Syria and Philippines – our members and friends have again answered the call!

ElectricAid’s Special Appeal for Syria and the Philippines has been an outstanding success. This is not our success but yours – the entire ESB and EirGrid communities. From the widow’s mite and the pensioner’s fiver, to the hundreds of very generous contributions (some of 4 figures), right up to ESB’s generous matching contribution, the Appeal rolled up to €112,000 so far (on 10.01.2014)  – a magnificent result, far beyond our initial target of €50,000.

Collecting money is all very well, but it has to be used well – and quickly. We have already committed €110,000 of the proceeds, on top of another €38,000 raised and spent for Syria earlier in the year. The table below gives a full accounting of all monies spent for Syria & the Philippines since 01.01.2013. Our later funding in the Philippines have moved on from “first-aid” disaster relief to reconstruction of homes, the top priority identified by the people themselves.

We are also very happy with our choice of partners – we are satisfied that they are doing badly-needed and effective work on the ground for the stricken people of Syria and the Philippines. None of this work would have been possible without your generosity. On behalf of ElectricAid, our NGO partners, and most of all, the people of Syria and the Philippines, thank you, one and all.

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Syrian Funding

Agency Description Amount Paid
GOAL Emergency response for IDPs in Syria 6450
Concern Syria Response – services for refugees & IDPs 7500
Irish Red Cross Syria Response – services to refugees & IDPs 7500
UNICEF Syria Response – additional funding for IDPs & refugees 3000
Oxfam Ireland Syria Response – additional funding for services to IDPs & refugees 3750
Médecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) Syria Response: Contribution for emergency medical care, within Syria & in refugee camps 3000
Médecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) Syria Response: Additional funding for emergency medical relief work 3000
GOAL Syria Response – additional funding for food & shelter for IDPs & refugees 4000
Médecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) Special Appeal – Syria Response: Emergency medical care for IDPs & refugees. 12000
Concern Special Appeal – Syria Response: Care for IDPs and refugees, Syria 11000
GOAL Special Appeal for Syria & Philippines – services for IDPs and refugees, Syria 5000
Concern Special Appeal for Syria & Philippines – services for IDPs and refugees, Syria 5000
Irish Red Cross Special Appeal for Syria & Philippines – services for IDPs and refugees, Syria 5000

Philippines Funding

Agency Description Amount Paid
Irish Red Cross Philippines/Syria Appeal: Contribution to Red Cross – Philippines. 15000
Christian Aid Ireland Special Appeal – Philippines Response: Relief work in E. Visayas, Leyte. 10000
GOAL Special Appeal – Philippines Response: Emergency relief in Tecloban, Leyte. 10000
PLAN Ireland Special Appeal – Philippines Response: Emergency relief – water, shelter, healthcare 10000
Oxfam Ireland Special Appeal – Philippines Response: Relief work in Northern Cebu. 10000
Daughters of Wisdom Philippines Response: Reconstruction of 100 basic homes, Bantayan island, Cebu 15000
Habitat for Humanity Ireland Special Appeal for Syria & the Philippines – reconstruction of disaster-resistant housing 5000

ElectricAid’s Commitment – Integrity, Transparency and Accountability

You will be aware of the recent revelations concerning salaries paid in a small number of Irish charities.

Some of our members have contacted us for reassurance; we feel it is appropriate to assure our members, friends, and supporters that integrity, transparency, and accountability are core values for ElectricAid.

We do not pay any salary (or “top-ups”) at all. Our manager is an ESB staff member, and paid as such. ESB also picks up overhead and expense costs. The total spent by ElectricAid on expenses in 2013 was just 350 Euro paid to a third party in respect of independent appraisal of 7 projects funded in Uganda, money very well spent.

With regard to our partner NGOs, we do not fund organisations, rather we get behind projects. We provide specific project funding, based on specific project budgets. When project budgets include a salary element, usually for local staff in the field, we disallow it. We do not in any case contribute to the salaries and overhead costs of applicant organisations.

ElectricAid publishes its audited accounts yearly, on ESBnet and in our Annual Report. The minutes of all our Committee meetings are published on our intranet site. Members have a standing invitation to attend any of our meetings. We are a member-owned and driven organisation, doing our business in the open, and proud to do so. We have signed up to the voluntary Code of Governance for Charities, and are members of Dochas, an umbrella body with a strong remit for governance.

We are open for business and open for scrutiny.

John Kelly, Chairman. 13.12.2013

Click here to join in ElectricAid’s efforts.

ElectricAid responds to Syrian crisis

Syria-girl

The situation for the people of Syria continues to deteriorate. An estimated 70,000 people have been killed, and more than 3 million displaced – including 1.5 million children. Basics such as food, shelter and clean water are desperately needed, and the widespread and escalating violence means that many victims are impossible to reach.

ElectricAid is responding again to this crisis with two donations (of €7,500 each) to Concern and the Irish Red Cross for their work in Syria and across the border in Lebanon. This is in addition to our previous funding of €6,500 for GOAL’s humanitarian relief work in Syria.

We are not running a Special Appeal at this time, but we will continue to monitor this unfolding tragedy for millions of innocent people, and to help as best we can.

If you want to help this effort, please make a once-off donation out of payroll here; any funds received will be devoted to helping the innocent victims of this conflict.

Thanks once again from ElectricAid.

Mosquito Nets in Ghana

Miriam Mahamadu from Ghana is pictured beside her son Ibrahim, 4, on the mat where he sleeps with his mother and two young cousins, using one of the mosquito nets supplied as part of a Christian Aid project supported by ElectricAid.

Christian Aid Miriam Mahamadu Ghana Mosquito Nets programme

Image provided by Christian Aid