The PCC has supported the Fondation Elisabeth Cathy (FELICA) in Conakry, Republic of Guinea, West Africa on a monthly basis since August 2008. The £78/month is going into the "Friends of FELICA" bank account at Lloyd's Bank in Helston and is sent periodically as part of an international money transfer to Dr Catherine Loua, president of FELICA in Guinea.

The overhead costs are tiny (a bank charge averaging at 1% of the value of transferred funds is the only amount which is not directly benefiting the FELICA supported populations).

Up to end of April 2009, the PCC has supported FELICA with £789 (this includes some earlier donations and the monthly fixed donations). FELICA is first and foremost an orphan care organisation, and the PCC funds are used to keep a group of orphaned and very poor children at primary school. In cases where the family can not contribute at all, the total cost to FELICA to keep a child at primary school is £26.70. But FELICA always tries to get the child's carers to contribute, however small, so that the aid money stretches further and the carers "buy" into the education of the child.

Breakdown of schooling costs of one child per year

2 uniforms	£ 6.00
2 pairs of shoes	£ 5.00
4 pairs of socks	£ 2.00
School bag	£ 2.50
Stationery	£ 1.20
Contribution to class room furniture	£ 4.00
Total cost per child	£ 26.70

Back in the 2007/08 school year, FELICA enabled 100 orphans and critically poor children to go to school for the first time with aid from John Humphrys Kitchen Table Charities Trust. Although these children were are school-going age, there was no way their foster families or guardians could take them to school due to a complete lack of resources. FELICA very carefully identified 100 children in greatest need for schooling support, and in September 2007, these children started class one. But KTCT can only fund projects for one year, and despite us trying, there was no exception made.

It is only due to resources coming from St. Keverne and Coverack that today, these children still go to school and enjoy class two education (3 of the 100 children were not able to stay at school due to personal reasons). It is important to note that 97 pupils is about the same number as the two primary schools St. Keverne and Coverack have on their registers.

In the four years the St. Keverne Friends of FELICA have worked with Dr. Catherine Loua, the partnership has gone from strength to strength. FELICA has impressed with results in integrated orphan care, schooling, helping teenage mothers and preventing teenage pregnancies. Dr Loua has demonstrated how worthy she is of our support.

FELICA is a small charity which does not have a swanky office or air-conditioned Land Rovers or money to spend on expensive advertising. Every penny goes to people in need, mostly children living in absolute poverty. Organisations like FELICA often struggle to keep long-term projects going, because they can't afford large own fund-raising operations and need to compete for scarce and erratic donor funds.