One Million Children in Africa Project Proposal
Prepared for: Dr. Heidi Baker, Founding Executive Director of Iris Ministries, Inc.
by: William Hart, Shara Pradhan & Jinyoung Chung Lee
November 24th, 2006
Project Sustainability
Once the start-up costs of purchasing equipment, securing licenses/permits, and shipping are covered, the project will best be sustained through a portfolio of methods. The below methods will be implemented in the course of the next two years as outlined under our “projected timeline”.
Visitor Outreach Dig
Iris welcomes visitors with open arms and since the inception of Iris’s Hospitality Team, we have seen the number of annual visitors grow 100%! The average team ranges from 7-10 people and stay anywhere between 7 days to 3 weeks. There are returning teams that visit annually or biannually and across the board visitors also come with a heart to serve and a desire to contribute without enough tangible channels in which to do so.
Our “Visitor Outreach Dig” invites our extended family to join us in reaching one million children, one well at a time. In volunteering to fund a well, they will be the Outreach Team that participates in a 4-5 day outreach, drilling a well by day and evangelizing by night. Aside from well-drilling there will also be opportunities for team coordinated children’s outreach and other projects. The well will be named after Arco Iris & the funding team at the dedication ceremony for the village.
Projectively, Hospitality Team recognizes that 6 months out of the year, we have enough visitors to potentially fund 18 wells (3 teams a month, 6 months = 18 wells).Extended Student Outreach Dig
Twice a year, Iris Ministries hosts a Holy Given Mission School where students from literally all over the world come to Africa for 8 to 10 weeks to be transformed and impart that which they have received to their respective nations and spheres of influence. Each class size averages 160 students and recently a 3 Week Extended Outreach has become an option for students immediately following graduation.
Our “Extended Student Outreach Dig” is an opportunity for our students to put truth into action amongst the poorest of the poor. Once again we are incorporating well drilling with evangelism and the students have the option of participating in a 2-3 week estimated outreach with our PRD650 Rig.
Projectively, between the two schools, and within a combined 6 to 8 weeks, potentially 14 wells could be drilled. (On average half the school stays for the extended outreach, each team consists of about 10 International Students and 10 Mozambican Student Pastors, amounting to 7 teams per school).Grant-Writing
The reality of how 2/3’s of the world lives in comparison to first world nations is gaining momentum worldwide and sustainability is the new buzz-word. Particularly, grants are becoming available for water projects even to transparently Christian organizations.
We will be actively seeking out grants.Investments
Working smarter, not harder.
By partaking in investment options such as mutual funds, certificate of deposit (cd’s), micro-financing small enterprises, etc... we will be able to leverage time to appreciate grant monies received. Water and humanitarian aid grants can amount to millions at a time and if invested appropriately, have the potentiality to allow Iris to fund wells simply off interest earned.Budget Appropriations
For its entirety, Iris has and will continue to be a faith based ministry. While future contributions are not to be presumed yet with assurance that there will “always be enough”, we find that special appropriations can be made in our existing budget, from the following categories, for well-drilling.
A. General Fund
B. Micro-Finance Projects (sewing, horses, carpentry, internet store, etc...)
C. Direct Appropriations (via online link)
General Fund
With the certainty of finally owning the rigs that can complete the task of drilling wells, a percentage of Iris contributions received can be appropriated.Micro-Finance Projects
In a culture that is highly nomadic due to the lack of accessible water, agricultural and industrial trade skills amongst Africans are far and few between - yet it is essential for communities to grow economically and advance socially. When nationals can pick up on trade skills, it increases their ability to make their faith their own apart from Western aid. It is with this goal of raising up indigenous leadership in mind that some Iris long term missionaries come specifically to teach and invest through micro-financing.
Current projects underway include sewing, carpentry and horse training for tourism. In order to also teach kingdom principles of tithing, a certain percentage of revenue will be appropriated to helping their fellow Iris pastors have wells.Direct Appropriations
A Children’s Giving website will be constructed (especially designed for children) where children and youth ministries can be involved in giving via online through a highly interactive website. The website will not only serve as a link for contributions, it will be fully equipped with a “wellometer” to track progress. It will also be educational - providing tidbits on financial and environmental stewardship, pictures of the ministry and children affected halfway around the world, water factoids, pictures, games and project ideas.
Renting out Equipment/Team
Water is such an essential need that surrounding communities have already inquired of Iris to come and drill for them. Heidi has approved the drilling of commercia!/personal wells at a fee and with an opportunity to share the Gospel, but for churches who commit to care for up to 12 orphans it would be free.
In our early stages, due to the realistic probability of lack of manpower and inexperience on the behalf of the majority involved, the process may encounter a slow season during which we will be able to rent out our equipment and team for a fee and with the contingency that we are allowed to freely share the Gospel via showing the Jesus film in the local dialect and with healing teams.Bottling Company (Arco Iris)
As the MTn (local currency) continues to stabilize, Pemba is quickly becoming the next “undiscovered hotspot”within the tourist industry. In Pemba, even locals buy bottled water when they are able. Iris has a viable opportunity to sell bottled water as the closest competitor is based out of Nampula.
Careful attention is required to establish an Iris Bottling Company. This would entail drafting a business plan, securing the start-up capital, recruiting staff, training employees, having a bookkeeper, enlisting a reliable supplier for plastic, employing some Iris trucks for delivery, and investing in a water filtration system.
We are estimating the launch of Arco Iris Water Business Plan in November 2007.
Summary
Strategy
Projected Costs
Project Sustainability
Projected Timeline
For more information visit www.irismin.org or their administrative website www.irismin.com