Sunday, 13th October 2019

Reconstruction of the Outdoor Facilities

In the last thirteen years the number of pupils has risen from 35 to over 650. All of them play outside in their breaks. The once green areas are now bare grounds. As the plot is partly sloping, strong rainfalls have caused erosion of the grounds. Not only are the roots of the trees affected, but also the foundations of the buildings are completely exposed.

UgandaKids has therefore decided to solve this problem by terracing the grounds. Work has begun a few weeks ago and will last until the end of this year. During the big holiday season grass seeds will be sown on the newly built terraces therefore the soil cannot be washed away any longer

Sunday, 19th May 2019

The Scholarship Program will be Extended

Since 2014 Ugandakids has been giving scholarships to those pupils who want to continue their education but cannot receive financial support from other sources. So far the scholarship program was designated for secondary school education. At the end of this year the first pupils will complete their A-Levels.

Two young ladies now have different plans. They want to train in nursing and as a nursery teacher. Both are orphans, show an excellent performance at school and cannot receive any other funding. Therefore UgandaKids has decided to support them for their professional training. Besides qualified nurses and nursery teachers are strongly needed in Uganda.

All the best of success to you both!

Sunday, 20th January 2019

Club of the “Former Pupils” Found

One of the key guiding principles of UgandaKids is to trust the Ugandans to follow their own plans and perceptions. This often creates dynamics which take us by surprise.

During the big holidays the “Club of the Old Girls and Old Boys of UgandaKids” was found. The club can be joined by anyone who has ever been enrolled at UgandaKids school. What a wonderful idea, now former pupils of UgandaKids can stay connected. This is probably more important in Uganda than in Europe. Of course UgandaKids is offering the canteen for the annual meetings during the holidays. Those who arrive from further away can stay at the boarding school house. Food and drinks are free.

Of course this is also a great opportunity for us to stay in touch and to see which paths some of these young people are taking and which challenges they are facing after their time at UgandaKids school.

Saturday, 14th July 2018

Everything Running Smoothly

The outer circumstances are getting more and more difficult in Uganda, yet at the school everything is quiet and peaceful in the middle of the year.

Three teachers left the school and have already been replaced. The positive reputation of the school and the new teachers’ accommodation has surely contributed towards this.

A few weeks ago a visit of two tax collectors has surprised us a lot. “The school should pay taxes!” Hilda strongly objected and explained that UgandaKids is a non-profit organization obviously without profits, working hard to financially support children who would otherwise not be able to attend school. She explained that UgandaKids is happy to support the government by educating Uganda’s children, but would not be prepared to pay a cent of the European funds to the government. The current situation is that she needs a confirmation from the district administration and then to apply for a tax exemption in Kampala.

Another tax shall be introduced on phone calls and for sending money via mobile phone. Mobile phones are intensely used for “mobile money” transfers in Uganda, thus resulting in strong protests.

We will keep you posted here and on facebook about further developments.

Saturday, 3rd March 2018

The New School Year is Starting with Great News

In 2014 Ugandakids started the first scholarships for former UgandaKids pupils. The completion of primary school is not the final education therefore a scholarship system has been developed to enable pupils to continue their education.

Secondary school takes six years in Uganda. After four years the O-Levels take place and after another two years the A-Levels can be completed, enabling pupils to go onto University.

At the end of 2017 five UgandKids scholarship holders completed their O-Levels. One fellow had to leave the program due to weak results. Four girls showed that they could maintain or even improve their primary school results and were amongst the best of their year with grade 2 results.

Therefore UgandaKids is keeping the promise in supporting the pupils for another two years until A-Level.

This encourages the younger pupils at UgandaKids to follow in their footsteps. In order for them to show their motivation the new school year has just started on 5th of February.

Sunday, 15st October 2017

The First Four Scholarship Holders are just about to Complete their Secondary Education

In 2014 Ugandakids started a scholarship program. The first four young women will be writing their interim examinations – the O-Levels in the few days. The completion of this qualification compares to the intermediate secondary school certificate in Germany, it is the same in the whole country and comprises of eight to ten different examinations.

After completing their primary school qualification in 2013 the four girls continued their education at St. Marys Assumpta Secondary School in Pakelle. Pakelle is approximately a 15 minute drive from Adjumani, therefore Ugandakids and the teachers can stay in close contact with them to follow their progress. All four belong to the best of their school year. Ugandakids has agreed to support them financially through the scholarship program for the next two years until they reach A-Level qualifications.