Charities battle to survive as donations slow to a trickle

Yolandé Hayward WEEKEND POST REPORTER haywardy@avusa.co.za

EASTERN Cape charity organisations – already struggling from the fall-out of the economic downturn – are finding their resources stretched to the limit as an increasing number of desperate people seek help to survive.

Some organisations have seen the numbers of needy people seeking help double this year in comparison with previous figures, while at the same time charities are having to cope with reductions in funding of up to 15 per cent.

Many charity bodies are now looking to the new year with trepidation, knowing they face a testing time.

Corné Erasmus, director of Christian Social Services (CMR) in the Eastern Cape, said their funding had decreased by about 15% this year when compared to last year and this was due to the fact that when times are tough, businesses and households usually first cut back on the amounts they donate to charity.

“The masses of letters coming in declining to support us, is shocking,” Erasmus said.

With retrenchments, unemployment and living costs increasing dramatically, she said she was fearful of what the new year might hold for the CMR.

If the government did not provide organisations like hers with better support in the future, she said, they would “be in big trouble”.

Mandy Spies, acting director of SOS Children‘s Village in Port Elizabeth, agreed, saying that because of the current economic situation more people were depending on charities for their survival.

Over the past six months SOS Children‘s Village, which takes care of 114 children, took in 17 new children. This is about twice the organisation‘s annual intake.

She said rising food prices, high fuel costs earlier this year and the general higher cost of living had decimated the organisation‘s budget.

Donations have also taken a dive, with several usually loyal supporters saying they would not be able to support the organisation any more due to the economic downturn.

“Although we do have fears for next year, we are hopeful,” Spies said.

Algoa Bay Council for the Aged chief executive Maureen Andreka said that in the past when there were economic downturns it was often the elderly who had to support their retrenched children. “This is a real possibility for the near future. We should think about how to cope with this type of thing,” she said.

Worrying about where funds would come from was a permanent issue for all non-profit organisations. “In this economic climate, most families are cutting costs where they can and those supporting their elderly loved ones usually cut costs in this regard too.”

The Dianne Lang Foundation in Middelburg has been feeling the pinch in terms of fundraising for more than a year now. “Our donations from regular donors have almost completely dried up and it is a constant struggle to find new donors,” said founder Dianne Lang.

Almost 85% of the foundation‘s donations now came from people in the United Kingdom she said, while only 10% came from South Africans. A minute proportion was corporate funding.

“We have managed to cover our costs every month, although lately it is a hand-to-mouth existence. We have no cash flow to fall back on in the event of anything out of the ordinary happening.”

She said the economic climate in the area the foundation served had always been poor, with a high percentage of unemployment and a fairly high percentage of people living off child care grants.

“We have about 200 children on our records who need to be taken into care due to them being abandoned on the street, being neglected, going hungry, not attending school and, sadly, being abused. We only have registration to care for the 48 children already in our care.

“If we had the finances we would take care of all the children. We can only offer these street children food and clothing. What they need as well is love and shelter.”

Zininzi Mpurwana, director of the Association for the Rehabilitation of Persons with Disability (Rehab) in East London, said her organisation had always felt the pinch, but the situation was getting worse.

It was a huge task to run a charity organisation, she said. The biggest challenge was raising funds.

“Because of the economic slump, more people are starting to rely on organisations for help and at the same time less funds come in, which has started a vicious cycle.”

However, she said they were fortunate to have loyal supporters who had stuck by Rehab through thick and thin.

“People don‘t realise that we are not asking for millions, but that every penny makes a difference,” Mpurwana said.

Dalene Ritter, regional director of Child Welfare SA, said it had become patently obvious that people were generally thinking twice before spending money.

She said charities had not escaped this trend. “We are starting to see a definite decline in funding.”

This had become particularly obvious in small fundraising initiatives, like asking for donations in exchange for making up gifts in shopping centres. “The amount of money given for these services has become considerably smaller.”

She said the problems were exacerbated as more people now relied on help from charities.

“When you walk into food shops you can see people are buying less food than ever. For people who are already struggling to put food on the table for their families, this is devastating.

“This in turn leaves more children to take to the streets for survival. This then means there are a lot more children relying on charities for help.”

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