notre héritage. Notre avenir“.

Il existe des critères et des directives pour la conception de votre carte postale ou électronique.  On peut suivre les critères et les directives de conception de cartes du CENFACS pour les ateliers en ligne Arts et Dessin 1 et 2, et concevoir sa carte postale ou électronique.

• • Critères d’un bon dessin de carte

Lors de la conception d’une carte, il vaut mieux que votre œuvre d’art ou de dessin

√ contribue aux objectifs de développement inclusif et durable

√ est un moteur et un catalyseur des processus de développement durable

√ est fondée sur des données ou des preuves en tant qu’expression de réalités

√ est conforme aux objectifs et aux cibles de réduction des émissions de gaz à effet de serre

√ est capable de déboucher sur de nouvelles voies pour l’économie créative

√ réfléchit au développement économique créatif

√ se connecte aux différents secteurs de l’économie créative

√ ajoute de la valeur aux solutions fondées sur la nature pour résoudre les problèmes de conception

√ est propice à de nouvelles opportunités de développement durable

√ soutient l’apprentissage et l’innovation pour la réduction de la pauvreté et le développement durable

√ ouvre la possibilité d’un modèle de collaboration

√ touche les problèmes de changement climatique (comme la restauration des terres, de la désertification et de la résilience à la sécheresse)

√ traite des questions de durabilité (comme la conservation de la nature)

√ développe une culture de lutte contre la pauvreté et de développement durable.

Bien que ces critères semblent être assez nombreux, il suffirait d’en répondre autant que possible dans la conception de votre carte-p ou carte-e.

Ainsi, ceux ou celles qui le veulent et le souhaitent peuvent concevoir et poster une carte électronique ou un objet électronique pour présenter ces thèmes.  Ceux ou celles qui ont besoin d’en savoir plus sur ces critères et lignes directrices peuvent en informer le CENFACS.

Pour créer et envoyer votre carte ou vous renseigner sur les ateliers en ligne sur l’art et le dessin pour lutter contre la pauvreté, veuillez contacter le CENFACS.

Pour soutenir le Mois du Développement Économique Créatif du CENFACS, veuillez également communiquer avec le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop Business Plan – Activity 4 for the Match Period 19 to 25/06/2024

 

As introduced in the Key Messages, the n-f-p impact investor would like to see in detail the project of creating the charity shop.  In other words, he/she wants to look at the business plan for the charity shop to make an informed judgement on the financial forecasts, budgets and the business model of the charity shop.  In these notes, we are going to highlight the different aspects of the charity shop business plan they (the charity shop founder and the charity shop investor) need to agree upon.

 

 

To explain how they are going to do it and what is going to happen in this Activity 4, we have organised our notes around the following headings:

 

∝ What Is a Business Plan?

∝ Probable Sales and Sales Forecast

∝ Key Areas of the Start-up Business Plan to Be Clarified by ASCO

∝ Reaching an Agreement on the Key Areas of the Start-up Business Plan

∝ The Match or Fit Test

∝ Concluding Note on Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop

 

Let us look at each of these headings.

 

• • What Is a Business Plan?

 

The definition of a business plan used here comes from ‘coursera.org’ (op. cit.) which states that

“A business plan is a written document that defines your business goals and tactics to achieve those goals.  A business plan typically explores the competitive landscape of an industry, analyses a market and different customer segments within it, describes the products and services, lists business strategies for success, and outlines financial planning”.

Using this definition, the charity shop business plan has to display that the analyse of charity shop sector or industry has been thoroughly conducted together with the segmentation of customers where the charity shop project will operate.

 

• • Probable Sales and Sales Forecast

 

To show that once the shop is launched there will be something to sell, the charity shop business plan must contain a list of people with contact details indicating that they are prepared or promised to donate goods to the charity shop to be launched.  The charity shop business plan should as well provide some key figures about the estimation of the potential demand for the goods to be donated.  With on one hand the promised supply of goods and the potential demand/buyers, it is possible to work out some figures as probable sales.  All the information about goods donors and buyers is to be quantified and checkable, although there are only estimates or forecasts.

ASCO can provide its sales forecast as follows:

 

(number of unites to sell x price for each unit) – (cost per unit x number of units)

 

ASCO can list its members, supporters and other people sympathising with its deserving cause who have agreed or are willing to donate goods to kick off the charity shop.  ASCO can undertake a certain number of initiatives to find goods donors such as

 

~ organise events to sell the idea of charity shop so that it can raise more goods donations

~ advertise locally for goods donations and purchases

~ make a global appeal for goods donations

~ run a small pilot initiative of getting goods donations and selling them to its members or local people.

 

It needs to prove all this in the business plan as evidence of highly probable supplies of goods that will be converted into sales outcome, in order to win the argument.

This is because the n-f-p impact investor wants evidence, not words or good intentions only, that the will-be-launched charity shop can sell and break-even. He/she wants to see that the charity shop project is a profitable outlet/retail that will generate the income that ASCO is looking for its good and worthy cause.

 

 

• • Key Areas of the Start-up Business Plan to Be Clarified by ASCO

 

Without going into all aspects of the charity shop business plan, let us provide some key highlights on the following areas: marketing plan and strategies, brand strategy, competitor analysis, goods donations, financial plan, cash flow forecasts and operating budgets, details of the financial support and financial monitoring tools.

Let us look at each of these areas.

 

• • • Marketing plan and strategies

 

The charity shop business plan will include a marketing budget and the details of market research supported by a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis.

The n-f-p impact investor would like to know if ASCO’s plan is based on the analysis of hard factual data.  He/she will check the different parts of ASCO’s marketing plan.  He/she looks at the key points and issues of this plan such as the strengths and weaknesses of the products to be offered, the potential product development, the influencers on the charity shop (i.e., customers and competitors) and the available resource to deliver the marketing plan.

 

• • • Brand strategy 

 

The strategy for the charity shop maker’s name and trademark should be visible in the business plan.  ASCO can demonstrate that it has a brand identity reflecting the charity shop values, charitable mission, vision and personality.  One of its values is the reduction of poverty and hardships amongst poor people where the shop will operate.  And ASCO’s brand strategy needs to convey this charitable value.  The charity shop business plan must highlight ASCO’s brand strategy.  The n-f-p impact investor will investigate that ASCO has well developed its brand strategy.

ASCO is also obliged to show that it has a plan to position the charity shop in the market to differentiate from the existing competition and to catch customers’ perception.

 

• • • Competitor analysis

 

ASCO will provide an assessment of potential competitors, their offers, and marketing and sales efforts; even if the charity shop will operate in rural or remote area of Africa.  The n-f-p impact investor wants to know if ASCO has properly explored its competitive market analysis.

 

• • • Goods donations

 

The n-f-p impact investor would like to understand the relationships between marketing, sales and goods donations.  He/she wants to know the stock of goods to be donated and the price these goods will be sold to have an indication of the profit they can generate.  ASCO’s business plan must clearly explain these relationships.

 

• • • Financial plan

 

ASCO is required to explain that it has a strategy for turning the idea of charity shop into profitable venture.  To materialise this, the charity shop business plan will contain the calculation of the projected break-even (that is, point at which sufficient goods or services will be sold to cover the cost of sales or the level of activity at which the charity shop will make neither a profit nor a loss).

 

• • • Financial forecast statements 

 

ASCO’s financial forecast will include

 

σ the forecasted profit and loss statement

σ the projected balance sheet 

σ the projected cash flow statement.

 

It is around these statements that the matching negotiations will happen.  These three financial statements have to stick together and talk to each other.  If they do not stick together or do not talk to each other, the charity shop investor may try to walk away.

For example, the estimates that are used to work out cash coming in and going out have to be accurate.  Another example, cash flow forecasting is based on budget (that is, financial and/or a quantitative plan of operation for the coming accounting period) .  Therefore, there should be a clear link between the numbers in the budgets and those in the cash flow statements.

 

• • • Details of the financial support

 

A good business plan will indicate where the money will come from to finance it.  So, the details of the financial support needed to start the charity shop should be revealed by ASCO.  It is good to know if ASCO will heavily rely on the support from the n-f-p impact investor or not.  The details of financial support can reveal as well if ASCO will use a funding mixed or blended strategy.

 

• • • Financial monitoring tools

 

ASCO will provide useful financial monitoring tools or calculations to show that the project will be monitored and its performance will be financially tracked.  It can explain the financial ratios or metrics below.

 

ASCO can, for example, use the following financial ratios and metrics linked to the projected balance sheet:

 

∝) Working Capital = Current Assets – Current Liabilities

∝) Current Assets / Current Liabilities

∝) Debt-to-Assets Ratio

 

Another example, ASCO can as well employ financial ratios and metrics below related to its cash flow projections:

 

∝) Cash Return on Assets = Cash Flow from Operations (CFO) / Average Total Assets

∝) Cash to Capital Expenditure = CFO / Capital Expenditure

∝) Cash Flow to Net Income = CFO / Net Income

 

A further example, ASCO can appeal to financial ratios and metrics connected to the projected profitability of the charity shop, such as

 

∝) Gross Profit Margin = (Gross Profit / Sales) x 100

∝) Net Profit Margin = (Net Income / Sales) x 100

 

The above-mentioned ratios and metrics, which ASCO has to clearly explain, need to demonstrate that the project will be worth undertaken and a successful outcome.  ASCO can use these ratios and metrics as financial monitoring tools to explain the n-f-p impact investor how it has planned to track the performance of the charity shop.

It is important to stress that financial figures or numbers from the financial forecast should not only speak for themselves.  ASCO will be expected to explain them.

 

• • Reaching an Agreement on the Key Areas of the Start-up Business Plan

 

The two sides (ASCO and the n-f-p impact investor) need to reach an agreement on the key areas of the start-up business plan to be clarified by ASCO.  If there is a disagreement between ASCO (charity shop founder) and n-f-p impact investor (charity shop investor), this could open up the possibility for a match/fit test.  The match/fit test can be carried out to try to help the two sides.  The match/fit test can also be undertaken if there is a disagreement on any of aspects of the charity shop business plan.

 

 

• • The Match or Fit Test

 

As part of the match or fit test, n-f-p charity shop investor’s view on ASCO’s business plan must be matched with the information coming out of ASCO’s business plan.  In other words, ASCO’s definition and explanation of charity shop business goals and tactics to achieve those goals must be accepted by the n-f-p charity shop investor in order for the latter to invest in the charity shop.

The match can be perfect or close in order to reach an agreement.  If there is a huge or glaring difference between the two (i.e., between what the investor wants and what ASCO is saying about its business plan, between what the investor would like the business plan to say and what ASCO’s business plan is really saying), the probability or chance of having an agreement at this fourth round of negotiations could be null or uncertain.

 

• • • Impact Advice to ASCO and Guidance to n-f-p Property Investor

 

CENFACS can impact advise ASCOs (charity shop founders) to improve the presentation of their business plan.  CENFACS can as well guide n-f-p charity shop investors with impact to work out their expectations in terms of business plan to a format that can be agreeable by potential ASCOs.  CENFACS’ impact advice for ASCOs and guidance on impact investing for n-f-p charity shop investor, which are impartial, will help each of them (i.e., investee and investor) to make informed decisions and to reduce the likelihood of any significant losses or misunderstandings or mismatches.

 

• • • The Rule of the Matching Game

 

The rule of the game is the more charity shop investors are attracted by ASCOs’ (charity shop founders’) business plan the better for ASCOs.  Likewise, the more ASCOs can successfully respond to charitable shop investors’ level of enquiries and queries about the business plan the better for investors.  In this respect, the matching game needs to be a win-win one to benefit both players (i.e., founder and investor).

The above is the fourth activity of the Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop. 

Those potential organisations seeking investment to set up a charity shop and n-f-p charity shop investors looking for organisations that are interested in giving, they can contact CENFACS to arrange the match or fit test for them.  They can have their fit test carried out by CENFACS’ Hub for Testing Hypotheses.

 

• • • CENFACS’ Hub for Testing Hypotheses 

 

The Hub can help to use analysis tools to test assumptions and determine how likely something is within a given standard of accuracy.  The Hub can assist to

 

√ clean, merge and prepare micro-data sources for testing, modelling and analysis

√ conduct data management and administration

√ carry out regression analysis, estimate and test hypotheses

√ interpret and analyse patterns or trends in data or results.

 

For any queries and/or enquiries about this fourth activity of Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop and/or the programme itself, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

• • Concluding Note on Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop

 

African charities like other for-profit organisations can set up a charity shop to enable them to back up their charitable mission and vision.  They can do it within the powers they have been given by their legislators and their governing rules (e.g., articles of association).  However, they need to make sure that the newly formed charity shop can generate enough income so that the more the difference between the sales revenue and the costs of those sales is, the better they can find the financial resources they need to allocate to their worthy causes.

There are not-for-profit impact investors who can help them to either to start or develop their idea of having an income-generating outlet.  Where African charities, we mean CENFACS‘ Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisations (ASCOs), experience some difficulties in finding these types of investors, CENFACS can work with ASCOs to source them.

Equally, for n-f-p impact investors who are looking for Africa-based organisations to invest in but they are not sure which organisation that can be their investee, CENFACS can as well work with these investors so that their investment is channelled to the right organisation, at the right moment and to the right cause.  CENFACS can match ASCOs’ need to find an investor and n-f-p impact investor’s desire to get an investee.

The match probability can be high or average or low depending on how much ASCOs’ needs meet property investors’ interests.  CENFACS will make sure that this match is the strongest possible one. 

CENFACS is available to work with ASCOs that are looking for Impact Advice  and  Not-for-profit Investors who need Guidance with Impact so that the former can find the investment they are looking for and the latter the organisation to invest in, and both of them can realise their respective Summer dreams.

To work together to make your matching dream come true by finding your ideal investee or investor, please contact CENFACS.

_________

 

• References

 

(1) https://www.coursera.org/articles/busness-plan  (accessed in June 2024)

(2)  https://www.worldenvironmentday.global (accessed in June 2024)

(3) https://www.unccd.int/events/desertification-drought-day/2024 (accessed in June 2024)

_________

 

• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going This Year

 

We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis.  Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.

One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.

Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS.  Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE AND BEAUTIFUL CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.

JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)

Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.

Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.

We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2024 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

12 June  2024

 

Post No. 356

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop Financial Forecast – Activity 3 for the Match Period 12 to 18/06/2024

• Coming This Summer 2024: FACS Issue No. 84 to Be Titled as African Charities Investment Management and Poverty Reduction

• Project 30

 

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop Financial Forecast – Activity 3 for the Match Period 12 to 18/06/2024

 

Both Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisation (ASCO) and Not-for-profit (n-f-p) Investor scored enough points in the Second Activity of the Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop.  They believe that it is useful to continue their talks and move to the third round of negotiations, which is Activity 3.

This third round of talks consists of agreeing on the financial forecast of the charity shop project; forecast  to be presented by ASCO.  ASCO needs to provide its plan or forecast for the three financial statements for three to five years to show how the shop will evolve.  These statements are:

 

σ income statement portraying profit or loss over the above stated period

σ balance sheet pointing out the position of the shop each year during the same period

σ cash flow statement showing how much cash it has planned to come in and go out over the same period.

 

For the n-f-p charity shop impact investor, he/she is going to look at in detail ASCO’s plan for the finances of the charity shop, from income to operating costs and investments.  He/she will evaluate the expected profitability and cash flows of the charity shop project.  He/she wants to have a clear idea about the complete financial model of the shop with all the three financial statements sticking together and talking to each other.  He/she would like to be sure that ASCO is navigating with a compass.

In this charity shop model of investing, the n-f-p impact investor is selflessly motivated.  This  n-f-p impact investor, who is driven by selfless motivations, would invest to reduce poverty.  Although he/she is driven by selfless motivations, he/she would like to see the charity shop is a profitable business so that it can achieve its goal of reducing poverty by raising money for it through trading.

To reach an agreement, each side of this Activity 3 (i.e., charity shop founder and charity shop investor) needs to clarify what they are offering in the negotiation to meet the matching terms and conditions.

If this  Activity 3 is successful, they will move to the next/last episode.  Where the two (i.e., investee and investor) need support, CENFACS will work with each party to fill the gap.

More details about Activity 3 can be found under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

• Coming This Summer 2024: FACS Issue No. 84 to Be Titled as African Charities Investment Management and Poverty Reduction

 

Crises and shocks of any kinds prove to show that charities of any sizes need to take investment management seriously.  This includes African charities.  Focussing on Africa-based charities, they do investment management; however little is known about their investment management drive since much attention on this matter is devoted to for-profit organisations.

In this 84th Issue of FACS, we are looking at investment management undertaken by African charities, particularly those charities based in Africa working and/or would like to work with CENFACS. However, before going any further in this outline of the basic information about the 84th Issue of FACS, let us to give a brief understanding of the concept of investment management since it is central to this Issue. 

We can start with the meaning of investment.  Investment can be defined in many ways which tend to have the same common denominator.  Referring to the definition of ‘ourbusinessladder.com’ (1), this website states that

“Investment is the employment of funds with the aim of achieving additional income or growth in value.  The vital feature of an investment is that it involves waiting for a reward.  It involves the commitment of funds which have been put away from present expenditure in the hope that some benefits will accumulate in the future”.

Knowing what is an investment, it helps to understand investment management.  Investment management is defined by ’emeritus.org’ (2) as

“The process of making decisions about investments.  It involves researching, selecting, and monitoring a portfolio of assets that match an investor’s goals, risk profile, and timeframes.  Investment management encompasses a wide range of investment opportunities for individuals looking to grow their wealth from stocks and bonds to real estate and other asset classes”.

Africa-based charities also make this sort of decisions.  However, they would act within their charity power to invest and according to their governing documents (i.e., articles of association).  It is this type of investment that their investment managers are able to decide and make that the 84th Issue of FACS is concerned with.  

The Issue 84 will deal with strategy to manage investment risks; strategy that consists of spreading investments across asset classes and industries. In doing so, this strategy allows to balance returns on investment and concerns on the same investments.

The Issue 84 will also be a story of Africa-based charities’ care and skills in investment decisions.  In particular, emphasis will be put on investment managers of these charities, on how they manage portfolio and deal with investment policies while supporting their organisations to measure risk tolerance relating to investments and reduce the impact of adverse economic change on portfolios and to continue to meet the needs of the poor.  They can advise their organisations to invest in mixed assets funds or national equity funds or global equity funds or fixed interest funds or property and cash funds or green bonds.

Because we are talking about charities, investment management will be looked at in its capacity of helping these charities to achieve their charitable mission, particularly but not limited to poverty reduction.  This is so crucial in challenging times like of those systemic crises namely the coronavirus disaster and other major shocks such as debt crisis in Africa.  In these exceptional times, a good investment management can provide the foundations for resilience against these systemic crises or shocks.

To achieve their mission via investment management, CENFACS‘ Africa-based Sister Organisations have investment options from which they can choose.  The 84th Issue will explore these options together the fund management houses in Africa, in particular how they can be helpful in responding to Africa-based Sister Organisations’ (ASOs’) investment strategic plan.

Without providing specialist advice on investment management to African charities, the Issue No. 84 is a general advice clinic for those ASOs that would like to take investment management seriously to help them achieve their mission without having to continuously worry if they have some lump of sum kept away from present expenditure in the hope to receive a reward.

To get inside scoop on the Issue No. 84 or to reserve a copy before its publication, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Project 30

 

To start this project, we are going to define it, highlight its implications and indicate its acts or themes.

 

• • What Is Project 30?

 

Project 30 is an initiative set up to deliver CENFACS’ Pearl Jubilee or Tricennial Year or Tricennium.  It is a set of activities and events planned and to be organised to mark the 30 years of CENFACS since it was established in 1994.  It is also part of the  year 2024 as a Year of Transitions within CENFACS.

Project 30 is a series of activities and events to be organised by CENFACS throughout 2024 to remember what has been achieved in the last 30 years of CENFACS, to learn from this past and spot the future trends for poverty relief in an ever changing development landscape.

Project 30 is a smart (i.e. specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound) project that takes stock of the strengths of CENFACS in what happened in the last 30 years as well as looks ahead challenges, opportunities, risks and threats that CENFACS may face.  It is about re-engaging with stakeholders in a renewed and climate-resilient future.

This project was designed to deliver CENFACS as a Tricennial Creation and to mark Tricennial Development for CENFACS‘ work with local people and Africa-based Sister Organisations.

Tricennial Development is a process of bringing better change in the lives of those in most needs.  This process is designed with the aim of reducing poverty and hardships while enhancing sustainable development through the 30 years experience of CENFACS.

Tricennial Creation is the conceptualisation of CENFACS as an organisation which came into existence and which lasts 30 years.

There are implications deriving from the above-mentioned definitions.

 

• • Implications of Project 30 for CENFACS

 

Most of our work this year will be underpinned by a tricennial feature. It means they will command and enhance the values of freedom and capacities as tricennial legacies of CENFACS.

 

• •  Acts or Themes of Project 30

 

Project 30 will be carried out under three acts or themes, which are as follows:

 

Act 1: Working with Local People (10 to 16/06/2024)

Act 2: Development of Sustainable Initiatives (17 to 23/06/2024)

Act 3: Enhancement of the Quality of Lives (24 to 30/06/2024)

 

The first two acts stem from CENFACS‘ charity objects while the 3rd act comes from CENFACS‘ mission statement.  We are going to learn and share together what have learnt together in the last 30 years in terms poverty reduction and the enhancement of sustainable development.  Let us highlight the first Act – working with local people.

 

 

• • • Act 1: Working with Local People (10 to 16/06/2024)

 

Working with local people is and will always be the cornerstone of our charitable work.  In the last 30 years, we have tried as much as we can to work with local people.  We know it is not easy.  It has been about knowing and assessing the needs of the locals so that those needs can be met with the responses/solutions that the locals want for the problems they face.

In this Act 1, we would like to share our experience of working with the locals.  We would like as well for the locals to feedback their own experience of working with CENFACS in the last 30 years.  They can respond to our questionnaire on this matter.

As explained above, Project 30 is about learning from this past and spot the future trends for poverty relief in an ever changing development landscape.  From the experience we had together with locals, we can together spot ways of improving our model of working together.

The above is the first Act of the Tricennium.  For those who would like to support this Act and/or Project 30, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households – In Focus from Week Beginning Monday 17/06/2024: Design of Resilience Intervention for Households

• Execution of CEDM (Creative Economic Development Month) 2024 Sub-themes: Second Codes (from Week Beginning Monday 10/06/2024)

• Holiday Budget Clinics 2024

 

 

• Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households – In Focus from Week Beginning Monday 17/06/2024: Design of Resilience Intervention for Households

 

Any household needs to have the capacity of system to deal with shocks or stresses it may faces.  They need to have the ability to anticipate, prepare for, respond and adapt to challenges, and build resilience for the future.

In this episode of our Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households, we will be working with households to find out the system design of the kinds of intervention that may be appropriate to them.

In this coming work with them, we shall explore ways of addressing vulnerability and resilience issues, discuss sustainable capacity building they need and identify the theory of change that suits them.

 

 

• • Addressing Vulnerability and Resilience Issues

 

Because we are in the month of creations and innovations, we can create and innovate together with households to find way of addressing the vulnerabilities and resilience problems they are facing.  To do that, it may require a theory of change.  Not all theories of change suit every household.  It is good to identify and use the theory of change that is suitable for a given household.

 

• • Theory of Change for Households

 

Having a theory of change can help households in the process of dealing with shocks and stresses. 

As the National Centre for Family Hubs (3) puts it,

“Your family hubs theory of change can

~ inform strategic decision-making

~ encourage a focus on outcomes and evidence

~ underpin evaluation and learning

~ enhance the effectiveness of provision

~ facilitate partnership working”.

 

Similarly, the Austrian Institute of Family Studies (4) explains by referring to the work of Weiss in 1995 that

“Theory of change is an explicit process of thinking through and documenting how a programme or intervention is supposed to work, why it will work, who it will benefit (and in what way) and the conditions required for success”.

The Austrian Institute of Family Studies argues that

“A theory of change is a diagram or written description of the strategies, actions, conditions and resources that facilitate change and achieve outcomes”.

These attributes of the family hubs theory of change together with the explanation of the theory of change given by the Austrian Institute of Family Studies can benefit households in need of systemic resilience capacity rebuilding.  For these households to achieve resilience, they need to (re)build sustainable capacity.

 

• • Sustainable Capacity Building for Households

 

Most households have a certain level of capacity.  Due to various circumstances of life, this capacity can increase or decrease or stay the same.  It may need to be rebuilt or redeveloped since the nature and complexity of crises and shocks are changing.

For households that are subject to continuous shocks or stresses, they not only require capacity to rebuild themselves but a sustainable one.  What is sustainable capacity building?

According to the US Institute of Peace (5),

“Sustainable capacity building is an approach that increases the likelihood of measurable and sustainable improvements in the targeted capacity of the recipient.  It is an approach that lead to expected outcomes and impacts that measurably improve the capacity of the targeted function and/or recipient and that can be sustained long after assistance ends” (p. 5)

Knowing what sustainable capacity building is, it is possible to work with households to find ways of (re)building their capacity, to (re)design the type of resilience intervention they want or at least to direct them to the kind of resilience support they need in order to measurably improve the capacity of the areas of household that demand strengthening or simply care.

The above is the third way of working with households on resilience matter.

For those households that need support regarding their resilience matters and in particular to Design the Resilience Intervention for them, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Execution of CEDM (Creative Economic Development Month) 2024 Sub-themes: Second Codes (from Week Beginning Monday 10/06/2024)

 

Our CEDM Working Weeks and Plan carry on with the codes for each sub-theme, which are

 

√ CENFACS as Unique Creation

√ Creations and innovations that are related to people’s/households’ transition processes for a climate-resilient future

√ Creations and innovations to reset our poverty reduction system

√ Creations and innovations linked to meeting basic spending needs.

 

Those who would like to engage with the CEDM 2024 can choose amongst the above-mentioned codes and contact CENFACS.

For example, if one wants to know more about CENFACS as a Unique Creation, they can contact.  CENFACS will explain them what it means and discuss with them on how they can learn more about it and participate or support any events linked to CENFACS as a Unique Creation.

Likewise, to transition to a climate-resilient future, it requires creations and innovations in terms of transition processes.  For example, one of the areas of transition is energy transition.  If they want to transition in energy, they can keep or embrace processes that will help them to transition away from polluting energy (like fossil fuels) to avert the worst effects of climate change.  Those who would like to work with CENFACS on their transition processes, they can let CENFACS know.

Equally, to reset our system for poverty reduction, it demands creations and innovations.  Those who will be interested in working with us to reset our/their system for poverty reduction through creations and innovations, they should not hesitate to communicate with CENFACS.

Finally, to improve the way any household meet its basic spending needs, certain creations and innovations may be needed.  Those households that would like to work with us on creations and innovations to improve the meeting of their basic spending needs, they can as well contact us/CENFACS.

The above is the second execution of our CEDM 2024 Working Weeks and Plan.

For those who may be interested in any of the second codes of each sub-theme of this plan, they can contact CENFACS.

For those who would like to learn more about CEDM 2024, they can also communicate with CENFACS.

 

 

• Holiday Budget Clinics 2024

 

As we are heading into the summer holiday season, we are holding holiday budget sessions or clinics for those who need them.  These sessions or clinics are part of CENFACS‘ service offered under financial advice, guidance and information about funding for holiday (i.e., Finance 4 Holiday) and restricted holiday budget.

 

• • What Are Holiday Budget Clinics (HBCs)?

 

HBCs are customised sessions of consultation for those with holiday budgeting needs who want special advice on the matter of making, revising and executing a holiday budget (including holiday budget subject to restrictions from donor/funder).

 

• • How CENFACS Can Work with HBC Applicants

 

Through HBCs, we can offer the following three free-of-charge sessional services:

 

a) Budget set-up session

Under this sessional task, we can work with the applicants to create their holiday budget.

 

b) Budget verification or clean-up session

If you have already done your budget, you want us to verify it.

 

c) Full budget session

If you want us to write it from scratch, verify and advise you including on how to use online budget planner or calculator as well as Generative Artificial Intelligence to ask for help.

 

To arrange for a holiday budget session, you need to book an appointment.

 

 

Message in French (Message en français)

 

À paraître cet été 2024 : le numéro 84 du bulletin FACS qui s’intitulera ‘Gestion des Investissements des Organisations Caritatives Africaines et la Réduction de la Pauvreté’ 

Les crises et les chocs de toutes sortes montrent que les organismes de bienfaisance de toutes tailles doivent prendre la gestion des placements au sérieux.  Cela inclut les organisations caritatives africaines.  En se concentrant sur les organisations caritatives basées en Afrique, elles font de la gestion d’investissements.  Cependant, on sait peu de choses sur leur campagne de gestion des investissements ou placements, car une grande attention est accordée aux organisations à but lucratif.

Dans ce 84e numéro de FACS, nous nous intéressons à la gestion des investissements entreprise par les organisations caritatives africaines, en particulier celles basées en Afrique qui travaillent avec le CENFACS et/ou qui souhaitent travailler avec nous.  Toutefois, avant d’aller plus loin dans cette introduction de ce 84e numéro de FACS, nous allons donner une brève explication du concept de gestion des investissements puisqu’il est au cœur de ce numéro. 

Commençons avec le mot investissement.  L’investissement peut être défini de plusieurs façons qui ont tendance à avoir le même dénominateur commun.  Se référant à la définition de «ourbusiness.com» (1), ce site web indique que

«L’investissement est l’utilisation de fonds dans le but d’obtenir un revenu supplémentaire ou une croissance de la valeur.  La caractéristique essentielle d’un investissement est qu’il implique d’attendre une récompense.  Cela implique l’engagement de fonds qui ont été mis de côté sur les dépenses actuelles dans l’espoir que certains avantages s’accumuleront à l’avenir».

Savoir ce qu’est un investissement permet de comprendre la gestion des investissements.  La gestion des investissements est définie par «emeritus.org» (2) comme suit:

“Le processus de prise de décisions sur les investissements.  Il s’agit de rechercher, de sélectionner et de surveiller un portefeuille d’actifs qui correspondent aux objectifs, au profil de risque et aux délais d’un investisseur.  La gestion des investissements englobe un large éventail d’opportunités d’investissement pour les particuliers qui cherchent à faire fructifier leur patrimoine, des actions et des obligations à l’immobilier et à d’autres classes d’actifs».

Les organisations caritatives basées en Afrique prennent également ce genre de décisions.  Cependant, elles agiraient dans le cadre de leur pouvoir d’investissement caritatif et conformément à leurs documents constitutifs (c’est-à-dire les statuts).  C’est ce type d’investissement que leurs gestionnaires d’investissement sont en mesure de décider et de faire qui est concerné dans le 84e numéro de FACS.  

Le numéro 84 traitera de la stratégie de gestion des risques d’investissement; qui consiste à répartir les investissements entre les classes d’actifs et les industries.  Ce faisant, cette stratégie permet d’équilibrer les retours sur investissement et les préoccupations sur les mêmes investissements.

Le numéro 84 sera également une histoire sur le soin et les compétences des organisations caritatives basées en Afrique dans les décisions d’investissement.  En particulier, l’accent sera mis sur les gestionnaires de placements de ces organisations caritatives, sur la façon dont ils gèrent les portefeuilles et gèrent les politiques d’investissement tout en aidant leurs organisations à mesurer la tolérance au risque liée aux investissements et à réduire l’impact des changements économiques négatifs sur les portefeuilles et à continuer à répondre aux besoins des pauvres.  Ils peuvent conseiller à leur organisation d’investir dans des fonds d’actifs mixtes ou des fonds d’actions nationales ou des fonds d’actions mondiales ou des fonds à taux fixe, des fonds immobiliers et de trésorerie ou des obligations vertes.

Comme il s’agit d’organismes de bienfaisance, la gestion des placements sera examinée dans sa capacité d’aider ces organismes à remplir leur mission, en particulier, mais sans s’y limiter, en ce qui concerne la réduction de la pauvreté.  C’est tellement crucial dans les moments difficiles comme les crises systémiques comme la catastrophe du coronavirus et d’autres chocs majeurs tels que la crise de la dette en Afrique.  En ces temps exceptionnels, une bonne gestion des investissements peut fournir les bases de la résilience face à ces crises ou chocs systémiques.

Pour réaliser leur mission par le biais de la gestion des investissements, les organisations sœurs de CENFACS basées en Afrique ont le choix entre des options d’investissement.  Le 84e numéro explorera ces options avec les sociétés de gestion de fonds en Afrique, en particulier comment elles peuvent être utiles pour répondre au plan stratégique d’investissement des organisations sœurs basées en Afrique.

Sans fournir de conseils spécialisés sur la gestion des investissements aux organisations caritatives africaines, le numéro 84 est une clinique de conseil général pour les organisations sœurs basées en Afrique qui souhaitent prendre la gestion des investissements au sérieux pour les aider à accomplir leur mission sans avoir à s’inquiéter continuellement de savoir si elles ont une somme d’argent sur les dépenses actuelles dans l’espoir de recevoir une récompense.

Pour obtenir des plus amples informations sur le numéro 84 ou pour réserver un exemplaire avant sa publication, veuillez communiquer avec le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop Financial Forecast – Activity 3 for the Match Period 12 to 18/06/2024

 

Both parties (i.e., Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisation and Not-for-profit Charity Shop Investor) have made some steady progress so far as they continue to score points; points which are enough to enable them to enter the third stage of the matching talks.  These matching talks will be about finding ways to reach an agreement on Charity Shop Financial Forecast.

To explain what is going to happen in this Activity 3, we have organised our notes around the following headings:

 

σ What Is Budgeting?

σ What Is a Financial Forecast?

σ Financial Forecast Statements to Be Part of the Matching Talks

σ Match Points for ASCO

σ Match Points for N-f-p Impact Investor. 

 

Let us look at each of these headings.

 

• • What Is Budgeting?

 

Budgeting comes before forecasting your outgoings and incomings.  Budgeting is, according to Christopher Pass et al. (6),

“The process of preparing budgets and exercising budgetary control.  Budgeting encourages forward thinking by managers; serves to help coordinate different functions and departments in the firm; defines the responsibilities of individual managers; provides a framework for delegating responsibility; and provides incentives by setting standards of achievement” (p. 51)

The same Christopher Pass et al. explains that

“A budget for a firm is a firm’s predetermined plan (expressed in quantitative or financial terms) for a given future period” (p. 48)

When bringing its budgets for discussion, ASCO needs to make sure it distinguishes fixed from variable costs in its budgeting process and budgets.  This distinction will help the n-f-p charity shop investor in a number of ways.  For example, it can help to link the selling costs budget with sales budget.

Likewise, ASCO has to clearly present the different budgets that will make its financial forecast.  This will help it to link budgeting process and forecasting process.

Examples of these budgets include the following ones:

 

~ sales budget indicating its planned sales

~ purchases budget giving an idea of its planned purchases

~ volunteer cost budget which explains the planned costs of having volunteers

~ capital expenditure budget which summarises its planned expenditure on fixed assets

~ cash budget which will show the overall cash position with cash inflows and outflows

etc.

 

The n-f-p investor would like to know if ASCO masters its various budgets which will make up the aggregated budgets of the financial forecast.

 

• • What Is a Financial Forecast?

 

The meaning of financial forecast used here comes from ‘netsuite.com’ (7), which argues that

“Financial forecast is a projection of a company’s likely future outcomes; forecasts are developed by finance leaders and consumed by business managers, investors and other key stakeholders”.

Another definition of financial forecast is given by ‘thebusinessplanshop.com’ (8), which explains that

“A charity shop financial forecast is a forward-looking tool that projects the financial performance of your business over a specific period (usually 3 years for start-ups)”.

The website ‘thebusinessplanshop.com’ adds that

“A forecast looks at your business finances in detail – from income to operating costs and investments – to evaluate its expected profitability and future cash flows”.

The n-f-p charity shop impact investor will do the same.  He/she is going to look at in detail ASCO’s plan for the finances of the charity shop, from income to operating costs and investments.  He/she will evaluate the expected profitability and cash flows of the charity shop project.

ASCO needs to make sure that its numbers add up in all the different scenarios of its business model.  The good news is that ASCO has the opportunity from CENFACS’ Hub for Testing Hypotheses to financially test the scenarios of its business model by taking into account the stages of the business or economic cycle.  These financial tests will be based on the financial statements carrying the financial forecast.

 

 

• • Financial Forecast Statements to Be Part of the Matching Talks

 

ASCO’s financial forecast will include

 

σ the forecasted profit and loss statement showing that the shop will be profitable in three to five years

σ the projected balance sheet assessing the financial structure and working capital requirement while pointing out the position of the shop each year of the planned period

σ the projected cash flow statement showing how much cash it has planned to come in and go out via consumption over the same period.

 

It is around these statements that the matching negotiations will happen.  These three financial statements have to stick together and talk to each other.  If they do not stick together or do not talk to each other, the charity shop investor may try not to go further.

For example, the estimates that are used to work out cash coming in and going out have to be accurate.  Another example, cash flow forecasting is based on budgets.  Therefore, there should be a link between the numbers in the budgets and those in the cash flow statements.

 

• • Match Points for ASCO

 

Financial forecasts are based on various indicators, parameters and variables including the economic and financial ones.  Because of that, ASCO needs to clarify its indicators or variables such as key performance indicators for the charity shop.  In particular, it can work out and explain different financial ratios and metrics relating to its financial statements as shown below.

In order to increase its points or chance in the matching talks, ASCO has a number of possibilities, which are:

Explaining financial ratios and metrics relating to the charity shop, providing indicators about its charity trading activities, talking about poverty indicators (e.g., Poverty Gap Ratio) and considering African factors as a further negotiating point.

Let us look at each point.

 

• • • Explaining financial ratios and metrics relating to the charity shop

 

ASCO can, for example, use the following financial ratios and metrics linked to the projected balance sheet:

 

∝) Working Capital = Current Assets – Current Liabilities

∝) Current Assets / Current Liabilities

∝) Debt-to-Assets Ratio

 

Another example, ASCO can as well employ financial ratios and metrics below related to its cash flow projections:

 

∝) Cash Return on Assets = Cash Flow from Operations (CFO) / Average Total Assets

∝) Cash to Capital Expenditure = CFO / Capital Expenditure

∝) Cash Flow to Net Income = CFO / Net Income

 

A further example, ASCO can appeal to financial ratios and metrics connected to the projected profitability of the charity shop, such as

 

∝) Gross Profit Margin = (Gross Profit / Sales) x 100

∝) Net Profit Margin = (Net Income / Sales) x 100

 

The above-mentioned ratios and metrics, which ASCO has to clearly explain, need to demonstrate that the project will be worth undertaken and a successful outcome.  ASCO can use these ratios and metrics as financial monitoring tools to explain the n-f-p impact investor how it has planned to track the performance of the charity shop.

It is important to stress that financial figures or numbers from the financial forecast should not only speak for themselves.  ASCO will be expected to explain them.

 

• • • Providing indicators about its charity trading activities 

 

ASCO can refers to Return on Investment as investment tool and metrics.

 

∝) Return on Investment (ROI)

 

ASCO needs to explain what it means and how to measure it.  Definitions of ROI tend to overlap.

For example, ‘corporatefinanceinstitute.com’ (9) defines ROI as

“A performance measure used to evaluate the returns of an investment or to compare the relative efficiency of different investments”.

Another definition comes from ‘forbes.com’ (10) that states

“ROI is a metric used to understand the profitability of an investment”.

There is also online ROI calculator for those who will be interested in it.

 

∝) Surplus Margin

 

ASCO can as well work out the Surplus Margin.  What is it?

It is the following measure:

 

(Net income / Total income) x 100

 

The website ‘cranfieldtrust.org’ (11) explains that

“Generating a surplus allows a charity to invest in the improvement/expansion of charitable activities.  If the surplus marginal overall is positive, you have made a surplus and your reserves will be boosted”.

For example, this measure can be used to find out the surplus margin of ASCO and its investment portfolios.

 

∝) Earned to Unearned Income Ratio

 

This ratio can be written as follows:

 

Earned Income / Unearned Income

 

The website ‘cranfieldtrust.org’ (op. cit.) argues that

“The ratio of earned to unearned income helps to show that the charity has developed diversified income as it has evolved.  It is useful for donors and funders”.

For example, our ASCO that would like to trade can utilise this ratio to compare income earn from trading to incomes from unearned sources.

 

• • • Talking about poverty indicators (e.g., Poverty Gap Ratio)

 

One of the useful poverty indictors that ASCO can mention since the charity shop will contribute to the reduction of poverty is poverty gap ratio.

 

∝ Poverty Gap Ratio

 

Because charities exist to delivery public benefit not profit, ASCO will consider the impact of charity shop investor’s investments on poverty reduction.  In other words, it deals with impact investing.  To seize this impact, there could be a need to know the poverty gap ratio, which is an interesting metrics of poverty as it measures the intensity of poverty.

The online ‘marketbusinessnews.com’ (12) explains that

“The poverty gap ratio or poverty gap index is the average of the ratio of the poverty gap to the poverty line.  Economists and statisticians express it as a percentage of the poverty line for a region or whole country…The poverty gap ratio considers how far, on the average, poor people are from poverty line”.

The above tools and metrics can be used in dealing with charity trading, investment and poverty reduction in Africa. 

For example, one can use the poverty gap ratio to measure the average shortfall of the income of the poor people in Africa from the poverty line.

 

• • • Considering African factors as a further negotiating point

 

Since we are talking about setting a charity shop in Africa, ASCO must as well consider a number of factors in the country where the shop is going to be set up. These factors could be like these ones:

country investment risk report, the business climate, geo-political factors, geo-economic influences, fiscal policy like value added tax (VAT) on charities, environmental and climate considerations, peace and stability where the charity shop will be implemented, women and girls empowerment, etc. 

Some of these factors can be financially factorised in the charity shop project’s financial statements. 

For example, in countries where VAT does or does not apply to charity shops, ASCO can include this element in its budgets and forecasts when working out the sale prices. 

The combination of a well handling of financial ratios and metrics together with African factors and charity trading indicators will help ASCO’s case.

 

• • Match Points for n-f-p Impact Investor 

 

The points that the n-f-p impact investor will raise will revolve around the handling of the stages of financial forecasting.  He/she will scrutinise the overall financial plan and objectives of the charity shop.  He/she will do it knowingly that there are online financial forecasting software that ASCO can use, including a qualified business plan specialist or expert.

This is without forgetting the Generative Artificial Intelligence tool (like ChatGPT) which can provide answers to some of the financial forecasting search questions that ASCO may have.  ASCO can use it safely and effectively as it may not always provide all the answers ASCO needs.

The n-f-p impact investor may want to know what will be the variances between the budgeted/forecasted numbers and planned outcomes.  And if variances are significant, ASCO has to provide reasons for huge gaps.  If there is a disagreement between ASCO (charity shop founder) and n-f-p impact investor (charity shop investor), this could open up an opportunity for a match/fit test.  The match/fit test can be carried out to try to help the two sides.  The match/fit test can also be undertaken if there is a disagreement on any of the financial forecast statements.

 

 

• • The Match or Fit Test

 

As part of the match or fit test, n-f-p charity shop investor’s view on ASCO’s financial forecast and plan must be matched with the information coming out of ASCO’s financial forecast and plan.  In other words, ASCO’s projection of the likely future outcomes from the charity shop must be accepted by the n-f-p charity shop investor in order for the latter to invest in the charity shop.

The match can be perfect or close in order to reach an agreement.  If there is a huge or glaring difference between the two (i.e., between what the investor wants and what ASCO is saying about its financial forecast, between what the investor would like the financial numbers to say and what ASCO’s financial numbers are really saying), the probability or chance of having an agreement at this third round of negotiations could be null or uncertain.

However, CENFACS can impact advise ASCOs (charity shop founders) to improve the presentation of their financial forecast.  CENFACS can as well guide n-f-p charity shop investors with impact to work out their expectations in terms of financial forecast to a format that can be agreeable by potential ASCOs.  CENFACS’ impact advice for ASCOs and guidance on impact investing for n-f-p charity shop investor, which are impartial, will help each of them (i.e., investee and investor) to make informed decisions and to reduce the likelihood of any significant losses or misunderstandings or mismatches.

The rule of the game is the more charity shop investors are attracted by ASCOs’ (charity shop founders’) financial forecasts the better for ASCOs.  Likewise, the more ASCOs can successfully respond to charitable shop investors’ level of enquiries and queries about the financial forecasts the better for investors.  In this respect, the matching game needs to be a win-win one to benefit both players (i.e., founder and investor).

The above is the third activity of the Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop. 

Those potential organisations seeking investment to set up a charity shop and n-f-p charity shop investors looking for organisations that are interested in giving, they can contact CENFACS to arrange the match or fit test for them.  They can have their fit test carried out by CENFACS’ Hub for Testing Hypotheses.

 

• • CENFACS’ Hub for Testing Hypotheses 

 

The Hub can help to use analysis tools to test assumptions and determine how likely something is within a given standard of accuracy.  The Hub can assist to

 

√ clean, merge and prepare micro-data sources for testing, modelling and analysis

√ conduct data management and administration

√ carry out regression analysis, estimate and test hypotheses

√ interpret and analyse patterns or trends in data or results.

 

For any queries and/or enquiries about this third activity of Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop and/or the programme itself, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

_________

 

• References

 

(1) https://www.ourbusinessladder.com/investment-management/ (accessed in June 2024)

(2) https://emeritus.org/in/learn/finance-investment-management (accessed in June 2024) 

(3) https://www.nationalcentreforfamilyhubs.org.uk/toolkits/theory-of-change/# (accessed in June 2024)

(4) https://aifs.gov.au/resources/practice-guides/what-theory-change (accessed in June 2024)

(5) https://www.usip.org/sites/default/files/Sustainable_Capacity_Building_Manuscript.pdf (accessed in June 2024)

(6) Pass, C., Lowes, B. & Davies, L. (1988), Dictionary of Economics, HarperCollins Publishers, London & Glasgow

(7) https://www.netsuite.com/portal/resource/articles/financial-management/financial-forecast.shtml (accessed in June 2024)

(8) https://www.thebusinessplanshop.com/en/start-a-business/guides/open-charity-shop#financial-forecast (accessed in June 2024)

(9) https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/accouting/what-is-return-on-investment-roi/ (accessed in April 2024)

(10) https://www.forbes.com/advisor/investing/roi-on-investment/ (accessed in April 2024)

(11) https://www.cranfieldtrust.org/articles/top-10-financial-ratios-forcharities (accessed in April 2024)

(12) https://marketbusinessnews.com/information-on-credit/gap-ratio–definition-meaning (accessed in August 2023)

_________

 

• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going This Year

 

We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis.  Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.

One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.

Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS.  Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE AND BEAUTIFUL CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.

JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)

Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.

Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.

We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2024 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

05 June  2024

 

Post No. 355

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Creative Economic Development Month and Jmesci (June Month of Environmental and Sustainable Initiatives) Project 2024

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop – Activity 2 (05 to 11/06/2024): Initial Capital 

• Goal of the Month: Poverty Reduction through Entrepreneurship

 

… And much more!

 

Key Messages

 

• Creative Economic Development Month and Jmesci (June Month of Environmental and Sustainable Initiatives) Project 2024

 

The key theme for June 2024 is Creations and Innovations to Reduce Poverty and Enhance Sustainable Development.  Within this main theme, there are 3 sub-themes which are Celebration, Transition and Household Spending.  Inside these sub-themes, there are codes.

This June 2024 will be special as we are celebrating CENFACS as a Tricennial Creation.  Besides this celebration, we will be working on the kinds of creations and innovations we need in order to transition to a climate-resilient future, to reset and change our system of poverty reduction, and to handle squeezed household life-sustaining spending.

The plan for June 2024 includes the initiatives below.

 

a) Tricennium and Project 30 

 

Tricennium or CENFACS’ Tricennial Year (1994 to 2024), which is a history and creation project, will be the first creation we will deal with this June 2024.  Project 30 is an initiative set up to deliver CENFACS’ Pearl Jubilee or Tricennial Year.

Besides the Tricennium, we shall have creations and innovations that we need to transition to a climate-resilient development and to reset and change our system of poverty reduction.

 

b) Creations and Innovations to transition to a climate-resilient future and to reset and change our poverty reduction system

 

Forming from nothing ideas or introducing changes to transition towards climate resilient future and continue to move forward together will be the main activity during this month of June 2024.  These creative ideas and innovative ways of working will enable to find the means to meet the level of ambition we have for the kind of sustainable development and future we want, which we hope will be climate-resilient and net zero one.

These creative ideas and innovative ways of working together will be used to reset and/or change systems, like our poverty reduction system.  This is also part of being resilient against any shocks and stresses that may affect systems, our system of poverty reduction.

Using our experience, skills, knowledge and talents to find techniques, technologies and new methods to deal with the currently pressing and immediate needs of the time of squeezed household spending may not be enough unless we create and innovate to prevent or at least to mitigate future crises.  It means there could be another need to bring into existence ideas and introduce changes and new methods to address future crises if they happen when they happen.

 

c) Creations and Innovations to deal with squeezed household life-sustaining spending 

 

Squeeze on household spending means that one needs to find some creative and innovative ways of dealing with this squeeze if one wants to avoid the deepening of consumption poverty.  It also means one may work out to develop an alternative in terms of ideas, skills and new knowledge to meet the basic expenditures of those who are unable to spend enough to avoid consumption poverty.

So, in the context of the Creative Economic Development Month (CEDM), we have 3 sub-themes of creations and innovations to offer which are:

 

1) Tricennium: CENFACS as a Tricennial Creation

2) Transition: transition to climate-resilient development and the reset and change of our system of poverty reduction

3) Household Expenses: handling squeezed household life-sustaining spending.

 

During this Month of Creative Economic Development, we are forming responses from nothing and bringing them into existence to deal with the above-mentioned sub-themes.  Equally, we are going to introduce new ideas or methods as well as make changes to what has been tried and tested to deliver these kinds of sub-themes.

In this process of forming proposals and introducing new methods, we are going to work with the community – via the project Jmesci (June Month of Environmental and Sustainable Initiatives project) featuring this month – to try to create and innovate so that we are all able to better meet the challenges and cross the hurdles brought by crises or shocks (such as the cost-of-living crisis and falling real household disposable income, natural disaster, humanitarian catastrophe, etc.).

June 2024 is a feature-rich month during which we shall streamline users’ content creation and innovation processes.  In this process of creating and innovating, we shall consider some of the creative and innovative ideas, proposals, metrics, experiences and tools that have been so far put forward to help poor people and households reduce poverty and hardships, or at least to deal with squeezed household life-sustaining spending.

Our work will revolve around the kinds of creation and innovation the CENFACS Community (and alike our Africa-based Sister Organisations) needs in order to find ways of  Building Forward Better Together to a Greener, Cleaner, Safer, Inclusive and Climate-Resilient Future.

Under the Main Development section of this post, we have provided further information about this first key message.

 

 

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop – Activity 2 (05 to 11/06/2024): Initial Capital 

 

The second activity of our 4-week Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop is about Matching Charity Shop Founder’s Startup Capital with Charity Shop Investor’s Capital Proposition.  In this episode, we are going to delve into the total amount of money or wealth that a charity shop founder is prepared to put in and what charity shop investor is offering.

Both Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisation (ASCO)/charity shop founder and not-for-profit (n-f-p) charity shop investor have decided to move with the matching talks as they scored points each of them during Activity 1.  They agreed to move to Activity 2 while finalising the little bits remaining from Activity 1 of the matching negotiations since these negotiations are a backward and forward process.

To summarise what is going to happen during this Activity 2, we have organised our notes around the following headings:

 

σ ASCO’s initial capital

σ Factors/elements determining initial working capital

σ Ownership control

σ The match or fit test.

 

Let us look at each of these headings.

 

• • ASCO’s Initial Capital

 

ASCO needs to specify how much is putting as initial capital in its charity shop project.  As ‘bizjournals.com’ (1) puts it,

“If you are getting money from investors anywhere, except Silicon Valley, they are expecting you to put your own”.

However, ASCO has to be aware about the reality of funding for startups.  This reality is explained by ‘upcounsel.com’ (2) which argues that

“Typically, startups go through rounds of funding, and with each successive round, the founder’s ownership percentage shrinks.  The process is known as dilution… Depending on the number of funding rounds your startup undergoes, outside investors may end up owning more of the company than your founders”.

The n-f-p investor would like to know where part of ASCO’s initial capital will come from (for example, from banks, venture capitalists, parent charities, crowdfunding, grant makers, charity members, etc.)

ASCO can work out factors that determine the initial working capital.

 

• • Factors/Elements Determining Initial Working Capital

 

The initial working capital (IWC) will depend on a number of factors like premises renovation or the building of new shop, the purchasing of fixed assets (such as cash registers, shelving, furniture, etc.), new technologies, shop space, warehouse, insurance, etc.  These factors or elements can intervene in expenses decision as one-time and/or ongoing expenses.

In trying to assemble the elements making IWC, ASCO is required to make difference between startup expenses, startup assets and operating expenses.  According to ‘bplans.com’ (3),

“Startup expenses (e.g., permits or licences, insurance, and so on) are expenses that happen before you launch and start bringing in any revenue.  Startup assets (e.g., equipment, stock of products, etc.) are assets to get your business off the ground.  Operating expenses (e.g., rent, utilities, office supplies, etc.) are what it is going to cost to keep your doors open until sales can cover expenses”.

Charity shop n-f-p investor wants to know if ASCO has identified and meticulously categorised startup expenses.  And ASCO is likely to get support if it has a well-researched, unambiguous and detailed financial plan.

 

• • Ownership Control

 

At this level of talks, ASCO needs to get outside investors (here n-f-p investor) while keeping ownership control of the charity shop.  ASCO has few options.  It can give a minority stake or give a big (majority) one or simply decide what percentage it wants to control.  However, n-f-p investor can adapt its response to the needs or proposals from ASCO, as he/she wants to see a long-term transaction with value delivered at some point in the future.  The  n-f-p property investor, who is driven by selfless motivations, would invest to reduce poverty.  Although he/she is driven by selfless motivations, he/she would like to see the charity shop is a profitable business so that it can achieve its goal of reducing poverty by raising money for it through trading.

To reach a deal at this round of negotiations, they may need a match or fit test.

Briefly, ASCO is prepared to cover some startup costs and investments, but it will need a percent of investments to be provided/covered by the n-f-p investor.  At the moment, it is not sure how much investment coverage it really needs.  The matching exercise can determine it.

The  n-f-p charity shop investor may agree with the level and the structure of ASCOs’ initial capital.  However, if there is mismatch or disagreement between the two sides of matching project, there could be a need to organise a match or fit test.

 

 

• • The Match or Fit Test

 

As part of the match or fit test, n-f-p charity shop investor’s view and offer on startup capital must be matched with ASCO’s demand or ask for capital.  In other words, ASCO’s explanation of the capital it needs to start a charity shop must be good enough to push n-f-p charity shop investor to invest in the charity shop.

The match can be perfect or close in order to reach an agreement.  If there is a huge or glaring difference between the two (i.e., between what the investor wants and what ASCO is saying about startup capital), the probability or chance of having an agreement at this second round of negotiations could be null or uncertain.

However, CENFACS can impact advise ASCOs (charity shop founders) to improve the presentation of their initial capital.  CENFACS can as well guide n-f-p charity shop investors with impact to work out their expectations in terms of startup capital to a format that can be acceptable by potential ASCOs.  CENFACS’ impact advice for ASCOs and guidance on impact investing for n-f-p charity shop investor, which are impartial, will help each of them (i.e., investee and investor) to make informed decisions and to reduce the likelihood of any significant losses or misunderstandings or mismatches.

The rule of the game is the more charity shop investors are attracted by ASCOs’ (charity shop founders’) initial capital the better for ASCOs.  Likewise, the more ASCOs can successfully respond to charitable shop investors’ level of enquiries and queries about initial capital the better for investors.  In this respect, the matching game needs to be a win-win one to benefit both players (i.e., founder and investor).

The above is the second activity of the Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop. 

Those potential organisations seeking investment to set up a charity shop and n-f-p charity shop investors looking for organisations that are interested in it, they can contact CENFACS to arrange the match or fit test for them.  They can have their fit test carried out by CENFACS’ Hub for Testing Hypotheses.

For any queries and/or enquiries about this second activity of Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop and/or the programme itself, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

 

• Goal of the Month: Poverty Reduction through Entrepreneurship

 

Our poverty reduction goal for June 2024 is Poverty Reduction through Entrepreneurship.  It is part of the Creations and Innovations of the month.  To become entrepreneur, it requires a certain level of creation and innovation to bring a new idea or product to the market, here the poverty reduction market.  This new idea can be included in this month and can make our goal of the month.

 

• • About Our Goal of the Month

 

This goal stems from Wu (4) in its study which addresses the theoretical weaknesses about the relationship between entrepreneurship and poverty reduction.  His study was based on China’s Yiwu county.  Wu argues that

“There are exogenous (e.g., non-governmental organisations) and endogenous (e.g., people’s own initiative) factors that can give entrepreneurship a push or pull impact on poverty”.

According to Wu, there are both problem-oriented and theory-driven evidences showing that entrepreneurship can help reduce poverty.  However, for poverty reduction to happen, it requires aspiring entrepreneur with appropriate resource entrepreneurship opportunities, and institutional environment conducive to entrepreneurship.  It also demands entrepreneurs’ motivation with sustainability and the use of social networks.

 

• • The Implications of Wu’s Research Work for Our Goal of the Month

 

From Wu’s findings and as part of our goal of the month, it is possible to work with people in need who would like to take entrepreneurship path as a way of navigating their way towards poverty reduction.  They may need support in their role of entrepreneurs to boost their motivation.  This is our goal for June 2024 – goal of the month.

Those who would like to help to make poverty reduction happen through entrepreneurship, they can be supportive of this goal.  We expect our supporters and audiences to support this goal as well.

For further details on this goal including its support, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Activity/Task 6 of the Transitions (t) Year/Project: Work with the Needy to Improve Creations and Innovation Linked to Transition

• Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households – In Focus from Week Beginning Monday 10/06/2024: Identification of Household Resilience Dimensions and Adaptive Strategies

• Triple Value Initiatives (TVIs)/All Year-round Projects (AYRPs) and the World Environment Day 2024

 

 

• Activity/Task 6 of the Transitions (t) Year/Project: Work with The Needy to Improve Creations and Innovation Linked to Transition

 

In this Year of Transitions within CENFACS, it is possible to improve creations and innovations in the way people can transition.  This is related to any aspect of transition: economic or social or financial or energy or climate or other.

Indeed, one can create and/or innovate resources, models, tools, metrics, etc. to improve and analyse transition for the poor so that they do not lag behind.  This will enable to avoid a two-speed transition.  One transition for those who can afford and another transition for those who cannot.  To avoid difference or inequality or even dissymmetry in transition, it is better to work with those in need to improve creations and innovations linked to transition.  In this way, transition will be just, equal, asymmetrical and fair.  However, to achieve fairness, equality, symmetry and justice in transition; it may require creations and innovations that respond to the needs of the poor.

The above is what activity/task 6 is about.  For those who need any help before embarking on this activity/task, they can speak to CENFACS.

For any other queries and enquiries about the ‘t‘ project and this year’s dedication, please contact CENFACS as well.

 

 

• Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households – In Focus from Week Beginning Monday 10/06/2024: Identification of Household Resilience Dimensions and Adaptive Strategies

 

We will be working with low resilience households to find out what dimensions of resilience that need support.  Depending on the resilience dimensions identified from them, we shall revisit their adaptive strategies with the purpose of working together to improve these strategies.

Let us briefly explain the identification work and strategies.

 

 

• • Identification of Household Resilience Dimensions

 

It is about conducting resilience needs assessment and getting responses about factors that can help a given household to succeed its resilience.  It is also about studying the context-specific resilience frameworks of household and vulnerability factors.

The identification will also enable to find protection tools against vulnerability issues, to find out household’s resilience capabilities, and to analyse household’s resilience data.

This identification will help to obtain primary data about prioritised issue that a given household is experiencing and to specify the way of working together with this household.

Once household resilience dimensions have been identified, we can look at intervention and adaptive strategies.

 

• • Intervention and Adaptive Strategies

 

Concerning the intervention in terms of household resilience, it is about assigning measurement indication, conducting both qualitative and quantitative studies, drawing out dimensions of household resilience, identifying the possibility of overlapping or influence between dimensions and looking at drivers of vulnerability and supporters of resilience.

For example, we will be using RIMA (Resilience Index Measurement and Analysis) of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (5), in particular RIMA-II, which estimates household resilience to food insecurity with a comprehensive pack which includes direct measure and indirect measurements as well as long and short term measurement approaches.

With this index, we can

 

∝ know households in need and the area of focus for investing in households

∝ find out the dimensions of resilience that need to be supported

∝ check if interventions have increased or decreased households resilience.

 

As to adaptive strategies, they are about working with households so that they can improve their capacity to prepare for, cope with, and adapt to shocks and crises while ensuring that they do not fall deeper into poverty.

For example, we will refer to the fundamental pillars of resilience of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (6) to look at households’ adaptive strategies.  These pillars are access to basic services, assets, social safety nets, sensitivity and adaptive capacity.  This will enable to check food insecurity resilience capacity, resilience capacity and coping strategy in food security.

The above is the second way of working with households on resilience matter.

For those households that need support regarding their resilience matters and in particular to Identify Their Resilience Dimensions and Adaptive Strategies, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Triple Value Initiatives (TVIs)/All Year-round Projects (AYRPs) and the World Environment Day 2024

 

Today, the World Environment Day (WED) 2024 is focussing on land restoration, desertification and drought resilience.   As part of this worldwide event day, those of our members who are working on any of the TVIs/AYRPs can reflect the theme of the WED 2024 in the application of their initiatives/projects.  They can integrate the protection of the environment into them.

Those who have included or will include the features of this campaign in the TVIs/AYRPs can let us know their experience of this inclusion.

Telling and sharing your TVI/AYRP story of the inclusion experience will help

 

√ contribute to land restoration, desertification and drought resilience

√ improve the environmental aspect within TVI/AYRP

√ know what has worked and not worked so far before  TVI’s/AYRP’s deadline of 23/12/2024.

 

To tell and share your TVI/AYRP story of environmental inclusion and particularly of the inclusion of the theme of WED 2024 , please contact CENFACS.

 

 

Message in French (Message en français)

 

• Objectif du mois: Réduction de la pauvreté par l’entrepreneuriat

Notre objectif de réduction de la pauvreté pour juin 2024 est la réduction de la pauvreté par l’entrepreneuriat.  Il fait partie des Créations et Innovations du mois.  Pour devenir entrepreneur/se, il faut un certain niveau de création et d’innovation pour apporter une nouvelle idée sur le marché, ici le marché de la réduction de la pauvreté.

• • À propos de notre objectif du mois

Cet objectif découle de ce que Wu (4) a fait savoir dans son étude qui aborde les faiblesses théoriques de la relation entre l’entrepreneuriat et la réduction de la pauvreté.  Son étude était basée sur le comté chinois de Yiwu.  Wu soutient que

«Il existe des facteurs exogènes (par exemple, les organisations non gouvernementales) et endogènes (par exemple, l’initiative des gens) qui peuvent donner à l’entrepreneuriat un impact sur la pauvreté».

Selon Wu, il existe des preuves à la fois axées sur les problèmes et sur la théorie qui montrent que l’entrepreneuriat peut aider à réduire la pauvreté.  Cependant, pour que la réduction de la pauvreté se produise, il faut un(e) entrepreneur(se) en herbe avec des opportunités d’entrepreneuriat appropriées et un environnement institutionnel propice à l’entrepreneuriat.  Cela exige la motivation des entrepreneurs(ses)  en matière de durabilité et l’utilisation des réseaux sociaux.

• • Les implications du travail de recherche de Wu pour notre objectif du mois

D’après les conclusions de Wu et dans le cadre de notre objectif du mois, il est possible de travailler avec des personnes dans le besoin qui souhaitent emprunter la voie de l’entrepreneuriat comme moyen de naviguer vers la réduction de la pauvreté.  Elles peuvent avoir besoin d’un soutien dans leur rôle d’entrepreneur(se) pour stimuler leur motivation.

Ceux ou celles qui souhaitent contribuer à la réduction de la pauvreté grâce à l’entrepreneuriat peuvent soutenir cet objectif.  Nous attendons de nos supporters et de notre public qu’ils soutiennent également cet objectif.

Pour plus de détails sur cet objectif, y compris son soutien, veuillez contacter le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Creative Economic Development Month and Jmesci (June Month of Environmental and Sustainable Initiatives) Project 2024

 

The following points make up the Main Development section of this post:

 

∝ Basic understanding of the creative economic development

∝ What 2024 June Month of Environmental and Sustainable Creative Initiatives (Jmesci) project will be about

∝ Theme and Sub-themes of Creative Economic Development Month 2024

∝ The kinds of creative economic development projects we will be dealing with

∝ The method of delivering the Creative Economic Development Month

∝ The calendar and contents of the Creative Economic Development Month

∝ Execution of CEDM 2024 Sub-themes: First Codes (from Week Beginning Monday 03/06/2024)

∝ Creative Economic Development Projects

∝ Featuring other environmental activities or events outside but closer to CENFACS’ work.

 

Let us look at these points one by one.

 

• • Basic Understanding of the Creative Economic Development (CEDM)

 

To grasp the creative economic development is better to start with the understanding of the creative economy.

 

• • • Basic understanding of the creative economy

 

There are many definitions of creative economy.  In this communication, we have selected two of them.

The first definition comes from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).  UNCTAD (7) argues that a creative economy

“Essentially… is the knowledge-based economic activities upon which the ‘creative industries’ are based”.

The UNCTAD goes on by claiming that

“The creative industries – which include advertising, architecture, arts and crafts, design, fashion, film, video, photography, music, performing arts, publishing, research and development, software, computer games, electronic publishing, and TV/radio – are the lifeblood of the creative economy”.

The second definition, which is from ‘rasmussen.edu’ (8), is

“The creative economy is the income-earning potential of creative activities and ideas”.

Clearly, this second definition focusses on the income generation aspect of creative industries and activities.

However, CENFACS looks at the creative economy from the perspective of development or sustainable development.

 

• • • Creative economy from the perspective of sustainable development

 

From this perspective, one needs to include the definition of sustainable development as given by World Commission on Environment and Development (9), definition which is:

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

So, the knowledge-based economic activities – upon which the creative industries are supported – need to be sustainable; that is capable of being continued over the long term without adverse effects.  Since, we are pursuing CENFACS’ Programme of ‘Building Forward Better Together to a Greener, Cleaner, Safer, Inclusive and Climate-Resilient Future’; these activities need to be inclusive, clean, green (or net zero), climate-resilient and safe.

 

• • What June Month of Environmental and Sustainable Initiatives 2024 Is about

 

Individual and collective creations in the ways of improving lives through the conception of fresh ideas and the implementation of practical ideas to escape from poverty and hardships as well as foster a better environment and sustainability, are CENFACS’ area of interest.   We create all over the year and life; however June is the month for us to remember and acknowledge our environmental and sustainable makings.

June is the month of Creative Economic Development at CENFACS with creation and innovation on the main menu: creation for researching and developing fresh ideas to reduce poverty, particularly extreme poverty; innovation for making these ideas or dreams come true, transformable into practical environmental and sustainable initiatives and actions.

Put it simply, Jmesci (June Month of Environmental and Sustainable Creative Initiatives) is just about finding out ways of engineering creations relating to the environment and sustainability in order to further reduce poverty and improve the quality of life.  In practical terms, it is the project that features or carries the Creative Economic Development Month (CEDM).

This year’s Jmesci will be about 3 Types of Creations and Innovations:

 

a) Creations and Innovations to transition towards a climate-resilient future

b) Creations and Innovations to reset and change our poverty reduction system

c) Creations and Innovations to deal with squeezed household life-sustaining spending.

 

 

• • Theme and Sub-themes of CEDM 2024

 

The key theme of CEDM 2024 is Creations and Innovations to Reduce Poverty and Enhance Sustainable Development.  Within this main theme, we have 3 sub-themes of creations and innovations to offer, which are:

 

1) Tricennium: CENFACS as a Tricennial Creation

2) Transition: transition to a climate-resilient development and the reset and change of our system of poverty reduction

3) Household Expenses: handling squeezed household life-sustaining spending.

 

Let us briefly highlight each of the sub-themes.

 

• • • Tricennium: CENFACS as a Tricennial Creation

 

2024 has been dedicated as a Transition Year within CENFACS.  2024 is also a Tricennial Year for the idea of CENFACS as 2024 is the year during which we are celebrating the establishment of CENFACS as a Tricennial Creation.  In other words, it is now 30 years since the idea of CENFACS was born.

This Tricennial Celebration or the Tricennium kicked off last March 2024.  It is a celebration of the remarkable journey of CENFACS as an idea for good.  We are remembering CENFACS for its four existential features, which are:

 

a) CENFACS as a Sustainable Creation

b) CENFACS as a Unique Creation

c) CENFACS as an Inspiring and Transformative Creation

d) CENFACS as a Creation for Hope and Future.

 

Through Project 30, we will be progressively sharing with our supporters, followers and audiences some information about CENFACS milestones so that they can (re)learn a bit more about CENFACS.  We would like as well those who have recently joined us and those who may want to join us, to learn something about CENFACS on the occasion of this Pearl Jubilee.

 

• • • Creations and Innovations to transition towards a climate-resilient development and to reset and change of our system of poverty reduction

 

To transition to climate-resilient future, one may need a plan.  What is a climate transition plan?

According to ‘epa.gov’ (10),

“A climate transition plan is an action plan where an organisation describes its strategy to transition its processes, operations, and business models to meet its public commitments within a specified timeframe”.

This definition can also be relativized and applied to individuals/people and households.  So, creations and innovations to transition to a climate-resilient future will be those related to

 

σ people’s/households’ transition strategy

σ people’s/households’ transition processes

σ people’s/households’ transition operations

σ people’s/households’ transition model.

 

Additionally, we shall have creations and innovations to reset and change our poverty reduction system.  This is because any reset and change in our system for poverty reduction do not occur by chance, unless one creates and/or innovates to make them happen.

 

• • • Creations and Innovations to handle squeezed household life-sustaining spending

 

Under this sub-theme, we shall deal with the creations and innovations linked to the following:

 

σ spending appraisal

σ meeting basic spending needs

σ organisations and institutions of spending protection

σ consumer protection.

 

• • Kinds of Creative Economic Development Projects Dealt with

 

The types of creative economic development projects that will be considered will be those helping people in need to reduce or end poverty while enhancing sustainable development.  In other words, for any creations and innovations to meet the objectives of the creation and innovation month, they need to address poverty while contributing to the principles of sustainable development; that is development that is inclusive, clean, green (or net zero), climate-resilient and safe.

From the idea or conception to the implementation of these projects, their contents need to have the values of poverty reduction and sustainability (particularly the inclusive, clean, green or net zero, climate-resilient and safe aspects of sustainability).  As we continue to unveil these projects throughout this month, these values will become clear, apparent and self-explanatory.  This will as well determine the manner in which the Creative Economic Development Month will be approached and delivered throughout the month.

 

• • The Method of Delivering the Creative Economic Development Month 

 

The Creative Economic Development Month will be delivered through the composition of notes and a number of activities (such as workshop, focus group or discussion, advocacy or campaign and appeal).

 

• • The Calendar and Contents of the Creative Economic Development Month

 

To deliver on what we have argued so far, we have organised the Creative Economic Development Month (CEDM) as indicated in the figure below.

 

 

As shown in the above figure, Sub-theme 2 include both Creations and Innovations to transition to a climate-resilient future as well as Creations and Innovations to reset and/or change our systems, our system of poverty reduction.

 

 

• • Execution of CEDM 2024 Sub-themes: First Codes (from Week Beginning Monday 03/06/2024)

 

Our CEDM Working Weeks and Plan starts with the codes for each sub-theme, which are

 

√ CENFACS as Sustainable Creation

√ Creations and innovations that are related to people’s/households’ transition strategy for a climate-resilient future

√ Creations and innovations to reset our poverty reduction system

√ Creations and innovations linked to spending appraisal.

 

Those who would like to engage with the CEDM 2024 can choose amongst the above-mentioned codes and contact CENFACS.

For example, if one wants to know more about CENFACS as a Sustainable Creation, they can contact.  CENFACS will explain them what it means and discuss with them on how they can learn more about it and participate or support any events linked to CENFACS as a Sustainable Creation.

Likewise, to transition to a climate-resilient future, it requires creations and innovations in terms of transition strategy.  Those who would like to work with CENFACS on their transition strategy, they can let CENFACS know.

Equally, to reset our system for poverty reduction, it demands creations and innovations.  Those who will be interested in working with us to reset our/their system for poverty reduction through creations and innovations, they should not hesitate to communicate with CENFACS.

Finally, to improve the way any household appraises its spending to protect itself from squeezed life-sustaining needs, certain creations and innovations may be needed.  Those households that would like to work with us on creations and innovations to improve their spending appraisal, they can as well contact us/CENFACS.

The above is the first execution of our CEDM 2024 Working Weeks and Plan.  For those who may be interested in any of the first codes of each sub-theme of this plan, they can contact CENFACS.  For those would like to learn more about CEDM 2024, they can also communicate with CENFACS.

 

• • Creative Economic Development Projects

 

There are areas of creative economic industries upon which we (together with those in need) draw inspiration to develop projects to help reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.  These areas include: advertising, arts and crafts, design, video, research and development.

To be more specific, let us look at one example, one activity and one competition relating to creative economic development projects.

 

 

• • • Example of Creative Economic Development Project: Art and Design for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development

 

CENFACS’ creative economic development projects (like Art and Design for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development) can help users to handle squeezed household life-sustaining spending.

For example, we normally run Art and Design for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development as a creative economic development or creative economy project.   Through this project, participants can unlock their creative aspirations to build and develop poverty reduction content-creating objects or materials.  This exercise will provide them with poverty reduction building experiences via objects/materials.

 

 

• • • Creative Economic Development Activity of the Month: Construct and Post e-cards or e-objects

 

One of the activities related to this project for this year will be to construct and post e-cards or e-objects expressing the theme of “Land restoration, desertification and drought resilience”.  The construction will echo the World Environmental Day’s (11) celebratory theme of today 05/06/2024.

One can as well construct and post the similar cards as expressions or ways of dealing with drought to resonate the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought (12) on 17/06/2024.  The theme of 2024 Desertification and Drought Day is “United for Land. Our Legacy. Our Future”.

So, those who wish and want can design and post an e-card or e-object to feature the theme of “Land restoration, desertification and drought resilience” relating to World Environment Day, and/or the theme of “United for Land. Our Legacy. Our Future” linked to the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought.

To support and or enquire about Art and Design for Poverty Relief and Sustainable Development, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

• • • Creative Economic Development Competition of the Month: The Creative Mind of Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development

 

The Creative Mind of Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development is a one-month’s project of challenge created and run by CENFACS that will enable creators and innovators of the month to showcase their creations and innovations in and for the community; creations and innovations relating to poverty reduction and sustainable development.

As a creator or innovator of poverty reduction and/or sustainable development you can tell and/or share with CENFACS your creation and/or innovation project or experience of creative and/or innovative poverty reduction and/or sustainable development.  Your creation and/or innovation project or experience will be part of this month’s challenge to find the Creative Mind of Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development.

To tell and/or share your creation and/or innovation project or experience, please contact CENFACS this month.

 

• • Featuring other environmental activities or events outside but closer to CENFACS’ work

 

Our month of creation (of thinking up new things) and innovation (of converting our thoughts into tangible outcomes) revolves around global, national, and local environmental and sustainable issues and events of the month as well.

Examples of June world environmental events and days of the month include the following events (we have already mentioned some of them):

 

∝ Croydon Climate Action (13) with ‘Restore Nature Now March’ to be held Saturday 22 June 2024

∝ The United Nations World Environment Day which is being held today 05/06/2024 under the theme of ‘Land restoration, desertification and drought resilience’

∝ The World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought 2024 to be held on 17/06/2024 under the theme of ‘United for Land. Our Legacy. Our Future’.

 

The above notes are for CENFACS’ Creative Economic Development Month.

To support and or engage with CENFACS’ Creative Economic Development Month and or  the project Jmesci 2024, please contact CENFACS.

_________

 

• References

 

(1) https://www.bizjournals.com/bizjournals/how-to/funding/2015/10/10-reasons-to-bring-in-investors.html (accessed in June 2024)

(2) https://www.upcounsel.com/how-to-determine-percentage-pf-ownership-in-a-company# (accessed in June 2024)

(3) https://www.bplans.com/start-a-business/finances/startup-costs/calculate/ (accessed in June 2024)

(4) Wu, J., Si, S. Poverty reduction through entrepreneurship: incentives, social networks, and sustainability. Asian Bus Manage 17, 243-259 (2018) https://doi.org/10.1057/s41291-018-0039-5  (accessed in June 2024) 

(5) https://openknowledge.fao.org/server/api/core/bitsreams/0b55901e-7961-4b87-b31a-4a45a9306bf6/content (accessed in June 2024)

(6) https://openknowledge.fao.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/c61.a9a8c-feb4-4199-8cb1-7085c84908c8/content (accessed in June 2024)

(7)  https://unctad.org/en/Pages/DITC/CreativeEconomy/Creative-Economy-Programme.aspx (accessed in May 2023)

(8) https://www.rasmussen.edu/degrees/design/blog/what-is-the-creative-economy/ (accessed in June 2023)

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

(10) https://www.epa.gov/climateleadership/climate-transition-planning# (accessed in June 2024),

(11) https://www.worldenvironmentday.global (accessed in June 2024)

(12) https://www.unccd.int/events/desertification-drought-day/2024 (accessed in June 2024)

(13) https://www.croydonclimateaction.com/about-5 (accessed in June 2024)

_________

 

• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going This Year

 

We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis.  Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.

One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.

Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS.  Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE AND BEAUTIFUL CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.

JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)

Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.

Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.

We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2024 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

29 May  2024

 

Post No. 354

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop

• Shop at CENFACS’ Zero Waste e-Store during This Spring Giving Season

• Systemic Resilience Rebuilding Projects and Activities

 

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop

 

We have a new project for our Matching Organisation-Investor Programme, which is part of CENFACS’ Guidance Programme to not-for-profit impact investors.  The new project is an extension of some of the points we made this Spring 2024 about charity trading in the Issue No. 83 of FACS.  This Issue is titled as Charity Trade, Investment and Poverty Reduction in Africa.

The new project is about matching an African charitable organisation’s project to set up a charity shop and a prospective investor who may be interested in impact investing in charity shops.  The charitable organisation is planning to sell goods by opening up a charity shop as ancillary or non-primary trading outlet to raise money for its good cause while a potential investor is looking to invest in the charity shop.

The matching process will be run for four weeks, between 29 May and 26 June 2024.  To better understand this project, let us re-explain it and its aim.

 

• • What Is Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop?

 

It is a set of four activities designed to arrange the match/fit test between an Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisation planning to set up a charity shop and a prospective not-for-profit impact investor.  This project of CENFACS’ Matching Programme will enable the former to find a suitable investor, and the latter to gain an investee in which they can impact invest in.

 

• • The Aim of Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop

 

The main aim of this project is to reduce poverty through the setting up of a charity shop.

The shop will help raise much-needed funds to help keep the Charitable Organisation’s services and support the local community via the reduction of local poverty.  In this respect, the charity shop will be an opportunity to increase support to fight poverty and hardships amongst the Charitable Organisation’s users and beneficiaries.  All money raised via this shop will help people in crisis and poverty in their community.

Through this project, it is hoped that the Charitable Organisation will meet its dream not-for-profit (n-f-p) impact investor.  It is as well expected that the n-f-p impact investor will find the right organisation to invest in for impact.  Where the two parties experience difficulties  in matching their project proposals, CENFACS will organise the match test for them.

More details about this Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop can be found under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

 

• Shop at CENFACS’ Zero Waste e-Store during This Spring Giving Season

 

CENFACS e-Store is opened for your Spring goods donations and goods purchases.

At this time, many household expenditures have been squeezed by the cost of living pressures mostly driven by the hikes in prices of basic life-sustaining needs (e.g., food, transport, housing, council tax, phone, etc.).  This is despite the rumours that inflation is now low (almost around 2.3%) compared to last Spring’s figure (around 8.7%), and the reduction of energy price in the UK.

The impacted of the cost of living pressures need help and support as prices and bills do not match the real disposable incomes of those living in poverty.

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

You can donate or recycle your unwanted and unneeded goods to CENFACS’ Charity e-Store, the zero waste shop built to help relieve poverty and hardships.

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

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

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

You can DONATE or SHOP or do both:

√ DONATE unwanted Preloved GOODS, GIFTS and PRODUCTS to CENFACS Zero Waste e-Store this May and this Spring.

√ SHOP at CENFACS Zero Waste e-Store to support noble and beautiful causes of poverty relief this May and this Spring.

Your SHOPPING and or GOODS DONATIONS will help the Upkeep of the Nature and to reduce poverty and hardships brought by the cost of living pressures.

This is what the Season of Giving is all about.

Please do not hesitate to donate goods or purchase what is available at CENFACS Zero Waste e-Store.

Many lives have been threatened and destroyed by the cost of living pressures. 

We need help to help them come out poverty and hardships caused by these pressures.

To donate or purchase goods, please go to: http://cenfacs.org.uk/shop/

 

 

• Systemic Resilience Rebuilding Projects and Activities

 

Our systemic resilience rebuilding agenda continues with Systemic Resilience Rebuilding Projects and Activities (SRRPs & SRRAs).  It continues with a new initiative for SRRPs, which is Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households (SRCRP4Hs).  It also carries on with some activities, that is Systemic Resilience Rebuilding Activities (SRRAs).  Both SRRPs and SRRAs are a follow-up after the Financial Resilience Programme for Households (FRP4Hs) we organised last month.  FRP4Hs is just an iceberg of the resilience issues that many households face.

Let us look at SRRPs and SRRAs.

 

 

• • Systemic Resilience Capacity Rebuilding Project for Households (SRCRP4Hs)

 

SRCRP4Hs, which is designed to improve the welfare and wellbeing of our community members, helps to provide early warning systems and identify cost-effective solutions for strengthening the resilience of our members, particularly households, and their system to systemic risks.

Its aim is to provide practical solutions to manage shocks with the potentials for major and prolonged economic disruption, severe human or economic impacts, and contagion.

SRCRP4Hs uses the concept of family resilience.

 

• • • What is family resilience?

 

This concept is used by Froma Walsh (1) who refers to it as

“The capacity of the family, as a functional system, to withstand and rebound from adversity”.

Walsh argues that

“A basic premise in family systems theory is that serious crises and persistent life challenges have an impact on the whole family, and in turn, key family processes mediate adaptation (or maladaptation) for individual members, their relationships, and the family unit”.

Walsh uses ecosystemic and developmental perspectives to explain family resilience. 

Referring to Walsh’s definition of family resilience and resilience oriented family approach (op. cit.), SRCRP4Hs will look at positive adaptation to adversity, instead of negative one.

 

• • • What does SRCRP4Hs consist of?

 

SRCRP4Hs consists of four activities to support households.  These activities stem from ResilientAfrica Network (2) tool to analyse community resilience in Africa.  The resilience framework of ResilientAfrica Network (RAN) is made of the following four elements: context analysis, identifying resilience dimensions and adaptive strategies, designing resilience interventions, and assessing outcomes.

From the above-mentioned elements, we organise ourselves to work with households on resilience matter as follows:

 

From Week Beginning Monday 03/06/2024: Context Analysis of Household Resilience

From Week Beginning Monday 10/06/2024: Identification of Household Resilience Dimensions and Adaptive Strategies

From Week Beginning Monday 17/06/2024: Design of Resilience Interventions for Households

From Week Beginning Monday 24/06/2024: Household Resilience: Outcome and Evaluation.

 

Context Analysis of Household Resilience

 

• • From Week Beginning Monday 03/06/2024: Context Analysis of Household Resilience

 

To kick off the resilience work with households, we will be analysing the context of households’ resilience.

 

• • • The purpose of analysing the context of households’ resilience

 

Using the resilience framework of ResilientAfrica Network (op. cit.), the context of analysis will enable to assess the causes and effects of shocks and stresses, vulnerability factors, and coping strategies.  Our unit to focus on is households making the CENFACS Community.

 

• • • Working with households to analyse the context of their resilience

 

To work with them, we are going to proceed with following:

 

√ Conduct with them a resilience needs assessment

√ Identify contextual issues

√ Determine stresses and stressors

√ Prioritise resilience tasks.

 

The above is the first way of working with households on resilience matter.

For those households that need support regarding their resilience matters and in particular to understand the Context Analysis of their Resilience, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

• • Systemic Resilience Rebuilding Activities

 

Systemic Resilience Rebuilding Activities (SRRAs) are the tasks to be undertaking to help people to be able to recover from setbacks and adapt to challenging circumstances.  These activities could be any of the following four ones:

 

∝ Activities to end the bad past (or bad systems and structures) that led to the current crises (activities to manage endings)

∝ Activities to manage just and sustainable transition (to turn endings to new beginnings)

∝ Activities to manage new beginnings

∝ Activities to manage the future.

 

For this week, we have selected the activities highlighted below.  This selection came about what ‘positivepsychology.com’ (3) explains as resilience activities or exercises.  The website ‘positiveppsychology.com’ argues that

“Resilience, which is required to thrive and flourish, is a foundational psychological tool that empowers us to feel effective and capable of handling uncertainty”.

To support community members in their efforts to empower themselves and  to feel effective and capable of handling uncertainty, we suggest them to try the following activities:

 

σ Storytelling Activity as a Systemic Resilience Rebuilding Activity

 

Storytelling Activity can be a resilience tool to start our journey of rebuilding resilience within our system for poverty reduction.  Therapeutic writing can help enhance our wellbeing, happiness and resilience.

 

σ All Year Round Projects as Ways of Rebuilding People’s Systemic Resilience

 

CENFACS’ All Year Round Projects or Triple Value Initiatives can help those in need of resilience to develop their own strengths or resilience through them.  This is despite the fact that these projects/initiatives are designed to help reduce poverty in Africa.

 

σ Volunteering for Good Causes

 

Giving your time for free to deserving causes, like CENFACS’ noble and beautiful ones, can provide to volunteers and/or those benefiting from volunteers’ actions to find way to recover from life setbacks and adapt themselves to challenging situations.

 

σ Performing Acts of Compassion or Positive Influence

 

Being compassionate to others’ misery and/or giving your positive influence to those in need of help to come out of poverty can boost happiness and resilience to others.

 

The above-selected activities can help rebuild resilience in ourselves and or in other people.  They can either help end the bad past (or bad systems and structures) or manage just and sustainable transition (by turning endings to new beginnings) or run new beginnings or even oversee the future.

For those who need support regarding their resilience rebuilding activities, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• End-of-May 2024 Stories: Impact Story

• ReLive Issue No. 16, Spring 2024: Will You Help The Conflict-related Acute Food Insecure in Africa to Rebuild and Renew Their Lives?

• Strategies to Deal with Holiday Budget Restrictions

 

 

• End-of-May 2024 Stories: Impact Story

 

On the last day of the Month of Stories, people and ourselves will ask this: what is the impact your story leaves to us?  In other words, what is the force or effect or even impression your story will leave after telling and sharing it?

 

• • What is the Impact of My Storytelling?

 

One can answer the above question by referring to the impact story model of Laura Meagher and David Edwards (4) who used building blocks to tell their impact story.   According to them, there are five types of impact that could be the legacy of your story; types which are:

1) instrumental 2) conceptual 3) capacity building 4) enduring connectivity 5) culture/attitudes towards knowledge exchange, and research impact itself.

Depending on the type of impact your story will generate, your story could be on the Top Three Stories of the May 2024 Stories Challenge organised by CENFACS.  It is also a way to evaluate your story.

 

• • Evaluating Your Impact Story

 

On the site ‘linkedin.com’ (5), it is stated that

“Storytelling is a powerful tool for engaging your audience, conveying your message, and inspiring action”.

During this month of May, we have tried as much as we could to engage with our audiences, users and supporters through this tool.  Now, it is the time to evaluate the impact of our and your stories.

To measure or evaluate your storytelling impact, the same ‘linkedin.com’ suggests the following steps:

 

σ define your communication goals

σ collect feedback about your communication

σ analyse results or indicators that show how well you have achieved your communication goals.

 

Evaluating Your Impact Story ends our notes on May 2024 Stories.

Those who have not yet donated their stories, we would like to remind them 30 and 31 May 2024 are the last days.  They can submit their stories by the 31st of May 2024.

For those who have donated their stories, CENFACS thanks them for their storying gift.

For those who would like to know more about or to catch up with any of the series of our All in Development Storytelling Programme of this year or month, they are welcome to contact CENFACS.

 

 

• ReLive Issue No. 16, Spring 2024: Will You Help The Conflict-related Acute Food Insecure in Africa to Rebuild and Renew Their Lives?

 

This Spring, we are running 14 Gifts in a world of 20 Reliefs or Helpful Differences.  What does this mean?

It means donors or funders have 14 Gifts of Renewing Lives to choose from and 20 Reliefs to select from to make helpful differences to the food insecure.

In total, our Spring Relief campaign is providing to potential supporters 14 GIFTS of rebuilding lives in the three African Countries (i.e., Central African Republic, Chad and the Democratic Republic of Congo) in 20 RELIEFS to make this happen.

For this renewal to happen, support is needed towards Life Rebuilding Projects.

To support, go to http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/

 

 

• Strategies to Deal with Holiday Budget Restrictions

 

As the summer holiday approaches, some of our community members who have or will have restrictive budgets are or will be asking questions about what they can do.  They should be informed that there are ways or strategies that can be used to manage holiday budget restrictions and bans, particularly when these restrictions come from holiday funders or donors.  These ways or strategies of handling holiday budget restrictions include the following:

 

√ Amending your holiday budget and getting it approved by your holiday sponsor

√ Making your holiday project expenditures not to exceed the budget agreed

√ Offering a choice of designation for a restricted holiday fund to be used to your holiday funder or donor

√ Asking a donor to reconsider their restrictions if and where possible

√ Seeking flexibility to your holiday donor about the allocation funds to your holiday, whether for temporary or permanent restrictions

√ Suggesting alternative use of unused or unspent holidays funds or grants

√ Rejecting holiday donation with restrictions you cannot comply with

√ Bringing your own restrictions direct to holiday donor

Etc.

 

The above-mentioned strategies or techniques show that it is possible to manage restrictions, whether temporary or permanent ones, in the context of holiday restricted budget.  It all depends on they types of restrictions, whether they are tough or soft, the value of the holiday donations, the level of flexibility of donor or funder as well as the flexibility your have in your own holiday budget.

For more details on how to manage vacation budget restrictions, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

Message in French (Message en français)

 

• Façons de gérer les restrictions du budget vacances

Comme les grandes vacances estivales s’approchent, certains membres de notre communauté qui ont ou auront des budgets restrictifs se posent ou poseront des questions sur ce qu’ils peuvent ou pourront faire.  It convient de les informer qu’il existe un certain nombre de moyens ou de stratégies qui peuvent être utilisés pour gérer les restrictions et les interdictions du budget des vacances, en particulier lorsque ces restrictions proviennent de bailleurs de fonds ou de donateurs des vacances.  Ces façons ou stratégies de gestion des restrictions budgétaires pour les vacances sont les suivantes:

√ Modifier votre budget des vacances et le faire approuver par votre parrain (ou marraine) des vacances

√ Faire en sorte que les dépenses de votre projet de vacances ne dépassent pas le budget convenu

√ Offrir un choix de désignation pour un fonds des vacances restreint à utiliser à votre bailleur de fonds ou donateur/rice des vacances

√ Demander à un(e) donateur/rice de reconsidérer ses restrictions si possible

√ Demander à votre donateur/rice de vacances de faire preuve de souplesse quant à l’allocation des fonds pour vos vacances, que ce soit pour des restrictions temporaires ou permanentes

√ Suggérer une autre utilisation des fonds et des subventions de vacances inutilisés ou non dépensés

√ Refuser un don de vacances avec des restrictions que vous ne pouvez pas respecter

√ Apporter vos propres restrictions directement au donateur ou à la donatrice des vacances

Etc.

Les stratégies ou techniques mentionnées ci-dessus montrent qu’il est possible de gérer des restrictions, qu’elles soient temporaires ou permanentes, dans le cadre d’un budget restreint pour les vacances.  Tout dépend de types de restrictions, qu’elles soient strictes ou douces, de la valeur des dons des vacances, du niveau de flexibilité du(de la)  donateur/rice ou du(de la) bailleur/eresse de fonds ainsi que de la flexibilité dont vous disposez dans votre propre budget des vacances.

Pour plus de détails sur les façons de gérer les restrictions du budget de vacances, veuillez contacter le CENFACS.

 

 

Main Development

 

• Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop

 

The following items explain this activity:

 

σ What Is Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop?

σ The Aim of This Project

σ What Is a Not-for-profit Charity Shop Investor?

σ How Can Africa-based Sister Organisations and Not-for-profit Investors be Matched through This Project?

σ Matching Guidelines

σ Benefits of Matching Organisation and Investors via Charity Shop

σ Outcomes of Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop

σ Plan for 4-week Matching Activities

σ 29/05/2024 to 04/06/2024: Matching Organisation-Investor Activity 1

 

Let us highlight each of the above-mentioned items.

 

• • What Is Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop?

 

Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop is part of CENFACS’ Matching Organisation-Investor Programme.  The latter is the process by which organisations (here Africa-based Sister Organisations) are matched against not-for-profit (n-f-p) investors (here charity shop investors).  The programme uses n-f-p investors’ description of their requirements to fit organisations’ needs via a fit test.

Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop is yet another exercise to keep active and engaged Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisations (ASCOs) and n-f-p charity shop investors for the last weeks of Spring Season until early Summer Season 2024.  The exercise is meant to keep their respective dreams alive and to awake their potentials to grab any existing opportunities within the n-f-p market.

For those ASCOs and n-f-p charity shop investors willing to realise their Summer dream of winning an investment for the former and a share for the latter, there should not miss this matching opportunity.

 

• • The Aim of This Project

 

The aim of this Spring/Summer 2024 Project is to reduce poverty through the setting up of a charity shop in Africa by ASCOs.

The shop will help raise much-needed funds to help keep the Charitable Organisation’s services and support the local community via the reduction of local poverty.  The shop will be an opportunity to increase support to fight poverty and hardships amongst the Charitable Organisation’s users and beneficiaries.  All money raised via this shop will help people in crisis and poverty in their community.

Reducing poverty through the setting up of a charity shop could mean having the best match or fit between ASCOs’ needs and not-for-profit charity shop investors’ interests.

Where the needs of the ASCOs best meet or match the vested interests of not-for-profit charity shop investors, there could be high probability to reduce poverty amongst the beneficiaries of ASCOs.  The match probability could be high or average or low depending on how much ASCOs’ needs meet investors’ interests.  Although investors’ interest may not be profit for themselves, they want to see the profitability of the business idea of the charity shop and decide whether or not to invest in.

 

• • What Is a Not-for-profit Charity Shop Investor?

 

A Not-for-profit Charity Shop Investor is a person investing in a shop/retail outlet that sells goods and services to raise money for good causes.  The  n-f-p property investor, who is driven by selfless motivations, would invest to reduce poverty.  Although he/she is driven by selfless motivations, he/she would like to see the charity shop is a profitable business so that it can achieve its goal of reducing poverty by raising money for it through trading.

As Muhammad Yunus and Karl Weber (6) put it

“In a social business an investor aims to help others without making any financial gain himself” (p. xvii).

Our n-f-p charity shop investor would like to help ASCOs without making any financial gain him/herself.  But, he/she would like to know if the charity shop will be a profitable enterprise which will raise enough money to meet its goal of reducing poverty.

Like any investor, our n-f-p charity shop investor will consider the following three points:

 

~ understanding the n-f-p investment market

~ ability to find n-f-p investment deals

~ finding resources to make n-f-p investments.

 

He/she will consider them by matching his/her poverty reduction goals with the goals of the organisation that will accept their investment.

 

• • How Can Africa-based Sister Organisations and Not-for-profit Investors be Matched through This Project?

 

The matching happens through the two main components of this project, which are Impact Advice to ASCOs and Guidance to Not-for-profit Charity Shop Investors for Impact.

 

• • • What Is Impact Advice to ASCOs?

 

It is an approach to or methodology of working with ASCOs that uses a theory of change to measure impact following advice given on project planning.

Impact Advice to ASCOs is about

 

√ Working with ASCOs to overcome their project planning problems

√ Helping them to improve their project planning processes, knowledge, skills and capabilities

√ Making sure that project planning benefits the users and communities they serve, particularly those living in poverty

√ Ensuring that project planning tackles the root causes of poverty and hardships

Etc.

 

Impact Advice uses impact measuring tools and frontline metrics to track results and outcomes.

 

• • • Guidance to Not-for-profit Charity Shop Investors for Impact

 

This is a service we offer to those n-f-p investors who would like to not-for-profit invest for impact in Africa’s not-for-profit organisations and charitable causes.   To understand this service, one needs to know “What is a Not-for-profit Investment?” (7)

A Not-for-profit Investment is a sum of money puts into a not-for-profit organisation in order to help this organisation achieve its not-for-profit mission.  Not-for-profit means that the organisation is not engaged in the activity of realising a greater difference between its sales revenue and total costs.  Instead, the organisation aims at providing services without making profit, services that benefit its members or the community as specified in its governing document.

However, if it happens that the not-for-profit organisation achieves a profit, this profit will be reinvested in the organisation without distributing it to shareholders as it may happen in for-profit organisations.  The reinvested profit will help the organisation to continue its not-for-profit mission.

This not-for-profit investment can be in the physical or financial form.  Therefore, there are two types of investment that not-for-profit investors can choose in order to engage in, which are: physical or real investment and financial investment.

This guidance is based on not-for-profit investment and impact investing.  What is impact investing?

According to ‘evpa.ngo’ (8),

“Investing for impact is an impact strategy followed by investors that adopt the venture philanthropy approach to support social purpose organisations maximising their social impact.  Investors for impact support innovative solutions to pressing societal issues, providing in-depth non-financial support and taking on risks that most of other actors in the market cannot – or are not willing to take”.

Briefly, Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisations and Not-for-profit Charity Shop Investors can be matched via Impact Advice on project planning for the former and Guidance on Impact Investing for the latter.  They can as well be advised on project appraisal.  To realise a successful match, some guidelines need to be followed.

 

• • Matching Guidelines

 

To carry out matching, one needs to know the profile of the organisation that is looking for not-for-profit investment, the specification or description of the charity shop investor, and identification of possible ways of matching organisation’s profile and investor’s specification.

 

• • Benefits of Matching Organisation and Charity Shop Investors throughout This Project

 

There are benefits when organisations’ needs match not-for-profit investors’ interest.  These benefits include:

 

√ Cost-effectiveness as the project reduces the costs for both parties: ASCOs (for instance, the costs of looking for investment) and charity shop investors (e.g., the costs of finding the right organisation in which to invest)

√ Reduction of opportunity costs between the two parties (i.e., investee and investor) engaged in the project

√ Creation and sustenance of relationships between organisations and investors

√ Problems-solving mechanisms or solutions for organisations’ problems and needs, and solutions to investors’ requests

√ Opportunity for a fit test (i.e., testing organisation-charity shop investor fit on mutual interests and contribution to the right decision)

√ Qualitative feedback about Organisation-charity shop Investor and background knowledge

√ Better decision-making processes for the two parties (e.g., organisations and investors)

√ Saving time and money for both parties

Etc.

 

• • Outcomes of Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop

 

It is better to differentiate outcomes for not-for-profit investors from those relating to Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisations and Causes.

 

• • • Outcomes for Not-for-profit Investors

 

The project will provide peace of mind for n-f-p charity shop investors and a good return in terms of the rate or size of poverty reduction they will expect from the organisations or causes in which they will invest or support.

 

• • • Outcomes for Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisations and Causes

 

The activity will enable them to access the type of investment they need and build the capacity they are lacking.  In doing so, this helps them to achieve their project aim, objectives and key deliverables with peace of mind and security.

 

• • Plan for 4-week Matching Activities

 

As part of CENFACS‘ Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop, we are running a 4-week matching activities to support both charitable organisations and not-for-profit charity shop investors.  It is a 4-week work about Impact Advice Service for charitable organisations and Guidance Service on Impact Investing for not-for-profit charity shop investors.

To learn to set up a business or engage in a business start-up course, it can take many months even a year, which may include several steps or elements to consider (like business founding team, market research, competition, legal requirement, business structure, promotion, etc.) .  Without undermining the validity of any of the steps that intervene from a business idea to turning this idea into a  running business, we are going to limit ourselves to the following four points to match the above-mentioned two parties:

 

Point 1: The Business Idea Model of ASCO’s Charity Shop

Point 2: Capital Needed to Start a Charity Shop

Point 3: Charity Shop Financial Forecast

Point 4: Charity Shop Business Plan.

 

As argued above, there could be more than four points in any process of setting up a new business (here charity shop).  Because we set up some boundaries by limiting ourselves to deliver this project in four weeks, we choose a four-point model of working with both ASCOs and not-for-profit charity shop investors.

The following is our action plan.

 

Notes to table no. 1:

(*) Match periods are portions of time intended to help discover whether or not investors’ interests match organisations’ needs

(**) Match points are the four selected areas of charity shop investing that CENFACS can provide advice to ASCOs and guidance to n-f-p investors in order to maximise their chances to reach an agreement.

 

If you want advice, help and support to find not-for-profit charity shop investors; CENFACS can work with you under this 4-week Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop, starting from 29 May 2024.

If you need guidance to outsource charitable organisations and causes in Africa; CENFACS can work with you under the same 4-week Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop, starting from 29 May 2024.

These matching activities are a great opportunity for a charitable organisation to realise their Summer dream  of getting an investment they badly need.  They are also a grand aspiration for a not-for-profit charity shop investor to find Summer peace of mind through a suitable organisation in which to invest in Africa.

Need to engage with Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

• • 29/05/2024 to 04/06/2024: Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop –

Activity 1: Matching Organisation-Investor via the Business Idea Model

 

There are many scenarios in which a investor can invest in an organisation.  In our scenario or model of matching organisation-investor programme, we are trying to bring a n-f-p charity shop investor in an Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisation and/or Cause through the business idea of setting up a charity shop.  We are trying to match ASCOs’ business idea with what the investor’s response to this idea.

In order to match organisation’s business idea with investor’s enquiries and queries about this idea, one needs to understand the meaning of business idea.

 

• • • The meaning of business idea

 

According to ‘definitions.net’ (9),

“A business idea is a concept that can be used for financial gain that is usually centred on a product or service that can be offered for money.  An idea is the base of the pyramid when it comes to the business as a whole”.

This definition can apply to any type of business.  However, ASCOs need to specify their business idea model.

 

• • • ASCOs business idea model

 

The business idea model here is to set up a charity shop where a variety of items will be sold; items such as preloved clothes, books, furniture, wedding dresses, vintage products, ethically sourced gifts, etc.  Most of these items will be donated to the charity shop where shoppers can find local labels as well as international ones.  The charity shop will be an ancillary or non-primary trading outlet to raise money for ASCOs’ good causes.

All money to be raised will help people living in poverty where the charity is based and around the local area.  The charity shop can sell these items in-person and or open an online store where people can go online browse the charity shop’s collection of products.  The charity shop will be located where people could easily do sustainable shopping, find ethical recycled and bargain items.  The shop will be run by local volunteers from the local community.  If the business model of idea is successful, ASCOs can attempt to expand  it to specific locations and specialised shops.

 

• • • N-f-p Investor’s enquiries and queries about ASCOs business idea

 

Our n-f-p charity shop investor is not looking to realise profit for him/herself.  However, he/she wants to see the profitability of the business idea and decide whether or not to invest in ASCO’s charity shop project proposals.

Our n-f-p charity shop investor would like to understand ASCO’s business idea model to familiarise with it.  He/she may want to know ASCO’s entrepreneurial goal and journey they will take, particularly if the charity shop will be implemented in poor area where local people do not possess many items to donate and recycle or do not have money to buy what the charity may offer as discounted products.

As part of enquiries and queries, he/she may question the marketing plan to carry this idea forward, the feasibility study of the project, the worthiness of this idea, potential turnover of a charity shop, its long-term growth and the sustainability or viability of this business model.

ASCOs’ business idea model may provide responses to some of the  n-f-p charity shop investor’s enquiries and queries.  However, if there is mismatch between the two (i.e., between the model and what investor is looking at), there could be a need to organise a match or fit test.

 

 

• • • The Match or Fit Test

 

As part of the match or fit test, n-f-p charity shop investor’s enquiries and queries must be match with ASCOs’ business proposals.  In other words, ASCOs’ explanation of the business idea model must successfully respond to the enquiries and queries that n-f-p charity shop investor may raise about the business idea model. 

The match can be perfect or close in order to reach an agreement.  If there is a huge or glaring difference between the two (i.e., between the questions from the investor and the answers from ASCO), the probability or chance of having an agreement at this first round of negotiations could be null or uncertain.

However, CENFACS can impact advise ASCOs to improve its business idea model.  CENFACS can as well guide n-f-p charity shop investors with impact to work out their expectations (or enquiries and queries) to a format that can be acceptable by potential ASCOs.  CENFACS’ impact advice for ASCOs and guidance on impact investing for n-f-p charity shop investor, which are impartial, will help each of them (i.e., investee and investor) to make informed decisions and to reduce the likelihood of any significant losses or misunderstandings or mismatches.

The rule of the game is the more charity shop investors are attracted by ASCOs’ business idea model the better for ASCOs.  Likewise, the more ASCOs can successfully respond to charitable shop investors’ level of enquiries and queries the better for investors.  In this respect, the matching game needs to be a win-win one to benefit both players (i.e., organisation and investor).

The above is the first activity of the Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop. 

Those potential organisations seeking investment to set up a charity shop and n-f-p charity shop investors looking for organisations that are interested in it, they can contact CENFACS to arrange the match or fit test for them.  They can have their fit test carried out by CENFACS’ Hub for Testing Hypotheses.

For any queries and/or enquiries about this first activity of Matching Organisation-Investor via Charity Shop and/or the programme itself, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

_________

 

• References

 

(1) Walsh, F. (2021). Family resilience: A dynmic systemic framewok. In M. Ungar (Ed.), Multisystemic resilience: Adaptation and transformation in contexts of change (pp. 255-270). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190095888, 003.0015 (accessed in May 2024)

(2) https://www.ranlab.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/State-of-African-Resilience-Report.pdf (accessed in May 2024)

(3) https://positivepsychology.com/resilience-activities-exercises/ (accessed in May 2024)

(4) https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialscience/2020/09/18/how-to-to-tell-an-impact-story-the-building-blocks-you-need/ (accessed in May 2023)

(5) https://www.linkedin.com/advice/o/how-do-you-measure-impact-storytelling (accessed in May 2023)

(6) Yunus, M. & Weber, K. (2010), Building Social Business: The New Kind of Capitalism that Serves Humanity’s Most Pressing Needs, Public Affairs, New York

(7) cenfacs.org.uk/2023/02/08/africa-not-for-profit-investment-outlook-2023/ (accessed in February 2024)

(8) https://www.evpa.ngo/impact-glossary (accessed in February 2024)

(9) https://www.definitions.net/definition/business%20idea (accessed in May 2024)

_________

 

• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going This Year

 

We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis.  Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.

One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.

Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS.  Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE AND BEAUTIFUL CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.

JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)

Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.

Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.

We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2024 and beyond.

With many thanks.

 

Welcome to CENFACS’ Online Diary!

22 May  2024

 

Post No. 353

 

 

The Week’s Contents

 

• Basic Trading Skills Development Project

• All in Development Stories Telling Serial 4: Stories of Building Connections and of Forming Systems (From Wednesday 22/05/2024)

• Conflict- and Natural Disaster-related Internally Displaced Persons in Africa Need Your Influence Now!

 

… And much more!

 

 

Key Messages

 

• Basic Trading Skills Development Project

 

Basic Trading Skills Development Project (or Trading Skills Project) takes to a practical level some of the information we provided in CENFACS’ Issue No. 83 of FACS this Spring 2024, which is titled Charity Trade, Investment and Poverty Reduction in Africa.  It takes it at the level of people and communities working with our Africa-based Sister Organisations and who would like to engage in trade or to improve the way they are trading in order to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.  To understand how it takes at their level, it is better to explain what Trading Skills Project is.

Trading Skills Project is an initiative that will help to reduce poverty by providing new skills to or reskilling or skilling up those who are looking forward to trade to make ends meet or to improve their enterprising model in the African context.

Trading Skills Project is as well a systemic resilience response to some of the issues that prospective poor traders and those poor people who would like to join the world of trading to reduce poverty may face in a case there is a crisis or shock from a trading ecosystem they are part of.

Trading Skills Project will deal with skills that those who would like to engage with trade in order to make ends meet as it will provide them with the skills and algorithm they need to trade confidently and consistently.

As ‘mytradingskills.com’ (1) puts it

“Trading is like any skill, it takes time, effort, and commitment to get good enough at it to deliver the outcomes new traders want”.

Trading Skills Project will help tackling skills gap in trade in Africa by providing beneficiaries with critical skills to scale up trade to deliver poverty reduction on a large scale.

Briefly speaking, Trading Skills Project will be achieved through the development of trade capacity and capability building to trade and reduce poverty.  As it stands, the project is not only about developing trade skills, but also reducing poverty through the skills acquired or at least putting project beneficiaries in the right direction to reduce poverty.

More details about Trading Skills Project can be found under the Main Development section of this post.

 

 

• All in Development Stories Telling Serial 4: Stories of Building Connections and of Forming Systems (From Wednesday 22/05/2024)

 

The last series of our two-story programme is on Stories of Building Connections and of Forming Systems.  What are these stories?  Let us explain each of these sets of stories.

 

• • Stories of Building Connections

 

Giving these stories is more than just listing them.  It is about understanding connection and knowing the goal in building connections.

 

• • • Understanding Connection and the Goal in Building Connections

 

Connecting is about learning to develop better relationships with others.  According to ‘betterup.com’ (2),

“Connecting is about more than socializing – it is a transferable skill that can help you grow professionally and personally”.

The same ‘betterup.com’ provides 10 tips to help you build and strengthen connections with people.

However, connections cannot happen without goal.  The goal in building connections is, according to ‘berkeleywellbeing.com’ (3),

“To find the people that make us feel really good about ourselves, less lonely, and well-supported”.

So, understanding connections and the goal in building connections can lead to Stories of Building Connections.  What are these stories?

 

• • • What are Stories of Building Connections?

 

Stories of Building Connections are the tellings of building genuine connections to reset systems – our poverty reduction system. 

By referring to the argument of ‘berkeleywellbeing.com’ (op. cit.), Stories of Building Connections are those of

 

√ building personal connections

√ making family connections

√ forming other healthy connections

√ interpersonal communications

√ activities to build connections

√ constituting your networks

√ creating meaningful relationships

etc.

 

By drawing from the 10 tips provided by ‘betterup.com’ (op. cit.), Stories of Building Connections are those of

 

1) being your authentic self

2) respecting people’s boundaries

3) staying focused

4) moving past the surface level

5) sharing the conversation

6) being genuine with your admiration

7) being a good listener

8) scheduling your time

9) maintaining eye contact

10) offering a smile.

 

If you are a member of CENFACS Community and have these types of story, please do not hesitate to tell and share your stories with CENFACS.  If you are not our member, you can still submit your story.

To donate, tell and share your storying gift of Stories of Building Connections, please contact CENFACS.

 

 

• • Stories of Forming Systems

 

Perhaps, the better way of understanding these stories is to know what a system is.

 

• • • What is a system?

 

The website ‘madlymused.com’ (4) states that

“A system is a series of steps that you go through the same way every time you do a task.  This standardized process help you reach the same result every time.  It ensures quality and efficiency”.

The same ‘madlymused.com’ explains that

“Systems can be complex processes you use in your business, or they can be simple routines that you use in your daily life.  We develop many of the systems we already have in our lives so naturally that we don’t even notice them”.

Systems can be created.  At the beginning of our two-story series (i.e., System Reset and Change Stories), we argued that systems can be reset.  However, if a system is no longer fit for resetting purposes, it can be changed.  If the system is failing the people it is supposed to serve and is no longer fit for resetting purpose, then change may be required.  In other words, one can create or form a new system to replace the broken or unfit one.

As part of system change, CENFACS has been advocated for years for a New International System for Poverty Reduction (or World Anti-poverty System) to modernise the old institutions of Bretton Woods.  Taking the same line of reasoning, Africa asked for systemic financial reforms to the global financial architecture.  CENFACS‘ advocacy and Africa’s ask are the demand to form new systems.  In CENFACS‘ case, it is about a new system to serve the poor and bridge the gap in the institutions of Bretton Woods.  In the case of Africa, it is about expressing the argument for systemic reforms to a global financial architecture that is not fit for the need of the poor.

Knowing what systems are and making a demand for a new system provide stories to tell and share.

 

• • • What are Stories of Forming Systems?

 

Stories of Forming Systems are the reports of forming a new system.  They are also those of creating systems.  If you refer to simple 4-step model of creating systems as provided by ‘madlymused.com’ (op. cit.),  Stories of Forming Systems are those of

 

√ making a list of tasks needed to create a new system

√ writing down the steps required to complete those tasks

√ writing on a detailed description of each step

√ incorporating checks and balances into the systems to add accountability.

 

Briefly speaking, Stories of Forming Systems are those of creating a set of interconnected parts to form a complex whole.

If you are a member of CENFACS Community and have these types of story, please do not hesitate to tell and share your stories with CENFACS.  If you are not our member, you can still submit your story.

To donate, tell and share your storying gift of Stories of Forming Systems, please contact CENFACS.

Let us conclude these All in Development Stories Telling Series of May 2024 by saying that stories can motive others on the road of reducing or ending poverty.  And System Reset and Change Stories do not escape from this attribute about what stories can do to their listeners.  In other words, your pieces of System Reset and Change Stories can motivate others to improve their lives.  If you have these stories, please do not hesitate to tell and share them.

 

 

• Conflict- and Natural Disaster-related Internally Displaced Persons in Africa Need Your Influence Now!

 

Conflicts and natural disasters continue to displace peoples and communities in Africa.  According to this month’s report by the ‘api.internal-displacement.org’ (5), African countries with the most internal displacement in terms of conflict (and violence) and disasters during 2023 were the ones mentioned on the following table:

 

As table 1 shows, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo recorded the second-highest figure in terms of displacement triggered by conflict and violence.  According the same ‘api.internal-displacement.org’ disasters also triggered six million displacements across Africa.

Yet, it is possible to reduce the rise in displacements, the causes of both new and older wars and drawn-out conflicts.  It is feasible to help the internally displaced persons in Africa (IDPA) to start returning home.  It is not impossible to prevent new crises of this kind to happen.  It is even probable to strengthen resilience capacity building of peoples and communities in Africa by promoting durable solutions to displacement.

 

• • The Internally Displaced Persons in Africa Need Your Positive Influence

 

Because of these possibilities and probabilities, the Internally Displaced Persons need your positive influence to act on the forces that are leading to human displacement in Africa.  You can use your influence on those who hold the key to conflicts in Africa.  You can as well put your influence on the man-made factors that contribute to natural events like droughts, storms, earthquakes, wildfires and other geophysical events.  These events continue to cause displacement in Africa.

Because of the impacts of these events, the IDPA who are bearing the brunt of this crises or events need your Positive Influence to end their suffering.  Your Positive Influence can deliver meaningful tangible and life-saving outcomes than what you may not think.

 

• • What Your Positive Influence Can Achieve for them

 

Your Positive Influence can help

 

√ To support the Humanitarian Response Plan for IDPA 

√ To stop violations and abuses of human rights and international humanitarian law

√ To encourage the return of displaced persons

√ To end gender-based violence (e.g. violence against young girls) amongst IDPA 

√ To enhance the implementation of life-saving responses

√ Briefly, to alleviate the suffering of the vulnerable IDPA.

 

• • Who Your Positive Influence Will Benefit

 

The beneficiaries of your Positive Influence or Influencing Donation will be

 

√ Those who are bearing the brunt of this continuing conflicts and natural disasters

√ Those who are experiencing the life-threatening effects of violence and insecurity

√ Those who are without or with limited access to basic services such as water, sanitation and hygiene

√ Those who are the victims of gender-violence such as young girls

√ Those who are suffering from increased vulnerability and eroded livelihoods

√ In brief, the IDPA because of conflicts and natural disasters that threatened their lives.

 

You can donate your Positive Influence to reduce poverty in Africa where displacements are happening because conflicts and natural disasters.

To donate, please contact influential persons (or those having the keys) to reduce or solve the life-threatening effects from the continuing displacement crisis that the African countries are suffering from and make these influential persons reduce or end these damaging effects on them.

You can as well influence the things or factors that play in the continuity of this displacement crisis in order to create lasting favourable conditions for a return to life normality.

Please also let CENFACS know about your influencing work or contribution  you are or will be making and its outcomes on behalf of the people of Africa.

To let us know, you can contact CENFACS as follows:

 

*over phone

*via email

*through text

*by filling the contact form on this site. 

 

On receipt of the outcome of your influencing donation, CENFACS will contact you for record and thank you for any influencing donation made.  However, should you wish your influencing support to remain anonymous; we will respect your wish.

Thank you in anticipation for your willingness to give your Positive Influence to alleviate the suffering that the IDPA are facing from the continuing displacement crisis.

 

 

Extra Messages

 

• Volunteers’ Stories of Actions across All Fronts of System Reset and Change

• Activity 4 of Nature Projects and Nature-based Solutions to Poverty: Art and Design about Benefit-Sharing Mechanisms (From Week Beginning Monday 27/05/2024)

•  Fundraising and Journaling Your Run to Reduce Poverty in Africa  during This Event Season

 

 

• Volunteers’ Stories of Actions across All Fronts of System Reset and Change

 

These stories could be related to actions generally taken in volunteering capacity to help people and communities in need in four ways of resetting the system to

 

a) Change their mindset

b) Create new metrics

c) Design new incentives

d) Build a genuine connection.

 

They could also be actions in which a volunteer got specifically involved and at the fronts of the four strategies or tips for changing a system, which are

 

a) seeing the whole system rather just its parts

b) looking at patterns of change rather than static snapshots

c) understanding key interconnections within a system and between systems

d) forming a new system (e.g., a new system of poverty reduction).

 

Both system reset and system change stories from volunteers respond to our model of two-story sequences. 

To tell, share and provide opportunity for learning development through your story of volunteers’ actions across all the fronts of system reset and change; please contact CENFACS.

 

 

• Activity 4 of Nature Projects and Nature-based Solutions to Poverty: Art and Design about Benefit-Sharing Mechanisms (From Week Beginning Monday 27/05/2024)

 

Like the previous activities, Activity 4 falls under the scope of target 19 of the Kunming Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (6) adopted at the Fifteenth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity.  Before highlighting it, let us explain benefit-sharing mechanisms.

 

• • What Are Benefit-Sharing Mechanisms?

 

According to ‘cifor-icraf.org’ (7),

“Benefit-sharing mechanisms are a broad term that encompasses all institutional means, structures and instruments for distributing finance and other benefits from REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries)”.

The website ‘cbd.int’ (8) goes further  by explaining that

“Access and benefit-sharing refer to the way in which genetic resources may be accessed, and how the benefits that result from their use are shared between the people or countries using the resources (users) and the people or countries that provide them (providers)”.

Knowing what benefit-sharing mechanisms mean, we can now state the aim of this activity.

 

• • Aim of Activity 4

 

This activity aims at the creation of works of beauty and making drawing/model showing how the sharing of benefits derived from biodiversity conservation can be beneficial for indigenous and other local peoples.

Because it is about creating the works of beauty and making drawings/models, let us speak about benefit-sharing images.

 

 

• • Images of Art and Design about Benefit-Sharing Mechanisms

 

Participants to Activity 4 will look at and share the images of benefit-sharing mechanisms, as well as discuss how these shared images can help in understanding biodiversity conservation and nature issues.  They will draw their own images, compare them and choose the best ones responding to the benefit-sharing theme.

For those who would like to engage with Activity 4, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

To conclude the fourth series of Nature Projects, let us repeat ourselves by saying that to implement biodiversity strategy and action plans, it requires financial resources.  The notes produced for the four activities give some clues and tips on how having a financial dimension inside biodiversity can be useful to protect it.  

The next series (fifth series) of our work on Nature Projects will be announced in due course.  In meantime,  for those who would like to find out more about Nature Projects and Nature-based Solutions to Poverty, they can communicate with CENFACS.

 

 

•  Fundraising and Journaling Your Run to Reduce Poverty in Africa  during This Event Season

 

Let us start with fundraising aspect of your Run Project, then writing aspect of it – its journal.

 

• • Introducing a Giving Feature in the Run Activity

 

For those who are running events in the context of Triple Value Initiative of ‘Run to Reduce Poverty in Africa in 2024’, they can use the opportunity of the event season to introduce a giving feature in their Run activity.  They can ask those who are involved in the run with them to support good causes, including CENFACS‘ noble and beautiful ones.  This ask for support concerns both in-person and virtual runs.

 

 

• • • Keeping Run Activity Cost-effective with a Fundraising Feature

 

They can make their Run activity cost-effective with a fundraising feature while running with or without others.  Once the fundraising element has been inserted, it is wise to evaluate their fundraising drive.  To evaluate it, they can proceed with the evaluation steps suggested by ‘classy.org’ (9), steps which include analysis of fundraising data, tracking of numbers and performance, staying focused on the mission of their Run project, evaluation of fundraising results and to be forward thinking.

However, they must remember that the aim of the CENFACS’ Run to Reduce Poverty in Africa is to select or find the African best runner of poverty reduction in 2024, rather than raising money.

 

• • • Having Problems in Installing or Inserting a Fundraising Feature

 

For those who may be having or are experiencing some problems in installing or inserting a fundraising feature in their runs, there are resources both online and in print on how to organise a fundraising event for a Run Project.  Amongst the resources is the one provided by ‘donorbox.org’  (10).  It is worthwhile looking at this resource as it provides eight steps to realise your fundraising event.

For those who would like to involve or talk to CENFACS about their Run Project, they can speak to CENFACS.

 

 

• • Journaling the Run Project

 

They can as well journal and develop a story about their Run activity.   They can share the contents of their journal and story of run with us and others.

Journaling their Run Project can have benefits.  To get those benefits, one needs to have a goal and plan activities/achievements.

 

• • • Benefits of Journaling your Run Project

 

The journal will help you to capture the moments of your Run Project via expressive writing and story.  It can have other benefits such as setting goals, tracking or measuring their progress on Run Project, recording and celebrating achievements and gaining both general and specific perspectives of your Run Project.  They can even show their style and express their feeling or character through their writing.  Another good thing of journaling their Run Project is that it makes things easy when it comes to report to CENFACS and others before the deadline of 23 December 2024.

 

• • • Journaling the Goal of Run Project

 

The goal is basically to explore and enrich one’s Run Project through creative writing.  This goal does not stop users of Run Project to have their own journaling goal.  Besides their journaling goal, they need to add what their journal can help achieve.

 

• • • What one’s Journal of Run Project can achieve

 

It can achieve many things including the following:

 

∝ Solve problems encountered in the cycle of your Run Project

∝ Enhance one’s health and wellness via Run Project

∝ Improve Run Project outcomes.

 

For those who are undertaking a Run Project and would like to write a journal about their activity, they can do it.  There are many online and print resources available on the matter.  Please select resources that are concise and have some links with your Run Project.

For those who would like to approach CENFACS for help and support to write a Journal of Run Project or to select appropriate resources, they are welcome to do so.

To discuss your progress regarding your Run Project, the fundraising feature and Journal of your Run Project or any other issues relating to All Year Round Projects (Triple Value Initiatives), please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.

 

 

Message in French (Message en français)

 

• Les personnes déplacées intérieurement par les conflits et les catastrophes naturelles en Afrique ont besoin de votre influence maintenant!

Les conflits et les catastrophes naturelles continuent de mettre en évidence les peuples et les communautés en Afrique.  Selon le rapport de ce mois-ci du ‘api.internal-displacement.org’ (5), les pays africains ayant enregistré le plus de déplacements internes en termes de conflits (et de violence) et de catastrophes en 2023 étaient les suivants: le Soudan, la République Démocratique du Congo, la Somalie, l’Éthiopie et le Burkina Faso.

Ces pays ont respectivement enregistré les chiffres suivants en termes de personnes déplacées par un conflit et de personnes déplacées par des catastrophes naturelles:

~ le Soudan: 6 039 000 et 58 000

~ la République Démocratique du Congo: 3 772 000 et 133 000

~ la Somalie: 673 000 et 2 043 000

~ l’Éthiopie: 794 000 et 618 000

~ le Burkina Faso: 707 000 et 24 000.

Comme les chiffres ci-dessus l’indiquent, le Soudan et la République Démocratique du Congo ont enregistré le deuxième chiffre le plus élevé en termes de déplacements déclenchés par les conflits et la violence.  Selon le même «api.internal-displacement.org», les catastrophes ont également déclenché six millions de déplacements à travers l’Afrique.  La Somalie ayant le chiffre le plus élevé en termes de déplacements engendrés par les catastrophes naturelles.

Pourtant, il est possible de réduire l’augmentation des déplacements, les causes des guerres nouvelles et anciennes et des conflits prolongés.  Il est aussi possible d’aider les personnes déplacées en Afrique (PDA) à commencer à rentrer chez elles.  Il n’est pas impossible d’empêcher que de nouvelles crises de ce genre ne se produisent.  Il est même probable de renforcer la résilience des peuples et des communautés en Afrique en promouvant des solutions durables au déplacement.

• • Les personnes déplacées en Afrique ont besoin de votre influence positive

En raison de ces possibilités et probabilités, les personnes déplacées à l’intérieur de leur propre pays ont besoin de votre influence positive pour agir sur les forces qui conduisent au déplacement humain en Afrique.

Vous pouvez user de votre influence sur ceux ou celles qui détiennent la clé des conflits en Afrique. 

Vous pouvez également exercer votre influence sur les facteurs d’origine humaine qui contribuent aux événements naturels tels que les sécheresses, les tempêtes, les tremblements de terre, les incendies de forêt et autres événements géophysiques.  Ces événements continuent de provoquer des déplacements en Afrique.

En raison des impacts de ces événements, les PDA qui portent le poids de ces crises ou événements ont besoin de votre influence positive pour mettre fin à leurs souffrances.

• • Ce que votre influence positive peut leur apporter

Votre influence positive peut aider à

√ Soutenir le plan de réponse humanitaire pour les PDA

√ Mettre fin aux violations et aux atteintes aux droits de l’homme et au droit international humanitaire

√ Encourager le retour des personnes déplacées

√ Mettre fin à la violence sexiste (par exemple, la violence à l’égard des jeunes filles) parmi les PDA

√ Améliorer la mise en œuvre des interventions qui sauvent des vies

√ Brièvement, alléger les souffrances des PDA vulnérables.

• • À qui votre influence positive profitera-t-elle?

Les bénéficiaires de votre Influence Positive ou de votre Don d’Influence seront

√ Ceux ou celles qui portent le poids de ces conflits et catastrophes naturelles qui se poursuivent

√ Les personnes qui subissent les effets mortels de la violence et de l’insécurité

√ Ceux ou celles qui n’ont pas ou ont un accès limité aux services de base tels que l’eau, l’assainissement et l’hygiène

√ Les personnes victimes de violence sexiste telles que les jeunes filles

√ Ceux ou celles qui souffrent d’une vulnérabilité accrue et d’une érosion des moyens de subsistance

√ En bref, les PDA en raison de l’insécurité et des menaces qui pèsent sur leur vie.

Vous pouvez faire don de votre influence positive pour réduire la pauvreté en Afrique où les déplacements se produisent à cause des conflits et des catastrophes naturelles.

Pour faire un don, veuillez contacter des personnes influentes (ou celles qui ont les clés) pour réduire ou résoudre les effets mortels de la crise de déplacement continue dont souffrent les pays africains et faire en sorte que ces personnes influentes réduisent ou mettent fin à ces effets néfastes sur elles.

Vous pouvez également influencer les choses ou les facteurs qui jouent dans la continuité de cette crise de déplacement afin de créer durablement des conditions favorables à un retour à la vie normale.

Veuillez également informer le CENFACS de votre travail d’influence ou de votre contribution que vous apportez ou apporterez et de ses résultats au nom du peuple Africain.

Pour nous le faire savoir, vous pouvez contacter le CENFACS comme suit:

*par téléphone

*par e-mail

*par texte

*en remplissant le formulaire de contact sur ce site.

Dès réception du résultat de votre don d’influence, le CENFACS vous contactera pour enregistrement et vous remerciera pour tout don d’influence effectué.  Cependant, si vous souhaitez que votre soutien d’influence reste anonyme; nous respecterons votre souhait.

Merci d’avance pour votre volonté d’exercer votre influence positive afin d’alléger les souffrances auxquelles les PDA sont confrontés en raison de la crise continue des déplacements.

 

Main Development

 

• Basic Trading Skills Development Project (or Trading Skills Project)

 

The following items provide the key information about Trading Skills Project:

 

σ Definition of Trading Skills Project

σ The Aim of Trading Skills Project

σ Potential Beneficiaries of Trading Skills Project

σ Types of Trading Skills to Be Developed

σ Planned Outcomes 

σ Indicators for Measuring Trading Skills Project

σ Funding Status of Trading Skills Project

σ Impact Monitoring and Evaluation.

 

Let us summarise each of these items.

 

• • Definition of Trading Skills Project

 

Trading Skills Project is an initiative that will help to reduce poverty by providing new skills or reskilling or skilling up those who are looking forward to trade to make ends meet or to improve their enterprising model in the African context.

Trading Skills Project is a model of working together with local people and/or their representatives in order to reach out to those who are uneducated or less educated, uninformed or less informed and lacking skills as far as trading is concerned.

Trading Skills Project will identify life-changing steps that its beneficiaries will go through.  Through training and skills development to be provided from this micro-project, it is hoped that beneficiaries will improve their trading skills, knowledge and wellbeing.  They will also enhance their means of living and enterprise so that they can increase the way they contribute in their community or society.

 

• • The Aim of Trading Skills Project

 

Trading Skills Project aims at reducing poverty and hardships in Africa, poverty due to the lack of basic skills to confidently and consistently trade.  This reduction of poverty as the lack of essential trading skills will be done through training, education and basic supply of trading technologies and tools to potential project beneficiaries.

 

• • Potential Beneficiaries of Trading Skills Project

 

Amongst the types of people in need who could benefit from Trading Skills Project as defined above are:

 

√ those looking to enter the field of trading or expand their skillset

√ those who would like to feed their families through trade

√ those wanting to make ends meet or reduce poverty via trading

√ those seeking trading skills to reduce poverty

√ those who see trading as a potential way of reducing conflicts that adversely affect poor people

√ project beneficiaries engaged or planning to trade

√ those looking for a formal technical and vocational education and training in trading skills development

etc.

 

• • Types of Trading Skills to Be Developed

 

Basic training and education in the field of trade can enhance beneficiaries’ interpersonal skills.  There are several ways or skills through which one can become a professional trader in their field.

Amongst the skills are those listed by ‘cleartax.in’ (11), which Trading Skills Project will provide.  These skills are

 

a) research and analytical skills

b) concentration skills

c) self-control skills

d) error-free record-keeping skills.

 

To the above-mentioned skills, we can add the 8 skills required for trading given by ‘blog.bettertrader.co’ (12), which are:

 

1) minimally understanding some basic maths

2) fundamental and financial analyst skills

3) focus

4) research

5) record keeping

6) adaptability

7) mental toughness

8) independence.

 

However, the same ‘blog.cleartax.in’ explains that

“The ability to learn these attributes and skills attests to the fact that successful trading is in your hands and is not determined by your genes”.

Through the learning of the above-mentioned skills, we hope to identify changes that project beneficiaries will go through.

 

• • Planned Outcomes 

 

After the implementation of Trading Skills Project, it is expected that there will be changes and effects.  These changes and effects will be directly linked project users and others relating to their community.

 

• • • Outcomes in project users

 

After using the Trading Skills Project, users will:

 

√ feel more secure and stable in earnings some income to make ends meet

√ have the potential for entrepreneurship

√ develop the strengths for wealth creation opportunity

√ be able to reduce poverty and hardship as a lack of trading skills

√ have the opportunity to learn transferable skills to adapt to and embrace new opportunities

√ improve their ability to perform trading tasks

√ ameliorate their participation to trade negotiations

√ increase their ability to deal with questions linked to trading matter

√  be in a position to diversify their trading model

√  enhance their trading capacity and capability

√ refine their trading skills if they are women

etc.

 

Briefly, users will have a better opportunity to run their trading lives and improve their personal/family wellbeing.

 

• • • Outcomes in the community

 

The results for the community they belong to could be as follows:

 

√ making tangible impact on the community

√ contributing to the overall wellbeing of the community

√ supporting the community

√ building a better world for future generations.

 

• • Indicators for Measuring Trading Skills Project

 

The measures below will help find out whether or not the project will reach its desired objectives and progress towards meeting its defined aim:

 

√ the number of poor people who will embrace trade to reduce poverty

√ the number of poor people who will be educated and informed in trading matters as well as becoming competent in handling trading matters and technologies 

√ the number of people who become less vulnerable to poverty as a lack of trading skills after having trading capacity building support

√ the performance and the confidence amongst project beneficiaries in handling trading matters or issues

√ the number of surveyed poor people who are happy (optimistic) or unhappy (pessimistic) to the support provided or offered to them via Trading Skills Project

etc.

 

To conclude, Trading Skills Project is an initiative that will help to reduce poverty by providing new skills or reskilling or skilling up those who are looking forward to trade to make ends meet or to improve their enterprising model in the African context.

The skills, knowledge and capacities to be acquired will help the project beneficiaries to understand the world of trading, make informed choices regarding their own trading wellbeing and improve trading risk management insights for themselves.

 

• • Funding Status of Trading Skills Project

 

So far, this project is unfunded.  This means we are open to any credible funding proposals or proposition from potential funders or donors.  Those who would like to support this project will be more than welcome.

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 of information on all aspects of the project.  In other words, we will systematically collect and analyse information to keep regular checks and balances on the project.

Likewise, we shall assess what the project will achieve in relation to the overall objectives it was set up.  This is to say that both outcome and impact evaluation will be conducted regarding the efforts spent on this project to find out whether or not these efforts are value for relief as far as poverty reduction is concerned.

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.

To support or contribute to this project, please contact CENFACS.

For further details including full project proposals and budget about the Trading Skills Project; please contact CENFACS.

_________

 

• References

 

(1) https://mytradingskills.com/about (accessed in May 2024)

(2) https://www.betterup.com/blog/how-to-connect-with-people (accessed in May 2024)

(3) https://www.berkeleywellbeing.com/building-connections.html (accessed in May 2024),

(4) madlymused.com/creating-systems/ (accessed in May 2024)

(5) https://api.internal-displacement.org/sites/default/files/publications/documents/IDMC-GRID-2024-Global-Report-on-International-Displacement.pdf (accessed in May 2024)

(6) https://www.cbd.int/article/cop15-press-release-final-19dec2022 (Accessed in May 2023)

(7) https://www.cifor-icraf.org/publications/pdf_files/factsheet/4258-factssheet.pdf (accessed in May 2024)

(8) https://www.cbd.int/abs/infokit/brochure-en.pdf (accessed in May 2024)

(9) https://www.classy.org/blog/properly-evaluate-fundraising-campaign/# (accessed in May 2023)

(10) https://donorbox.org/nonprofit-blog/organize-a-charity-run (accessed in May 2023)

(11) https://cleartax.in/glossary/trading-skills-essentials/ (accessed in May 2024)

(12) https://blog.bettertrader.co/2021/04/21/what-are-the-8-skills-required-for-trading (accessed in May 2024)

_________

 

• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going This Year

 

We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis.  Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.

One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.

Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS.  Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.

Donate to support CENFACS!

FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE AND BEAUTIFUL CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.

JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)

Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.

Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.

We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2024 and beyond.

With many thanks.