Projects - details

One Family One Charity (OFOC): Sponsor a micro-business to change a child's future!

Click here to find out about the families.

Background

Many poor families, especially single parent families, depend upon the income from their children's labour in order to feed themselves. Their children therefore never get the opportunity to complete their education. These children cannot break the vicious circle of poverty without schooling. As a result, generation after generation remain poor.

CAF believes that every child has a right to education. It is important to help their families so that the children can go to school.

To address this need, CAF launched the "One Family One Charity" programme in India in 2002, working in close co-operation with its Indian representatives and local women's federations (sangams). At present, the programme targets rural families in villages near the town of Thanjavur in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.

The concept

The family needs to generate a regular extra income to make up for the income previously earned by their children. They also need to cover school expenses such as books and travel to school. An effective, sustainable way to generate income to supplant child labour is to set up a micro-business that can be run by the whole family together. The additional income also serves to clothe and feed the family, and pay for house repairs or medical care.

This micro-business requires an initial investment, and this is where YOU, as sponsor, can help. In return for your investment, direct contact is established between you and your foster family. This provides you with an opportunity to establish a very special relationship with a family from a different culture, and it also has the advantage that you know exactly where your money has gone and how it has been spent.

The single, one-off donation is 300€ per family. No administration costs will be deducted - the entire sum is transferred to the family.

The first families adopted under the OFOC programme (2002)

The families applying for OFOC are screened and selected by the local sangams and approved by the local CAF Advisory Council (CAC). In addition to seeking sponsors to adopt families, CAF Belgium serves as a quality/accountability review board. The local CAF representatives ensure follow-up once the families are adopted, visit them twice per year, and submit annual reports to the donors through CAF Belgium. At the same time, the families are continuously guided and supported by the women's federations.

Thanks to 19 donors, 22 families (a total of 108 people) benefit at present from the OFOC program: 31 adults and 77 children. Many of these families are single-parent families with the mother being responsible for the survival and well being of the family. These families are even more vulnerable than other impoverished families.

Drawing for her OFOC donor by Aachiravalli,
12 years old, one of the OFOC children

Areas of investment

Each impoverished family is different, and not all forms of investment are suitable for all families. In order to guarantee a successful outcome, the beneficiary family, in cooperation with local CAF representatives, will propose what type of micro-business they can manage most effectively. Examples of possible micro-businesses include:

• purchase of a cow to generate income from selling the milk
• purchase of goats to generate income from selling offspring
• purchase of hens to generate income from selling eggs and chickens
• opening a cycle repair shop if the family has the skills to repair bikes
• opening a small shop for the sale of small goods

So far, the great majority of the beneficiary families have bought a small herd of goats. Goats are easy to keep and fit the rural surroundings. No special skills or equipment are required. Goats eat what they find along the roads, and children can help taking care of the animals. The income is generated by the sale of kid goats.

Goats Are the Future! OFOC children with kid goats
BEFORE OFOC family, consisting of a single mother with 4 children between 1 and 9 years old, before the OFOC donation… (2002)
AFTER … the proud owners of 10 goats and a repaired, extended house (2003)

Procedure

Once you have agreed to foster your selected family and transferred the money to the CAF account in Brussels, CAF will wire your donation to a special account in India in the name of the beneficiary family. The local CAF representatives are responsible for handing over the money to the families and will work with them to launch the appropriate micro-business, providing advice and support as needed.

Contact will then be established between you and the family. Annual photos and reports on the family's progress will be provided for you to follow their progress. CAF also enables the exchange of personal letters.

If you would like to visit the family you have sponsored, we would be happy to facilitate your visit although you will be responsible for any travel costs. It has become a tradition for CAF volunteers to visit the "operations" in Tamil Nadu every year in January or February. You would be most welcome to join them.

OFOC donors visiting their foster families, February 2004

ONE FAMILY ONE CHARITY IS AN ONGOING PROJECT.

AND YOU?
WILL YOU HELP CHANGING A CHILD'S FUTURE?

If you are interested in sponsoring a family or if you would like further information about this project please contact Dionne Bosma at (+32) (0)485 74 16 70 or by E-mail: