100 Alexis-Nihon Blvd, 7th floor
Saint-Laurent, QC H4M 2P3
President: Benoit Desormeaux
Executive Director: Chantal Guerin

Charitable Reg. #:83203 8228 RR0001

STAR RATING

Ci's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics:

[Charity Rating: 2/5]

✔+

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY

Audited financial statements for current and previous years available on the charity’s website.

A-

RESULTS REPORTING

Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.

Low

DEMONSTRATED IMPACT

The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.

NEED FOR FUNDING

Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.

89%

CENTS TO THE CAUSE

For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 89 cents are available for programs.



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OVERVIEW

About SEMAFO Foundation:

SEMAFO Foundation has closed voluntarily. This report was based on its discontinued operations. 

 

Previously reported:

SEMAFO Foundation supports communities and offers an improved quality of life through investments in community development projects. The charity works in West African communities, specifically in or nearby villages where SEMAFO Inc., a Canadian gold mining company, or its subsidiaries are present. Since 2008, SEMAFO Foundation has been operating in West Africa, particularly in Burkina Faso and in Niger. In July 2014, the charity discontinued its activities in Niger and transferred its assets to Larrasu, an NGO set up by employees of Fondation SEMAFO Niger.

Education represented 41% of program spending in F2019. SEMAFO Foundation’s education programs distribute school kits, support specialized training and extracurricular activities, and build school infrastructure. In F2019, the charity reported that it constructed 18 classrooms, distributed 15,158 school kits, 2,182 solar lamps, 82 desk-benches, and 92 bicycles. According to the charity, education programs impacted 85,442 people in F2019.

Agriculture and revenue-generating activities represented 27% of program spending in F2019. SEMAFO Foundation’s agriculture programs help families produce and sell products to generate a sustainable source of income. In F2019, 1,831 producers took part in the sesame project which helped farmers produce 1.1m kilograms of sesame. The charity also reports that villages continued collecting 1,967 kg of honey from 63 hives in Dangouna. Agricultural and income-generating programs reached 39,621 people in F2019.

Health represented 22% of program spending in F2019. SEMAFO Foundation’s healthcare programs develop healthcare infrastructure, support autistic children, and fight cervical cancer. In F2019, cervical cancer prevention helped screen 1,222 women. According to the charity, SEMAFO Foundation has impacted 92,096 people through health care projects since 2009.

Community and production support represented 9% of program spending in F2019. The charity’s community support programs develop village water supplies and sanitation, with a focus on helping women and children. Since founding, the charity has constructed 144 latrines and 16 freshwater boreholes. Community support programs reached 72,607 people in F2019.

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Results and Impact

SEMAFO Foundation reports that its F2019 income-generating projects have helped create $7.3m income for sesame producers since 2009. Also, the charity’s health programs have decreased the number of positive cervical cancer tests from 5.4% in F2016 to 0.1% in F2019.

Charity Intelligence has given SEMAFO Foundation a Low impact rating based on demonstrated impact per dollar spent.

Impact Rating: Low

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Finances

SEMAFO Foundation is a Medium-sized charity, receiving $1.3 million in donations in F2019, 91% of which were grants from SEMAFO Inc. and 9% were general contributions. Administrative costs are 11% of revenues. The charity did not report any fundraising costs. For every dollar donated, 89 cents go to the cause. This is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending. Funding reserves of $425k can cover 3.0 months of annual program costs.

This charity report is an update that has been sent to SEMAFO Foundation for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated on August 17, 2020 by Tenzin Shomar.

Financial Review


Financial Ratios

Fiscal year ending June
201920182017
Administrative costs as % of revenues 10.7%7.6%8.4%
Total overhead spending 10.7%7.6%8.4%
Program cost coverage (%) 25.2%56.2%46.9%

Summary Financial Statements

All figures in $s
201920182017
Donations 1,332,2891,867,7961,555,094
Total revenues 1,332,2891,867,7961,555,094
Program costs - International 1,689,1821,410,7161,256,599
Administrative costs 142,135142,407130,299
Fundraising costs 000
Total spending 1,831,3171,553,1231,386,898
Cash flow from operations (499,028)314,673168,196
Capital spending 51,7069,97159,967
Funding reserves 425,413792,914589,108

Note: Charity Intelligence has analyzed the charity’s French audited financial statements to the best of our abilities but recognizes that detailed financial information is beyond our linguistic expertise. Material omissions may be reflected in Charity Intelligence’s analysis. Ci removed amortization from program and administrative costs, as per the charity's schedule in its financial statements.

Salary Information

Full-time staff: 3

Avg. compensation: $92,451

Top 10 staff salary range:

$350k +
0
$300k - $350k
0
$250k - $300k
0
$200k - $250k
0
$160k - $200k
0
$120k - $160k
1
$80k - $120k
0
$40k - $80k
1
< $40k
1

Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2019

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Comments & Contact

Comments added by the Charity:

The following comments relate to a previous profile update:

The mission of the SEMAFO Foundation is to support communities and offer an improved quality of life in the areas in which SEMAFO or one of its subsidiaries operates, through its actions, its investments in community development projects as well as the training and development of people. The mining company SEMAFO is its primary funder, and has pledged up to 2% of its annual net profits to the SEMAFO Foundation.

The Foundation adopts a participatory approach that ensures the social acceptability of each of its projects. Funded projects are selected with the residents, according to their needs and also their strengths, in accordance with municipal development plans and in partnership with local authorities, government services, and local non-governmental organizations.

The aim of the SEMAFO Foundation is to encourage the sustainable development of these villages, creating a strong economic network that would not have existed without the Foundation and that can be maintained independently if mining activities were reduced. True to its philosophy of empowering people, the SEMAFO Foundation believes that a durable reduction in poverty can be achieved by providing opportunities for skills development and entrepreneurship.

 

Charity Contact

Website: www.fondationsemafo.org
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Tel: 514-744-4408

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Charitable Registration Number: 80340 7956 RR0001