Rotary District 9212 Status Report
District Governor’s Club Visits
My official District Governor’s visits are going on well. I have met 121 Clubs across the district, since August 2020. During these really amazing visits, there has been constructive engagement with the club boards and club members.
I have finally managed to do a physical circuit to Ethiopia in the Month of January. I am eternally grateful to all those who planned the itinerary and the Rotarians who showed up and made the visits worthwhile. It is amazing to see the calibre of projects undertaken in Ethiopia in the various clubs. I hope to follow up on progress made in some phenomenal projects even after my year of governorship.
I report that there is a great foundation being laid for the explosive growth of Rotary in Ethiopia and as a district, we must harness the capabilities exhibited in Ethiopia. Country Chair Bezawit Eshetu and the Assistant Governors are doing an exemplary job in supporting the clubs on this journey.
My trip to South Sudan aborted due to visa issues in January but I have rescheduled this to take place from February 8-12, 2021. Many thanks to Rotarians in South Sudan for your patience and love.
District Membership Progress Report
Half way through the Rotary year, we continue to make good progress on matters membership in the district. Some clubs have continued to terminate members after December, which is normally the cut-off date used for invoicing for the second half of the year. Those clubs will still be eligible to pay for the subscriptions of the terminated members and should instead use the period to examine options for reorganising the dues payment so that they continue their membership of Rotary. It is incumbent on all members to ensure that they remain paid-up Rotarians for us to make a meaningful impact in our communities.
Despite the loss of members in December for non-payment of dues, the District is in 7th position worldwide in terms of membership growth with 385 new members. The total District membership as of December 31, 2020 was 3,337 which translates to a 13.04% growth increase since July 2020 against a target of 50% for the year. Five new clubs have been chartered since July 2020 and the District total stands at 127 clubs.
A total of 79 clubs have a membership of less than 25. These clubs are encouraged to grow their membership to a minimum of 25 in the next three months. The District membership team is actively working with the smallest clubs to help them increase membership. Apart from the relentless efforts by the leadership to ensure that we have strong clubs that are accountable, there is a strong consideration to merge clubs that continue to stagnate with no efforts or indication to increase their membership. The next target will be, those clubs that intentionally do not want to increase membership. We will need to understand the club dynamics with a view to designing remedial action.
The Executive Committee will continue to help clubs that have challenges in matters governance so that by the end of this Rotary year, we will have clubs that can focus on delivery of the Rotary promise to its members, Rotary International and our communities as well.
Rotary Foundation Giving 2020/21
The District has so far contributed close to $165, 214 against The Rotary Foundation goal of $300,000, an achievement of 55%. The DRFC team has submitted the last batch of PHF matching for the year to the Rotary International Foundation.
I also intend to clear all backlog of PHFs that have failed to receive matching in previous years. Clubs are encouraged to submit such cases to my office for follow up. Such cases will need to submit their proof of payment details. Rotarians in Ethiopia have a one-month window to pay for the DGs PHF challenge for matching. This window remains open until the end of February 2021.
As a district, we are running 126 global grants, which means that we consume at least 10% of all Rotary International Global Grants. The current funds under management in Global Grant Projects in the District is just over $11,000,000 against a contribution of only $300,000. The trust that TRF has bestowed on us comes with a responsibility to respond in return by contributing generously.
It is of great concern that 20 of our clubs have not reported on their grants as required and are long overdue. Such clubs must make an effort to submit their reports forthwith and ask for help where needed on pain of serious sanction.
Our reporting is at 80% and our target is to close the year at a minimum of 90% and keep this as a minimum going forward. The district has now imposed very stringent rules in awarding of grants. Going forward, clubs that fail to report within the stipulated time will be suspended for not less than three years from participating in global grants or may face termination altogether. Clubs with less than 25 members should consider themselves non-eligible for global grants. A club receiving a grant must show its capacity and capability for stewardship through its membership.
Rotarians have been urged to continue donating and reporting to the Foundation in support of achieving our set club and district targets.
District Conference and Assembly 2021
It is exciting to report that District Conference 2021 will be held on April 8-10, 2021. Plans are at an advanced stage with nearly 400 Rotarians registered from across the District.
The Conference team is doing a marvellous job to ensure that it delivers a world-class conference that also gives you the vacation of your lifetime. Our program is not be Rotary-as-usual. We intend to have a blended physical and digital conference. You will be able to enjoy the conference as you sample the wild and take photos of wild beasts.
How about, listening to an international speaker, challenging your thoughts on disruption as the birds sing and lions roar? Let me not pre-empt! There is wild thinking around the structure of the conference and you will not want to miss it!
This year, the District Assembly will take place virtually on March 18, 2021 from 2-4 p.m. A link to the Assembly will be shared in good time for all members of the district to attend. All the District meetings and formalities that happen during DCA will take place before the virtual assembly.
I have circulated information regarding District Governor Nominee Designate nominations to all club Presidents and Rotarians. Rotarians who wish to offer themselves to serve in the capacity are encouraged to submit their applications through their club presidents for consideration. The process will be completed and the District Governor Nominee Designate (DGND) announced earlier than at the District Conference as has been done in the past.
All Presidents are requested to note the timelines and to ensure that you and your teams screen worthy candidates. Non-disclosure and confidentiality requirement must be observed once candidate nominations have been submitted and throughout the whole process.
In the lead up to the District Conference and Assembly, the District Governor Elect Alex Nyaga will also be starting the process of preparing his team for office in July. The District Team Training Seminar (DTTS) will be held in Nairobi at the Tamarind Tree Hotel on February 27, 2021. The Presidents Elect Training Seminars (PETS) will be held in Kenya on March 13, 2021 followed by South Sudan on March 19-20, in Juba and which will also include the Club Officers Training Seminar (COTS). The PETS and COTS for Ethiopia will be held on March 26-27 in Addis Ababa.
Africa Centennial Celebrations
The Africa Centennial Celebrations will take place from April 22-25, 2021 virtually. Our district is invited to participate in presenting in a virtual project fair between April 22-24, 2021. Any club that would like to showcase their project/s may speak to our planning lead and District International Service Chair Isaac Gitoho on isaac.gitoho@ecoenergy.co.ke and c.c. my PA Betty on bettykaruu@gmail.com.
RI President Holger Knaack will be in attendance.
Sunshine Rally 2021
The Sunshine Rally will not take place in the usual way this year due to the pandemic and we must thus deliver the intervention differently. The Regional Sunshine Rally organizers are encouraged to mobilize their donations and share them with the children’s homes/schools to avoid crowding. Ensure that you light up the kids’ lives despite the prevailing circumstances.
Kindly share those experiences with your country Chair before the end of this month in writing and photos where possible (ensure that we do not embarrass the dignity of any child as we do this). I pray that you involve Rotaractors and interactors as this serves as an opportunity for joint service to humanity.
Before we cap the DCA numbers for obvious reasons, kindly register today.
