Nourish Bangladesh Canada
Donation protected
US donors click here . UK donors click here. Australian donors click here.
Thank you for choosing to make your donation to a Nourish Bangladesh vetted Portfolio of NGOs and grassroots volunteer groups (a.k.a “The Portfolio”). Any donations made here will be transferred directly to a Nourish Bangladesh trusted account before being periodically disbursed to different members of the Portfolio. Donations made here will NOT be eligible for tax deduction in Canada. If you want to make a donation that will be tax deduction eligible, please click here .
What is the Portfolio? The Portfolio is a list of NGOs and grassroots volunteer groups that have been vetted by Nourish Bangladesh. It includes both types of NGOs: those that offer tax deduction in Canada and those that do not. It also includes local grassroots volunteer groups that spontaneously come together during disasters to fundraise and help those in need. Volunteer groups are usually convened and led by a team leader and as such are not registered with the government in Bangladesh or Canada. They often work as an independent unit but sometimes work as contractors for established NGOs. Most successful volunteer groups in Bangladesh, also more likely to be vetted by us, have a history of helping out during disasters - coming together during disasters and disbanding afterwards. The volunteers are a diverse mixture of youth and adults from different occupations. They tend to have very little overhead costs compared to established NGOs although it is usually not zero. We have so far vetted the following NGOs and volunteer groups:
Registered (in Canada) NGOs: Action Against Hunger Canada
Not-Registered (in Canada) NGOs: These NB vetted NGOs are either registered in the US, UK, Australia, and/or Bangladesh: Bidyanondo, Manusher Jonno Foundation, BRAC USA Inc, JAAGO Foundation Inc, B Desh Foundation Inc, Thrive, Al Zahoor Welfare Foundation, and Health and Development Aid
Volunteer Groups (led by): Mithun Das, Azdani N Bari, A J Salim, and Muhtasim A Zisan
Why invest in the Portfolio instead of the best NGO and/or Volunteer Group? Our research suggests that there is no such thing as the best NGO or volunteer group. Trust that we have a healthy appetite for generating quantitative scales that reduces multidimensional measures into a single rank ordered scale. But we strongly believe that such an attempt would be misguided. Every rank reducing algorithm has certain assumptions about reducibility which we are quite certain does not apply here. In simple terms, we believe that all NGOs and volunteers have their strengths and weaknesses. Based on our preliminary research, we have reached the conclusion that given our objective of fighting hunger amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, bigger NGOs tend to be low risk, low pay-off options while the smaller NGOs and grassroots volunteer groups tend to be higher risk, higher pay-off options. Thus, after vetting each organization, we intend to split your donations between the different NGOs and grassroots volunteer groups.
Why not include only registered NGOs in the Portfolio? Most grassroot volunteer groups in Bangladesh, as well as a number of highly recommended NGOs, are unable to offer tax deductions since they are not registered in the Canada. However, these groups are doing a lot of good work, often more effectively and reaching populations that other NGOs might miss. We therefore strongly feel against excluding groups that are not registered in Canada. Additionally, unregistered NGOs and volunteer groups often have very low overhead costs, which most NGOs registered in Canada are unable to achieve.
What is the timeline for vetting and disbursing funds? We are officially fundraising or going live from July 21st, 2020. Nourish Bangladesh disburses funds received in the Portfolio by the month end. We have already completed vetting of the listed NGOs and volunteer groups, and are also in the process of vetting more NGOs and volunteer groups. We may disburse your donations gradually over a period of several months to ensure that the recipients do not have to deal with lump sums from us, to alleviate the problem of what practitioners in the field call “donor fatigue.”
Who you are and where you’re from? We are Shabbir, Midad, Safwan, Marufa, Mackenzie, Noshin, Tasnim, Shafquat, Sarzana, Tareq, Jesse, and Faress. We are the Canadian chapter of Nourish Bangladesh, a global fundraising campaign whose objective is to help alleviate the Covid-19 fueled hunger crisis in Bangladesh (by rigorously researching and funding the most effective NGOs and grassroots volunteer groups operating in Bangladesh). Our team includes those with deep, personal ties to Bangladesh, as well as those who wish to help people in need. We are a diverse international group with a range of professional backgrounds, from academics (undergraduate, post-graduate in human resources, Phd candidate, professor of economics) and bankers, to a realtor, a climate change & sustainability consultant, multiple marketing professionals, a talent acquisition professional, a sales consultant, and an airline pilot. Read more
What is your relationship or contact to the parties you're raising funds for? We're raising funds for various volunteer groups and organizations doing good work on the ground in Bangladesh. We have personal one-to-one contact with these groups and remain in regular contact as we manage the impact of the donations. We're raising funds for these groups because they have a unique reach and are often overlooked by international aid organizations. Read more
How will the funds be spent? We have very specific purposes for these funds. The funds will be used to fight hunger amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, especially dry food packages for families. We send the money to NGOs and volunteer groups that do food relief and in some cases cash relief. Read more
How will you get the funds from the campaign to the person that they're intended for? We will deposit the funds directly into the accounts of the volunteer groups and organizations in Bangladesh via the websites of their organizations, Remitly or Western Union in some cases.
Thank you for choosing to make your donation to a Nourish Bangladesh vetted Portfolio of NGOs and grassroots volunteer groups (a.k.a “The Portfolio”). Any donations made here will be transferred directly to a Nourish Bangladesh trusted account before being periodically disbursed to different members of the Portfolio. Donations made here will NOT be eligible for tax deduction in Canada. If you want to make a donation that will be tax deduction eligible, please click here .
What is the Portfolio? The Portfolio is a list of NGOs and grassroots volunteer groups that have been vetted by Nourish Bangladesh. It includes both types of NGOs: those that offer tax deduction in Canada and those that do not. It also includes local grassroots volunteer groups that spontaneously come together during disasters to fundraise and help those in need. Volunteer groups are usually convened and led by a team leader and as such are not registered with the government in Bangladesh or Canada. They often work as an independent unit but sometimes work as contractors for established NGOs. Most successful volunteer groups in Bangladesh, also more likely to be vetted by us, have a history of helping out during disasters - coming together during disasters and disbanding afterwards. The volunteers are a diverse mixture of youth and adults from different occupations. They tend to have very little overhead costs compared to established NGOs although it is usually not zero. We have so far vetted the following NGOs and volunteer groups:
Registered (in Canada) NGOs: Action Against Hunger Canada
Not-Registered (in Canada) NGOs: These NB vetted NGOs are either registered in the US, UK, Australia, and/or Bangladesh: Bidyanondo, Manusher Jonno Foundation, BRAC USA Inc, JAAGO Foundation Inc, B Desh Foundation Inc, Thrive, Al Zahoor Welfare Foundation, and Health and Development Aid
Volunteer Groups (led by): Mithun Das, Azdani N Bari, A J Salim, and Muhtasim A Zisan
Why invest in the Portfolio instead of the best NGO and/or Volunteer Group? Our research suggests that there is no such thing as the best NGO or volunteer group. Trust that we have a healthy appetite for generating quantitative scales that reduces multidimensional measures into a single rank ordered scale. But we strongly believe that such an attempt would be misguided. Every rank reducing algorithm has certain assumptions about reducibility which we are quite certain does not apply here. In simple terms, we believe that all NGOs and volunteers have their strengths and weaknesses. Based on our preliminary research, we have reached the conclusion that given our objective of fighting hunger amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, bigger NGOs tend to be low risk, low pay-off options while the smaller NGOs and grassroots volunteer groups tend to be higher risk, higher pay-off options. Thus, after vetting each organization, we intend to split your donations between the different NGOs and grassroots volunteer groups.
Why not include only registered NGOs in the Portfolio? Most grassroot volunteer groups in Bangladesh, as well as a number of highly recommended NGOs, are unable to offer tax deductions since they are not registered in the Canada. However, these groups are doing a lot of good work, often more effectively and reaching populations that other NGOs might miss. We therefore strongly feel against excluding groups that are not registered in Canada. Additionally, unregistered NGOs and volunteer groups often have very low overhead costs, which most NGOs registered in Canada are unable to achieve.
What is the timeline for vetting and disbursing funds? We are officially fundraising or going live from July 21st, 2020. Nourish Bangladesh disburses funds received in the Portfolio by the month end. We have already completed vetting of the listed NGOs and volunteer groups, and are also in the process of vetting more NGOs and volunteer groups. We may disburse your donations gradually over a period of several months to ensure that the recipients do not have to deal with lump sums from us, to alleviate the problem of what practitioners in the field call “donor fatigue.”
Who you are and where you’re from? We are Shabbir, Midad, Safwan, Marufa, Mackenzie, Noshin, Tasnim, Shafquat, Sarzana, Tareq, Jesse, and Faress. We are the Canadian chapter of Nourish Bangladesh, a global fundraising campaign whose objective is to help alleviate the Covid-19 fueled hunger crisis in Bangladesh (by rigorously researching and funding the most effective NGOs and grassroots volunteer groups operating in Bangladesh). Our team includes those with deep, personal ties to Bangladesh, as well as those who wish to help people in need. We are a diverse international group with a range of professional backgrounds, from academics (undergraduate, post-graduate in human resources, Phd candidate, professor of economics) and bankers, to a realtor, a climate change & sustainability consultant, multiple marketing professionals, a talent acquisition professional, a sales consultant, and an airline pilot. Read more
What is your relationship or contact to the parties you're raising funds for? We're raising funds for various volunteer groups and organizations doing good work on the ground in Bangladesh. We have personal one-to-one contact with these groups and remain in regular contact as we manage the impact of the donations. We're raising funds for these groups because they have a unique reach and are often overlooked by international aid organizations. Read more
How will the funds be spent? We have very specific purposes for these funds. The funds will be used to fight hunger amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, especially dry food packages for families. We send the money to NGOs and volunteer groups that do food relief and in some cases cash relief. Read more
How will you get the funds from the campaign to the person that they're intended for? We will deposit the funds directly into the accounts of the volunteer groups and organizations in Bangladesh via the websites of their organizations, Remitly or Western Union in some cases.
Organizer
Midad Arif
Organizer
Toronto, ON
