How donations are used.

We use nonprofit accounting: every expense is documented with a receipt, and the use of funds is broken down publicly in the annual report. Larger purchases such as computers or the Starlink kit are additionally documented with photos and dates on the project pages.

Three layers: (1) The tax office first reviews the statutory requirements for charitable status; actual management and use of funds become relevant in later tax assessments. (2) Managing director Tobias Segert is responsible for the proper use of funds. (3) Starting with the first completed reporting year, we publish an annual activity and finance report.

Roughly 7% currently — mostly bank fees, insurance, and accounting software. There are no paid staff; management and organizational work are carried out on a volunteer basis. Long-term, we aim to keep administration under 10%.

Management proposes projects matching our statutes (promoting public + vocational education and development cooperation, §52 (2) Nos. 7 and 15 AO). Each project gets a written needs + impact analysis upfront. Schools must demonstrably contribute their own resources; without clear local ownership, we do not start a project.

Email us at info@empowered-africa.org. We correct receipts within one working day, archive the corrected version with a reference to the original certificate number, and send you the updated PDF.

Ownership remains with the gUG. With every school, we sign a written equipment-use agreement (Nutzungsüberlassungsvertrag) clarifying ownership, use, and responsibility. The hardware is physically secured at the school. The agreement makes clear that devices may not become private or school property. In case of loss or misuse, we document the incident and take appropriate follow-up steps.