Quaker Congo Partnership UK, Charity number1159781 Annual Report for the year ending 31[st] December 2020
Reference and administrative information
Trustees
H. Margaret Gregory, Catherine Putz: co-clerks Andrew H. Gregory: treasurer
Trustees: Nigel Watt, Paul Simon, Nick Tischler, Alick Munro (to May 2020), Lynn Norbury, Ian Todd (from June 2020)
Registered Address: Friends Meeting House, 6 Mount Street, Manchester, M2 5NS Bankers: Co-operative Bank, 70/72 Cross Street, Manchester, M2 4JG Number of meetings: Trustees met five times using Zoom during 2020 and maintain contact between meetings using phone and email. Website http://www.quakercongo.org.uk
Throughout this report CEEACO is used for the Community of Evangelical Friends Churches in Congo, QCP for Quaker Congo Partnership UK and DRC for Democratic Republic Congo.
Structure, Governance and Management
Quaker Congo Partnership UK was registered as an independent charity in January 2015, having previously been supervised by Cambridgeshire Area Quaker Meeting. Manchester & Warrington and Cambridgeshire Area Quaker Meetings have the right to appoint trustees. Additional trustees are identified through advertisements, through personal contacts and Quaker links. They should be Quakers or people in sympathy with Quakerism and supportive of the work we are doing. Potential trustees often start as associates providing them and existing trustees with an opportunity to get to know each other better. Existing trustees appoint the new ones.
Trustees are asked to complete a fit and proper person declaration, to provide a referee and to declare any possible conflicts of interest. Trustees do not receive any remuneration apart from the refund of expenses. Links with CEEACO are through a project committee which manages the projects we are supporting. We have made a series of three-year agreements whereby we promise to send a certain sum every six months to be used in an agreed way. CEEACO send us quarterly accounts showing how the money has been spent and also narrative accounts from the project leaders describing the work done and the difference it has made. In addition. a group of trustees visits every two – three years.
Visit
Three QCP trustees visited CEEACO and the projects for nine days in February 2020. We were warmly welcomed; it was good to meet old friends and make new ones and to talk, pray, travel, sing and dance together. The visit was in line with our vision, which is to provide moral support to CEEACO by standing alongside them for the long term, and to provide funding and technical advice where possible in their work to improve health, build peace and tackle poverty.
We had useful discussions in relation to all the projects which helped with planning and monitoring. We met with project leaders, staff, volunteers, beneficiaries and government officials. For example, together with CEEACO and the head of the health authority in South Kivu we discussed ways for the Community Hospital Abeka to become a recognised hospital. This will be a big challenge, requiring new buildings and improved equipment. We also met with the regional Minister of Health and talked about ways CEEACO and QCP could work with the authorities towards this aim.
Paul Simon carried out a survey to establish the feasibility of extending piped water to two villages neighbouring Abeka. We looked at ways of strengthening existing peace building and the prevention of sexual violence programmes. Suggestions for the future included the establishment of local peace centres and youth peace committees together with a vocational training centre for young people.
Catherine and Alick also met with Action for Women’s Integral Development who are working to improve the position of women through training in literacy and numeracy as well as developing economic activities including basketry, horticulture and keeping goats and poultry. This is a new name for this part of the work which better reflects the variety of work than ‘Microcredit’ did.
Paul provided technical support to key CEEACO staff members through training sessions on finance, due diligence, job descriptions and contracts.
Meeting with our partners face to face gave us information, photographs, and helped to strengthen relationships. The visit was like a pilgrimage and renewed our determination to continue our work alongside CEEACO over the long term. For the full report see http://www.quakercongo.org.uk/Reports
Charitable purposes, Activities for the public benefit.
“To improve the physical and mental health and education and relieve the poverty of people of the Great Lakes Region of Africa and in particular those in the area of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. To promote the furtherance of peace, equality and human rights in that area. To raise funds and provide grants, mentoring and general assistance to hospitals, schools, formal and informal groups and individuals in order to further such objects, in particular supporting projects run by the ‘Communaute des Eglises Evangeliques des Amis au Congo’ (CEEACO)” Partnership really does describe our relationship and plans are worked out jointly rather than being dictated by the UK trustees. The area in which we are currently supporting projects is in the town of Uvira and 50km to the south to Abeka in the province of South Kivu.
During 2020 we have strengthened our organisation in the UK by establishing groups of three/four trustees and associates who take a particular interest in each area of work.
Achievements and Performance in 2020
Hospital and public health.
The project, and associated projects funded by the charity were visited by three Trustees, one a medical doctor, during February 2020. Helpful discussions were held with staff at the hospital with the aim of identifying priorities for future assistance. These included anticipating possible needs consequent on Covid, which, although increasing in neighbouring areas has not yet directly impacted on the locality. Useful discussions with local and regional government health officials regarding future support for the hospital took place, and are continuing. These indicate that the hospital has been chosen as the site for a Unified Nutritional Support Service, subject to finding a funding partner. We were also informed later in the year, that a forthcoming World Bank Programme supporting the Zone de Santé is expected to include improvements at the hospital.
Support to the hospital for salaries of key staff, in partnership with funding from the Zone de Santé, was continued as in previous years. The activity levels in the hospital were largely unchanged.
We also provided funding for a number of items of equipment during the year including solar panels and a refrigerator, a motorcycle ambulance, replacement mattresses, a ventouse, a contribution towards drugs, and an allowance towards materials for managing Covid. Flooding from Lake Tangyanika, which has now subsided, affected one of the health centres, and support was provided to help mitigate some of the damage.
Some of our funding was possible following grants to us from Quaker Peace and Social Witness (QPSW). Technical equipment has to be purchased in Burundi, and the recent closure of the border with DRC due to Covid, is making this difficult.
CEPAP, Centre for, Peace, Education and Psychological Support, has been working with young people on the plateau and there are now peace committees in five villages. There has been training for the young people including the importance of evaluating their work. CEPAP is also working with Burundian refugees in the Lusenda camp and ‘Listening rooms’ have been established in Lusenda, Makabola and Abembwe, The mobility provided by the motorbike purchased with a grant from The Southall Trust has greatly helped this work. The longer established areas of work have continued. Some school fees for vulnerable secondary age children are being paid, along with pastoral support for the young people. There is craft training for school leavers and trauma counseling, particularly for those who have suffered violence. Covid-19 precautions led to the closure of schools and CEPAP counselors supported a
number of older girls who were in danger of being forced into early marriage against their wishes. Sanitising equipment bought in preparation for a Covid-19 outbreak was of great value in May when there was severe flooding along the lakeside destroying and damaging many homes and closing the road. CEEACO together with other churches and community groups provided most of the relief work.
Water, Clean water continues to be supplied to the hospital and village of Abeka, so reducing the incidence of water-borne diseases including typhoid and cholera. A local management group is collecting subscriptions from those receiving clean water and coordinating repairs. Planning is being undertaken to extend the supply to neighbouring villages.
AWID Action for Women’s Integral Development. This has developed from the microcredit project. Land has been rented to grow crops some of which are sold with the money being returned to the cooperative, the rest of the crop improving the range of food available to the women’s families. Animal husbandry especially goats and chickens, is developing. Basket making provides products for sale. Literacy and numeracy classes increase the women’s confidence, ability to manage the developing enterprises and to take greater community responsibilities. There are plans for dressmaking and soap production.
Fund raising
Money is raised through donations from individuals, from Quaker Meetings and through applications to charitable trusts. Trust donations this year include Quaker Peace and Social Witness, Education Services Trust, Manchester and Warrington Area Quaker Meeting, Just Trust and the CB & HH Taylor Trust. In 2020 Covid-19 restrictions meant that it was not possible to organize fund raising events. Following exceptionally heavy rains the rivers in and near Uvira flooded and the level of Lake Tanganyika rose. Over 240 people died, 7.800 houses were completely destroyed and 22,250 seriously damaged. The tank supplying much of Uvira with drinking water was damaged and many roads became impassable. A special appeal raised over £2,500.
Risk Management
The projects in DRC are managed by CEEACO, who are conscious of the risks involved in this unstable region. Risks in DRC include: insecurity and violence, climate change, and the risk of epidemic disease including cholera Ebola and Covid-19. Careful risk assessments were made by trustees prior to visiting. We did not have any difficulties and value the careful plans made by our partners. Most money transfers are made directly to the CEEACO bank account with a money transfer service being used for smaller sums. No money has been lost during transfer.
The trustees are conscious of the need to manage funds so that they are able to maintain the basic committed support of £15,000 every half year and try to maintain a reserve fund of at least £5,000
Data protection: A record is kept of donors who have asked to receive the Newsletter.
Safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults is recognized as important by our partners who work actively to educate both young and older people. We are working with them to produce a shared policy. A policy on diversity is also being prepared.
Reporting
The trustees report to individual donors, Quaker Meetings and donating trusts through a newsletter published 2 - 3 times a year, and meet with groups when this is possible. We have taken part in the work of the Quaker Africa Interest Group, and been in regular contact with Quaker Peace and Social Witness and the London office of Friends World Committee for Consultation. QCP UK is a Quaker recognized body and usually takes part in Britain Yearly Meeting. Articles and news items have been published in The Friend, the Quaker weekly journal.
There have not been any serious incidents which needed to be reported to the Charity Commission.
H. Margaret Gregory, clerk
Quaker Congo Partnership UK Annual Accounts 2020
| Receipts General Donations Water Project Flood Relief Appeal Fund-raising Grants - General Water Project (Just Trust) - Peace work - Hospital Equipment (QPSW) - Training (Education Services, 2010) Gift Aid Total Income Payments Flood Relief CEEACO - Projects - Peace work (CEPAP) - Hospital Equipment - Training - E-Ambulance - Motobike (CEPAP) 2020 Visit Other expenses Consultants Printing & Newsletter Advertising Meetings Travel expenses Total expenses Excess of Income over Expenditure: Balance at 1 January Balance at 31 December Balance Sheet at 1 December Cash in Bank Including: - Reserve fund - Water Fund |
2020 £ 36,008 2,646 2,354 0 4,000 800 4,600 2,000 6,227 58,635 2,537 32,108 4,270 4,701 1,997 3,423 0 4,943 0 363 152 497 0 279 55,270 3,365 9,833 13,196 13,196 5,000 3,446 |
2019 £ 34,302 0 0 1,868 12,500 1,800 5,000 2,000 2,490 |
|---|---|---|
| 59,960 0 27,910 2,641 5,235 1,990 7,549 1,745 791 347 266 252 255 67 356 |
||
| 49,404 10,556 1,276 9,833 9,833 5,000 0 |
Qker PartrShip UK Annual Accourrts 2020 2020 2019 General Donations Water Project Flood Relief Appeal Fund-raising Grants - General Water Projett (Just Trust) - Peace work Hospital Equipment IIIPSW) - Training (Education SeNces, 20101 Gift Aid Total Income 36,lJ)8 2,646 2,354 34,302 1,868 12,5LKI 6.227 57,635 2,490 59.960 Flood Relief CEEACO - Projects Peace work ICEPAPI Hospital Equipment Training E-Ambulance Motobike ICEPAPI 2020 Visit Other expenses Consultants Printing & Newsletter Advertisin8 Meetin8S Travel expenses Totsl expenses 2,537 32,108 4,270 4,701 1,997 3,423 27,910 2,641 5,235 1.990 7,549 1,745 791 347 266 252 255 67 356 49.404 4,943 363 152 497 279 55,270 Excess of Income over Expenditure: 2,365 10,556 Balance at l January Balance at 31 December 9.833 12,196 1,276 9.833 Balance Sheet at 31 December Cash in Bank Induding:_ Reser fund - Water Fund .196 9.833 I have examined the paperwork that supports these figures the income and expendi" Quaker Congo Partnership UK and am satisfied that they are a correct record of the inc and expenditure on each line of the spreads et. J,,J llv 7 1(1 101[ 33 P