A Dollar Makes a Difference
Balu Krishna is 11 years old. He sleeps on the cement floor of his master’s ramshackle home and although he’d like to, he’s not able to attend school. From early morning until dusk, he deftly herds his master’s goats through the city. Guiding them among the traffic is risky, however the streets provide a job for him and food for them. The goats feed on food scraps left by the roadside.
Balu’s story is not unusual in India. He and his siblings had been boarded with families that his impoverished mother hoped would provide food and shelter in return for labour. Such children rarely go to school. Although this means that Balu will spend the rest of his childhood trapped in an exploitative form of child labour, the alternatives are worse. There are no simple solutions for the many children trapped in such a cycle of poverty.
But Balu’s life changed remarkably. He was assisted by one of the more than 400,000 Australians and New Zealanders who sponsor children in developing countries.
For a little more than one dollar each day, Balu gets a school uniform, learns to read and write, and sleeps on a mattress with sheets. He has three meals a day and is thriving.
what is child sponsorship?
In most cases child sponsorship involves a monthly payment to a registered charity that undertakes development activities. In Balu’s case, $A40 per month supports him in an orphanage where he attends school. However, sponsorships vary from as little as $A15 per month to more than $A50.
Sponsors are linked to a particular child. Progress reports, photos and letters are provided. Balu writes a letter at least once a year and his sponsor also receives a copy of his school report. However, most large organisations pool funds for projects that benefit an entire community and sponsors may also receive project updates and news about the child’s community.
why sponsor?
Many sponsors are motivated by a desire to help children who, through no fault of their own, find themselves trapped in poverty. “Although my own children no longer live at home, sponsoring allows me to have some contact with children and to make the world a fairer place,” says Jan, who sponsors two children.
An attractive feature of sponsorship is its personal involvement. Through letters and reports, a sponsor can gauge the impact of their donations upon an individual child or community. Priscilla and Don sponsored a boy through school, and even attended his wedding. “It was wonderful,” says Priscilla.
For many people, a sponsorship just feels like the right thing to do. Susie, a Year 10 student whose class sponsors a child, explained her motives: “Sponsorship is pretty cool. It’s good to help others. It’s easy to just be selfish and think about clothes and all that sort of stuff.”
Sponsors say that helping brings personal satisfaction. Some especially enjoy corresponding with “their” child. “It’s been a great pleasure to correspond with the children. Your love and patience humbles me,” a sponsor wrote in a survey.
potential weaknesses
Advertising by some organisations has been criticised for their tendency to tug at heartstrings and exploit guilt. This is done by presenting pictures of extreme poverty and of vulnerable children without the dignity we would expect for our own children. Organisations should respect the dignity of the poor.
Some critics even argue that it is deceptive to advertise that a sponsorship can really change the life of a child. So do sponsorship organisations manipulate sponsors in order to raise money for projects that don’t work? In most cases, no. However, some do better than others, so research the quality of programs offered.
In 1982, the left-leaning New Internationalist published an entire issue entitled “Please Do Not Sponsor This Child.” It argued back then that large-scale sponsorship of individual children, usually in schools, was not successful in reducing poverty. In response to such criticisms, many organisations moved to implement projects that actively attack the causes of poverty. For example, sponsorship may also allow the mothers of poor children to participate in income-generation or to access clean water.
However, large-scale development projects can miss disadvantaged groups, like disabled children, orphans or the homeless, so there is a continuing need for individual child sponsorship.
Another weakness may occur when aid agencies single out individuals for sponsorship. If, for example, one child is sponsored and their sibling is not, two classes of children are created. And, if individual children are sponsored in isolation from their family or community, the family may remain in poverty while the child is helped. And while it is always good to help a child, it is better to help the whole family.
There are also problems with the levels of communication required in sponsorship programs. The need for letter-writing, photos and monitoring of individual children can be time consuming and may add significant administrative expenses. Imagine the cost of a single mail-out to 30,000 sponsors. That means 30,000 inspections, photos taken, reports written, envelopes and stamps posted—possibly thousands of hours of labour—all to keep donors informed. It isn’t surprising that many organisations feel they are doing well if they keep only 20 per cent of donations to cover administration and further fundraising.
Unforseen problems can arise when things get too personal. Children grow up and move on, get sick and even die, creating trauma for the donor. “We sponsored a child for 10 years,” one sponsor wrote. “When she left school, we had no contact. It was like losing a child.”
Selection of children can be difficult. In some ways it is easier to run a project that features one child but benefits all children of a community. Also, communication sometimes fails to provide the closeness that a sponsor might desire.
the benefits
Sponsorship, either individual or community based, allows donors to experience a sense of personal involvement. Regular reports and updates on children or their communities provide accountability to donors who want to know that their contribution is well spent. This is important to sponsors.
Sponsorship also develops a routine of giving and helps the organisation budget. A typical sponsor stays on for 10 years, and the income is more flexible than government funding.
Despite its critics, sponsorship works.
It has an amazing capacity to inspire people to give and to become personally involved in alleviating the grinding poverty that affects over a billion people.
Another positive is that there are now a variety of sponsorship models. While Paul chooses to sponsor individual children in the Christian environment of Asian Aid’s schools, for example, Vicki prefers to sponsor a child with World Vision, knowing that the wider community benefits from pooled funds and wide-ranging health, sanitation and income-generation projects.
horses for courses
Just as car manufacturers produce vehicles in a variety of shapes, sizes and features, sponsorship differs. It is a matter of knowing just how your donations will be used.
World Vision, for example, is Australia’s largest child sponsorship organisation and, like PLAN, now sponsors children in programs that help the entire community. Some organisations use individual children to represent a whole community.
As such, Save the Children is open about the fact that sponsorship benefits communities rather than individuals. Some target specific groups of disadvantaged children. International Children’s Care (ICC), for example, specialises in helping orphaned children in a caring family environment.
Compassion Australia, on the other hand, is distinctive because it works through a variety of local Christian churches in developing countries and either places individual children in schools or designs programs that are run by churches and church groups.
a final word
With almost 500,000 children sponsored by Australians and New Zealanders, either individually or as part of a community, and many more benefiting through various programs, there can be no doubt that we’re making a real difference in people’s lives.
For many people a dollar a day is hardly more than a mobile phone call—and a worthwhile investment in the life of a child somewhere else in the world.
tips for would-be sponsors
- Ask how much your sponsorship provider keeps to cover administration and advertising costs. But keep in mind that low overheads do not guarantee great programs.
- Make sure the sponsorship provider you support is open and transparent. Annual reports should be available on request.
- Most sponsorship organisations have web sites. Log on and explore!
- Ensure you are comfortable with the background of your sponsorship provider. Sponsorship differs markedly.
- The sponsorship provider should be a signatory to the ACFID code of conduct. It sets standards for organisations involved in development work.
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