Founded in 1979, the Swiss Association of Friends of Sister Emmanuelle (ASASE) is a non-governmental, non-religious and non-profit organization, officially recognized as a public charity, that benefits of a total fiscal exemption.
Its headquarters are in Geneva.
Originally created at Sister Emmanuelle's request to support her work in the slums of Cairo, ASASE has then supported, during 28 years – between 1986 and 2014 –, several humanitarian programs (mostly development ones) in the displaced camps in Sudan.
Today ASASE is supporting development programs in South Sudan (since 2007) and Haiti (since 1996).
ASASE is supporting programs that aim to:
- relieve material and moral distress by promoting actions of brotherly sharing;
- restore dignity by creating respectful relationships with the beneficiaries regarded as partners;
- spread hope in building capacities for intellectual and economic empowerment and social integration.
ASASE team is composed of ten volunteers and a part-time employee.
Thanks to exceptionally low administrative costs, between 95% and 97% of the funds raised every year can be directly allocated to the projects on site.
The resources of the association consist of:
- donations from individuals or legal entities;
- contributions and grants from public entities, relief agencies and non-profit organizations;
- income from its investments;
- revenues from fund-raising, shows, sales or other income;
- bequests and other gifts
Donations received are, especially in the Canton of Geneva, tax deductible, up to a limit established by the Government.
The General Assembly is convened annually for the presentation of the President's and auditor's reports, and the (re-)election of the members of the committees. The annual accounts and the report of the auditors are available to those who would like to consult.
South Sudan represents about 85% of the destination of the funds raised by ASASE, the rest being allocated to our partner in Haiti.
In South Sudan (as before in the Republic of Sudan), ASASE is funding programs run by its local partner, the Saint Vincent de Paul Society (SVDP) Juba. Guided by the rule of the Saint Vincent de Paul Society, SVDP Juba is a charitable network of South Sudanese lay volunteers or employees, serving the poor.
Since 2007, about 40 000 people (including a third of children) have benefited from the programs implemented in South Sudan.
In Haiti, ASASE supports the action of Haiti-Cosmos, a Geneva-based organization led by a Haitian-born of Swiss nationality.
ASASE works in coordination with other European NGOs and charities based in France, England, and Austria.
Their members regularly visit the programs in the field. They always come back amazed by the work completed. You can read some of their testimonials and the evaluation report written by an external consultant who came in Juba in 2016.
