Thank you from Bethania Children’s Village

The ten guitars have safely arrived in Bethania Children’s Village, Tanzania, along with other relief supplies. Thank you for your donation, which will give many children joy and will support music lessons for more than 450 pupils.

Tanzania is in the south-east of Africa, on the Indian Ocean. Its territory touches three of the largest lakes in Africa: Lake Victoria in the north, Lake Tanganyika in the west and Lake Malawi in the south. Northern Tanzania is home to the Serengeti, which contains one of the most famous National Parks in Africa. Tanzania furthermore boasts the highest mountain in Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro. A large part Tanzania’s 40 million inhabitants suffer from severe poverty; the country is one of the world’s poorest. This poverty is related to the high mortality rate in the country: estimations are that about 44 per cent of the population are younger than 14, and that about 20 per cent are HIV positive.

In Kendomo, Tanzania, Nehemia is running a Children‘s Village, which is also home to an elementary school.

Classes are taught in English there. At the moment, the school has about 450 pupils, many from the surrounding villages. In 2011 we bought a school bus to expand access to our classes to include children living further away. The school also contains a kindergarten. Elementary school ends after year seven in Tanzania, with a standardised national exam. Our students regularly achieve the best results in the district, and their hard work gives our students a head start for secondary school, where they also perform well above average.

Many children who come to school from the surrounding villages are so poor that they don’t have any money to spare for school. Some of them are orphans living with relatives; others come from families ravaged by HIV and AIDS. They qualify for support from us, and these “bursaries” give them the opportunity to receive quality education.

Once they have completed elementary school, we want to continue supporting them with a bursary. How can you help? By sending us a monthly donation of 15 euros you can make this come true for a student. The project staff buy all school materials, such as note books, pens and pencils, books, school bags, school uniforms including socks and shoes as well as sanitary products. Children furthermore receive a hot meal at school every day.

Once a year you will receive a report on the progress of the project. By becoming a sponsor, you give valuable assistance to a young person who will profit from it for the rest of their life.

Click here for further  information on sponsorship