Review the Strategic Plan Draft
Tejanath has been working on a draft for a strategic plan for SESF with the help of the school librarian. Please review the strategic plan. We are looking specifically to develop action steps to help SESF meet the 6 objectives they've outlined:
1. Provide educational scholarship to 12 students.
2. Sponsor 100 needy children among the target groups through SESF.
3. Distribute English teaching materials to 10 needy schools.
4. Find source to buy text books, reference books and necessary furniture for the Himalaya Library.
5. Place 10 orphaned children in the orphanages of Nepal.
Hi Jennifer
I have tried to edit the document for language consistency and correction. well,i am sorry but i could not do anything on the budgetary part as i am not sure how much it needs to be spent on a child in Khandbari.However,i dont know why but i feel that 200 dollars per year will not be sufficient.Can you please discuss it with Tejanath to clarify if 200 dollars is for one child or for all the children as it is not clear in the plan. We need to be very clear regarding the budget as it is the budget that will determine our success.
Regards
Khushbu
Thank you Khushbu, I appreciate your work on this. Good to see you back here :)
Dear Khushbu
Thank you very much for your editing.
The $200.00 is the cost necessary for a child to sponsor through SESF. Till now all the spopnsors have been sendig the amount of the money to us for a for one year. If you need other expanation about I will ready to send you.
I wonder if you had any format for the budget preparation!
Thank you.
Tejanath
Khandbari
Tejanath-
I met someone today who may be able to help us in this area (budget). I am waiting for a response. I will let you know for sure once I hear back.
The more I think about this, the more I think that once we look at the budget and really get it worked out well on paper and in a good format, this will help with establishing the action steps (how to meet the objectives you've outlined).
Jennifer
Dear Jennifer
Thank you very much for your information.
I am looking forward to hearing from you.
Tejanath
Khandbari
Hi all,
The strategic plan is coming together nicely. I did have a few thoughts and have attached them here for your consideration.
Take care,
A
Dear Alyssa
Thank you very much for your posting and your sugestions.
I will follow your advice.
I will also have to include something about the cildren of disability in the planning.
Tejanath
Khandbari
Dear Jennifer,Kushbu, Alyssa all neighbours,
I have edited the strategic planning by following diiefent advice of different individuals.
Please have a look at it and suggest me.
I have also tried to make a budget in the planning.
Thank you.
Tejanath
Khandbari
I have edited some more here
Tejanath
Hi- is anyone else having difficulty in opening Tejanath's proposal? I'm losing all the formatting in the budget etc.
Just checking...
Attached, you will find a copy of the budget that Phillip, Carolyn and Tejanath have been working on for the past several weeks. I am including some clarifying information from Phillip's email to me as well:
"I have made some changes as follows to highlight a couple of issues and to (hopefully) make the presentation clearer.
1. I have split the income into two categories - Current Income and New Income.
Current Income is the income SESF know they will recieve in the next 12 months. This is information provided by Tejanath. As you can see from the attached it totals USD 2,323.40.
New Income is the income SESF will receive IF they sign up 80 donors for poor children and 10 donors for disabled, deaf and mute children. This totals USD 18,500 and forms the majority of SESF's income. Obviously, if SESF's don't raise these funds then they cannot fund their Educational Scholarship objectives at the level they want to. Nor can they fund their Administration Costs.
I have calculated that by allocating 80% of current income to scholarships they can fund 9 "poor" children and have $465 to pay Administration Costs.
The Administration Costs budget is $3,634 which clearly cannot be met with current income levels. Allocating 20% of income pay for Administration Costs means SESF needs to generate $18,172 in income to fund a $3,634 Administration Budget i.e $18,172 x 20% = $3,634 which is SESF's annual Administration Cost.
2. In the Educational Scholarships Budget I have added a new category for "Expenditure for 10 disabled children". SESF ask for a USD 250 donation to support a disabled child so I assume the cost is different to that of a "poor child" for whom the donation is USD 200. I need Tejanath to complete the cost budget for the disabled children also (rows 88 to 96). I am assuming the budget will total about USD 200 per child.
3. I have modified "Other Initiatives Budget" to show Income equal to Expenditure, so this Budget now shows USD $19,382 of donations/grants. I have done this so that we show the "Other Initiatives" on a break-even basis in the Statement of Actual and Forecast Net Assets - I think this is preferable to showing a large deficit from these activities and SESF using all its funds and going into deficit within the next 12 months. It is also probably more reflective of the reality that the "Other Initiatives" will only be undertaken IF a separate funding source is located.
Key Conclusions
1. The budgets look great but they rely on raising substantial sums of money. To meet the Educational Scholarships Budget SESF needs to sign up 90 new donors at USD 200/250 each. To meet the Other Initiatives Budget SESF needs to raise USD 19,382.
In many ways this was the easy part - we now have a good idea of what it costs SESF to operate and what it costs for each of its activities/objectives. The key now is to raise the funds to enable the objectives to be achieved.
2. Overall I think we now have quite comprehensive budgets for both Administration and for the Educational Scholarships. The level of detail is good which should give potential donors and the SESF Board a good idea of how the money is being spent.
Going Forward
Obviously fund raising is now critical. I think its is important that SESF tailors funding rerquests so they "talk to the budget". I am more than happy to be part of this process going forward. If needed, either Carolyn or myself (or both of us) are available to participate in a phone call or online chat to discuss this and the next steps.
Kind Regards
Phillip"
Carolyn has been working very hard to help Tejanath with the Strategic Plan over the past several weeks. Attached is the latest copy with her suggested revisions.
This is some additional information that Caroyln included with her email with questions/additional information:
"Phillip is currently flying to Europe for work however he will be working on the next version of the budget on his flight and will send us an email with his ammendments.
In the meantime, based on my discussions with him re the budget, I have reworked the Strategic Plan.
Mainly, what I have done is to simplify it, set it out a little more clearly, add some words here and there to make it read better, all in the hope that we can now look at this document along side the new budget and see the areas we need to add to. I especially believe the SESF Committee and the Neighbours on Nabuur need to brainstorm new ways/ suggestions to help us fulfil the Projected Budget.
The budget is a picture of where SESF would like to be within 2 years. We need to reflect this in the Strategic Plan. How is SESF going to get to this point? Sections V. VI & VII need to be reviewed (Goals, strategies, Objectives) s they currently do not reflect the many many "projects" which SESF has identified in the budget. For example, we need to think in more detail about how we are going to market to potential donors, AND how are we going to work with other charities or other Aid organisations who can assist SESF.
The ammendments I have made in the Strategic Plan include:
1- I have inserted an Attachment. This is about the Special School for the deaf and mute children. I wanted to keep the Plan simple, so I have added all the details about the project as an attachment. Themain points appear in the main body of the Plan.
2- I have reworded the Mission statement. Please feel free to change it if you don't like it. To provide quality education to economically disadvantaged and disabled children of the Sankhuwasabah District of Eastern Nepal and provide an opportunity for these children to become self reliant.
3 - Tejanath could you please define what you mean by :
10+2 schools. ( is there a better way of saying this?) I am not sure what you mean here.
Under 2.9 - Admin Costs: SESF Renew. I amnot sure what you mean here.
Under 2.9 Admin Costs- Permanant Account Number- again, what deos this mean in relation to an administrative cost?
4. In Attachment A- you refer to $15.00 per child per month. Is this isn USD? If so we should always write down the currency we are referring to.
I am happy to keep working on the Plan if you all have any more suggestions. I agree with you Jennfier- we need to re-post this plan and the budget back on Nabuur for further comment by others- fairly soon.
Best regards
Carolyn"
Tejanath provided the following answers to Carolyn's questions:
"3 - Tejanath could you please define what you mean by :
10+2 schools. ( is there a better way of saying this?) I am not sure what you mean here.
My answer: It means higher secondary level in Nepal Grade 11 and 12. After passoing School leaving Certificate Examination (SLC) the students join Class 11.
There two tupes of higher secondary school
+ 2 school. The higher seconadry school which runs only class 11 and 12 in private sector.
10+2 school. The higher sceondaru school whci runs from grade 1 to grade 12( both private and givermnet school)
Ohter tupes of schools.
Secondary school run classs from grade 1 to 10 ( both private and govermnet school)
Lower Secndary School runs class from grade 1 to grade 8(both privat and govermnet school)
Primary school runs classes from grade 1 to grade five. (both private and govermnet school)
Note:
In private schools the the medium of education is English. So the English is stronger and which is very helpful to find a better job in the future in different sectors.
Under 2.9 - Admin Costs: SESF Renew. I amnot sure what you mean here.
SESF is a registered non profit socail organixation which should be renewed every year at District Administration Office by submitting the ammunal economic and program report of the organixation Wneh it si renewed the organization has to pay a certain amount of money tot he govern,ment.
Under 2.9 Admin Costs- Permanant Account Number- again, what does this mean in relation to an administrative cost?
In Nepal the system: Is every organization has to take permanent account number (PAN) from Nepal Government Internal Tax office. The permanent account numbder of SESF is 302303955. It should be renewed every yar by submitting a certain amount of money.The amonut of money to be paid depends on the report of the auditor.
4. In Attachment A- you refer to $15.00 per child per month. Is this isn USD? If so we should always write down the currency we are referring to."