How regular giving helps NPOs thrive.
How does regular giving help non-profit organisations (NPO) in South Africa thrive?
Many non-profits live hand-to-mouth on a mix of government grants, funding from organisations, and let’s be honest, the generosity of everyday donors. Many of these everyday donations aren’t huge, but when people commit to giving regularly, it really does make a difference for an NPO.
So, what really keeps non-profits going month after month?
NPO’s are never ungrateful for a donation, but regular recurring donations help an organisation to go a lot further than just a once-off gift. When NPOs can plan and predict their income and expenses based on planned income, they are more likely to be able to keep going in the long term, rather than getting caught by surprises.
It’s the people who give consistently. Recurring giving is what keeps us
alive, even at amounts
that you may think are
too small to matter.
As an example, our non-profit children’s village receives a monthly grant (paid quarterly) from the Department of Social Development (DSD), but that grant typically only covers about thirty percent of the real costs of supporting a child. That means the balance, the majority, has to be covered by donors. And, like everything else, there are peaks and troughs with donations: we see higher income at certain times of the year (Christmas, or the end of the financial year when everyone is finalising their last-minute tax break), but then there are months where things are very quiet. As grateful as we are for any donation of any amount at any time, this kind of unpredictability makes it tough to manage when income drops off.
‘ This means that 70% of monthly funds required to run the village, has to come from donors. ‘
That’s why recurring giving, those monthly donations that you don’t think make a difference matter so much. It gives us a way to budget and plan for the months ahead, rather than running on fumes and hoping and praying that nothing goes wrong. Just like any business needs steady cash flow, a NPO looking after children can’t run on guesswork. If you’ve ever had your car break down in a month when the cash isn’t there, you know exactly what we mean.
We’re extremely grateful for our donors and are always grateful for once-off donations. They do help and are needed, but if you’re someone who wants to really partner with us on a consistent basis, consider setting up a monthly debit order with us. It means that we can issue you a regular Section 18A tax certificate, and it means we can plan our spending properly.
At the end of the day, regular giving is what helps us keep things going for the long haul.
If you want to help us, we’d love to hear from you. Every donation counts, and consistent monthly support is what keeps us on our feet.
Written by: Danny Tennet
Business Manager at Lily of the Valley & iKhethelo Children’s Village.
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