| Frequently Asked Questions | |||||||||||||||||||
| What is Edirisa Smiles? What can I sponsor? How can I make a donation? Can I support an individual child? How do I become a sponsor? For how long can I be a sponsor? How and where do I send the money? How will I know you received the money? How do I know what my donation is spent on? How much of the donated money actually makes it to Africa? What Is Edirisa Smiles?  Edirisa Smiles is an educational program that provides quality schooling and other support to children and young people in Kabale District, Uganda. It is part of Edirisa, a society for promoting Africa, creativity, cultures and practical skills. Smiles is mostly financed by individuals around the world who have become our sponsors.What Can I Sponsor? There are several types of sponsorship. For 5 or more euros a month you can support Edirisa Nursery Schools, Edirisa's work at partner primary schools, and technical and secondary education (please see Sponsorships for more). You can as well make a one-off donation for a special project. Some examples of what one-off donations can do:
How Can I Make A Donation? For one-off donations you can use our accounts in Slovenia or Britain (see Become A Sponsor) or simply click here: www.charitychoice.co.uk. If you like challenges that can raise money for Edirisa, please click here: www.charitychallenge.co.uk. Can I Support An Individual Child? Edirisa Smiles used to have such an option, but with September 2008 we stopped accepting new sponsors of specific children and a year later discontinued it entirely. Why? There have been too many problems associated with it. The biggest one is that children often change their primary school, even in the middle of the year. We are not in a position to follow the kid to another school, so the disappointed sponsor needs to get another child. Individual sponsorship can also create dependency on the sponsor, demands for more assistance and jealousy among other pupils. Finally, it is a huge administrative challenge and uses up a lot of our time and resources. Children do not show up at school every day and teachers do not keep clear records of their presence, so it at times takes weeks to find a certain boy or a girl!  How Do I Become A Sponsor? To become a sponsor, please fill out this form and follow the instructions provided. Your sponsorship will start as soon as Edirisa gets confirmation of your payment (in a couple of weeks). For How Long Can I Be A Sponsor? The minimum period for becoming a sponsor is one year and there is no maximum. How And Where Do I Send The Money? Edirisa has bank accounts in Slovenia, Germany and in Britain - see under Become A Sponsor. We pool your payments and send them to Uganda every few months, thus decreasing transaction costs. We ask you to be very specific and accurate while transferring money. Make sure your full name is included and legible. To ease our administration, we encourage you to open a permanent transfer order at your bank and pay your contribution in regular monthly instalments. If this is not possible we prefer annual and half-yearly payments (in this order). How Will I Know You Received The Money? You will receive a confirmation of each payment you transfer to Edirisa. How Do I Know What My Donation Is Spent On? In the first quarter of the new year you will receive our financial report for the previous year. How Much Of The Donated Money Actually Makes It To Africa? All of it, minus some little bank costs. Our accounts are supervised by volunteers and we have no offices or paid staff outside Uganda. photo: Edirisa archives | |||||||||||||||||||
| 18. Sep. 2009 | |||||||||||||||||||
