Revamping the Child Sponsorship Program - Goodness and Mercy Missions.

Goodness and Mercy Missions is a humanitarian and community development organization founded in 2007 in Cameroon. GMM works with vulnerable and underprivileged children, women, youth, and rural communities through programs in education, child sponsorship, women’s empowerment, vocational training, health support, climate resilience, and community development. Through its Child Sponsorship Program, GMM has supported disadvantaged children—particularly those from rural and conflict-affected communities—to access quality education, school materials, mentorship, and holistic care. Over the years, many beneficiaries of the program have gone on to become responsible leaders and contributors to society, with some returning to support other vulnerable children through sponsorship.

Since the outbreak of the Anglophone crisis in 2016, many families in the North-West and South-West Regions of Cameroon have experienced displacement, poverty, school disruption, and economic hardship. These challenges have significantly increased the number of vulnerable children requiring educational and social support. In response, GMM is undertaking a strategic modernization and restructuring of its Child Sponsorship Program to improve efficiency, accountability, visibility, donor engagement, and long-term sustainability. We are seeking passionate and skilled Online Volunteers through the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) platform to support this important transformation process. Volunteers will contribute professional expertise to help strengthen systems, improve donor communication, enhance digital visibility, and expand sponsorship opportunities for children in need. This assignment offers volunteers a meaningful opportunity to contribute to child welfare, educational access, and sustainable community development in a conflict-affected context while collaborating with a grassroots organization committed to lasting impact.

Selected Online Volunteers will work closely with the GMM leadership team and may contribute to one or more of the following areas: 1. Program Restructuring and Sponsorship Framework Review the current child sponsorship structure and recommend improvements; Develop clear sponsorship categories and contribution tiers; Define and document what each sponsorship package covers (tuition, books, uniforms, feeding, healthcare, mentorship, etc.); Assist in creating child selection and sponsorship management guidelines; Recommend systems for sustainable sponsor-child matching and program coordination. 2. Campaign Development and Marketing Strategy Design a professional donor engagement and promotional strategy; Develop creative approaches for attracting individual and institutional sponsors; Assist in creating compelling storytelling frameworks for child sponsorship campaigns; Recommend social media, email, and digital outreach strategies; Support the development of branding and communication materials for fundraising campaigns. 3. Website and Digital Platform Development Support Advise on the structure and content of a professional child sponsorship webpage; Propose layouts and content categories for child profiles and sponsorship information; Help improve online presentation, accessibility, and donor experience; Recommend ethical and child-protection-conscious ways of presenting children’s stories and profiles online; Support integration of transparency and reporting features into the digital platform. 4. Grant Writing and Institutional Fundraising Assist in drafting high-quality grant proposals and concept notes; Identify potential funding opportunities and institutional donor prospects; Help prepare educational support and child welfare funding proposals; Support development of donor-ready organizational materials and project summaries. 5. Reporting, Monitoring, and Transparency Systems Develop simple and professional sponsor reporting templates; Design systems for periodic child progress updates and sponsor communication; Recommend monitoring and evaluation tools for tracking program impact; Support creation of accountability and transparency mechanisms that strengthen donor trust.