Education

Bringing education closer to home in rural Tanzania with schools, resources, and support for children to thrive.

"Imagine walking 25 kilometers to school - or choosing between education and supporting your family. For some kids in Tanzania, this is their reality. That's why we're bringing education closer to home, breaking down the barriers to their future, one step at a time." - Omega, Founder

The Foundation of Education in Kagera

In Muguruka, Kagera, we’re building a two-classroom school to bring education closer to children who previously would have to walk 25 kilometers to the nearest school. Most had to stay home to work instead. This school is our first step toward changing that and giving these kids a chance to learn and dream.

However, the school isn’t finished yet. We need funding to complete the roof and build essential facilities like toilets and seating. We're raising funds through a GoFundMe campaign, as the school doesn’t receive government support. We cover all operational costs, including teachers' salaries, and after 2-3 years of funding construction, we’re committed to ensuring its success and growth.

Supporting Local Schools in Machame

In Machame, we support local schools by providing donated materials and resources to help children thrive.

Recreational Learning: With volunteer help, we bring “learning through play” into classrooms, making education more engaging and fun.

Technology Classes: We’re introducing technology to prepare kids for the future, but without a proper computer room, the equipment is at risk of damage.

Lunch Facilities: While the school provides lunch, there’s no dedicated space to eat, which is especially challenging during the rainy season. One of our goals is to build a proper lunchroom for students.

The Start - Project Uhuru

What comes to your mind when you hear this word?

A word that brings up many memories, ideas, feelings, images, good and bad, in our minds..We would like to ask you to imagine your school experience a little bit differently…

You and your classmates spend your lunch break cleaning your own classroom every day, with a cloth and bare feet, because there were no cleaners employed by the school

The toilet has no electricity, it’s a hole in the ground (make sure you don’t fall in!), with no toilet paper, soap or flush and you need to use a bucket to flush the toilet down?

Your classroom is dark, because your school hasn’t got an electrical supply in that classroom yet?

Your school needs a water connection to be installed from the school’s well to a water tank, and so you and your classmates help dig up an area of the playground to do that?

You show up to school on the first day after holiday and your new teacher is not there because of lack of organisation?

There are no games, activities or events that teach you communication skills, teamwork, project work and other cool opportunities that allow you to discover the things you enjoy and are good at?

Where were you born? And why in that place? Probably no one knows, but one thing is for sure… No one really chooses where they are born, where they go to school, what opportunities are available... Regardless of religious and spiritual beliefs, each of us is born in a different family, era, and place, over which we don’t really have control. However, we should all be free to decide where we go from there...

It is a fact that not everyone has the same opportunities when it comes to education, and this is something I experienced in my time in Tanzania. We believe that we can step into schools in the local community, to help create a framework that allows the students to focus on their learning and teachers to focus on their teaching… Starting from a healthy and friendly infrastructure in order to create the conditions where students will be able to get the support they need and the opportunity to shape their lives.

Our project wants to make a difference to schools in rural Kilimanjaro schools, by focusing on the following:

Structure & Planning

- Support local primary schools and teachers with organisational tasks

- Provide resources and support that will allow them to keep track of students’ academic records and provide support to those who need it the most

- Identify students who are struggling or falling through the cracks and help form a plan to support them.

Hygiene

- Employ cleaners for the toilets and classrooms

- Provide cleaning workshops (for personal and public hygiene to students) via storytelling and games

Alternative Education & Soft Skills

- Teamwork: Run workshops and activities for the kids that will allow them to develop their soft skills, and learn how to work as a team in a classroom

- Talent Developing: Run clubs, for instance arts, sports or environmental education that will help kids figure out what they enjoy being good at, and offer more perspective about their future options

- Environmental/Outdoor Education: Support the kids in organising outdoor activities and educated about environmental principles

Financial Support

- Helping the school identify low income single parents and help those identify entrepreneurship opportunities or financial support available to them.

Our suggested plan of action is as follows:

- Fundraising Underway (evaluate progress every 1 month, with major reflection points every 3 months)

- Schools Liaising (6 months)

1. Define the geographical area targeted

2. Identify the target schools within the area

3. Approach schools one by one & Identify imminent needs and priorities

4. Conduct analytic budget breakdown per school and project within each school, ensuring equity is achieved

5. Plan, organise and set off with the first project:

Clearly Define Time Scales
Identify Materials, Services and Professionals required
Conduct Appropriate Market Research
Identify responsible liaison from school
Agree the details with the school, such as points of contact, check-in times and progress evaluation
Start works & assess every 1 month
Record successes, issues and lessons learnt

Our very first project will be modernising the toilets of the school, for which we are currently fundraising.

Once our first project is underway, we can start evaluating the subsequent ones, incorporating any lessons learnt and adjusting to any changing circumstances.

The difference you could make could look like this:

- 10€ could provide a set of cleaning materials for the school

- 20€ could source a good quality second hand tablet for a teacher

- 50€ could supply a cleaner's wage for a month in a local primary school could supply a cleaner's wage for a month

- 100€ could provide a full set of stationery materials, such as notepads, pens, pencils and drawing materials for 2 year sets (circa 60 students)

We understand that everyone has very different educational experiences, from really challenging to really enjoyable, and we completely respect that.

What we want to do is help shape the conditions, remove the limitations that hinder education, improve the things that can be easily improved and work together for the challenges.

“Pole pole” - slowly slowly in Swahili. Things take time to change, especially when they’ve been a certain way for a long time…

With your help, we can move a step closer to achieving that change, so that children can have a quality education and opportunities that give them freedom of choice to get to know themselves and the world around them.

There’s a world out there… Let’s give kids the opportunity to explore it!