Charity in crisis over costs
Howard Lake | 17 May 2006 | News
A leading Irish Third World charity is in crisis after it emerged that close to a quarter of the charity’s overall budget, most of which is grant aid from the Government, was spent on administration and fundraising costs. Self Help Development International had a budget of ‚€4.1m for its work providing famine and poverty relief in five African countries in 2004, but spent ‚€925,049 of this on “management, administration, fundraising and promotion” costs.
The revelation has led to bitter in-fighting at Self Help and former company members are seeking to overthrow the current board. In a further blow to the charity, a number of wealthy patrons have walked away and set up their own aid organisations.
The most recent accounting figures show more than ‚€1.3m was raised for Self Help from public donations in 2004 and the ‚€925,049 administration and fundraising cost was taken directly from this money.
Advertisement
Sports presenter Tracy Piggott raised ‚€70,000 for Self Help at a star-studded ball last year, but left the aid organisation shortly afterwards to set up her own charity Playing for Life where all the administration costs have been met out of her own pocket.
The charity boasts on its website: “Donations, large and small, are being utilised in the most cost-effective ways.” But some supporters were annoyed to discover that the financial statement for 2004 showed ‚€143,087 was spent on the charity’s ’20th anniversary expenditure’.
The charity received more than ‚€2.4m of taxpayers’ money from a Government grant, and just over ‚€300,000 directly from other charities, in 2004. But a legal stipulation means a maximum of four per cent of the Government grant can be spent on administration, meaning at least ‚€828,000 of the ‚€925,049 administration costs for the Irish office had to be taken directly from money donated by the Irish public.
Property developer Jarlath Sweeney is one of a number of high-profile supporters who have recently become disillusioned by the Irish charity’s management style and administration costs. Mr Sweeney was so outraged by the high administration costs he and businessman Dermot Divilly set up their own charity the Support Africa Foundation which they have promised will deliver 100 per cent of the funds it raises directly to Africa.
As the first ever GAA Charity of the Year, Self Help is particularly well supported in rural areas where it enjoyed the backing of all the country’s main farming organisations. A GAA spokesman said that if there were any administration problems they would review their involvement.
Self Help was founded in response to the Ethiopian famine of 1984 by Dr Noel McDonagh and missionary priest Fr Eoin Lambert. Dr McDonagh retired as board chairman in March and his daughter Hilary McDonagh is the CEO.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.