Open Way
Helping people out of poverty
(Charity Number: 1122055)
Trustees Annual Report & Financial Statements for the year ended
31st July 2022
Charity accounts preparation & independent examination service
Open Way
| Open Way | |
|---|---|
| (Charity Number: 1122055) | |
| Contents | |
| Index | Page |
| Report of the trustees | 1 |
| Independent examiner's report | 12 |
| Receipts & payments accounts | 13 |
| Statement of assets and liabilities | 14 |
| Notes to the accounts | 15 |
Open Way
helping people out of poverty
Registered charity 1122055
Trustee’s Annual Report for the period: 1[st] August 2021 to 31[st] July 2022
Reference and Administration details
Name:
Open Way
Other names charity is known by:
None
Address:
26 Spring Road, Abingdon, Oxfordshire. OX14 1AQ openway@hotmail.co.uk
Charity Number:
1122055
Names of the trustees who manage the charity:
Nicholas Osborne (chair) Maria Lopez (Trustee)
Name of trustees holding title to property belonging to the charity:
None
Funds held as custodian trustees on behalf of others:
None of any kind
Names and addresses of advisers:
Independent Examiner
Karen Wood ACMA Outsource VSCE Support CIC, 29 Millfield Road, York. YO23 1NH
Banker:
CAF BANK Ltd, 25 Kings Hill Avenue, Kings Hill, West Malling, Kent. ME19 4JQ
Name of chief executive:
Nick Osborne (Chair of Trustees)
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Structure, governance and management
Type of governing document:
Trust Deed
How the charity is constituted:
Trust
Trustee selection methods:
Appointed by existing trustees
Objectives and Activities
Summary of the purposes of the charity set out in its governing document
The relief of poverty and suffering related to the lack of basic needs for people of any age or cultural background in poor countries with the aim of bettering their present situation and improving their chances of future self-reliability.
To advance the education of the public in poor countries in the subjects of: health; and the conservation of the natural and physical environment.
Summary of the main activities in relation to those purposes for the public benefit, in particular, the activities, projects or services identified in the accounts.
Helping people out of poverty in Ethiopia by:
-
Providing medical help.
-
Providing free pre-school education in poor rural villages.
-
Tackling malnourishment.
-
Helping the vulnerable and the elderly.
The trustees consider that they have complied with their duties to have due regard to the public benefit guidance published by the Charity Commission.
2
Achievement and performance
Introduction
The situation in Ethiopia has continued to be a very difficult one. The war in the Tigray region has taken a terrible toll on the country and it is estimated by the United Nations that about half a million lives have been lost because of the conflict and consequent starvation and lack of health care. There is some hope in that a peace agreement has recently been signed (in November 2022) on the second anniversary of the war, and at least some essential aid is getting to Tigray and other affected areas.
There are other conflicts occurring around the country. Travelling has now become dangerous between Addis Ababa and our project area because the road passes through Oromia where there are ethnic disputes. Last month, the day after Mulu had made the journey, a bus was stopped on the same road and some of the passengers were killed due to ethnicity or affiliation.
The war and other global events have obviously impacted Ethiopia’s economy hugely. Inflation has been above 30% and often close to 40% throughout 2022, and so the cost of basic commodities has created great food insecurity all over Ethiopia. Open Way has responded by providing as much funding as possible for emergency food.
Against this background, Open Way has kept all projects going safely and successfully thanks to the hard work and careful planning of its dedicated team in Ethiopia.
3
Education project
Schools and Libraries
In October 2021, Open Way schools registered 1,142 students.
This increase in pupils is great to see after the difficulty of the Covid period where numbers were forced down to about 850 students. We always aim to equally encourage girls into education and once again we have more girls than boys registered.
Five of the schools have libraries which are used for students to study, read, and play games. In Shigesho, Lela Wemerera and Lela Honcho, these are used as community centres in the evening for people to gather and watch the news on solar powered tv.
| School | Classes in operation 2021-2022 |
Schools with libraries |
|---|---|---|
| TK | 5 | ✓ |
| Shigesho | 6 | ✓ |
| L. Wemerera | 3 | ✓ |
| Lela Honcho | 3 | ✓ |
| Hatabo | 3 | ✓ |
| Kokosa | 3 | |
| Mi-ke | 2 | |
| Bentibata | 2 | |
| 27 | 5 |
Tackling food insecurity
Grain
Food insecurity has been the main issue this year. As mentioned in the introduction, inflation has been really tough on everybody, especially poor rural people. The price of vegetable oil for cooking went up more than five times during a 12-month period; and crucially for our work, the price of grain went up by nearly a third.
Many people have become desperate, so we decided to give as much grain as was possible with the funds available to us.
For the year starting August 2021:
-
160 extremely vulnerable families have been helped with 15 kg of grain every month for ten months; and
-
500 one-off such rations were allocated on a case-by-case basis. Often malnourished families are referred to us by local health-centres.
This help is a lifeline to the people that it reaches, but this year there are many desperate people that we were unable to assist. We are raising extra funds for this reason.
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People waiting to collect a grain voucher from our HQ to take to the mill
Seedlings
Every year people are selected from the poorest in the communities for seedling distribution. These are impoverished households that have a small plot to grow food. Either cassava (yam) or false banana seedlings are given according to the size and the situation/altitude of the plot. The selected people are told in advance of receiving the seedlings so that they can prepare their plots in time.
This year, 400 households were given seedlings to plant in their plots - the same number as last year. Of those, 118 households received cassava, and 282 false banana seedlings.
Seedlings are a longer-term solution to target food insecurity. The yams will give a harvest during the same year and some of the crop can be saved and re-planted year on year; banana seedlings will not give food for some years until the plants get mature but then it is a reliable, drought-resistant source of staple food for several years to come.
Each year one of our coordinators visits some of these households to learn from their situation and to see if the project is working well. About 70% of the yam recipients managed to replant some of their harvest and the false banana crops are being looked after and are maturing well.
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False banana seedling distribution 2022
One of the beneficiary’s maturing false banana plants 2022
6
Yam seedlings are distributed a few at a time as they come to the market
Providing Housing
Most rural people live in traditional round mud houses with grass roofs. These dwellings are great if they are well made and can be maintained, but vulnerable people such as the elderly, disabled, unwell or single parents can find themselves in a poorly constructed, deteriorated and unsafe dwelling which lets in the rain, and does not offer protection from hyenas. Tragically there are cases each year of people being killed by hyenas in the region.
Unsuitable and unsafe dwelling 2022
7
People in this kind of difficulty are selected for a house construction. The house constructed is a simple square timber and mud house with a metal roof. Like everything else, the price of the metal has increased a lot. Our manager Sirgu did well to purchase a large amount early-on to make this project viable with available funds.
This year 20 houses for vulnerable people have been built in different communities.
A new house ready for rendering 2022
Open Way Village
Mulu reported that the number of homeless people in Teferi-Kela, the largest village where we operate from in the countryside, has increased. Homelessness is common in Addis Ababa but is unusual in rural areas and seems to be a result of people moving to find daily labour but not being able to afford rent; and, in some cases, due to displacement due to the war – even as far away as our project work is from Tigray. In fact, the idea of the project came about because of the situation of a Sidamo lady who was living in Tigray but lost her husband in the war. Because of her ethnicity, she and her children were ejected from Tigray. She had been attacked in an attempted rape when sleeping rough in Teferi-Kela and had her leg broken while trying to defend herself. Mulu saw the need to do something about this. After talking to the local authorities, they agreed to give us a plot to build some houses for homeless people.
As a result, two buildings consisting of five rooms, one kitchen, and one toilet have been constructed and homeless people have been selected to live in this accommodation (including the lady from Tigray). All houses have utensils, mattresses, and blankets. The people selected come from a variety of situations and they will be helped for a period while their situation improves so that they can move into their own accommodation.
Mulu went to visit the new residents in the “Open Way Village” as it is locally called. She was very happy to find them boiling potatoes and coffee in the kitchen. She has given them training on how to budget, save money, and open their own bank accounts.
Teferi-Kela is the only village where we work which has electricity. The authorities
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contributed to the erecting of an electricity pole to supply the buildings. This has benefited not only these buildings, but other nearby residents who can now obtain electricity to their own houses.
The new accommodation and some of the residents
Helping the Elderly
Every year we support 15 elderly people with a small pension and clothes, soap and blankets. This year one of the elderly people supported passed away. Sadly, her daughter had died a few months earlier. Another elderly person has been selected immediately for support with that fund.
Some of the elderly folk helped by Open Way
9
Medical Assistance
During the period 1[st] Aug 21 to 31[st] July 22, a total of 223 patients were treated for the conditions in the table. Of these, 112 were female, 111 were male, and 31 were children.
| Condition | Number of cases |
|---|---|
| Anaemia | 1 |
| Asthma | 1 |
| Bladder stones | 1 |
| Breast issue | 1 |
| Burns | 3 |
| Cancer | 4 |
| Cataracts | 31 |
| Cough | 1 |
| Ear, nose, throat | 5 |
| Eye issues (other than cataracts) | 13 |
| Gall-stones | 1 |
| Gastritis/digestive | 14 |
| Goitre | 1 |
| Giardia | 3 |
| High blood pressure | 5 |
| Heart issues | 5 |
| Intestinal issues | 1 |
| Kidney issues | 20 |
| Liver issues | 1 |
| Lung issues | 9 |
| Malaria | 5 |
| Mouth | 2 |
| Mental health | 5 |
| Migraine | 1 |
| Nerve issues | 2 |
| Plasmodium | 1 |
| Pneumonia | 10 |
| Prostate | 8 |
| Scabies | 1 |
| Sexual health (inc. miscarriage) | 11 |
| Skin | 7 |
| TB | 6 |
| Teeth | 1 |
| Trachoma | 1 |
| Tumours | 7 |
| Typhoid / typhus | 44 |
| Ulcer | 2 |
| Unknown | 6 |
| Worms | 10 |
| Wounds/breaks | 7 |
| Total treatments | 258 |
10
Financial Review
Open Way’s reserves remain relatively small, but healthier than in previous years.
Our end of year balance is £11, 862.22
Our aim is to hold reserves of around 4 to 6 months.
Open Way has no funds in deficit.
Declaration
The trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees Annual Report and Accounts.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:
Signature
Nick Osborne Chair of The Trustees
Date
14[th] January 2023
11
Independent examiner’s report to the trustees of Open Way
I report on the accounts of: Open Way for the year ended: 31st July 2022
which are set out on pages 13 to 15.
Responsibilities and basis of report
As the charity trustees of the Trust you are responsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’).
I report in respect of my examination of the Charity's accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.
Independent examiner's statement
I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect:
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1 accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Act; or
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2 the accounts do not accord with those records
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.
Karen Wood (ACMA) Outsource independent examination service
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26/01/2023
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Date:
The Hiscox Building Peasholme Green York YO1 7PR
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Open Way
(Charity Number: 1122055)
| Receipts & Payments Accounts for theyear ended: 31st July 2022 |
Receipts & Payments Accounts for theyear ended: 31st July 2022 |
Receipts & Payments Accounts for theyear ended: 31st July 2022 |
Receipts & Payments Accounts for theyear ended: 31st July 2022 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total receipts Receipts Grants Donations - standing orders My Donate / Wonderful Bank interest Balance carried forward Net of receipts/(payments) Total payments Transfers between funds Balance brought forward Payments Grants to project Bank charges & trf fees Independent examination fee Postage & packaging Donations - one-off |
Unrestricted funds £ - 7,165 3,715 644 1 11,525 8,484 - 221 150 8,855 2,670 - 9,192 11,862 |
Restricted funds £ 40,660 856 - - - 41,516 41,516 - - - 41,516 - - - - |
2022 Total funds £ 40,660 8,021 3,715 644 1 53,041 50,000 - 221 150 50,371 2,670 - 9,192 11,862 |
2021 Total funds £ 33,375 6,360 1,694 317 - |
| 41,746 | ||||
| 47,000 - 196 150 |
||||
| 47,346 | ||||
| (5,600) - 14,792 |
||||
| 9,192 |
13
Open Way
(Charity Number: 1122055)
| Statement of Assets and Liabilities at: | Statement of Assets and Liabilities at: | 31st July 2022 | 31st July 2022 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAF current account Liabilities Independent Examination fee Assets Cash at bank and in hand |
Unrestricted funds £ 11,862 11,862 Unrestricted Funds £ 150 150 |
Restricted funds £ - - Restricted Funds £ - - |
2022 Total funds £ 11,862 11,862 2022 Total Funds £ 150 150 |
2021 Total funds £ 9,192 |
| 9,192 | ||||
| 2021 Total Funds £ 150 |
||||
| 150 |
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Open Way (Charity Number: 1122055)
Notes to the Accounts for the year ended:
31st July 2022
1. Basis of Accounts
The Trustees have taken advantage of section 144 (2) of the Charities Act 2011 and prepared the accounts on a receipts and payments basis.
2. Analysis of Funds
2.1 Details of restricted funds
All funds of the charity are utilised in the alleviation of poverty in Ethiopia. However the charity obtains grants and donations which are restricted for the following purposes: Education Elderly & vulnerable Help to individuals Medical Housing
2.2 Movement of major funds
| Medical Unrestricted Funds General unrestricted funds Restricted Funds Education Band Aid Trust Just Trust Elderly & Vulnerable Donations Help to individuals Band Aid Trust Ashworth Trust Total Funds Donations Total Restricted Band Aid |
Balance b/fwd £ 9,192 9,192 - - - - - - - - 9,192 |
Incoming resources £ 11,525 11,525 8,900 1,500 10,400 25,510 3,000 560 29,070 296 1,750 41,516 53,041 |
Resources expended £ 8,855 8,855 8,900 1,500 10,400 25,510 3,000 560 29,070 296 1,750 41,516 50,371 |
Balance c/fwd £ 11,862 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11,862 | ||||
| - - |
||||
| - - |
||||
| - - |
||||
| - | ||||
| 11,862 |
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| Approval of Accounts for theyear ended: | 31st July 2022 | |
|---|---|---|
| Signed for and on behalf of the Trustees Print Name The report and accounts were approved at a meeting of the Trustees held on: Nick Osborne |
Date Date Position (e.g. Chair etc) 25th January 2023 Chair of The Trustees 25th January 2023 |
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