The purpose of the website:
This website address is https:// pamirscharity.org
The website has been set up, only to make the activities of the Dhananis’ NGO fully transparent, to the Governments of Tajikistan and USA.
Charity Views as per Aga Khan
Background of Dhanani Family Charity (DFC):
DFC primarily consists of 4 self-funded Charity Programmes on behalf of the Benefactors Mother Sherbanu Dhanani, Father Hasham Dhanani, Sister Naseem Dhanani, Maternal Grand Parents Ali and Rahemat Adam, Daughter-in-Law Shahida Dhanani and Son Shiraz Dhanani.
Programmes:
1) A 40-year Programme for funding community projects in small villages in GBAO and Dushanbe Area in Tajikistan,
2) A perpetual Programme for annual donations to Aga Khan Medical Centre in Khorog,Tajikistan,
3) A perpetual Programme for annual donations to Aga Khan Medical Centre in Salemieh, Syria, and
4) A Perpetual Programme of monthly grocery assistance to very poor single mothers in in a small village of Douz, bordering the Sahara Desert in Tunisia.
Prior to to the undertaking of the above-mentioned 4 Perpetual Programmes, DFC funded (between 2014-2016) one-on-one charity projects that helped multiple individual families in Bosnia , Tunisia, and Sri Lanka.
Below are the associated links for details:
Photos of women helped in Douz with types of donated assets. Funded US$10,000>>
Photos of a tuk tuk donated to Upul to service tourists. Funded US$5,000 >>
Programme 1: The 40-year Programme for funding community projects in small villages in GBAO and Dushanbe Area in Tajikistan.
a) This Programme was started in 2017 and is managed by a Non-Profit NGO and this NGO is continuously fully-funded by the Benefactors.
The NGO is registered in Tajikistan under the name “Ob Salamat va Shukufoi” (OSVS), which means “Water, Health Prosperity”.
In 2017 the NGO’s name was “Umed ba Behbudi’ (UBB) (meaning ‘Hope for Prosperity’ ). But in 2023, the Ministry of Justice, after auditing the NGO’s operation and its completed community projects in small villages, decided to give the NGO a new name “Ob Salamat va Fukushoi” (OSVS), meaning Water Health and Prosperity, and it also expanded its Charter .
Between 2017 and 2022, we could only operate within the the very eastern province of GBAO. But beginning in 2023, we have now been authorized to operate anywhere in Tajikistan.
OSVS is also now a member of the World Association of Non-Government Organizations (WANGO).
b) The Objectives of the NGO:
The objectives of the NGO have been to help small villages in the Pamirs mountains and those in Dushanbe area with the type of projects that those villages have needed based on their own ranked priorities.
S0, the NGO Director have been visiting small villages to confer with respective village chiefs to find out what would be the best help we can give them. This consultation process is continuous and so far the villages have submitted more than 150 projects and counting.
As of 2024, 55 projects (listed in item “h”) have been funded and completed and 2 more are underway.
c) The types of projects the NGO has been undertaking:
This NGO programme has , as listed in item “h“, completed, 51 village-level projects incategories 1-6 and 4 exception projects in categories 7 and 8.
e) How the NGO OSVS is self-funded :
OSV operates using only the interest income from the Term Deposits (TD) of US$1,038,000 that the Benefactors, invested, in Term Deposits at the First Micro Finance Bank in Dushanbe, as the initial Grant to OSVS.
The annual interest-based budget has been averaging about US$80,000 (net of taxes) in equivalent Tajik Somonis. The interest rate on 5-year TDs has been fluctuating around 10%.
To date, OSVS has cumulatively received from DFC a Grant of US 1,583,226 (including monthly TD interest incomes and starting expenses) .
OSVS will be stay in operation until around 2058 and so with the additoonal future interest income, the cumulative Grant will grow to be close to US$4 million.
The monthly Status of the OSVS’s Grant funds and Account Balances >>
f) How OSVS is Managed:
The NGO is managed by the full-time salaried Executive Director Mavlonazar Mavlonarov and he is assisted by the Board of Directors, a certified accountant on retainer and a certified lawyer on as-needed basis.
g) The Offices of OSVS:
It maintains,from 2023, a small official office in Dushanbe as required by the Government, but the projects have been managed since the start in 2017 from its office in Khorog, where the Director resides.
The office in Khorog had to be given up in 2023 after the building was nationalized, and now the Director operates it from home since suitable office locations as of now are unavailable in Khorog.
Khorog Office, which continued up to June 30, 2023 Photos >>
Dushanbe Office, as of February, 2023 Photos >>
h) The Projects completed to date: 55
1) Provided villages access to safe drinking water by installing pipelines to mountain springs in the area and by digging water wells. Completed 25 projects. Donation Cost: US$147,999 Photos >>
5) Started /Upgraded businesses in villages to creat jobs and increase village incomes -Milk Dairy, Bee Farming, Chicken Farming, Produce fruit juices, shops for Metal Working, Carpentry, Welding, Wool-Processing, etc. Completed 9 projects. Donation cost US$49,885 Photos >>
Photo of Aga Khan Medical Centre in Khorog >>
*Future donations to AKMC-K will be through First MicroFinance Bank (FMFB) in Dushanbe under its Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy.
8) Helped 3 families as exceptions:
b) On behalf of a 9 y.o. girl from Khorog We researched for a complicated hip-surgery and located a great specialist at the Artemis Hospital near New Delhi, 2) Funded the shortfall in the funds that had been raised since 2 years ago towards covering the medicalexpenses and a 2-month stay locally for recovery. Completed 1 project, Donation Cost US$4,300 Videos >>
Projects now under construction >> 4
Inventory of Projects requested by the Chiefs of Villages in GBAO to help them with over time>> To date 151+
Inventory of Projects requested by the Government for Villages outside GBAO >> To date 3
h) The Future of the NGO OSVS:
The Benefactors have come to realize that when the current young NGO Director Mavlonazar Mavlonarov retires (circa 2058), it will be difficult and very doubtful to find replacements for successive retiring Directors who will be as motivated and reliable as Mavlonazar and keep doing more charity projects in small villages.
In view of the above, the NGO ‘OSVS’ will close down whenever Mavlonazar retires.
2) A perpetual Programme for annual donations to Aga Khan Medical Centre in Khorog (AKMC-K),Tajikistan
From 2027 to until the current Director retires, OSVS will donate annually equivalent US$15,000 to AKMC-K through First MicroFinance Bank (FMFB) in Dushanbe under FMDB’s Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy.
However, after the current Director retires, FMFB will take over the management of all the Cash Assets of OSVS (which will amount to approximately equivalent US$1 million) , and in compliance with Grant Makers’ wishes, it will invest the Cash Assets in successive 5-year term deposits to perpetuate interest income and donate annual interest income to AKMC-K or whatever this hospital is renamed to in the future.
Based on the history of high interest rated offerred in Tajikistan fot term deposits, it is estimated that these annual donations would be in the range of equivalent US$70,000-80,000.
The donations will be made in the name of the Benefactors and with the stipulation that AKMC-K use the donations to provide need-based financial support for patients unable to afford the cost of medical treatment and purchase equipment that would enhance care, prioritising patients from mountain villages.
A photo of AKMC in Khorog, Tajikistan >>
3) Perpetual Programme of Perpetual Annual Donations to Aga Khan Medical Centres.
Barring any US Sanctions, AKMC in Salamiyah, Syria (AKMC-S). will have the First priority as a Recipient of these donationd.
a) Purpose: To provide need based financial support to patients unable to afford the cost of medical treatment, and to make purchases of equipment that would enhance patient care, priority will be given to patients from villages.
b) How it is funded.
Benefactors started this Perpetual Donation Programme 2in 2024 with a starting investment of US$500,000. Under this Programme, the investment will be managed by the Economic Committee of AKDN to generate annual interest income. Then the Aga Khan Health Services in Geneva (AKHS) will donate the annual interest incomes to AKMC-S fo the purpose stated.
In 2025, Benefactors will donate increase the investment to US1 million and thereafter US$150,000 each year and finally their Brokerage Account Balance upon Death.
As per the Agreement executed with AKFUSA, the Benefactors have committed US$2 .5million for investment to generate annual interest income for donation.
Photos of Aga Khan Medical Centre in Salamieh, Syria. including the Donation Plaque >>
4) A Perpetual Programme of monthly grocery assistance to very poor single mothers in Douz, Tunisia
This monthly grocery assistance is funded with the annual income from 3 palm groves (total 218 trees) and 70 ewes (to breed for lambs to sell) which the Benefactors bought and donated.
Additionally, to manage the Progamme, the Benefactors also donated 1) A pre-owned SUV to use for delievering groceries, and 2) A motorcycle for transportation to these palm groves.
This charity programme is curently managed by Mohamed Aoun and in the future, his descendants will manage it. S0, t this Programme hopefully will continue indefinitely.
The SUV will also enable Mohamed to conduct his own tours of the Sahara Desert in winter months.
Cost US$138,000
Photos of a few of the women that have been benefitting from grocery charity >>
Photos of the palm grows and ewes: >>