In Burkina Faso, an estimated 1.7 million people will require protection by the end of this year, and 3.5 million will need humanitarian assistance. There is a severe humanitarian crisis in the country due to insecurity, which prevents access to basic social services. Plan International Ireland received a €16,000 grant from ElectricAid to help build two secure, inclusive, and quality child friendly spaces where children can learn in a safe environment.  

The two child friendly spaces were built at Pissila, a city in the Centre-North region of Burkina Faso. 863 children (510 boys and 351 girls) who frequently visit the centers were directly impacted by the build. Children aged 3 to 17 can develop, play, learn, and build resilience in the programmes’s safe and stimulating environment. These child friendly spaces give kids a brief but safe setting during times of great adversity where they can regain some semblance of normalcy and support for their well-being. Additionally, the centers give parents children-free time so they can gather food and water, reconstruct damaged homes, or discover new sources of income. Child friendly spaces offer secure settings for children to be protected from abuse, exploitation, and violence in response to displacement and/or conflict. Sports, games, music, educational activities, and other events have been held to support children’s psychosocial wellbeing. Child Friendly Spaces act as a hub for interacting with parents and enlisting the help of other community resources to improve regional systems for assisting, safeguarding, and caring for children.  

To deliver this project, Plan International had to work in close partnership with various stakeholders including government bodies and other community actors to make sure that real change stemmed from the initiative. Every building used durable materials and was completed by local businesses utilizing tried-and-tested methods. Through the project, Plan International used a community-based strategy, as a result, members of the local community including parents, guardians, community leaders, teachers, and children were all consulted and participated in the project as both right-holders and active stakeholders. The success and sustainability of the project have been secured by this strategy. 

“Through these child friendly spaces, children have been able to develop, learn, play, and strengthen their resilience. Parents have also been encouraged to become active participants, share information, contribute ideas, and enhance their own self-confidence as caregivers. When basic human needs are met, this allows for higher quality education and learning, allowing children to achieve their greatest potential” 

ElectricAid would not be able to support charities like Plan International without the assistance and support of our generous and kind donors. We were also able to accomplish one of the Sustainable Development Goals set out by the United Nations, which was goal 4 – Quality education, thanks to the support for this initiative. 

ElectricAid continued with another bumper funding round in November 2022. We have committed €168,000 to 15 excellent projects. This outreach is only made possible by your sustained generosity, and that of ESB and EirGrid. You should all take a bow and pat yourselves on the back!

Education in all its forms is a key driver of sustained development – and recognised as such by parents all over the Global South. This time around, we have committed €42,000 to 6 projects, such as upgrading teacher training in Uganda with VMM, delivering tailoring and business skills training in Tanzania with World Vision, and building a dormitory for a school for blind children in Ethiopia.

As ever, basic infrastructure and WASH* projects are prominent in November’s funding. We supported a sanitation project for a nursing school in Liberia for SJOG Foundation. We continued our long-term relationships with SERVE and Concern respectively for their regional “Water for All” programme in Mozambique, and a WASH project in Burkina Faso. The provision of clean water and decent sanitation save countless lives all over the Developing World – ElectricAid has a long and proud history here.

Other notable fundings included €10,000 for COVID vaccine roll-out in Kenya, €15,000 for emergency response and rehabilitation after the volcanic eruption in Rwanda, and €12,200 for a food security and climate resilience project in Uganda.

As always, our thanks goes out to our implementing partners – and to you, who make it possible. As we approach the Christmas “season of giving”, please spread the word – ElectricAid remains the most effective and efficient way of reaching out to those in need, at home and abroad.

The Hope Foundation     

  St. John of Gods – WASH* 

VMM – Teacher training in Uganda

*WASH: Water, sanitation & hygiene programmes

​ElectricAid wishes you all – members, friends, supporters, partners, and beneficiaries – a very happy Christmas and a prosperous and fulfilling New Year.  We particularly thank our members and supporters for making 2022 another successful year, without all your support and generosity, this year would simply not have been possible. 

ElectricAid’s September 2022 funding round has been fruitful for people, projects and communities all over the Developing World – and at home here in Ireland. A grand total of €198,000 has been committed to some excellent, life-giving projects – programmes that will make a real difference to thousands of people, from the streets of Dublin to the barrios of Brazil.

Twenty-one applications, for a total of €331,000, were considered. Most were excellent; selection & rejection were, as always, difficult. We finally approved funding of 16 separate projects for trusted partners with a total of €198,000 – right up to our maximum available funds. Three main themes are apparent in the September approvals – Health Care, Sustainable Agriculture, and Gender.

Health Care funding includes rain-water harvesting for a rural health centre in Kenya, emergency medical care by MSF in Ukraine, and two eye health & treatment programmes by CBMI and Sightsavers and  in Zimbabwe and Bangladesh.

Our agriculture & food security funding, including Concern and Vita, will help people to help themselves in Mauretania, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and Uganda.

A feature of this round is the number of gender-oriented programmes funded – maternal health in Uganda, combatting gender-based violence in Malawi and Ethiopia, and United Purpose’s innovative women’s health and menstrual products programme in Brazil.

On top of all this, we are also delighted to fund Dublin Simon’s Client Welfare Programme with €15,500.

Overall, we can say that YOUR generosity has enabled us, once again, to reach out effectively to thousands of the poorest and most vulnerable people. On their behalf, and on ours, thank you.

In June 2021, GOAL received a grant from ElectricAid to improve the physical and sanitation infrastructure of the Aganytok health facility in South Sudan, through the provision of a more hygienic, safer, and healthier working environment for health service providers, and a conducive environment for the general community, especially children and pregnant women. The target was to renovate two existing dilapidated buildings, one dilapidated ventilated pit latrine, construct one placenta pit and one incinerator, which would increase access to and utilization of better-quality health services. 

This project was implemented with several stakeholders including the county health department, state ministry of health and the community leaders who were all involved and informed about the project from start to finish. In accordance with the internal GOAL procurement procedures, the process of hiring service providers and contractors was started. Through an open, competitive bidding process, the contractor was chosen. The work started once a contract was signed and the site was turned over to the contractor. Representatives from GOAL, all the stakeholders, and the contractor continuously co-supervised the site to guarantee the quality of the work. Upon satisfactory completion of the works, the contractor officially handed over the structures and was given a certificate of completion. At the start of the project there were major delays due to heavy seasonal rainfall, between June and December of 2021 access to the facility was cut off and the supply of industrial materials from Wau in Bar el Gazel was also cut-off as the major road connecting Abyei to Warrap state became impassable. 

This project has impacted the community of Aganytok massively. The health facility has provided a safe environment for mothers, children, healthcare workers and the community at large as the facility is clean, functional and tidy, while fit for purpose with presence of waste management facilities. It has also increased the accessibility and utilization of health services by the beneficiaries as staff are motivated to work, clients and patients feel safer which has contributed to the reduction in morbidity lastly the health center has also motivated the state Ministry of Health to mobilize and source more resources to support the facility. 

Once again ElectricAid would like to thank our generous donors, without your help and support great projects such as this one would simply not have happened. With your help we were also able to achieve 2 of the 17 sustainable development goals set out by the United Nations, these were GOAL 3 – Good Health & Wellbeing and GOAL 6 – Clean Water & Sanitation.  

“All at GOAL greatly value this partnership and we are hugely grateful for the support of ElectricAid to be able to positively impact many lives in Abyei through the improvement of quality healthcare provision. We are grateful also for the flexibility shown thrown the extension of the project due to said challenges” 

In March of 2020, Jesuit Refugee Service Uganda received a grant of €7,086 from ElectricAid to build drainable toilets for staff in Aylio Secondary school in the Adjumani District, West Nile Region. ElectricAid’s contribution was part of a wider hygiene and sanitation project for the whole school with Windle International, in partnership with UNHCR delivering toilet facilities for students and ElectricAid, in partnership with JRS Uganda delivering staff facilities.   

JRS Uganda overcame many challenges during the project, particularly heavy rain which occurs in the region between the months of October and December, these heavy rains filled the latrine pits with water therefore making it difficult for contractor to proceed with the works. The water affected the progress of work and brought the work to a temporary halt from November up to January.  The site was situated on clear ground, no trees or water sources were affected during implementation. The contractor also ensured that waste materials generated as result of construction works were well managed and removed from the site to leave a clean completed project. 

ElectricAid’s grant enabled JRS Guganda to carry out this project and achieve its goals. At Ayilo Secondary School in the Adjumani District, West Nile Region, the project to build a four-stance drainable VIP latrine with a toilet shelter for male and female staff members was finished on January 20th, 2021. 

“We’d like to thank Electric Aid for the support to the refugees and host communities in Adjumani, who have been struggling during this project period due to the impact of COVID-19″ 

Without the help and support of our kind and generous contributors, ElectricAid would not be able to support organizations like the Jesuit refugee service. Thanks to you the Jesuit refugee service were able to achieve their own goals as well as two of the sustainable development goals set out by the United Nations, which were GOAL 4 – Quality Education and GOAL 6 – Clean Water & Sanitation.