2020-12-31-accounts

Asra Hawariat School Fund Annual Report – 2020

The Asra Hawariat School in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, is a non-fee paying, nonreligious and non-political voluntary organisation working with those children and families who could not otherwise afford to get an education. The school began in 1961 when Asfaw Yemiru, the founder, was a 9[th] grade student at the British Council-run General Wingate School. When his classes were over Asfaw started to teach local street children under a tree in the local Church yard; the children were fed on left-over food from Wingate, and they slept in the Church yard. This was put on a more permanent footing in 1961, owing to a grant of land from the then-emperor Haile Selassie – and the children were able to sleep under cover, on shelves at the side of the classrooms.

In 1965, when the number of students had reached 1000, the school was officially recognised by the Ministry of Education. Since then the school, in addition to its core educational work, has run a number of additional humanitarian projects: an orphanage; Child and Family Aid, including fostering children with local families; a vocational farm; a feeding centre for malnourished children; a kindergarten and various training programs. Since its foundation, it has reached and helped over 120,000 of the poorest citizens of Ethiopia’s capital city. The school runs two campuses in the west of the city, one for grades 1-4 and the other for grades 5-8.

The Asra Hawariat School Fund (UK Registered Charity 325121) currently provides approximately 90% of the school’s funding.

The Asra Hawariat School Fund was founded by a Declaration of Trust dated 10[th] October 1974 and is registered with the Charity Commission of England and Wales as Charity No.325121. The objects of the Charity are the relief of poverty and the advancement of education in Ethiopia through the work of the Asra Hawariat School. The Fund has no paid staff and is run on an entirely voluntary basis. The Trustees of - the Fund are Carolyn Barker Mill, Gillian Cloke, Richard Cloke, Nicholas Kaye, Timothy Kinahan, Charles Sherlock and Martha Street.

The School

The school currently has 885 students, 474 of whom are girls. Priority is given to those children who have lost one or both of their parents; next, to children whose lives are seriously disrupted by poverty and who would find even the limited costs of a state education (uniform, books, stationery etc) beyond them. Prospective students are screened by a committee comprising the school principal, social workers and selected representatives of parents whose children are already at the school. Once they are accepted, the children are provided with a completely free education with some material support for the neediest children.

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The school’s bias in favour of girls is deliberate as the school believes strongly that female education is vital to social stability and economic growth – as has been borne out by countless studies from many parts of the world.

Our teaching staff is a mix of older and experienced teachers, and younger ones, many of whom have come through the Asra Hawariat School themselves. In-service training is on-going.

This last year has been tough. The school was closed for 8 months during the initial stage for the COVID-19 pandemic. During the lockdown a programme of home learning through worksheets (computer-based learning obviously being impossible), with the extensive and enthusiastic involvement of parents was put in place.

The school has now been re-opened since December and the normal academic program is being undertaken the earnest. To follow the required social distancing of the student and avoid crowding, students attend classes on alternate days including Saturday. All sanitary precautions such as temperatures reading at the gate, handwashing using effective soap, wearing mask and applying sanitizer when necessary are seriously and regularly followed. All instructions by the Ministry of Education are also carefully practiced.

Health service

The school health service aims at prevention rather than cure, offering advice on basic hygiene. It also offers a first aid facility. In addition, this year we plan to employ 2 nurses, one for each campus, whose emphasis will be on girls’ health. This will include the supply of sanitary products. The projected budget for this is 182,000 Birr (in the region of £3,300).

Child and Family Aid

At the moment, this programme offers support to 361 of the poorest families/children, with an emphasis on those who are disabled, orphans (who are placed with local foster families) of from broken families. This programme provides financial support, so that the poorest do not keep their children out of school to take over the household chores, or even resort to begging. Milk and vegetables from our farm are also supplied.

This programme was set up in the early 1990’s to provide non-institutional care for orphan and disadvantaged children. Instead of being institutionalized, they are offered the normality of a family, a street, a neighbourhood.

School Clubs

There are several lively and educational school clubs, including Health and 4

Sanitation Club, Literature, Drama and Music, Girls’ Club, Sports and Arts (90), Civics, Environmental Protection and Beautification, Child Rights and Advocacy.

As last year the school has encouraged Muslim children to help prepare Churches before major Christian festivals, and Christian children to do the same at the Mosque before major Muslim festivals. But as with so much this pandemic year this has had to be put on ice.

Agriculture

The farm thrives, acting both as a demonstration farm and as a source of fresh milk and vegetables for the Child Aid families. There are 60 head of cattle, and significant production of spinach, carrots, cabbage, beetroot, lettuce, onion, garlic and various local delicacies such as kitma, gesha and koba. Both campuses are well planted with indigenous trees – one of the great pleasures of visiting the school is to see the kids, who live in crowded slum conditions, playing in extensive and well-planned natural surroundings.

Funding

The school budget for 2021 means that the Fund is now committed to sending £8,000 monthly out to the school. This amount is down on recent years, largely as a result of a favourable exchange rate. But still, for a small charity, this a huge undertaking. Last year, as you will see from the attached accounts, we were remarkably successful, despite the pandemic. But we cannot afford to relax, especially as we do need to have a cushion of at least 6 months expenditure in order to provide security for the school.

Thanks

Thanks are due, once again, to our Accountants, David Harrison & Co, Chartered Accountants, Belfast who report on our accounts without charge.

And, not least, thanks to all our supporters, whose remarkable generosity in difficult economic times has ensured another good year, and who have helped turn so many dreams into reality.

Asra Hawariat School Fund (UK registered Charity 325121) 2 Woodland Avenue Helen’s Bay Bangor BT19 1TX Northern Ireland Tel: [phone] Website: www.asrahawariatschool.org Email: [e-mail]

The Asra Hawariat School Fund

Income & Expenditure Account for the year ended 31 December 2020

INCOME EXPENSES Travel Bank charges National Council of Voluntary Organisations Fundraising consultancy Printing & stationery NET INCOME TRANSFERRED TO ASRA HAWARIAT SCHOOL EXCESS OF EXPENDITURE OVER INCOME BALANCE BROUGHT FORWARD BALANCE CARRIED FORWARD	2020 £ 99,218 849 250 169 450 176 1,894 97,324 126,000 -28,676 121,762 93,086	2019 £ 172,633
		608 300 0 0 376
		1,284
		171,349 132,000
		39,349 82,413
		121,762

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Independent Accountant’s Report

Report to the trustees

Responsibilities and basis of report

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Asra Hawariat School Fund for the year ended 31 December 2020.

As the trustees, 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 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 Accountants Report

I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:

• the accounting records were not kept in accordance with section 130 of the Charities Act; or

• the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or

• the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a „true and fair‟ view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.

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.

David Harrison & Co Chartered Accountants 430 Upper Newtownards Road Belfast BT4 3GY

24 March 2021

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