Kampala children’s slum outreach, now with a K-7 primary school, sees several improvements

Photo: Children in one of the newly renovated classrooms are happy to not have to worry about dirt floors turning muddy during the rainy season.

Thanks to a recently successful fundraiser, our Kampala Children’s Hope Center has been undergoing renovations and improvements to prevent flooding and provide adequate shelter for the students during the rainy season. The improvements include upgrading from dirt to concrete floors, a new roof, permanent chalkboards, and other repairs and upgrades to the perimeter of the facility that will prevent flooding and keep the children safe. Renovations will be complete in just 2 weeks time.

These improvements are a huge answer to prayer since the colony is situated at the bottom of a hill near the shores of Lake Victoria. Thus, sadly, much of the sewage and rainwater drainage of neighborhoods in higher elevations collects in stagnant pools causing flooding problems during the rainy season.

Our slum outreach program is operated by locally empowered leadership in Uganda. In its humble facility the center offers a Kindergarten through 7th primary education for about 100 children who would otherwise have no access to education. The children are studying a complete curriculum with subjects such as Science, Math, Reading, Social Studies, and English taught by qualified, salaried teachers.

The program also provides the students with school supplies, second-hand shoes and uniforms, and nutritional support including daily breakfast, lunch, and clean water. Breakfast consists of fresh-cooked porridge, while lunch is usually rice and beans, or rice, beans, and vegetables. Rice and beans are a complete source of protein, giving the children energy and improving their health. The porridge is made of millet, which is rich in calcium, strengthening their teeth and bones.

In other news, our native-led team continues their hard work on our organic farmland to diversify the types of crops we grow. In addition to our original crop of potatoes, we now also grow beans, corn, kale, and eggplant. This abundance ensures our farm staff’s employment, and helps to put a fresh-cooked nutritious lunch on our students’ plates every school day. In addition, safe drinking water from our well prevents numerous illnesses.

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