WOW! That's all I can say!

You have been incredible.

It is not even December yet, and we have already surpassed our initial goal of $5,000.

We are deeply grateful.

That said, this doesn't mean an additional donation isn't going to help us. If we can raise another $5,000 then we have all the medical supplies, fuel and maintenance for the motorbikes for 1 year funded as well.

Do you think we can make it before Christmas?

I believe in you.

Fuel, medical supplies and maintenance of the two motorbikes costs AUD $5,000 each year.

This will enable us to deliver quality healthcare to children, people with disabilities and the elderly within our communities. People, who otherwise wouldn’t receive any healthcare.

You can read more about how our outreach project is changing lives here:

Thank you

Nina

P.S.

Please share this with your friends, in a post, in an email.

Hold a bake-sale, charity dinner, or raise money at your office or school.

Please sign up to our newsletter if you have not already.

Reaching out... For outreach.

Today I am reaching out to you.

We need your help. 

For the past 8 years we have run our outreach program providing quality healthcare to people who otherwise wouldn’t receive any medical care. 

But now we are struggling to deliver this service. The only way we can reach people is on our motorbikes and our old ones are literally falling apart. 

We need new bikes. Can you help?

1 motorbike costs AUD $2,500 and we need 2, so our total need is AUD $5,000

You can read more about how our outreach project is changing lives here:

https://www.australiaforcedartanzania.org/outreach-team-australia-for-cedar-tanzania-changing-lives

Thank you

Nina

P.S.

Please share this with your friends, in a post, in an email.

Hold a bake-sale, charity dinner, or raise money at your office or school.

Please sign up to our newsletter if you have not already.

Is there any hope for Irene's children?

It is 12 noon, and the sun has reached its highest point, beating down on my head as I walk towards a few neighbourhood houses scattered in a remote village.

A delicious smell of cooking is reaching me from some of the homes. However, when I reach Irene’s house, the smell is different; a stale and empty smell come from the little mud house in which she lives.

Irene* is sitting on the ground under a tree outside her one-room mud house. She is not alone; with her is her youngest daughter aged 3. After spending hours looking for water, this is the only time she gets to rest before she starts to prepare the evening meal for her family. “I am so tired; I have been up since 4am to fetch water from a seasonal waterhole. It has taken me almost six hours to fill all my buckets. Because the waterholes are dry most of the year, once there is water, you spend a long time waiting in line,” she explains.

The 38-year-old mother of five is currently raising her children alone after her second husband left her two years ago. Coming from a poor family, she never had an opportunity to go to school because her parents couldn’t afford to pay for her school expenses.

Even though tuition is free in Tanzania her family could not afford the costs for a school uniform, pencil, paper, and books. 

She admits poverty is taking its toll on her children, especially her eldest son. Irene says her son has become a village boy with no future after completing form four (Grade 10 equivalent). There are no jobs and they do not have the money for school fees for him to go to college.

Irene earns about $2 a day selling tomatoes on the side of the street. Most days she can afford to cook two meals a day for her little family but some days, when business is slow, she can only afford to offer her children one meal a day.

Irene sees little hope for her children. She wishes her children will get to finish their education, get a job, and break the poverty cycle in her family. “It’s hard to predict the future. Unless my children finish their education and get good jobs, they will end up like me. No parents wish to see their children live in poverty. Reality is, things are hard, and they keep getting tougher each day,” the struggling mother says.

Last Monday we marked the International Day for Eradicating Poverty. Irene and her children are just one family among thousands of families living in poverty throughout the Nyamatongo Ward, and Tanzania.

If you would like to help us eradicate poverty, you can make your difference here:

https://www.australiaforcedartanzania.org/make-a-difference-australia-for-cedar-tanzania-changing-lives

Thank you.

* Irene is not her real name.

6 myths most people believe

Myth #1

Not-for-profits are not supposed to make a profit.

Certainly, not-for-profits should be a profitable entity. The difference lies in how the profit it makes is used.

Just like other businesses, a not-for-profit should be both sustainable and viable. A not-for-profit has to spend its profit according to its mission and vision. It cannot go to the owners as a profit.

I often like to say a not-for-profit is a for-purpose business.

Myth #2

You can see if a Not-for-profit is good by looking at the overheads.

This myth implies that an effective and good not-for-profit only spends a small amount of its expenses on overheads.

The nature of many not-for-profits are that their projects and programmes are delivered by people. People, who often must be paid for their knowledge and expertise. Often this is by far the most costly expense for a not-for-profit. And it is the hardest expense to get funding for.

Having professional leadership, diligent planning and sound measurement of impact is the most cost-effective way to run a not-for-profit.

Myth #3

Not-for-profit vs charity vs NGO – it’s all the same.

These words are often used interchangeably although they are not entirely equal. Here’s some definitions:

Not-for-profit: These are organisation that provide services to a community and does not exist to make a profit for its members, owners, or shareholders. Non-profit is typically the American word and means exactly the same.

Charity: In Australia, a charity is an organisation that is registered the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC). All charities are not-for-profits but not all not-for-profits are charities!

NGO: Non-Governmental Organisation. Sometimes NGOs are called Civil Organisations. These are organisations that operate independently of any government. Of course, they adhere to laws and regulations, but they are not led by, or created to fulfill a government policy or programme. They are typically not-for-profits – but not all not-for-profits are NGOs!

Australia for Cedar Tanzania are all three. We are a not-for-profit, a charity and an NGO.

Myth #4

Not-for-profits are not businesses.

Just like not-for-profits should make a profit, not-for profits are also often registered businesses.

A not-for-profit follows the same rules and regulations as normal business and has an ABN and is registered with ASIC.

As a business, they need to report to ATO and have their finances audited. They need to have opening hours and be publicly accessible.

In my opinion, successful not-for-profits are run like any other successful business.

There are a few exceptions such as associations, cooperatives, corporations, and trusts.

Myth #5

People working for a not-for-profit are all volunteers and they are less professional than in other businesses.

Although many not-for-profits are lucky to have dedicated and brilliant volunteers it is often necessary to employ people especially in key positions.

When a not-for-profit grows larger and is able to take on more work, it is often also time to start hiring professional staff as the workload no longer can be expected to be performed by volunteers alone.

Just like other businesses, hiring professional and skilled employees is connected to how successful your business or not-for-profit is going to be.

Of course, many not-for-profits are grateful for the time and efforts given by volunteers and couldn’t function without them.

Myth #6

Not-for-profits are not important for society and the economy.

Many not-for-profits provide important and fundamental services to communities both in Australia and abroad. If these services disappeared overnight, it would cost billions of dollars to the Australian economy – late interventions lead to more costly recoveries for example.

The not-for-profit sector contributed $143 billion to Australia’s GDP in 2018 (source) and employs 11% of the population (1.38 million people). That’s around the same number of people that works in retail (10.0% of people employed) more people than in construction (9.2%), professional, scientific, and technical services (8.6%) and manufacturing (7.2%) industries. Charities employ five times as many people as the mining (2%) industry. (source)