Summary
Samburu Girls Foundation is starting an educational fund to the support of education, upkeep and mentorship of rescued girls. They planned to raise the necessary sum through:
1. Individual and group solicitation
2. Mobilising support from the local authorities i.e. Constituency Development Fund
3. Engaging well-wishers and friends of Samburu Girls Foundation
4. Corporate fundraising, e.g. Safaricom Foundation
5. Sale of Samburu Girls branded T-shirts
6. Contributions by Friends of Samburu Girls and alumni.
SGF's fundraising team approached these donors, raising many donations in cash and kind. They also organised a back to school extravaganza, both to create awareness and raise funds.
SGF has also worked on a sustainability plan which includes setting up a school at the rescue centre to cut on costs, while at the same time generating income. SGF also decided to build manyattas to host visitors; proceeds will be used to support the rescue centre’s activities.
Tips and lessons learned
1. Community involvement leads to community ownership and as a result there is participation and contribution towards development initiatives.
2. Pitching is very powerful if your message is clear and adresses a felt need.
3. Organisational brochures are very powerful tools too, if designed with a clear and captivating message.
Review by Wilde Ganzen Foundation
Samburu Girls Foundation developed a comprehensive fundraising plan, describing the actions they could undertake and the donors that could be approached. That is always a good start, when you are planning local fundraising activities. A good plan will help you stay focused and will probably be useful, even after the present action period.
In order to run a project like this rescue centre, you have to have a stable source of income. SGF realised this at an early stage and therefore also worked on a sustainability plan. It is a good idea to earn income by creating income-generating activities, such as - in this case - the school and the guest house, as it makes your organisation less dependent on donor money. SGF was very successful in mobilising corporate support in order to build the school.
Details
Short description of the organisation the funds were raised for
Samburu Girls Foundation is a Kenyan non-profit whose main objective is to advocate against harmful cultural practices. SGF rescues girls from child-marriage, beading and female genital mutilation. SGF then supports the rescued girl’s access to education as they undergo psychosocial support. SGF has been able to rescue and support 200 girls who are currently attending local schools within the country.
Short description of the project or programme the funds were raised for
Samburu Girls Foundation (SGF) rescues girls from pastoralist communities from child marriage, female genital mutilation and beading, then supports them to access basic education as they get psychosocial support. Beading is the practice whereby young warriors who are not allowed to marry yet single out young girls for sex - with the consent of their parents - by offering them strings of traditional beads as a token of their 'engagement'. This often results in unwanted pregnancies, ruining the girls chance of a bright future.
Currently the organisation is supporting 200 girls by providing food, shelter, clothing and other basic needs. With time the number of girls rescued has been increasing, which means more resources are required to support the girls at the rescue centre.
Samburu Girls Foundation therefore seeks to raise KES 14.400.000 for the SGF Education Fund. The fund will be dedicated to the support of education, upkeep and mentorship of deserving girls rescued by Samburu Girls Foundation.
Objectives
1. To raise KES 14.400.000 to provide for food, clothing and other basic needs.
2. To create awareness on local fundraising and the importance of community participation in local community development projects.
3. To create awareness on harmful cultural practices.
Targeted donors
Objective 1: Local community, local leaders.
Objective 2: Local community members, Ministry of Education staff, alumni, school heads and teachers, local business people and staff of local companies, politicians (Member of County Assembly, Governor, Ward Administrators).
Objective 3: Samburu community members, children officers, local leaders.
Results
| Cost/benefit |
National currency (KES |
Euro |
| Total amount raised |
8,193,400 |
72,735 |
| (-) Total amount invested |
0 |
0 |
| Net amount raised |
8,193,400 |
72,735 |
Accounting details
SGF so far received an amount of KES 7.839.400 in-kind, including 4 furnished classrooms donated by Safaricom Foundation. Food, shoes and clothing, and textbooks were also received in-kind.
Cash donations are used for tuition fees, boarding fees, school supplies and transportation to and from schools. KES 354.000 has already been received. More is needed.
Result comments
- Awareness creation on local fundraising.
- Board , beneficiary and community ownership of local initiatives.
- Commitment by staff and community members.
- Networking and partnership with our donors.
Description of preparatory work
Following the training on local fundraising in Nairobi, the two trained ´fundraising champions´ shared the local fundraising concept and the importance of the same within the organisation with the CEO. SGF then formed a fundraising team and a local committee to help with the implementation of the plans.
The team came up with a fundraising plan that was shared with the organisation leaders who approved it.
The team then identified potential donors and profiled them.
The local committee was tasked with approaching local donors, including local community members.
The ´fundraising champions´ also spoke to the committee that is in charge of the day-to-day running of Samburu girl’s centre. They had not been involved in local fundraising before, but after the Nairobi training their roles were reviewed to include local fundraising. They are now especially involved in mobilising resources locally to support the sheltered girls.
Description of implementation
SGF's fundraising strategy included:
- Organising a get together meeting.
- Collecting of monthly contributions from caregivers and formerly supported girls who now have jobs.
- Engaging the local community in the back to school extravaganza.
- Delivering a pitch about SGF's work to a local businesswoman who as a result donated KES 100,000.
- Distributing invitation letters and flyers to different potential donors, requesting their support and their presence during the event.
Follow up: Donor appreciation and acknowledgement
SGF will develop donor appreciation tools.
SGF will stay in touch with the Samburu artists who performed during the back to school extravaganza and who will perform again on a pro bono basis during future events.
Plans to repeat the action
Local fundraising will be a continuous activity with annual mega fundraising events in December.
