December2010

TheAfricanDevelopmentInitiative2010HolidayNewsletter

DearFriendsandSupportersofADI,OnbehalfoftheentireADIteam,wewouldliketowisheveryoneaHappyHolidayseasonfromEkumdipeandAgyementi!

WearecurrentlyhereinGhanaworkinghard!InEkumdipe,wearecontinuingthesecondphaseofourirrigationendeavors.Thedry‐seasonisinfull‐effectrightnowandfarminghasgrindedtoahalt...allexceptforononefarm.OurfarmingexpertfromtheBawkuregionofNortheasternGhanaishereanddemonstratingthatitisindeedpossibletoobtainsubstantialcropyieldsinEkumdipeduringthedry‐season.Nextwewillbedecidingthemostprofitableandfeasiblewaystosellourcrops!Alongwithcontinuingoursociological,economic,andfinancialanalysesoftheprojectanditsimplementationmethodology,wearealsocontinuingoureffortstointerviewthegrowingnumberofpeopleinterestedinapplyingforaloantoreceiveanirrigationpumpoftheirown.BytheendofDecember,wewillhavecreatedanimprovedcommunicationsystemwithourpartnersontheground,assessedtheinitialsuccessofthedry‐seasoncrop,andfinalizedtheimplementationplansfortheprojectthroughtheendofthedry‐season.InAgyementi,wearepreparingtoprovide100%latrinecoverage.ThiswillincludecreatingacensusanddigitalmapofAgyementi,enablingustounderstandwhereeveryoneinthecommunityresidesinrelationtothenearesthouseholdlatrineandawatersource.Then,thebusinesspartstarts!Wewillbeginmarketingourlatrinesfora(subsidized)pricethatthosewillingtomakethecommitmenttohygieneandsanitationcanafford.Withthesupportofyourdonations,wecangetthelastlatrinesstartedbyearlyJanuaryandbuiltbeforetherainyseasonstarts!Thankyouallforyourcontinuedsupportandwehopethatthisholidayseason,youwillconsiderdonatingandmakinglifealittlemorepleasantforthoselessfortunateinthesecommunities.Sincerely,Darryl&AdamCEOandUndergraduatePresident

‘TISTHESEASON:HOWYOUCANMAKEADIFFERENCE

FEATURESTORY:CHRISTMASINTHEVILLAGE

FROMOURCFO:2011FUNDRAISINGSTRATEGYAND

GOALS

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Christmas In the Village

In America, evergreen trees, colorful lights, and felt ribbons announce thearrivaloftheChristmasseason.ChristmascarolsstarttofloodtheradiorightafterThanksgiving. IntheVillage,therearenofancydecorationstotellyouwhen Christmas has arrived; in fact, Christmasmorning in Ekumdipe lookslike any othermorning. Children’s voices, rather than old school carols, leteveryoneinthevillageknowthatChristmasisfinallyhere.It is customary for men and women in the village to exchange Christmasgreetingsandblessings.However,as inAmerica,thechildrenalwaysgetallthepresents.Youngboysandgirlsfromeachhouseholdvisittheneighborsto collect their gifts, which consist of maize, yams, cassava, and okra.Villagersdonothavemoneytospendontoysandgames,sotheysharetheirfoodinstead.Food is plentiful on Christmas. Cows and goats are slaughtered for a hugefeast.Thereisalivelycelebrationwithmusic,drumsanddancingthroughoutthe day. Later in the afternoon, the community gathers for dinner at thetown center. With full bellies and glad hearts, families return to theirhouseholdsforthenight.As inAmerica, Christmas is a joyousoccasion, a time to celebrate andgivethanksforsomeoflife’sgreatestgifts:familyandfriendship.WhileEkumdipelacksmanyoftheornamentsandamenitiesweenjoy,thestarsthatshineintheruralnightskyarebrighterthananyChristmaslightsinAmerica.

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This holiday season; consider contributing some of your gift-budget to help pay for latrine components in Agyementi or materials to upkeep the irrigation system in Ekumdipe. Donate on behalf of yourself, a friend or family member, and you will be featured in our next newsletter and our website. Spread the holiday spirit and make a tangible difference in the communities the African Development Initiative serves.

To Donate, visit africandi.com/?p=donate

$$$222555 ADonationof$25buysafullsackofseedsfordry‐seasoncropsORfortheironrodsneededtoconstructthefoundationofalatrine.

$$$555000 ADonationof$50paysforpipeconnectionstorevamp1/3ofentirepipesystemtoincreaseareaofirrigationORfortheartisanfeesofconstructingalatrine.

$$$222000000 ADonationof$200buysfencingmaterialsfor10farmsORtheentiresubsidyofalatrine.

$$$555000000 ADonationof$500payshiringandtravelingexpensesforourfarmingexpertfromBawkutomovetoEkumdipeanddemonstratedry‐seasonfarmingfor3months.

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DearADIMembersandSupporters,TheADIfinanceteamislaunchingalarge‐scaleefforttoraisefundsforADIoperations.Weareimplementingathree‐prongedstrategythatincludesaNewYorkbranch,Bostonbranch,andundergraduatebranch.Thesebrancheswillcollaboratetoleadthefinancingeffort.Fromanoperationalstandpoint,duringthemonthofDecemberandintoearlyJanuary,ProjectRISEwillbeinitssecondstageandtherewillbeaseriesoffollowupsinAgyementifromtheACWAteam,asDarryl,Adam,Alex,andAmbertakeflightforGhanainDecember.ADIhasanumberofthingsthatitislookingtoaccomplishinFY2011inAgyementiandEkumdipe,ourprimarysites.ThroughthesuccessofProjectRISE,dry‐seasoncropsaregrowingwellandthereisanincreaseddemandforloans;tofinanceonlythemostcreditworthyandcapablecommunitymembers,wewillrequireafundingpoolofapproximately$15,000.WithregardstoACWA,53.7%ofthehouseholdsinAgyementicurrentlyhavealatrine,andweplantomakethisnumber100%bytheendofFY2011.Thismeansroughly30additionallatrineshavetobebuiltandimplementedatacostof$200eachinthecomingyear.Closingthis46.3%gapandaffordingeveryoneaccesstolatrinesisafeasiblegoal,butonlywiththecontinuedsupportfromourpastsponsors,andtheadditionofnewsponsorsthroughourfundraisinginitiatives.Overthepasttwoyears,thecommunityofAgyementihasreachedmilestoneswithregardstoimprovingwaterqualityandquantity:‐100%properlatrineusage‐100%initiallatrinegoalreached‐100%ofHouseholdswhoproperlycovertheirHouseholdwaterDespitethissuccess,thejobisincompletewithoutoursanitationgoalsseeinganequal,orgreateramountofsuccess.Givenouroperationalgoals,weareplanningtoraise$50,000duringthisfiscalyearwiththeundergraduateteambeingresponsibleforonly10%ofthat.Thefirststepinourfundraisingeffortscomesintheformofabenefitcocktailpartythatisbeingorganizedbyoneofourgeneroussponsors,XcelNYC.XcelNYCisaphilanthropicorganizationstartedbyADIteammembers,GerrelOlivier,ProjectEnterpriseDirector;DaraJohnson,ProjectUnveilDirector;andmyself.ThecocktailpartywilltakeplaceinNewYorkCityonMartinLutherKingweekendandactasakick‐offeventforADI'sfinancingeffortsinNewYorkandnationwide.AlloftheproceedsfromtheeventwillbedonateddirectlytoADIandtheeventwillfeatureaslideshowandanADI2011previewfromoneofourco‐founders.Afterthisinitialevent,theNewYork,Boston,andundergraduateteamswillkickofftheirfundraisingeffortsinpreparationformeetingouroperationalgoals.Weappreciateyourcontinuedsupportandlookforwardtoyourinvolvementinhelpingusachieveourgoalsofimprovingsanitationandcontinuingtoimprovewaterqualityandquantity.IfyouareinterestedinbecomingaDistinguishedsponsor,pleasefeelfreetocontacteitherSanguDelle,ADIExecutivePresidentatsangu.delle@africandi.com,ormyself,ADIChiefFinancialOfficeratndubuisi.okereke@morganstanley.com.Sincerely,NduOkerekeChiefFinancialOfficer,AfricanDevelopmentInitiative,Inc.

GOALAMOUNT:$50,000

AWordfromourChiefFinancialOfficer:

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ChiefExecutiveOfficer,DarrylFinkton

darrylfinkton@africandi.com

ExecutivePresident,SanguDelle

sangudelle@africandi.com

Forgeneralinquiries,contactadmin@africandi.com