Astrid Vella’s website, for which she will receive Eur20,000, cost US$59
It was built using a CMS called Joomla – the pre-designed template can be seen and bought via the link below.
Of course, it doesn’t follow that Mrs Vella has fraudulently sought and obtained Eur20,000 in public money. She may well have been ripped off herself.
I am tempted to add ‘though I doubt it’, but I won’t as it wouldn’t be fair.
However, the conditions under which money is granted by the Good Causes Fund include the obligation to seek best value for money, the provision of all documentation and – most crucially – that the applicant co-finances the project by 33%.
This means that, with Mrs Vella’s requirement to bring Eur10,000 to the table, her website cost Eur30,000.
And believe me, that’s absolutely IMPOSSIBLE.
This is from the standard application form:
I the undersigned, on behalf of the organisation / person, declare that should my organisation / applicant be granted funds it shall:
1. Honour the terms of the funding set out in the conditions of the grant;
2. Submit all the necessary documentation requested by the board (e.g. project estimates, fiscal receipts, certificate of completion)
3. Provide the Ministry for Finance with information relating to the management of funds, should the need arises;
4. Shall make every effort to get the best value for money; and
5. Provide timely information as requested by the Advisory Board in relation to the project.
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http://www.joomlaxtc.com/index.php?product_id=447&page=shop.product_details&category_id=5&flypage=flypage_new.tpl&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=70
The expensive part of a website is not necessarily the design but its upkeep, maintenance, hosting, media integrated in it (photography, videos, audio…) and so forth.
Secondly, I don’t know what the Maltese rules with regard to NGOs are. Do organisations still qualify for this status if any of their members receive remuneration for their work? I think that modest remuneration is fair.
[Daphne – You can’t get money from the Good Causes Fund for maintenance, upkeep, overheads and running expenses. The rules do not permit it. It’s project-funding, not operations-funding.]
Joomla is a very complete CMS that provides a pretty backend where you can add and edit content. If this NGO is not able to do it internally, she’s a bigger idiot than she lets on.
ACD
I was speculating…
20000 Euro and they didn’t even bother to make a favicon . Ripped off!
Isn’t this the kind of waste Labour want to crack down on?
Can be built for 1200 euros max.
I’m in the wrong job :-(