We are thrilled to let you know that these donations have now funded work to provide cash transfers to people in extreme poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa. If you gave more recently in July to September, your donations will be directed in November to support this work.
Further details are below. Reach out anytime if RC Forward can provide more info or answer questions.
Further Details
We updated you in July on the operational changes RC Forward is navigating, which have led to delays in past donations and a pause on accepting new donations. Our focus has been on strengthening our partnerships and honouring your donation recommendations.
To these ends, we’ve partnered with a Canadian charity, CAF Canada, on a new project to reduce poverty through cash transfers. CAF Canada chose GiveDirectly as the project implementer. The project’s beneficiaries are people in Rwanda who live in rural villages where most or all residents are experiencing extreme poverty. Your generous donations from October 2022 to June 2023 provided the initial funding, totalling $742,527 CAD.
RC Forward covered 96% of the new, additional fees for this new partnership out of its operating budget, and no additional fees were deducted from your gift.
CAF Canada retains control over all funds and projects and the implementers it works with, so that they can operate in line with charity regulations. We have processes in place to confirm your donations recommendations are honoured. Please reach out any time if you’d like more information.
The initial project has a budget of $1M USD and aims to have a significant impact, by reaching an estimated ~1,770 recipients living in extreme poverty with a lump sum cash transfer of $550 USD. Thanks to your generosity, the initial funding recommended to this project means we are already 55% of the way there!
Reflecting on Your Impact
Over 600 million people still live in extreme poverty, surviving on less than ~$3.00 CAD ($2.15 USD) per day. Facing this debilitating obstacle, these folks struggle to access basic needs such as clean drinking water, education, electricity, and even an adequate diet.
Your support empowers these people to choose how best to improve their lives. To give you a sense of the meaningful change your donation can create, a cash transfer of ~$1,300 CAD commonly doubles a year’s income for a household of 5 people in a country like Kenya, Rwanda, or Liberia.
Looking Ahead to Giving Season 2023
Today’s focus is updating you on your past donations. We’re sensitive about asking for new support, given the delays we’ve been navigating and your patience with us. However, we have started fundraising for this new cash transfers project, so that more people in extreme poverty can meaningfully improve their lives. Several donors have found this update helpful, so we wanted to share it with you.
Now that past donations from October 2022 to June 2023 have supported this cash transfers project, any future donations you make will be gifted on a regular, quarterly basis. Donations made July to September will fund a disbursement scheduled for this month (November), and donations made October to December will fund a disbursement scheduled for February 2024.
As you plan your charitable giving, I wanted to let you know this new donation option is available, and that you can learn more at rcforward.org/donate. To support this project, select “Cash transfers sent directly to people in extreme poverty” in the donation form.
