2016 ANNUAL REPORT
Prepared by Hargobind Khalsa with Oversight from William W. Morse
APRIL, 2017 LANDMINE RELIEF FUND 16217 Kittridge Street Van Nuys, CA 91406 LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life
Contents
Di e to s Note ...... 1 Landmine Relief Fund Mission ...... 2 Year Overview ...... 3 Financial Reports 2016 2015 Di e to s Note o Fi a ial Repo ts Graphs Cambodian Self-Help Demining Work ...... 7 Overview Total Land Area Cleared & Beneficiaries Total Mines, UXOs, and Arms Destroyed Map of Cleared Minefields in 2016 Rural School Villages Program Work ...... 11 Overview Details of Schools Added Goals for the Future ...... 13
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life
Director’s Note The Landmine Relief Fund (LMRF) was started a decade ago to support the work of an-ex-child soldier who was clearing landmines with a stick and caring for kids wounded by Explosive Remnants of War. Aki Ra, that soldier, working alone, cleared where he could, when he could. His original home, a modest group of uildi gs alo g the Sie Reap Ri e did ot eet the eeds of his g o i g fa ily of i ju ed hildren, himself, and his wife. In 2003 I heard his story, traveled to Cambodia to meet him, and started the Landmine Relief Fund to support his work. We then helped him establish a recognized NGO, Cambodian Self Help Demining (CSHD) and gain certification from the government as a recognized demining NGO in the Kingdom. Once CSHD began its de-mining work, it took 6 months to clear the first field of 30,000 square meters of land (3 hectares). It now typically takes us a month to clear 1-5 hectares depending on the conditions of the land. Last year LMRF helped the Rural School Villages Program, a subsidiary non-profit of CSHD, add the most schools in one year that they have ever built, directly providing 900 new students with educational opportunities. RSVP now supports 20 schools in rural Cambodia with supplies and teacher subsidies. The largest donor to the LMRF is the United States Department of State ($300,000 in 2016 and $200,000 in 2017). With changing administrations, and the uncertainty of future budgets, the Landmine Relief Fund is taking a cautionary approach to expenditures and has put a halt to new school construction. Except for 10 schools that need our support in expanding their facilities, no new schools are presently planned. Our primary responsibility will be to clear landmines and UXOs, and it is only through your support that any of this work is done; NONE of this can be done alone. Thank you for your continued support and please remember that the problem of landmines and unexploded ordnance will only go away when we, together, make it happen. Babu William W. Morse President of the Landmine Relief Fund
Page | 1
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life Landmine Relief Fund Mission
The mission of the Landmine Relief Fund, is to support the work of Cambodian Self Help Demining (CSHD) in removing landmines and unexploded ordnances (UXOs) from Cambodia, help raise awareness of the persistent issues explosive weapons continue cause the people of Cambodia through our support of the Cambodia Landmine Museum, help ensure Ca odia s futu e th ough suppo ti g the Ru al S hool Villages Program (RSVP) by building and helping to maintain small village schools, as well as, provide support to other projects sponsored by Aki Ra, Founder of CSHD and RSVP, as well as, other humanitarian work as approved by our board.
Page | 2
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life
Year Overview Financial Reports 2016 For the year 2016, at the time of this writing, we do not yet have an audited financial statement. Ho e e , elo is ou p eli i a y a ou t of the fi a ials fo . Additio ally, s audited fi a ial statement follows for comparison.
Bank Balances Beginning of Year $ 185,315.02 Total Donations Received $ 439,927.92 Funds Available for Distribution $ 625,242.94 Expenses Administrative Expenses Bank Charges $ (1,729.00) Office Expenses $ (4,045.88) Employee per diem $ (17,540.00) Travel Outside Cambodia $ (8,796.18) Legal and Professional $ (7,604.00) Total Admin Expenses $ (39,715.06) In Country Distribution and Expenses in Support of Charitable Goals Contributions to CSHD $ (328,965.38) Contributions to CLMRC $ (46,337.85) Community Outreach $ (3,221.61) Travel in Cambodia $ (1,838.97) Capitol Purchases 1997 Honda CR-V $ (5,500.00) Total in Country Distributions $ (385,863.81) Total Expenses $ (425,578.87) Bank Balances End of Year PayPal $ 12,415.39 Chase $ 199,664.07 Total Balances $ 212,079.46
Page | 3
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life 2015
WEISS ACCOUNTANCY
I depe de t Accou ts’ Co pilatio Report November 9, 2016 To the Board of Trustees of Landmine Relief Fund Management is responsible for the accompanying financial statements of Landmine Relief Fund (a nonprofit organization), which comprise the statement of assets and net assets — modified cash basis as of December 3 1, 2015, and the related statement of revenues, expenses, and other changes in net assets — modified cash basis for the year then ended, in accordance with the modified cash basis of accounting, and for determining that the modified cash basis of accounting is an acceptable financial reporting framework. We have performed compilation engagements in accordance with Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services promulgated by the Accounting and Review Services Committee of the AICPA. We did not audit or review the financial statements nor were we required to perform any procedures to verify the accuracy or completeness of the information provided by management. Accordingly, we do not express an opinion, a conclusion, nor provide any form of assurance on these financial statements.
The financial statements are prepared in accordance with the modified cash basis of accounting, which is a basis of accounting of other than accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
Management has elected to omit substantially all of the disclosures ordinarily included in financial statements prepared in accordance with the modified cash basis of accounting. If the omitted disclosures were included in the financial statements, they might influence the user's conclusions about the Organization's assets, liabilities, support, revenues and expenses, and cash flows. Accordingly, these financial statements are not designed for those who are not informed about such matters.
WEISS ACCOUNTANCY CORPORATION Page | 4
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life LANDMINE RELIEF FUND STATEMENT OF REVENUES, EXPENSES, AND OTHER CHANGES IN NET ASSETS FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2015 Revenue and support Donations $460,747 Government grants 199,200 Interest income 62
$660,009
Expenses Bank charges 1,675 Community outreach 1,800 Contributions to Cambodian Self Help Demining 501,096 Contributions to Cambodian Landmine Museum 3,301 Legal and professional fees 3,787 Office 5,288 Employee per diem 14,640 Paypal charges 2,044 Repairs 245 Travel 16,810
$550,686
Increase in Unrestricted Net Assets $109,323 Unrestricted Net Assets, Beginning of Year $75,993
Unrestricted Net Assets, End of Year $185,316
Page | 5
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life Director’s Note on Financial Reports In 2015, Aki Ra and myself, traveled to USA in late March and Early April to attend meetings with Donors, the U.S. State Department Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement, and for a speaking engagement at Center for International Stabilization and Recovery at James Madison University in Virginia. Additionally, we made a trip to Brisbane, Australia to meet with family of a former Donor who left $175,000 in their will. These two trips accounted for 70% of the expenses on travel in 2015 and raised a significant amount of money for the following year. The remaining amount of money spent on travel went to trips for myself and our other employee here in Cambodia to the USA, which we each are allotted in our salaries.
William W. Morse President
Page | 6
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life Graphs
2016 2015 EXPENSES AS PERCENTAGES EXPENSES AS PERCENTAGES OF TOTAL OF TOTAL
Admin Expenses In Country Distributions Admin Expenses In Country Contributions
9% 8%
91% 92%
In Country Contributions by Year $350,000.00 $300,000.00 $250,000.00 $200,000.00 $150,000.00 $100,000.00 $50,000.00 $- 2015 De- 2016 De- RSVP 2015 RSVP 2016 mining mining Contributions Contributions Efforts Efforts In Country Contributions $192,941.09 $223,266.45 $313,255.91 $162,565.36
Cambodian Self-Help Demining Work Overview Cambodian Self-Help Demining (CSHD), is a Cambodian Non-Government Organization (NGO) which focuses on de-mining and UXO clearance in Cambodia; it was founded in 2007 by Aki Ra, former child soldier for the Khmer Rouge, Vietnamese and Cambodian armies. LMRF has been working closely with CSHD since its founding to remove landmines and UXOs in minefields of 1-10 hectares of land area, focusing on the smaller
Page | 7
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life minefields in the country as the often receive less attention from larger organization than CSHD. Since its inception, CSHD, in partnership with LMRF, other NGOs from around the world, and with the help of 25 brave Ca odia de- i e s , has removed landmines from 4,040,978m2, or 404 hectares of land in the countryside, benefitting nearly 5,000 families and 35,000 individuals.
Total Land Area Cleared & Beneficiaries 2016
In 2016, the CSHD Demining Team cleared 815,585 m2, or 81.5 hectares of land from landmines and UXOs directly benefiting 105 families and 588 individuals as there is now new land ready for farming, which was previously unsafe. Total Mines, UXOs, and Arms Destroyed
• The Demining Team was responsible for removing and destroying 2 anti-tank mines, 139 anti- personnel mines, 244 UXOs, and 36 kilograms of small arms; • While Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Team 1 removed, and destroyed 4 anti-tank mines, 11 anti-personnel mines, 36 UXOs, and 0 kilograms of small arms; • Lastly, our EOD Team 2 removed and destroyed 4 anti-tank mines, 77 anti-personnel mines, 618 UXOs, and 30 kilograms of small arms.
Page | 8
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life Other 2016 Notes: • In 2016, with funding from LMRF which came from the United States Department of State, CSHD hired the Danish Deming Group to train a 3rd EOD team to their staff. This will allow LMRF and CSHD to be more responsive and mobile in our efforts of removing UXOs and landmines from Cambodia. However, this 3rd team was not able to start working in the field in 2016 because we did not receive the truck we purchased for them until early 2017. Now that this 3rd EOD Team is in the field working, their operations are funded by a Swiss Organization, World Without Mines. Our office staff was also trained as EOD technicians and respond to any calls from in and around the city of Siem Reap. They compose our 4th EOD team. A fifth is planned for 2017. • CSHD also began a partnership with a few Cambodian Police Stations to train them in mine and EOD recognition, allowing them help villagers identify and distinguish dangerous explosive weapons from harmless scrap metal. By creating this partnership, our resources can be better used and our tea s responsiveness will be more effective in removing explosive weapons. An evaluation of their effectiveness will be conducts in mid-2017.
Page | 9
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life Map of Cleared Minefields in 2016 In 2016, the CSHD Demining Team cleared 24 minefields, of which, 16 were released for agriculture development, 6 were released for residential development, 1 was released for other community development (i.e. Pagodas), and 1 was released for road development.
Legend: Blue points show that cleared minefields were released for agricultural development. Orange points show that the cleared minefields were realesed for residential developments. Red points show that land was used for school development.
Page | 10
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life Rural School Villages Program Work Overview RSVP is a subsidiary of CSHD, and built their first school in 2011 after Aki Ra was approached by a village chief where CSHD was clearing a minefield. Since then, RSVP, in partnership with LMRF, has built 20 schools serving roughly 2,500 students. The RSVP model is to build schools where villagers have no access to education, and have no expectations of receiving one from the government in the foreseeable future. If the village can provide land, raise it above floodplains, and will petition the government to include it in the government system, RSVP will provide the material to build the school. RSVP provides school supplies for government schools, staffed by government teachers that are within the government system. RSVP does not go to villages telling them what they need, rather RSVP helps in community building where a proven want and need exists. Map of Schools Added in 2016
Legend: Blue points show that the school has 2 classrooms. Orange points show that the school has 3 classrooms. Green points show that the school has 4 classrooms. Purple points show that the school has 5 classrooms. *(note that with both maps the numbers are highway numbers) Page | 11
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life
Details of Schools Added Bou Touk s s hool efo e RSVP uilt a e o e:
Boeung Snor has: • 5 classrooms • 4 teachers • 221 students; 129 boys and 92 girls Bou Touk has: • 4 classrooms; • 4 teachers; • 145 students; 64 boys and 81 girls Bou Touk s classroom of their new school: Gayle School has: • 4 classrooms; • 1 teacher; • 45 students; 24 boys and 21 girls Chhlong Kat has: • 2 classrooms; • 2 Teachers Kondomrey has: • 4 classrooms; S as B a Bei s old s hool: • 3 teachers • 105 students; 53 boys and 52 girls Kork Amp has: • 4 classrooms; • 2 teachers • 96 students; 54 male and 42 female Smach has: • 3 classrooms; • 2 teachers; • 41 students; 20 boys and 21 girls Sokdom Romnea has: S as B a Bei s e s hool: • 4 classrooms; • 2 teachers; • 130 students; 63 male and 67 female Sras Bram Bei has: • 3 classrooms; • 2 teachers; • 79 students; 27 boys and 52 girls
Page | 12
LANDMINE RELIEF FUND One mine - One life
Goals for the Future
In , e a e goi g to t ai o e e e f o ea h of CSHD s EOD teams in paramedic training specifically for injuries that could occur in the field. In partnership with the Danish Demining Group we will complete this training early in the year, allowing our teams to lessen the worst-case scenario of injury or trauma to our courageous employees working to clear their country from explosive weapons. This training will effectively make one member from each of our EOD teams, who work closely with the De-miners in the field, a fully trained paramedic. Additionally, in partnership with the Canadian Landmine Foundation (CLMF), Vietnam Veterans Mine Clearing Team (VVMCT) and LMRF, we will train u e t de- i e s fo a 5th EOD Team for CSHD and su se ue tly hi e o t ai additio al de- i e s to fill a y a ancies on the demining team. In this partnership, LMRF and VVMCT will help fund the purchase of all necessary equipment needed for a 5th EOD Team, while CLMF will provide the funds necessary to pay the newly trained employees comprising a 5th EOD Team for 2017, with the hopes that this is the beginning of a long-lasting partnership. Further, the training of a 5th EOD Team will allow CSHD to increase their capabilities to respond to requests to remove UXOs and landmines. In 2017, RSVP will be focusing on improving the facilities and programs for their existing schools. Many of the schools have seen dramatic increases in attendance, and as such, the school populations have outgrown the existing facilities. RSVP, in collaboration with LMRF, will be expanding about half of their school facilities to meet the increased student bodies. Each school that RSVP upgrades will be adding two new rooms to their existing facilities. We believe that $100,000 is needed to fully fund this project, and we seek full completion by November and October, the beginning of the Cambodian School year. We must provide continual support to our existing schools to fully achieve our goal of bringing education to impoverished villages; we must ensure our existing schools can last and fully meet their needs before we build any new schools.
Page | 13