Impact Fund

Inspiration

In May 2025, Togolese rapper Aamron (Tchala Essowè Narcisse) was arrested at home by gendarmes for sharply critiquing President Faure Gnassingbé and calling for a satirical protest. His arrest and apology—reported due to depression and mental instability—triggered national outrage along with youth-led protests that sparked a crackdown on dissent.

What it does

ImpactFund is a censorship resistant platform that helps crowdfund to assist those suffering from political persecution and their relatives. It enables people , for example, in fragile countries like Togo to:

• Design campaigns to raise funds for political prisoners, persecuted activists or families targeted by governments.

• Receive donations privately without fear of being shut down by centralized services.

• Decentralized moderation and peer reporting provides visibility for marginalized voices.

How we built it

The project started with a prototype made on bolt.new, an AI-based coding generation tool that helped in the quick development of a working web application. Bolt gave us a solid starting point which included:

• Frontend implemented using React, ensuring dynamic and responsive user interaction.

• Backend developed using Supabase for authentication, real-time database updates, and secure management of users.

• Backend implemented using Tailwind CSS for clean mobile-first design.

Challenges we ran into

• Censorship risk: Many platforms detect and flag political fundraisers. We implemented built-in obfuscation of metadata and volunteer-run mirrors.

• Trust issues: Political campaigns are sensitive—so we added verifiable identity, optional escrow, and campaign updates to foster transparency.

• Payment barriers: Contributors in repressive countries face banking blockades. We built fallback systems including mobile-money and diaspora contributions.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

• Successfully launched a sandbox demo

• Onboarded a community of 10+ beta testers—activists, lawyers, NGOs—who helped tune moderation and UI.

What we learned

• Decentralized moderation with community trust boosts transparency and reduces bias.

• Multiple payment channels are essential in areas with restricted banking.

• Political campaign creators need strong privacy controls, but need their donors reassured through evidence (e.g. document upload, progress reports).

What's next for Impact Fund

• Finish the app (Unfortunately the bolt free plan does not achieve the project)

• Expand payment options (Mobile money, crypto wallets ... ).

• Pilot “region hubs” in Togo, Burkina Faso, and other countries with rising activism.

• Launch a mobile app for on-the-go campaign management.

• Implement a “solidarity fund” where donations can be pooled to assist multiple campaigns transparently.

Built With

• bolt
• react
• supabase
• tailwindcss