Humanitarian Grants & Stewardship
We know that the mission of The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International is to enable Rotarians to advance world understanding, goodwill and peace through the improvement of health, the support of education and the alleviation of poverty.
Nearly 2500 plus Foundation grant projects address the range of humanitarian issues every year. More than 400 graduates of Rotary Centres for International Studies are working in conflict resolution, humanitarian aid, diplomacy and government. Every year 90 more Rotary World Peace Fellows join this group and put Rotary’s ideals into action.
The Rotary Foundation awarded nearly US $ 7.2 million for 527 projects involving maternal and child health during the period 2004-2009.
During the same period 2,436 water and sanitation projects with a grant of US $ 30.4 million got under way,
2,718 projects in healthcare with a grant outlay of US $ 34.18 million were sanctioned,
2,664 education and literacy projects got US $ 28 million and 1,625 community development projects were awarded US $ 24.5 million.
All these grants were possible because of contributions received from Rotary Clubs and other donors who had faith in the functioning of The Rotary Foundation and how it deploys the funds diligently.
Bill Gates said, “Rotary in particular has inspired my own personal commitment to get deeply involved in eradication of polio.” At the Salt Lake City Convention, Bill Gates Sr. said that “ Rotary gives people a way to convert their resources in to results for the people who need them most. ”
Nevertheless, he also noted that “ All the money in the world does not matter if it is not spent in the right way ” This speaks volumes.
The confidence of such major donors was not built in a day. George MacDonald, the renowned Scottish author said, “To be trusted is a greater compliment than to be loved.” We have constantly work to build the trust, every day of our life in Rotary.
It is this confidence in The Rotary Foundation’s ability to deliver the goods, that Governments and other agencies around the world partner with Rotary.
The efforts of polio eradication in Nigeria, Pakistan and Afghanistan have been fruitful and advocacy possible because of the trust in Rotary’s integrity.
In Nepal infant mortality was reduced due to the training of young women as auxiliary nurses.
Help was given in Congo to the displaced citizens when violence flared between the rebels and government forces.
AIDS prevention in Kenya became possible because of The Rotary Foundation.
Malaria is being eradicated from Solomon Islands with the help of Rotary.
Rotarians give because of this trust in the Foundation. There are 1,234 clubs where 100 percent of the members are Paul Harris Fellows.
Nearly 3,13,000 Rotarians give every year to the Foundation.
During the year 2008-09 TRF received US $ 223.8 million which includes polio grants.
All this was possible only because of the trust people reposed with every Rotarian.
Every year, the collection of The Rotary Foundation is increasing. In spite of recessions, wars, conflicts and calamities, The Rotary Foundation is growing healthily. This is mainly because we have been successful in spreading awareness of the goals of The Rotary Foundation.
Rotarians and others who support The Rotary Foundation, have trust in The Rotary Foundation that its goals are achievable, noble and worthwhile.
It is this trust that results in Rotarians contributing frequently to The Rotary Foundation. It is this trust that should be harnessed into a force that will penetrate all Rotary families and promote better support.
Trust is always a two way travel. If Rotarians trust The Rotary Foundation to accomplish what it spells out to do, The Rotary Foundation has trust in the Rotarians who are wedded to the ideals of Peace.
Stewardship is critical to the success of the Foundation. Our stewardship of Foundation resources directly impacts the reputation of the Foundation among Rotarians and the general public. As stewards of The Rotary Foundation, Rotarians are responsible to donors to use donations appropriately.
A donor who understands that funds are used in an appropriate and responsible manner is more likely to give to the Foundation again to support projects.
Fortunately, our Rotary Foundation enjoys a stellar reputation. There are many Rotarians who do not have a clear understanding of the specific programmes and projects sponsored by the Foundation, yet these Rotarians still contribute to the Foundation because they recognize that the Foundation is accomplishing good in the world effectively and efficiently.
Some events in the recent past have however cast a shadow over the functioning of few clubs which were classified as delinquent because of their poor track record in stewardship.
Rotary Clubs must demonstrate that they are worthy of support from The Rotary Foundation. The decision of the Trustees to stop funding delinquent clubs is greatly to be welcomed.
It is the positive responses from those of us who believe in the importance of stewardship that made the Trustees take such decisions.
In the just concluded COL, a significant enactment that was adopted authorized the R I Board to terminate a Club that fails to comply with the Stewardship policies of The Rotary Foundation. Every DG, DRFC, RRFC and ARRFC must highlight this to the Clubs and assist them in complying with the policies.
Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation have sent unambiguous message that they see reporting and proper monitoring of funds as the prime indications for the successful implementation and conclusion of a project.
For those who have acknowledged it, The Rotary Foundation’s long-term objective is clear. The restoration of accountability in areas running through Asia has become vital. The factor is that it is time-dependent.
The Rotary Foundation is prepared to follow a timetable far longer than any club can accept. But the problem sometimes is, as people often say, we may have the watches, but they have the time.
There is an increasing awareness that the drive towards stewardship is an activity truly conducted among the Rotarians.
The clubs are the environment, the background to everything that The Rotary Foundation is doing. The clubs here also know that a failure in stewardship leads to conflict situation with The Rotary Foundation.
But what The Rotary Foundation must aim is not to have a conflict with the clubs, but tell them that there is a better way of doing things.
The Rotary Foundation’s managers in every RI District must be developed to a point that they can take the lead. This will reassure the local clubs and enable them to take up developmental work faster.
We will also be able to increase the number of clubs participating in matching grants programmes. Today the established clubs and clubs with some strategy seem to corner a great portion of the grants leaving the smaller clubs to the mercy of district simplified grants.
Strategic patience in implementing stewardship practices in many districts is difficult for The Rotary Foundation. But impatience and penalties can at best restore status quo.
Making the clubs to contribute and bringing them back into the mainstream of Foundation’s programme often suffer a setback.
It is said that mediocre doctors try to cure their patients; enlightened doctors heal them. The mediocre doctor focuses on the removal of the disease; the enlightened physician seeks to restore the patient to normal health.
Of course, there is no magic wand that can make everyone a person with the highest ethics overnight. But our Foundation and Rotary International can begin to think in terms of teaching the club leaders to create a band of people with high moral values which might make for a sea change in our geography of implementing stewardship.
In India, experts speak of evil not as a force in its own right but as a retraction or an absence of good.
Has goodness been removed from some persons in Rotary Clubs? Why did they try to manipulate donor funds? Perhaps it’s time we began to think of stewardship and deception in similar terms. Fraudulent persons can be seen to exist in a stewardship vacuum.
Lobbyist has become a dirty word in Rotary and an even dirtier concept. People with lobbying skills are now slowly ashamed to flaunt it. They want to hide it away where it won’t offend their senses.
The lack of stewardship can be traced to districts which had powerful self-styled lobbyists who were able to get grants in a jiffy! If the first 10,000 grants took 35 years to come through and the next 10,000 came in 4 years the doors were wide open for lobbyists to sneak in and dish out favours using the grants.
Instead of being ashamed, district leaders tried to sweep the accounting and reporting process under the carpet. A decade of lack of accountability emboldened many and in a district, I have heard, a Rotarian offered his expertise for preparing matching grants proposals, of course for a price!
Lack of ethics and lack of stewardship are an aberration. The way to bring back ethics is not to talk about the lack of it amongst the Rotarians but to show integrity as a positive entity.
Ethics has an existence of its own in every sphere of our life. Lack of ethics must not be thought of as an active presence in a person but as a passive absence of integrity. Then integrity can be brought into the system of the person.
The Ramayan says that the thief turned into a sage to write the greatest of Hindu epic depicting the highest form of ‘dharma.’
Developing ethics in a person is enabling him to take a small step forward to that distant horizon which represents a human being who is nearly as good as good can be! Learning the ethical way to live is the birthright of every human, not just in this country, but on this planet.
Can ethics be taught to an individual? Most of our misunderstanding arises because of a lack of effective communication. When a mind is calm there is greater clarity of expression. When a mind is free from agitation, the way people communicate with each other is much more pleasant and effective.
Wielding the whip always does not help to teach ethics to people. If you want ethics to sprout in people it has to sown into the person and hidden. If seeds are just thrown around on the soil they will not sprout. Mere talking about ethics is not enough. The teachers have to demonstrate it in their actions and deeds.
A personality and character from one person can link to the other when they are close together. That is why it is important to be in the company of people with the highest ethics.
In a Rotarian, character is everything. A Rotarian doesn’t have to be brilliant. He doesn’t have to be clever. All these qualities don’t matter. But you can’t buy courage and decency. You can’t rent a strong moral sense. A Rotarian must bring those things with him.
If he does, they will give meaning to the great practical requirement of his membership in Rotary. He must know why he’s there and what he wants to do. He has to have thought it through. He needs to have, a vision of the future he wishes to create.
The Foundations’s reputation is priceless. Through effective stewardship, we must guard the Foundation’s good reputation like the crown jewel. You all are the principal guardians of the Foundation’s reputation. You must always be vigilant. Let each and every one of us keep Stewardship at the forefront.
Remember, Every Rotarian forms a significant link to the future of TRF. If you derive your faith and courage to change the world by your association with Rotary, then your help to The Rotary Foundation is needed in ample measure.
The future of TRF is in the hands of visionary prophets like you. You are an enthusiast. You have dared to dream for the benefit of others. Your vision will keep the soul of Rotary alive.
Today we stand on the edge of a destiny which is limited only by our own vision. What you do will make a difference. You came into Rotary as one person. Now you are a part of a family. A caring family, committed to changing the world. Change needs people to rusade.Today, TRF is the tool we have to make that change. Will you be the crusader? You must, because the future of TRF is in your hands.