Frequently Asked Questions

The core commitment is to help Tanzanian Diaspora in Canada manage and cope with the urgent and usually high costs of funerals and burials (or cremation) when a family member dies.

In Canada, for many years and several occasions, the Tanzanian Diaspora has been financially burdened following the demise of a fellow community member or a close member of their family.

Whenever such an unfortunate event has occurred, community members have had to organize immediate meetings (face to face or electronically) to raise funds towards the associated funeral, burial, or cremation costs.

Frequently, it has been a frustrating and challenging process due to the unavailability of immediate funds to withdraw from to cover the funeral, burial, or cremation costs or, in some of our cases, transportation of the body to Tanzania.

NGUZO’s mission is to reinvent the process from the front end to enable members to pre-plan their funerals, burials, or cremation in Canada or transportation of their remains to Tanzania and, therefore, defray the unexpected and usually high costs. As a result, we will, together, ensure that the deceased can be handled with respect and dignity at the burial site of their choice.

NGUZO helps you plan ahead for your death in order to alleviate some or all associated costs (i.e. funeral, transportation, embalming, burial and or cremation costs).

NGUZO creates an organized way of securing funds from all interested members, in a financial account, from which money will be withdrawn and given to a member beneficiary or beneficiaries promptly upon the death of a member.

NGUZO is not a replacement for other personal arrangements such as Life Insurance or personal savings. You are still encouraged to seek those mechanisms to ensure your family is cared for upon your death.

NGUZO members MUST be:

1. Residents of Canada
2. Aged 21 years or older
   • Those under 21 are required to be registered under a parent/guardian who is a member
   • Those under 21 living independently can register as adults
3. Tanzanians by origin/ancestry i.e.
   • Both parents are Tanzanian by origin or ancestry
   • One parent is Tanzanian by origin/ancestry
   • One grandparent is Tanzanian by origin/ancestry
   • Either spouse has Tanzanian origin/ancestry
   • Are adopted child of a Tanzanian
4. Tanzanians by naturalization
5. From all gender, religious, and political affiliations.

To become a NGUZO member, please register by submitting your application online by completing the Membership Registration Form found here.
NGUZO applicant who is a parent to a child under 21 years of age will be required to register the child(ren) under the same application form.

You will be required to identify beneficiaries on the registration application. You are encouraged to have more than one adult beneficiary

• A primary beneficiary who will receive NGUZO pay out money in the event of a death, and
• A contingent beneficiary who will receive NGUZO pay out money in the event the primary beneficiary is unavailable.

NGUZO volunteer committee members will conduct “WhatsApp Video Calls” to all those applied for NGUZO membership to verify their Ontario residency. During this call, prospective adult members will be asked to show any valid Pictured ID with an address in it e.g. driver’s license, Ontario Photo Card, or Student ID.

• You will send a $50 membership Commitment fee (NGUZO deposit) to the email address malipo@nguzo.ca
• If you have registered a child under 21 years of age, you will send a ONETIME Fee of $20 per child to malipo@nguzo.ca

After registration is completed you will be issued a membership registration number sent to the email you provided during the registration process.

You will go through a mandatory NINETY-DAYS (90) WAITING PERIOD before you can receive any benefits should anything happen to you.

The waiting period will commence after the application, and all required fees are received at the bank. Please refer to the registration process, as illustrated in Figure 1 of the NGUZO articles of association.

During the WAITING PERIOD, you will not be required to pay any top-up fee per incident or receive any benefit from NGUZO in case of a death

Every NGUZO member must reside in Canada. Members who relocate permanently to any  other country may continue being members if they continue fulfilling their membership requirements

You are required to notify NGUZO and update your information within 30 days of any changes (i.e., Relocation, change of family composition such as the birth of a child, removal of a child who has attained the age of 21 and thus qualifies for individual membership OR changes of the beneficiary or beneficiaries. Please submit the changes by emailing us to info@nguzo.ca

• NGUZO will only attend to deaths of those registered as members and the children registered under their parents.
• Death of a member MUST be reported to NGUZO as soon as it occurs (at least within 24 hrs from the time the death occurs). Please notify NGUZO by completing an online form for Reporting a Death which can be found in https://nguzo.ca/nguzo-payout/
• NGUZO volunteers will contact the person who reported the death to gather more information.
• NGUZO will contact the deceased member listed beneficiary(ies)
• NGUZO will notify all other NGUZO members about the death that has happened (naming the deceased and family)
  • NGUZO will not discuss or announce the cause of death that is usually shown on the death certificate
  • NGUZO members are encouraged to respect the bereaved family’s privacy during the time of mourning.

The following documents will be required depending on where ONE dies as stipulated in NGUZO constitution Section 3.3 Death Verification Process

1. For those who die in Ontario or anywhere else in Canada, please note that documents with an asterisk (*) MUST be presented to NGUZO for the payment process to start:
   • Picture ID of the deceased member (driver’s license, Photo Card, Passport, Student ID) *
   • Any of the three documents listed below
     • Medical Certificate of Death given by the doctor or the Coroner*
     • The Statement of Death*
     • Burial Permit*
     • Death Certificate*
   • Funeral home where the body of the deceased member is*
     • This could be
       • Hospital mortuary
       • Coroner facilities
       • Masjid handling the body for NGUZO Muslim members
       • Other private funeral homes
2. For those who have been outside Canada for less than 6 months and happen to die there, please note that documents with an asterisk (*) MUST be presented to NGUZO for the payment process to start:
   • A copy of the deceased passport showing exit and entry stamps*
   • Copy of the deceased travel ticket*
   • Copy of the deceased Boarding pass*
   • Death certificate*
   • Burial permit
   • Letter from Balozi/Mjumbe wa Nyumba Kumi.

After receiving all required death verification documents (please refer to Section 3.3 Death Verification Process), NGUZO committee will discuss to determine the payout amount required.

In the event of the death of a NGUZO adult member, $25 of each NGUZO member Commitment money will be paid to the deceased member named beneficiary(ies)

In the event of the death of a registered child of a NGUZO member, $15 of each NGUZO member Commitment money will be paid to the designated member parent.

• Only one nominated member parent will receive the payout benefit

The listed beneficiary or beneficiaries will receive the pooled funds within 72 hrs from the time the death is verified

NGUZO payout amount will always depend on the number of registered members at the time of the event.

• If a death of a 21yrs and older NGUZO member occurs and there is 300 adults’ registered members, each member’s commitment fee will contribute $25, making a total payout amount of $ 7,500
• If a death of an under 21yrs NGUZO member occurs and there is 300 adults’ registered members, each member’s commitment fee will contribute $15, making a total payout amount of $ 4,500

Below is an example of the payout calculation in the event of the death of a child of a member

• The family of Mr. Kimasomaso (a member of NGUZO) loose a child in a car accident
• Mr. & Mrs. Kimasomaso are members of NGUZO, and their child was registered under their membership
• The death is verified, and the funeral and or burial arrangements are on the way
• The expected contribution to be given to Mr. & Mrs. Kimasomaso will be calculated, as shown in Table 1 on the NGUZO Articles of Association 3.4.2. Top Up Contribution Amount and Process, based on the number of NGUZO registered members.

NGUZO adult members will have 30 days to send in $25 (OR $15 in the event of the death of a child of a member) to top-up their Commitment money to $50, i.e., by refunding the $25 or $15 used towards the payout made to the beneficiary(ies) of a deceased member or member child

If the top-up money is not received after 30 days, you will automatically be WITHDRAWN from NGUZO membership. All contributions you have made are non-refundable and, therefore, no refund of any portion of unused or used funds.
If you wish to enroll back, you will be required to start the registration process again

At Home: Call your family doctor (or the last doctor the patient had seen) for a home visit (for the due process) and issuance of a Medical Certificate of Death (Form 16) or call 911 and the body will be transported by an ambulance to the Hospital where after the due process a Medical Certificate of Death (Form 16) will be issued and the body will remain in the Morgue until the other formalities are completed.

In the Hospital: Hospital will complete the due process and issue a Medical Certificate of Death (Form 16) and the body will remain in the Morgue until the other formalities are completed.

Source: https://ottawamosque.ca/services/death-arrangements/

The following documents are required to facilitate a burial:

• Medical Certification of Death (MCD)
• Statement of Death
• Death Registration
• Burial Permit

For more information please see this link

Funeral services, including cremation, cannot be performed until a burial permit is issued. Funeral Directors usually look after this requirement for the family.

If the death occurs in Canada but the burial or other disposition is to take place outside of Canada, the body cannot be removed until a burial permit is obtained. A funeral director usually assists, or may make these arrangements.

If the death occurs outside of Canada but the burial or other disposition is to take place in Canada, a burial, transit or removal permit is required from the jurisdiction where the death occurred.

Both the Statement of Death and the Medical Certificate of Death or Coroners Warrant to bury human remains are necessary to obtain a burial permit.

For Ontario:

Source: https://www.toronto.ca/311/knowledgebase/kb/docs/articles/city-clerks-office/secretariat/permits-burial-permits.html

Dedicated NGUZO volunteers are available to answer your questions. Simply email us anytime at info@nguzo.ca or send us your message through the form.