Founded in Canada in 2009, The Citizens Foundation, Canada (TCF Canada) is the Canadian branch of The Citizens Foundation (TCF) founded in 1995. The Citizens Foundation is a Pakistani charity focused on educating children, particularly those from poor families. The Citizens Foundation is an award-winning charity identified as providing high quality eduation in neglected rural and slum areas of Pakistan. Pakistan has one of the lowest rates of education; just 3% of children enrolled in Pakistan schools graduate. Girls from poor families have the lowest rate of education. TCF model hires only female teachers. This makes parents feel safe to send girls to schools. Also, with only female teachers, many families want their daughters to become teachers rather than housewives. The Citizens Foundation is the second largest employer of women in Pakistan. The Citizens Foundation is changing education in Pakistan and opportunities for girls.

A Charity Intelligence 2020 Top 10 Impact Charity

As a charity, TCF is funded by donations. Parents are required to pay affordable fees that are no more than 5%-7% of the family's income. TCF has four main programs that support the foundation's mission: schools, mentorship, adult education, and teacher training.

As of F2019, The Citizens' Foundation operates 1,567 primary and secondary school units. The foundation operates 1,257 schools, while 310 schools are partnerships with local governments. 89% of schools are located in the Sindh and Punjab provinces. A standard, single-unit primary school covers 6,500 square feet with six classrooms, each with a capacity of 30 students. A secondary school covers 9,000 square feet with five classrooms, which can each hold 36 students. All schools are equipped with fully furnished classrooms, a library, computer labs, science labs, and an art room.

The Citizens' Foundation also runs various mentorship programs. Mentors from a wide variety of occupations support youth mentees in developing a plan for the future and learning how to deal with challenges. 9,297 mentors have been assigned to 38,388 students since the program began. TCF has also advised 61,046 students on their academic careers through the support of 4,345 career counsellors.

Since 2005, TCF's adult literacy program has provided illiterate women from rural and urban areas with a chance to learn how to read and write. Classes are held twice a year from January to April and September to December. During the program, students learn basic math and Urdu reading and writing. As of F2019, 93,000 women have learned basic math, reading, and writing.

The Citizens' Foundation provides ongoing training to teachers and school staff. New teachers are provided with Pre-Service Training (PRESET), which includes a self-study pack and on-the-job training. Similarly, established teachers receive annual, pedagogical training.

The Citizens' Foundation, Canada is a Medium-sized charity, receiving $3.0m in donations and special event revenue in F2019. Administrative costs are 6% of revenues and fundraising costs are 7% of donations. For every dollar donated, 87 cents go to the cause. This is within Ci's reasonable range for overhead spending. Funding reserves of $383k can cover 1.5 months of annual program costs.

While the charity reports two full-time employees, it does not report total compensation paid to these employees.

This is a new charity report that has been sent to The Citizens' Foundation, Canada for review. Comments and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated on July 20, 2020 by Tenzin Shomar.

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To learn more about Citizens Foundation:

Wiki Citizens Foundation

The Economist, School reform: Pakistan is home to the most frenetic education reforms in the world; Reformers are trying to make up for generations of neglect, January 24, 2018