Comic relief, street children and Fantsuam Foundation September 19, 2010
I've been looking at Comic Relief and wonder if you have ever tried to get funding from them for your work with Fantsuam Foundation. I have checked and they do fund projects in Nigeria, through UK registered charities - which of course Fantsum Foundation is.
They have several programmes that overlap your areas of work, but the one that jumped out at me first was Street and Working Children and Young People.
Regarding outcomes they say:
Comic Relief wants to know that the projects we fund are bringing about changes in the lives of poor and disadvantaged people. We call these changes programme level outcomes, and define them as the ‘intended or unintended effects or changes to people’s lives that happen as a result of the project or organisation’s activities’.
During the period covered by this strategy, we anticipate that the lives of street and working children will be transformed as follows:
- Street and working children realise their rights to services (e.g. health, education), resulting in improved health, educational attainment.
- Children are living better protected from abuse by all duty-bearers resulting in children living free of fear and with greater opportunity to fulfil their potential.
- Children and families have increased and more stable incomes resulting in greater livelihood security and the ability to protect and support their children.
- Children are more confident and organisations and duty-bearers are more responsive to children’s aspirations as a result of increased participation of children in decisions affecting their lives.
- Demonstrable evidence of reduction in stigma against abused children resulting in effective reintegration of those children into community life.
- Improvement of policies and practices at the national, regional and district level ensuring the rights of children, particularly regarding access and long-term retention in formal and non-formal education, accessible basic healthcare and juvenile justice.
As I read that list I think of your work with orphans and vulnerable children, including the street children at the market. I think of the health services, feeding programmes, and educational services that you struggle to provide. I think too of your work with the children's parliament, and with victims of witchcraft accusations. I remember your training prgrammes which teach the children about money and help them to make use of the micro-credit programme for saving and for getting loans for their petty trading and other businesses.
I haven't read the form in detail yet, but it looks encouraging so far. It may help that Nikki has been collecting up details of some of your work with children over recent weeks - perhaps some of the links to her information would be helpful in filling in the form.
- http://www.dadamac.net/action/orphans-and-vulnerable-children-feeding-programme
- http://www.dadamac.net/blog/20100821/nutritional-and-educational-support-ovcs-ube-primary-school-ungwa-yanshi
- http://www.dadamac.net/projects/health-and-welfare/vulnerable-children
No-one to put in funding applications - any helpers?
I know it is now even more difficult than usual for you to put in funding applications because members of your team from VSO (Voluntary Service Overseas) have just finished their postings with you. You are over-stretched already, without trying to put time aside for more, possibly fruitless, applications - but perhaps this one is worth trying. Application deadline for cycle 5 is 22 February 2011.
Open letter readers - If anyone reading this knows of anyone who is willing to help with writing funding proposals please let us know. Most of the necessary facts for this funding bid, and all others, are buried in various budgets, accounts, news, and formal reports. Any additional facts can be gathered via emails of during the weekly online meetings. Pulling it all together to put into funding bids, that seldom succeed, takes precious time that is needed for practical ongoing work.
Pamela