An orphan is a child who doesn’t have parents. There are those who have lost only one parent; we refer to as half orphans. And there are those who have lost both parents; we refer to them as total orphans. In general, all these orphans live in very dismal conditions due to a number of factors.
According to UNICEF, Uganda has 2.5 million orphans; 1.2 million of them are orphaned as a result of AIDS. Accidents are also common causes of orphaned children in Uganda.
Those who get serious diseases like cancer, cholera and tuberculosis usually die as a result, because medical treatments are too expensive for those who are poor. This has also contributed to the rise in the number of orphans in Uganda.
Other factors that contribute to the high mortality rates of Ugandans are relating to witchcraft and black magic, family disputes, killing others with the intention to better oneself etc. Regardless of the reasons, the results are the same; children are turned into orphans.
These orphans face numerous challenges, one being that they have no access to education. As we all know, education is the process of acquiring knowledge, skills and values from an experienced person or source. Education is not only very vital to Ugandans, but to the world as a whole; it increases the chances of better life quality. It is the key to a better future, and ultimately breaking the poverty cycle.
Education goes beyond the walls of the schools; it even teaches valuable skills such as respect, love, appreciation, endurance, perseverance, determination etc. which in turn will help children to become better adults, able to live peacefully with others in their communities.
Education also helps with practical skills development such as playing football, singing, drawing, weaving mats and baskets, making ropes, and anything that can create a source of income.
And, education enables the orphans to live free of sorrow and sadness, knowing the love and acceptance of their teachers and fellow pupils.
If orphans are not provided with education, they will remain rooted in their troublesome and glum lives, often without food, clothing, medical care and shelter since there is no place where they can get these essential needs met.
Education is a weapon against poverty and a life of misery. It allows the children to explore and expose their God-given talents, skills, values and knowledge. ServeNow has taken up the challenge of helping to provide education to a network of 3,000 orphans in Uganda! One way we are working towards this goal is finding monthly or yearly sponsors for these children to provide the little tuition needed (covers school fee, materials, school uniforms, food) that gives them the stability and consistency to be successful and escape the cycle of poverty. Many children not only walk miles to come to school, but are more often than not unable to attend consistently because there is not enough money for tuition. Therefore, kids like Grace, who is now 11, are still only in first grade! Grace would walk miles to school everyday, knowing half the time that she would be sent back home due to unpaid tuition. Grace has now found a sponsor, but there are many more like her that need someone who is willing to invest in their lives, in their future.
If your heart goes out to the orphaned and impoverished children of Uganda, check out our sponsorship page. Contact us for more information or to be sent other profiles of children. We also have kids waiting in India’s slum areas that are in need of sponsors. These children will write some of the sweetest letters to you and you can correspond with them or even visit them in their own country.
Now is the time to act, and now is the time to serve those in greatest need and most vulnerable!
