News Advisory Group announced to ensure Victims have input
The Foundation has appointed Mr. Raf Manji to chair an Advisory Group. He will be joined by four or five members from Christchurch’s Muslim communities, and a trustee of The Christchurch Foundation. It is their role to make recommendations to our trustees as to the best use of the Our People, Our City fund.
Mr. Manji is currently a Christchurch City Councilor. He has been the Chair of the Finance Committee at the Council for the last 2 terms and is retiring from Council in October. He is a Trustee of the AsiaNZ Foundation and Chair of the United Nations Association of New Zealand Canterbury Charitable Trust. He has also volunteered at the Refugee Resettlement Services, and has been a volunteer at Budget Service Advisors and a Trustee and Mentor at Pillars Inc.
The Advisory Groups terms of reference are:
- Make recommendations as to the best distribution of the funds to address the identified needs of the victims, and the wider communities.
- Ensure that the longer-term needs (with an emphasis on education and training) of the children of those who were killed or severely injured (with lifelong impact), are met.
- Ensure that any distribution covers costs not already covered by The Crown.
- That the Muslim communities’ views are acknowledged and factored into any recommendations.
The names of these appointees will be announced at the end of July. Their first meeting will be in early August.
A range of experts and advisers may be asked to provide additional support to the Advisory Group to support the consideration of specific allocation recommendations.
The high-level outcomes of the recent consultation undertaken with the victims by Victim Support, and other information collated from around the world will also be provided to this group.
“I’m privileged to be asked by the Christchurch Foundation to Chair this advisory board. It is important that the next stage of donated funds distribution involves the affected families and communities. Our job will be to listen, collate that feedback and present a set of recommendations to the trustees of the Foundation that will provide the best possible outcomes for the wider community,’’ said Raf Manji.