Finances and accountability
The foundation of our aid is our donors. We are committed to handling the donations they entrust to us with the utmost care. Your donation goes where it is needed - to the cleft children.
Sources and use of funding
As per our statutes, we use our donation income to fund treatments for patients with cleft lip and palate in developing countries, and maintain the aid infrastructures necessary to provide these treatments. Each of our projects is led by a surgeon. Every treatment is documented by the doctors on site in our patient database.
Every month, we check the documentation. For each properly documented surgery, we pay out a fixed case fee to the projects. The amount varies from country to country depending on the costs of providing a surgery in the country in question. On average, the fee currently amounts to some 300 euros per operation performed.
This fee is used to pay all costs of the surgery: the hospital stay, anaesthetics and medication, and the wages for the team: doctors, nurses and project coordinators.
Donation income and spending
2022, our income and expenses were in balance. A donation income of 3,142,276.34 euros was offset by total expenses of 3,142,680.71 euros. The expenses for the fulfillment of our statutory purposes amounted to 2,594,224.02 Euros (82.6%). Administrative expenses amounted to 104,182.77 Euros (3.3%), expenses for advertising and public relations to 444,273.92 Euros (14.1%). Asset management closed with a positive result of 26,693.59 euros, so that a total of 26,289.22 euros could be added to the item of donations not yet used. The 2022 annual financial statements will be audited by an auditing firm and published in a detailed version of the annual report on our website in October 2023.
We measure our success primarily via the number of operations carried out in our project countries. Here we achieved a new record high of 7,899 operations in 2022, another considerable increase over the previous record of 6,878 operations, which we set only in 2021.
Publicity and administrative spending
We can’t do our work without spending money on advertising and administration. Without, we would be unable to raise donations and organize their use. Nevertheless, we try to keep this spending as low as possible. We do not use giveaway items such as pens, stationery or other “incentives” in our fundraising that unnecessarily cause costs through their production and in postage. To win new supporters, our TV spot is an incredibly valuable tool (English version linked). The German version of the spot is aired free of charge on various TV stations of the RTL media group, a huge gesture of support for which we are deeply grateful.
In 2022, the share of spending on fundraising and advertising was 14 percent, and administrative costs accounted for some 3 percent of our spending. Almost 83 percent of spending went directly towards our cleft treatment projects. The detailed financial report for 2022 is currently being prepared.
Annual reports
Our annual financial statements are audited by an external company in accordance with the exacting DZI guidelines. This detailed financial report is published on October 1 of the following year in our online annual report, which you can also download as a PDF below. In the preliminary version, the focus is on a comprehensive review of the year with impressions from our project countries. You can also order this preliminary report from us in printed form. Simply use our contact form.
Please note that only the annual reports since 2018 are available in English. You can download older reports in German from the German version of our site. Likewise, the expanded annual report with the full financial statement also is available only in German and can be downloaded on the German version of this page, here.
DZI Seal of approval
A token of dependability: Since 2012, we have been proud bearers of the DZI seal of approval for our responsible use of our donors’ funds. The first award was based on an audit of our 2010 finances, and the certification process is repeated annually. The seal is awarded by the German Central Institute for Social Issues (DZI), based in Berlin. The DZI seal of approval certifies that the organization bearing it is responsible and careful in the use of the donations entrusted to them.
For more information for donors read our article.
Nonprofit status
As a promotor of charitable purposes and public health, Deutsche Cleft Kinderhilfe e.V. is exempt from corporation tax in accordance with Section 5 (1) No. 9 of the Corporation Tax Act and exempt from trade tax in accordance with Section 3 No. 6 of the Trade Tax Act (exemption notice from the Freiburg-Stadt Tax Office, tax number 06469/47127, January 13, 2023 for the last assessment period 2019 to 2021).
Due to our nonprofit status, we can issue donation receipts for donations received. In order to minimize the administrative load, a collective receipt for all donations made by a donor in the previous year is sent out at the beginning of the following year. Should you require your receipt at an earlier time, please contact us.
With a monthly donation of 25 euros, you finance a child's life-changing operation every year.
A small amount that makes a huge difference.
With a monthly donation of 25 euros, you finance a child's life-changing operation every year.
A small amount that makes a huge difference.
Deutsche Cleft Kinderhilfe in Zahlen
New record: we funded 7,899 operations in 2022, our 20th anniversary year.
We provide treatment to children with cleft lip and palate at almost 40 project sites in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
The success story of our work since 2002: In the 20 year history of Deutsche Cleft Kinderhilfe, we have provided 72,492 life-changing cleft surgeries to our patients.
Our network: More than 250 local doctors, therapists and project staff worldwide.
