August LCIF Board of Trustees approved 76 grants totaling US$4,628,949; all 23 applications from CA4 Europe (US$ 938,263) have been approved. LCIF Board approved that the Childhood Cancer and Hunger Pilot grant programs be made permanent. The new unified LCI/LCIF Mission statement has been approved.
October LCIF Executive Committee reviewed Financial projections for next ten years: LCIF’s sustainable growth ensures that 100% of donations are used for grant programs; administrative and development costs are covered by the return on investments (Picture 1).

LCIF Board of Trustees virtual meeting was held on August 11 to 17, 2021. Campaign 100 achievements and challenges have been reviewed.
Among the 76 approved grants totaling US$4,628,949 the 23 applications from CA4 Europe totaling US$ 938,263 are listed in picture 2. During previous year 2020-2021 the number of approved grants from Europe was 95.

Word wide statistics shows that Humanitarian, Disaster and Youth are the top three Global Cause areas for number of grants as shown below on picture 3.

Measles and Rubella Initiative is continuing the vaccination efforts both through Gavi partnership and United Nations Foundation (UNF) through June 30, 2022. Outbreak response campaign are supported in Brazil, Mexico, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea and in the border region of Brazil, Venezuela, Suriname and French Guinea. The new Lions Quest Working Group (LQWG) started his activity in August 2021. The working group replaces the Lions Quest Advisory Committee and is meant to better integrate Lions Quest into the work of the LCIF Board of Trustees. The working group is made up of seven trustees and the LCI Third Vice President. The group will provide strategic direction to LCIF on matters concerning the development of Lions Quest; the group will also review grant applications received under the Lions Quest Program Grants structure, and make recommendations to the Board of Trustees.

The new unified LCI/LCIF Mission statement approved reads: “To empower Lions clubs, volunteers, and partners to improve health and well-being, strengthen communities, and support those in need through humanitarian services and grants that impact lives globally, and encourage peace and international understanding.” This is one of the actions approved under the “Lions International Strategic Plan” area of focus “Strengthening the Association and Foundation”; other actions will be having once a year a joint virtual meeting of LCI Board and LCIF Board to better align common strategies.

From this fiscal year, moving on, the January LCIF Board of Trustee Meeting will be held in virtual format; this change will save Trustees travels, accommodation costs and other expenses for an estimate amount of US$200,000 per year. The treasurer report showed that revenue and expenses are in line with the projected budget, and the good news is that the foundation’s investments had a combined value of US$347 million as of June 30, 2021. Investment income, net of management fees, was US$62.30 million, or 21.13%, for the fiscal year. This unpredicted result was due to the global economy improving as more people were vaccinated and pandemic-related restrictions ease.

The Board received an informational update on the ongoing activities of the LCIF-Special Olympics: “Mission: Inclusion” Partnership highlighting LCIF’s commitment of US$26 million since the partnership began in 2001. This included virtual activities carried out during the pandemic. As part of a shared commitment to supporting those in need, LCIF and Special Olympics are celebrating two decades of inclusion through service.
The Board committees received an update on proposed project ideas to be funded by Campaign 100 donations from Constitutional Area IV. Projects with memorandums of understanding (MOUs) that have been signed, or that are scheduled to be signed have been reviewed. This included projects supported by MD-102 (Switzerland), MD-105 (British Isles), MD-114 (Austria), MD-103 (France), and a multi-country sponsored fundraising activity for Kenya.
The committee also received an update on the LCIF partnership with Germany (MD-111) Stiftung der Deutschen Lions (SDL). Since January 2021, US$2,465,616.07 in additional donations have been added to MD-111’s Campaign 100. This brings the multiple district’s total Campaign funds added since November 2020 to US$4,689,842.61. MD-111 is currently evaluating the development of new projects in Uganda and Malawi.