The International Decade for People of African Decent Committee says if the government does not reinstate its annual subvention, it will have no choice but to be self-sufficient.
The Committee last August received a letter from the Ministry of Culture Youth and Sport, requesting that they submit all financial records concerning projects and monies expended on projects undertaken by the organisation.
IDPADA-G, days later, complied, citing that back in February of 2022, the Ministry of Finance completed an audit of the organisation. The documents reportedly were submitted the year before, and all records were updated to date. They cited the re-submission of records as a “duplication.”
The Ministry of Finance audited records from 2015 to 2021. A special division of the Finance Ministry audited all financial records, including grants, payroll, and funding given to other groups.
At a press conference on Thursday, the board members of CEO of IDPADA-G Olive Sampson explained that since their subvention was halted, their staffing had to be cut in half, with more than six million dollars still outstanding in lieu of projects and monies owed to former staff.
“We still have to pay staff for the month of September, those people who were laid off, have to be paid for the month of September, and because we laid them off, they are still owed a month’s notice. So that is where we are.” She noted.
The organisation's Chairman, Vincent Alexander, further noted that in the interim, the organisation is currently focusing on remodeling its efforts, even though it is confident that the subvention will be reinstated.
When asked by MTV News Update about their alternative plans, Alexander said, “Indeed, we are looking at being self-sufficient, and even if… when the subvention is reinstated, we intend to continue doing our fundraising to enable and empower our operations.”
IDPADA-G was created to answer the call of the United Nations under the International Decade for People of African Descent (2015 to 2024) and has not received funds from the government for the month of October.
