Finances and accountability
The foundation of our aid is our donors. It is our self-image to handle the donations entrusted to us for this purpose with care. Your donation goes where it is needed - to the cleft children.
Sources and use of funding
As per our statutes, we act essentially as a health insurance for needy patients with cleft lip and palate. With your donations, we fund the treatments and maintain our aid structures in the project countries. Every treatment is documented by the doctors on site in our patient database.
After checking the documentation, we reimburse the costs to our project partners on a monthly basis in the form of a flat-rate fee per operation or therapy session. Currently this is an average of 300 euros per operation performed.
This includes, among others. the hospital stay, anaesthetics and medication as well as an expense allowance for the doctors, nurses and project coordinators. Our partner hospitals usually provide us with the medical infrastructure below the usual market price; this is also covered by the operation fee.
Donation income and spending
2022, our income and expenses were in balance. 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 the statutory purposes amounted to 2,594,224.02 Euros (82.6%), the administrative expenses to 104,182.77 Euros (3.3%), the 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 last record of 6,878 operations 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. This 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.
Only the annual reports since 2018 are available in English. You can download older reports in German from the German version of our site.
Annual Report 2019
Annual Report 2018
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.
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 reduce 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 50 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.