A year ago, the Limmat Foundation inaugurated a project and issued a call for donors as part of its 40^th anniversary celebration. Since then, individuals and foundations have committed CHF 300,000 to the project. The goal is to provide vocational and business training to poor women from the Philippine island of Cebu and enable them to start their own small businesses.

One year later, preparations at the Banilad Center for Professional Development are in full swing. The faculty is being trained in an educational method developed by the Limmat Foundation in conjunction with Carlos Alberto Mejia, the Colombian expert on the promotion of small businesses. The approach rests upon the three pillars of education, mentoring and capital. A delegation from the Limmat Foundation traveled to Cebu City at the beginning of April for the ground-breaking ceremony. The group included Board Member Henri des Déserts and his wife Yveline, executive committee member of the subfoundation for street children Heinrich Müller and his wife Victoria, and Limmat Foundation Project Director Juan J. Alarcon.

Plans for the new building include a training kitchen, production workshops for food processing, a bakery and classrooms for coaching and classes in business management and sales training. This new center will serve 400 women each year.

In the middle of May 2013, the first 30 women will begin their education as entrepreneurs in the already existing facility. This new offering at Banilad comes at the perfect time, since tourism is on the rise on the island of Cebu. Chances are quite good that graduates of the program, thanks to their education, will become successful participants in this growing market.

For the past 18 years, men and women golfers have rallied in support of the street children of Colombia.  Over these years, 9,187 golfers have participated in the Esmeralda Charity Cup.

Cumulative proceeds of CHF 1,567,200 have enabled the Limmat Foundation to finance 35 projects for 8,540 street children over the course of 17 years.

The charity tournament has in the meantime developed one of the richest traditions of any event on the Swiss golf scene.

The new season brings with it a few innovations.

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The new season brings with it a few innovations.

The seven qualifying tournaments of the 2013 Season will be divided into two circuits: the Swiss Circuit and the EU Circuit.

The main sponsor of the Swiss Circuit is the well-known Bank Sarasin & Cie AG Zürich.  The Swiss Circuit tournaments will be played on the golf courses of GC Lucerne, GC Bonmont, GC Lipperswil, GC Crans-sur-Sierre; the final will be played at the GC Wylihof.

The tournaments of the EU Circuit have two main sponsors:

Strategic Investment Advisors Group, SIA, has taken on the main sponsorship of the tournaments in GCC Maison Blanche and GC Steisslingen.

The Klinik Pyramide am See will be the main sponsor of the tournament at the GCC Langenstein.

The commitment of the golfers will be rewarded this year as always with attractive prices.  Prizes are being donated by long-time supporters of the event, but also by companies new to the Cups in 2013.

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The insight that social projects can be organized along economic principles and that their impact (not only their results) can be subjected to efficiency analysis is slowly becoming more widespread.  And yet, for most it is still relatively unclear how to numerically assess social impact.

Juan J. Alarcon, project director of the Limmat Foundation, has development an evaluation method that can assess the outcome (positive or negative) of a social project.  His method for measuring the Social- and-Economic-Welfare-Index (SEW-Index) received an enthusiastic reception at the annual meeting of the ProFonds umbrella foundation in November 2012, and in December 2012 at the „Latin America Philanthropy Summit“ in Sao Paulo (Brasil).  Many stakeholders in the non-profit sector expressed the desire to make this know-how part of their own project evaluation.

Alarcon, an economist by training, developed this assessment methodology on the basis of his involvement in hundreds of social projects, with the goal of measuring the impact (outcome) and not only the results/achievements (output) of a social project.  

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With the anniversary project, poor and uneducated women will be given job-oriented training to enable them to start or further grow their own small enterprise. Through this, they will be able to substantially improve their income and the living conditions of their whole family.

The project strategy is based on the Limmat Foundation’s tried and true 3-Cs model that has been so successful in places such as CEFEM (Centro de Formación Empresarial de la Mujer, Peru – see the film CEFEM-Condoray – 40 Years Bridging Worlds Event).

Name: Microenterprise Development for Women

Ort: Cebu City, Central Visayas, Philippines

Projektpartner: Foundation for Professional Training Inc. – FPTI

Budget: CHF 350,000.

Begünstigte: 2,000 Frauen

Donations can be sent to the following account:

Bank: Bank Sarasin & Cie AG

BIC: SARACHBB

Account holder: Limmat Stiftung, 8044 Zürich

IBAN CHF: CH81 0875 0051 2687 9402 9

IBAN EUR: CH54 0875 0051 2687 9403 0

Memorandum: „ Anniversary project “

On March 13, 2012, exactly 40 years after its founding, the Limmat Foundation celebrated its anniversary.  Through films, talks and interviews with project partners, 330 guests were able to create their own picture of the work of the Limmat Foundation.

Ueli Maurer, who until his election to the SwissFederal Councilor was a member of the Patronage Committee, praised the Limmat Foundation, which “pragmatically, with reliable local partners, works to improve the destiny of people.”  ProFonds President Bernhard Hahnloser called all Swiss foundations to greater efficiency, holding up the Limmat Foundation as a model in this regard.  Former SDC director Walter Fust highlighted the primacy of education, a main focus of the Limmat Foundation.  Projects partners from the Philippines, the D.R. Congo and Peru joined the celebration.  They recounted the many lasting successes achieved by projects of the Limmat Foundation.

The high point of the evening were the films that spread a contagious optimism among the viewers, by showcasing three project locations where the lives of people in need were significantly improved.  Among these beneficiaries are two young musicians.  Thanks to the support from Switzerland, they accomplished a leap from the streets of Bogota to the world stage.  Lady Johana Herrera and Juan Jeferson Castillo are former street children.  With the support of the Limmat Foundation, they found a home, finished their schooling and are now enrolled in a conservatory.  They delighted the audience with works by Bizet and Tchaikovsky, a Colombian folk song, and a rousing O sole mio.

The Limmat Foundation’s anniversary celebration was made possible by the support of many donors.  The main sponsor was Bank Sarasin & Cie AG.

Co-sponsors were Victorinox, Lindt Chocolatier, Illy Cafe, Klinik Pyramide am See, Caminanda Treuhand, avl-Dolmetscher.

The Limmat Foundation’s anniversary celebration was made possible by the support of many donors.  The main sponsor was Bank Sarasin & Cie AG. Co-sponsors were Victorinox, Lindt Chocolatier, Illy Cafe, Klinik Pyramide am See, Caminanda Treuhand, avl-Dolmetscher.

Link to the films, which were presented at the event

Selected pictures of the event

The outcome of the 16th Esmeralda Charity Golf Cups has been decided. With 46 net points in the Four Ball Better Ball competition, Markus and Marc Koch won the first prize: a trip to Colombia and entry in two charity golf tournaments in Cartagena de Indias and Bogotá. The Hotel Sofitel Santa Clara*****, Cartagena, will sponsor a five-day stay in this city. Originally a 17th century monastery, the beautifully renovated hotel is one of the finest in the world. In 1984, Cartagena was declared a UNESCO world heritage site.

Other finishes were equally well rewarded with wonderful prizes donated by generous sponsors.

guest tournament was played in parallel with the Final at the GC Wylihof. Through their participation, men and women golfers supported two of the Limmat Foundation’s projects for street children in Colombia: the vocational school for youth from the slums in Cali and the vocational school for former street children near Medellin. The effort was recognized by the Colombian Ambassador Claudia Turbay, who personally attended the awards ceremony.

The qualifying rounds of the Esmeralda Charity Cups 2011 took place at attractive golf courses that have long been connected with the Esmeralda Cup: Maison Blanche, Schloss Langenstein, Steisslingen, Schloss Goldenberg, Matterhorn. In 2011, the charity tournament was also welcomed at two other courses: at the beautiful GC Crans-sur-Sierre, home of the European Masters, and at the GC Wylihof, where the Swiss Professional Golfers Association (Swiss PGA) championships are played.

Those in need often do not know how and where to find the support that would be available to them. The Limmat Foundation project partner Inter Aide (France) is promoting a new approach in the slums of the Indian cities of Mumbai and Pune. This approach uses private and public social institutions to help persons in need gain access to existing support structures. The project was launched in 2009. By renewing its support in August 2010, the Limmat Foundation has guaranteed the continuation of this effort.

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Dr. Robert Purtschert is retired professor for Communications and Marketing in the field of Management of Associations and other NPOs. He was co-founder and director of the University of Fribourg’s Verbandsmanagement Institute – VMI. Dr. Putschert has authored numerous publications on topics such as “Marketing for Associations and other Non-profit Organizations,” “Bequest Marketing,” and is co-author of the Fribourg Management Model for Nonprofit Organizations (NPO).”

The Limmat Foundation considers itself fortunate to have the support of such a competent and recognized public figure. Dr. Purtschert was moved to join the committee by the conviction that “the Limmat Foundation is a highly creditable nonprofit organization that is efficiently managed by extremely motivated people.”

More than any others, children suffer from the war and armed conflicts in East Congo. Displaced and driven away from their homes, they neither attend school nor receive any vocational training. To give these children some hope, the Limmat Foundation has initiated a project together with the Missionary Sisters of Saint Gemma in Bukavu: a carpentry workshop, where war orphans, street children and youth from the poorest families can learn a trade and can receive or complete a basic education.

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ProFonds is the umbrella organization for charitable institutions in Switzerland. It offers these organizations a platform for knowledge and experience exchange. It represents their interests in politics and with public authorities to ensure that the framework conditions established through civil, regulatory and tax law enable the philanthropic community to effectively carry out their duties. As a French-speaking Swiss, he hopes in particular to work for the foundations of western Switzerland. François Geinoz has regularly participated in all the seminars of the organization for the past twenty years, and represented it in Paris on February 12, 2010, at the Symposium „Le mécénat et les fondations culturelles en France et en Suisse“. More information about proFonds.

In Colombia, winter is also Esmeralda Charity Cup season. Two tournaments were played in the middle of February. This is the 14th time men and women golfers gathered to compete in Cartagena. Due to the effects of El Niño, the ground was extremely dry. The photo shows the three oldest golfers in the competition. The Limmat Foundation’s long-standing partner Actuar Pro Bolivar organized this annual event. The proceeds of the competition --CHF 9,000--will benefit this foundation. The money will fund the care center for children “Centro Madres Comunitarias.” The second Esmeralda Charity Cup tournament was played near Bogotá, at the exclusive golf resort Payandé in Villeta (Cundinamarca). 92 golfers gathered in the heat to support vocational training for teenage mothers, a project of the Fundacion Juan Felipe Gomez Escobar that is supported by the Limmat Foundation. The tournament raised CHF 15,500 for this goal. By raising this money, the golfers one the one hand made a concrete contribution to the fight against poverty in their homeland. Beyond this, the Esmeralda Charity Cup also strengthens the solidarity and the sense of responsibility of the Colombian people.