Welcome To The Education & Literacy Month
Fellow Unlimited Rotarians,
August, our membership month is now done and dusted. I have witnessed amazing efforts made by clubs to recruit members and to start our journey towards the formation of new clubs. As part of focusing our efforts in membership recruitment, we launched the ROBO (Reach One Bring One) campaign through which we expect to meet and exceed our membership targets. I urge us all to participate.
There are business people and owners, professionals, civil servants and farmers, young and older, out there waiting for someone to invite them to make a difference in their communities and their lives. Let us tenaciously strengthen the resolve to grow our numbers as well as giving to the Rotary Foundation. Whilst doing this, we must bear in mind that one of the objects of Rotary is the recognition of the worthiness of ALL useful occupations.
We have just tipped over the 3,000-member mark, with 3041 members in 120 active clubs. Of these, however, a staggering 82 clubs have less than 25 members. This is of great concern, and our efforts will be directed to these clubs to help them grow to at least 25 members in the shortest time possible.
During the month of August, we also launched the district governance challenge for Paul Harris Fellows, which has in the past years proven a popular way of starting Rotarians on their giving journey as well as encouraging those already on the journey to aspire to go further.
The offer ends on November 30, 2020.
Many Rotarians have enrolled for the matching of their contributions of $500, and we will shortly announce the first recipients of the challenge. To reiterate, the offer is open to both first time and multiple Paul Harris fellows. As we promote this challenge, I encourage more Rotarians to aspire to Major Donor level.
This year the challenge has also been extended to include Rotaractors for whom I have pushed their deadline date to January 30, 2021.
The first leg of my Rotary club visits is now well underway. With the Covid-19 restrictions, the club visits this year have been principally digital and have meant spending hours in front of my laptop screen interacting with club boards followed by club assemblies with members. The highest number of engagements I have so far had in one day is to interact with four clubs!
In a departure from prior years and taking advantage of the fact that the meetings are online, I have invited the District Governor Elect, District Governor Nominee and District Committee chairs, when available, to accompany me. Their involvement allows us to understand the issues the clubs are facing and enables us to respond better to the needs of the clubs and their members. I am grateful for the reception we have received at every Rotary club.
The level of preparation has been impressive, with presentations well planned and delivered. The interaction during the club assemblies has also been very engaging. The meticulous planning has made our visits thoroughly enjoyable. The positive energy seen during the visits leaves no doubt in my mind that we are going places!
The critical recurring issue emerging from these visits is that of grant application and management. For this the District Rotary Foundation team is available to help – they are just a Zoom call away.
However, there is also a concerning slip in governance and efficiency in the reporting of grant implementation to the Stewardship team at Rotary International. Stewardship is a mandatory requirement, and as at the end of July, we had some 39 grant reports overdue for reporting, out of a total of 122 live grants. This state of affairs is completely unacceptable as it exposes the District to possible sanctions. Let me sound a warning that stern action will be taken against both the clubs and individuals who are exposing the District in this manner.
September is the Education & Literacy Month.
This is the month when we lay emphasis on education and literacy in the communities that we live in and serve. We see the negative impact of illiteracy every day. Although we have made gains in access to education, improvements in the quality of instruction have not kept pace. The challenge is influenced by the facilities, the curriculum and the ability to attend learning.
As Rotarians, we can have an impact in two key areas – facilities and ability to attend.
The greatest challenge and opportunity lies in the District’s impact on the literacy of children in communities living in poverty and those that are in vulnerable communities. These tend to be worse in remote rural areas. We must not forget that illiteracy is not limited to the younger generation. Many adults are unable to live full lives, as they did not benefit from education in their youth. Some of our interventions could address this.
As we design our interventions, we should have in mind the rapid growth of digital opportunities in education and consider these as part of the delivery. The onslaught of digital opportunities has fundamentally challenged our ways of working as Rotarians.
During the visits that I have made to just over thirty clubs so far, programs on literacy and education have also featured prominently. Classrooms, libraries, desks, books and similar interventions are planned. Some clubs have had recurring programs over many years that have seen schools grow into significant centers of learning through these programmes.
Other opportunities in increasing our impact in education and literacy include mentorship and having conversations with parents on the importance of getting children into schools especially the girl child in some of the communities where they are denied the opportunity.
As Rotarians, we have the key to open more educational and literacy opportunities for a child, a family, a community and perhaps a generation!
As we start our education and literacy month, we must continue to:
– Develop our leadership skills, grow new leaders and look for opportunities to offer leadership.
– Grow membership …and ROBO… or two or three!
My gratitude goes to each one of you in District 9212 for the support I continue to enjoy each day of our Rotary year.
Terry and I wish you Unlimited blessings this year!
Patrick Obath
Your DG
Rotary International District 9212
