2023-04-05-accounts

Ben & Victoria Ononeze Foundation

Registered UK Charity: No 1184985

http:// www.bavof.org

Annual Report and Accounts 2022-23

About the Foundation

Ben & Victoria Ononeze Foundation is a UK registered charity organisation. It works with registered health care professionals and community and church leaders to provide free primary health care and financial support to people in rural communities in Imo State, South Eastern Nigeria.

Our vision

Better health and wellbeing for rural Villagers.

Objectives of the Foundation

• The relief of sickness and the preservation of health among people residing in Imo State, South Eastern Nigeria by the provision of free primary healthcare services in particular but not limited to medical consultations, eye checks, health education, advice and further referrals.

• The relief of poverty and financial hardship among people living in Imo state, South Eastern Nigeria by the provision of micro-finance loan funding to individuals in, or at risk of, poverty or financial need to enable them to establish their own businesses to provide for themselves and their families.

1

Relief of Sickness and Preservation of Health - How the Foundation delivers this objective

Provide annual two day medical outreach which includes:

• Health talks on a range of health topics (personal and food hygiene, healthy eating, risk factors for diabetes, cancer and stroke and the importance of early detection and diagnosis)

• Raising awareness of common health issues and things to do to help prevent them and reduce their effects on health and wellbeing

• De-worming children and providing free mosquito nets

• Free medical consultations and medicines for some of the most common diseases (e.g. diabetes, malaria, typhoid fever, high blood pressure, arthritis)

• Investigatory blood tests for common health indicators (e.g. blood sugar and lipids) and diseases (e.g. malaria and HIV)

• Free tests and glasses.

• Facilitating onward referral to and practical and financial support to access local health services (e.g. specialist medical investigations, minor surgeries and operations to remove cataracts)

Monthly Medication Maintenance Programme to provide free medicines for high blood pressure and diabetes for the poorest.

How services provided by the Foundation fit with the wider State and private healthcare provision in Nigeria

• The Foundation work compliments state and private care provision.

• No National Health Service available to the citizens and Health Care Insurance is available to a limited number of people employed by certain organisations.

• The majority of individuals are responsible for their own health care.

• The very poor cannot afford to pay for medical care, and charity organisations such as Ben & Victoria Foundation or individual philanthropists are able to provide some assistance.

• National and state governments are encouraging organisations and individuals, especially those abroad, to engage and assist in charitable health provision in local communities.

• The Foundation works with volunteer registered health professionals working in local health facilities (state and private), who are able to offer support to enable people who attend medical outreach to access further specialist investigations and treatments in local health facilities. Provides practical and financial support for heart scans, biopsies, treatment for glaucoma and cataract operations.

• The Foundation is negotiating with private and state health care providers in the area for access to their facilities for certain investigations, operations and treatments.

• A volunteer who is an ex-Nursing Sister is leading work on maintenance treatment for a small cohort with absolute need.

2

The Relief of Poverty and Financial Hardship - how the Foundation delivers this aim.

• Many people in rural communities in Nigeria live in poverty and are mostly petty traders and subsistence farmers.

• The majority are women (often widows), who are struggling to feed their large families and are not eligible to borrow from banks. Some have been victims of loan sharks who have made their situations worse.

• The Foundation provides some of these women with small interest free loans.

• Beneficiaries are identified from a list compiled by community and church leaders who know those most in need in communities. The trustees and leaders then assess the suitability of those on the list and agree on a short list and interview potential beneficiaries.

• With the loan, the Foundation is able to assist beneficiaries in engaging in meaningful petty trading and farming which helps them to feed their families.

• The loans have transformed some of these families, for example they are now able to feed their children and send them to school.

• Beneficiaries pay back loans in mutually agreed regular amounts and time period.

• To qualify for the loan the beneficiaries have to meet all the criteria are:

• Widows/persons living in poverty

• Bread winners in their households

• Involved in a small scale trade or farming activity

• Have reputable people in the community to act as guarantors for loan

• The trustees working together with community and church leaders agreed to start with a loan amount of 50,000 – 75,000 Naira (Nigerian currency, equivalent of about £100). It was agreed that this amount was a good starting point and sufficient enough to support beneficiaries in their small businesses.

• Beneficiaries complete and sign a simple application in which they agree to the following terms and conditions:

• Accept the loan and the individually agreed monthly (or quarterly) repayments arrangements.

• Agree the date of first and last repayments

• Agree to use loan for their trade or farming

• o Guarantor signs form to state that s/he supports applicant suitability for loan

• Coordinator liaises with loan beneficiaries, monitor activities, ensure repayments and provides regular updates. There are no indications to date of any misuse of loans. In fact, some beneficiaries paid off their loans within a year and were able to access a second loan.

• Coordinator supports trustees and community leaders in making these decisions including the potential to increase the loan amount for some beneficiaries.

• To date, we have given loans to 50 villagers, and have another 15 on the waiting list.

3

• The plan is to substantially increase the number of villagers given loan to assist with recovery post COVID-19 outbreak and continuing hardship in the country.

Food aid

The Foundation regularly provides food aid to local communities. This provided a good platform to respond to the COVID-19 Outbreak, which was one thing more on top of what poor communities were struggling with. We provided food supplies to the poorest in the villages who were badly hit by the lockdown.

The need for food provision in poor communities in Nigeria is enormous and we are seeking funding to assist with this.

Who delivers the Foundation activities and services

• The Foundation delivers its activities and services directly via volunteers, it does not currently employ any staff.

• Recruits health care professionals through professional contacts. All are practicing registered medical, nursing and allied health practitioners:

• Medical Doctors (general and specialists)

• Registered Public Health Specialist

• Registered Nurses

• Optometrists

• Biomedical Scientists/Laboratory Technicians

• Pharmacists

• The annual two-day outreach sessions start with an induction session on the running of activities and highlighting potential risks and how to manage them.

• Non-health care volunteers are community and church leaders and workers.

• We work with traditional rulers, and the majority of the volunteers are from the local area who want to help local people.

How the Foundation organisation is funded

The Foundation was established in 2018 and services and activities were funded from personal funds from trustees Benjamin and Victoria Ononeze.

Since registration of the Foundation with the Charity Commission in England and Wales in August 2019, we have been doing low key fundraising leading to donations from few individuals.

With the growing need, the Foundation continues to explore opportunities to fundraise.

4

Partnership with GlobalGiving

• In January 2020, the Foundation project “Restore Sight to 200 Villagers in Rural Nigeria” https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/restore-sight-to-200villagers-in-rural-nigeria/ was approved on the GlobalGiving (a USA based non-profit organisation) Accelerator Programme in March 2020.

• The Foundation is now a Top Ranked Organisation within GlobalGiving.

Allocation of funds to activities or services

• Purchase of medicines, laboratory reagents, eye drops and glasses for medical outreach and eye screening events.

• Specialist health care including cataract surgeries.

• Monthly blood pressure and diabetes medications supplies

• Purchase of consumables (e.g. gloves, drug envelopes, printing, stationery)

• Refreshments, food and transport expenses for volunteers.

• Remuneration and transport expenses for volunteers

• Food and water for beneficiaries – food bought and prepared by volunteers.

• Small interest free loans to individuals for small scale trading and farming

• Miscellaneous

Foundation activity and expenditure monitoring

• Trustees and volunteers meet at the end of the first day of events to review activities, agree follow up investigations where required. Also review stocks and arrange for further purchase of medicines and eye glasses (usually runs out).

• Meeting at the end of the second day to review activities over the two days on the learning – numbers who attended, what went well, challenges and opportunities.

• Trustees meet to review expenditure

• Trustees review financial support to facilitate access to local health services for identified individuals, in collaboration and volunteer medical and nursing practitioners.

• Trustees produce activity report and financial account which we submit to the Charity Commission for England and Wales.

Safeguarding

• All health talks and one to one consultations happen in open spaces. In the few cases where privacy is required, a chaperone is provided.

• Outreach sessions start each day with talks with volunteers on potential risks (volunteers and beneficiaries’ safety, crowd control and medical emergencies) and how to mitigate and manage them.

• The Foundation has a Safeguarding Framework outlining how it operates in a manner that safeguards beneficiaries. The Trustees have highlighted in the framework their commitment to safeguarding and to implement the procedures as written in the framework.

5

• Trustees are continually reviewing safeguarding policy with respect to where activities are provided, any new activities and in developing any partnership working with local and state agencies.

For more information, please visit:

http:// www.bavof.org https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/restore-sight-to-200-villagers-in-ruralnigeria/

Appendix A: Foundation Activities Report Jan 2022-23

Medical Outreach & Eye Screening

Annual two-day Free Medical Outreach held on 2[nd] & 3[rd] June 2023. about 500 people attending on both days, and all received free primary medical consultations, medications (including for blood pressure, diabetes, malaria, arthritis)

About half of the 500 people received free eye screening, eye drops and ointments. Of these, 35 people identified with eye problems required specialist investigations. Seven people with matured cataracts received surgical operations.

Food Aid

Food distribution to communities.

Monthly Medication Maintenance Programme

The aim of the monthly sessions is to provide the poorest individuals in the communities with free regular blood pressure checks and medication supplies. We also facilitate specialist investigations in local hospitals where required. We plan to include diabetes monitoring this year.

Small Interest Free Loans

As of June 2023, we have given small interest free loans of £100 (equivalent of N100,000 in Nigerian currency Naira) to 50 people for small scale trading and subsistence farming.

6

mm in Annual medical outreach OAbout 3000 people attended since 2017 (excluding 2020 & 2021 due to COVID-19 pandemic} Two-day eye screening session in 2021 0327 attended Cataract operations 020 people (1 on both eyes) MonthLy medication maintenance programme /About 100 attend on a regularly basis::: Small interestfree loans 050 people and 2 small cooperatives formed

Appendix B- Foundation Annual Account Bon and Victoria Onon8ze Foundation Charity Reference Number ZD03753 Company ReglBtration Number 01184985 FlnancLql 8udget 202212023 Pro rted Bud et120221231 In(St3te Li)cal c￿reNt¥ Nyerlan Naira1910 per £1 Loral Currency- British PouTrJ Sterli eded I￿(￿e LSD Individual tknnanons Ea5Oundrai5in£ LJ)., I'nch iofMr¢iiJon ondcorre5 Grant5 st gront EvEnt5 and Fundr3lsinE Membershi Fees Interest Eamed Other15pecilyl. Personal Saving5 from Ben OnDneze nd Vlrtorla OnonezelFoundatlon Foundlng Tru5tee5 455,(w.fM) ornmt lQ.50 7È1(L5 2.730mO.ty) S,9151￿ Totsl Pro Incon 65 Local Cwrenry Nyeri Nara1910 per Ell Loral Currency" British Pound StÈrllng PM¥erted Expenses USD 2 DayMÈdltalOuliÈh the1￿1r¢ Éye StreÈnth£ sittns 5wcia1151 IV Inv￿lE￿lI>n5 lor30yop BY 2,719,990.th) S91.￿￿. 650 154 25&8 194,74U.(W) 4$,￿0.(￿) I36.￿￿.(10 I36.￿.[￿) 22?.￿o.th) TÈl4>honÈ Fwllor E{li￿lIVGQneIat Palynl Tra￿port Pood andWaiÈr 150 3(M) 210 Other Lob￿1 Total P￿]￿10￿ EJper*StS 6101 4,370,7W 00