This year’s AGM of Tsibogang Christian Action Group took place on 22 May 2021. 66 members were in attendance. Even though the Tirisano Hall of St. Joseph’s Retreat Center is a spacious room we could not invite all 112 members in order to comply with social distancing regulations. Instead, the three Action Groups sent a fixed number of delegates.
Committee members of the Action Groups as well the Management committee presented their annual reports coving the period of the last financial year (1. April 2020 – 31.March 2021). In this year all our projects and activities were heavily influenced by the Corona Pandemic. As all schools were closed from April to the beginning of June and again in August 2020 our Tshepanang Peer Educators could not teach during these months. When the schools gradually opened again, they were first teaching newly developed lessons on COVID 19. The teaching time that was originally planned to end in September was prolonged until the end of November. That is how it was possible that the peer educators could still teach the key lessons on HIV to 3840 learners in 23 schools and an assessment on HIV related knowledge could be written in all schools.
Even the Early Learning Centers and After Schools Centers had to remain closed during the months of strict lock down. When they gradually re-opened less children than before attended. As it is practiced in the schools even in most of our Afterschool Centers not all children can attend on a daily basis because the rooms are too small for all children when we want to comply with social distancing regulations. They take turns either daily or weekly.
Because of the many lost teaching days, the literacy training could not continue as planned in 2020. But in 2021 it has resumed in all ten After School Centers. But because most children can attend only every second day the progress is slower that we wished.
The annual financial report indicated that in terms of finances the last year was a surprisingly good year for Tsibogang. The total income amounted to R 4,930,272 (around 290,000 Euro). With the ELM a totally new donor came on board. Foerderkreis Mission &Gemeinschaft and the German Institute of Medial Mission gave additional donations for food parcels that alleviated the hunger of the poorest families in our areas of operation. Even from the US Embassy, the South African National Lottery Commission and the Aurum Institute we received higher donations than expected. These funds will however all been used up by September 2021. Unfortunately, we cannot apply for new funding in this financial year from the last three mentioned donors. Even the approved funding from Foerderkreis for this year is much less than in the previous year. That means we are facing the challenge to find new donors until September 21 if we want to continue with our present projects involving the same number of people as now.
After all reports and strategic plans for the new financial year had been adopted a new Management Committee was constituted that will lead our organization in the next three years. The committees of the Action Groups nominated on representative each: Ann Mosing for Tshepanang, Kesentseng Nanyane for Tlamelang and the newly elected chairperson Norah Motlhatlhedi for Amogelang.
Even the churches with the highest number of members in Tsibogang nominated one representative each. For the Catholic Church Jarrison Links was nominated who has already served six three year terms as deputy chairperson in our organization. For the Lutheran church Rev. Mosime was nominated.
The Spiritual Community Koinonia nominated Undine Rauter as their representative to serve her seventh term as a secretary. The priest of St. Mary’s Church where our offices are located, Father Lebogang Seane is also a standing member of the Management Committee.
Beside all these nominated members two more members were directly elected by the members attending the AGM: Theresa Mokgoro who has been the Chairperson of the Management Committee of our organization since its foundation and Cathey Gavrilovic who has also been active in the almost 19 year history of our organization.
The newly nominated and elected members of the Management Committee then gathered on Monday, 24.05.21 to agree who should serve in which position in the next three years. The outcome is:
Chairperson: Theresa Mokgoro
Deputy Chairperson: Jarrison Links
Secretary: Undine Rauter
Deputy Secretary: Ann Mosing
Treasurer: Kesentseng Nanyane
Dr. Wolfgang Oratile Hermann was appointed by the newly constituted Management Committee to serve as the Coordinator again. He however requested that this should be his last term.