FAMSA negatively affected by national funding crisis for NGOs
The organisation recently had working hours for staff members in the national office
THE biggest challenge for the civil society organisations sector has been the lack of funding in recent years, which Families South Africa (Famsa) was not immune to.
This news was shared by Famsa’s national executive director, Naku Masuku, during her director’s report at the organisation’s annual general meeting on September 8.
The meeting was held at the organisation’s national office in Kempton Park.
Famsa was also affected by the national funding crisis and recently had to reduce its working hours for staff members in the national office so they could avoid retrenchment of employees. Luckily this did not last for long.
“And despite these challenges during the financial year, our staff continued to deliver the best service to all our beneficiaries with diligence, irrespective of the limited resources of the movement (Famsa),” Masuku said.
In the face of the tough year, the organisation can still pat itself on the back after a few accomplishments through the implementation of various programmes aimed at supporting families, affiliates and other stakeholders.
The programmes included life skills for teenage parents, youth mentorship for unemployed youth, role of fathers in families as well as different mediation options for children; which were all run and implemented successfully in six provinces: Gauteng, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Free State , Mpumalanga and North West.
One of the beneficiaries of these programmes was Sir Pierre Van Ryneveld High School, where two programmes were presented to parents of the school: life skills for parents and the role of fathers in families.
Both programmes were aimed at equipping parents and caregivers with the knowledge and skills of coping with the behaviour of their children as they go through the different stages of development, and the role fathers play in their families, especially children.
To ensure Famsa continues to provide its services at an optimal level, it is important that the executive committee consists of professionals with a variety of skills to contribute.
As such, the AGM approved the re-appointment of Famsa’s current executive committee members, with a proposal for four new members to join the committee. Up until now, the committee consisted of Famsa chairperson, Edmore Nyanhongo, vice-chairperson Modise Mohlake and treasurer Busi Huma, as well as two co-opted members.
“We put out an ad for four more members to join the team, so there is more balance of professionals within the executive committee,” Nyanhongo said.
The proposal for new members was approved at the AGM. The new members are from different professions which are relevant for the committee, such as accounting, business and marketing, human resources as well as the legal sector.
The organisation also had to appoint new auditors as per the requirements of the codes of good practice for NPOs, which state that auditors need to be changed regularly.
A proposal was put forward that the new audit firm should be a black-owned company, so as to increase diversity. A representative from Ngubane & Co Chartered Accountants, one of the first black-owned auditing and accounting firms in South Africa, gave a brief history on the company. The 21-year-old firm’s previous clients include Absa and Eskom.
The organisation’s current auditors, Greyling & Van Der Merwe, have been Famsa’s auditors for the past five years.
Reflecting on the past year, Masuku said she was excited about the role Famsa would continue to play in supporting social development and growth in the country, as well as their partnerships with current and future business and civil society leaders.
“I believe we are continuing on the right path in fulfilling the role of the movement and advocating towards building the future and transforming South Africa into a healthy society,” Masuku concluded.
