The SASDB is a volunteer-based non-profit organisation. This means that our projects require the support of external funding from South African society in order to be successful. You can contribute money, make an in-kind contribution to one of our projects, or provide skills and services on a voluntary basis.
Financial Contributions
The SASDB receives its basic income from affiliation fees from the provincial debating boards. This provides enough to cover the administrative costs of the board, as well as funding small-scale projects, such as sending trainers to various provinces and assisting underprivileged children who are selected to attend national trials. It is too small an amount to allow us to contribute significantly towards any of the major projects that we oversee – these require additional funding, over and above our affiliation fees. It is possible to make a financial contribution to any of the following projects:
- Training programmes for children from underprivileged schools
- The South African National Schools Debating Championships
- Sending the South African Schools Debating Team to the World Schools Debating Championships (expenses include transport, registration fees and visas)
- Expansion projects in the provinces which currently do not have debate leagues
We would be happy to provide regular financial and progress reports to donors, and we would be open to negotiating publicity/branding rights for sponsors. Should you wish to find out more about contributing, please contact the Funding Officer of the Board.
In-kind Contributions
Co-ordinating our projects requires us to secure transport, accommodation, food and stationery for anything from 20 to 300 people. If you are able to give an in-kind contribution towards one or more of these projects, we would love to hear from you. We would be willing to negotiate sponsorship exposure for companies that contribute. If you are interested in finding out more, please contact the Funding Officer of the Board.
Partnerships
The SASDB works with a number of organisations, such as the Center for Sexuality, Aids & Gender and Afrikka Tikkun, to facilitate debate projects on their behalf.
We are looking for more partnerships of this kind: As a Board, we can facilitate a project on behalf of an organisation or company. This is an excellent way to communicate your organisation’s work to the youth of South Africa.
Skills and Services
If you have experience in training or judging debating, or in coordinating leagues or events, the SASDB can use your skills. Please contact the Operations Officer of the Board, who will be able to direct your skills to where they would be most effectively used.