On how we follow and use the donations to Nakafeero and her people
I got one question the other day that is an understandable
one, given the state of the world: "How do I know that my
donation is used to help LGBTQIA refugees in the Kakuma camp in Kenya?"
Let me start out with my own role in this crowdfunding project. A friend of mine made me aware of the work Nakafeero AKA Claire and her crew are doing for their group of Ugandan LGBTQIA in what's called Block 6 in the Kakuma Camp in Kenya.
Nakafeero then got in touch with me on twitter. She asked for help with an ongoing crowdfunding campaign, and given that I have a lot of experience with social media as well as project management I did what I could to help.
During that process, as we shared information and discussed practical solutions, I learned more and more about what Nakafeero is doing and about the life of her friends in the camp. Nakafeero is the real deal: A humanitarian that is working day and night to protect the group she has become responsible for.
Me and my wife (who live and work in Oslo, Norway) have also
become members of an informal international network of helpers from
countries like the US, Germany and Kenya. That network has given us
better insight into what is going on in Kakuma, including the social,
humanitarian and political context.
When the time came to replace the old campaign with a new, I volunteered to administer a Fundrazr crowdfunding campaign. Ugandan refugees in Kenya can normally not get access to the resources you need to do such a thing, including a proper bank account.
Fundrazr transfers the donations into a PayPal account which I control, and I forward that money into a bank account dedicated to this project. I transfer half of the donations once every week to Nakafeero and puts the other half into a separate savings account, which we plan to use for putting up a fence around their lot in the camp (for protection). A few times we have used the savings account for emergencies, like unexpected medical expenses.
Nakafeero has direct access to the Fundrazr
account with information about all the donations, and I inform her
about all transactions done by me, including the status of the bank
accounts. Nakafeero can also track all transfers made to her via the
WorldRemit app we use for that purpose. She has also access to a
spreadsheet I use to keep track of all this.
I, on the other hand, get reports on all the things she buys with the donations, including photos of the receipts when possible. Often I also get photos of the goods.
Ultimately this this obviously boils down to a
question of trust, and Nakafeero definitely deserves our trust. But as
you can see, we have a pretty solid system in place that ensures that
the money is used in accordance with the goals of this campaign.
The donations will be used to help the
around 100 people Nakafeero is responsible for in the camp. For the
most part this means food, medicines and medical help, clean drinking
water, hygiene products, and similar necessities.
Some funds are set aside for what I call The Protection Project, which means solid fences and proper shelters. As it is right now they are sleeping outdoors on the ground, vulnerable to attack from homophobic/transphobic gangs.
The only exception to this "Nakafeero's group only" rule has been a smaller amount used for this years Kakuma Pride, which was a collaborative project between many LGBTQA groups in the camp. Needless to say, that celebration also benefited the members of Nakafeero's people.
Nakafeero has always the final say in how we use the donations.
If you want more information, you can write me an email (per.koch@aviana.com).
And again: I would like to thank all of you who have given money to this project! I know that the donations make a big difference for our friends in Kakuma.
Per Koch
Photos from Nakafeero . When we needed we partly hide the faces of
the people in the photos in order to protect them from harm.
