Traditional Ugandan Family Structure

Family dynamics in Uganda have much in common with those in historical and current households elsewhere in the world. A traditional Uganda family has four major components: the mother, the father, the child, and elderly relatives. Each member has an important role to play in the Uganda family structure. 

• Fathers. Fathers are considered the heads of their households, and as such, their main responsibilities are to look after the family’s well-being and continue its bloodline by engendering children. Men are not necessarily involved in childcare or the children’s upbringing, although studies show that the entire family benefits when they are.
• Mothers. Mothers are responsible for caring for both their husband and children. Their childbearing and child-rearing capabilities are of great importance: in Ugandan culture, having enough children to carry on the family name and bloodline is a high priority for families.
• Children. Children are inherently valued as future bearers of the metaphorical family torch. They are expected to help with household chores, farm work, and other tasks with which their mothers may need assistance.
• Grandparents and elderly relatives. In extended families, older relatives are important for helping with childcare and upbringing.

Major Changes in Ugandan Family Dynamics

Events in Uganda’s past and present, however, have had a profound impact on family structures and dynamics. The country has a long history of violent political conflicts, including a civil war in northern Uganda that began in the 1980s and lasted for over twenty years. Uganda has also been heavily affected by the 1990s AIDS crisis in Sub-Saharan Africa as well as the current COVID-19 pandemic. The human and economic losses related to these events and others have changed family structures considerably. 

As of 2011, only 56% of Ugandan children aged 0-17 lived with both biological parents. 20% lived with their mother, 5% with their father, an

d 19% with neither parent. Many households are now headed by widows, single women, children under the age of 18, and orphans. Fragmented families can have greater difficulty obtaining a high-quality education, staying healthy, and getting sufficiently high-paying jobs. It’s important that they receive as much support as possible from humanitarian organizations, volunteers, and donors in order to thrive now and in the future.

Help Provide Educational Support and Essential Supplies for Children in Uganda

An excellent way to help Ugandan children and their families is to support African schools, which provide children with the tools they need to build a more promising future. Simone’s Kids in Nakaseke, Uganda provides education and meets basic needs for children in order to help them break the cycle of poverty. Your donations help purchase school supplies, textbooks, food, and other necessities for all Ugandan students in our care.

Join us in giving back this year with gifts that provide hope to our students in Uganda. Make a difference by shopping at the Simone’s Kids Store or donating to Simone’s Kids today!

Particularly during the holidays, Americans often see commercials in which charities ask viewers to participate in child sponsorship programs. Most child sponsorship organizations operate in low-income countries, many on the African continent, and audiences may be curious how well such programs work. In fact, the benefits of giving to such programs can be more numerous and far-reaching than their ad scripts allow in a few moments of air time. Here are some significant ways that child sponsorships benefit children and donors alike.

Benefits for Children: Growing As a Community

As long as donations are pooled for communal use (used for maximum benefit to the most children possible in a community) and not earmarked specifically for individual children, child sponsorship programs can accomplish many important things:

• Provide sustainable support to low-income communities and the means to obtain essentials for the children in them
• Supports children as the most vulnerable population in adverse circumstances, such as natural disasters and political conflicts, in which they may be at increased risk from environmental hazards and other dangers
• Supports businesses in the child’s community when organizations use donation funds to make purchases locally
• Gives children a better chance at staying healthy and completing their education, increasing the likelihood of a promising future
• The ability to fundamentally improve a child’s life increases the likelihood that donors will be motivated to continue giving on a monthly basis

Benefits for Donors: Happiness and Health

Although it’s not the reason most donors give, there is evidence to suggest that giving to others has benefits to the giver as well as the recipient. Here are some of the ways donors benefit from participating in a child sponsorship or other form of charity:

• Giving makes you feel good. Studies show that giving money to others makes donors happier than spending it on themselves. It releases endorphins in the brain that give people a positive feeling commonly described as “warm fuzzies.”
• Giving can be good for your health. Research indicates that giving money or donating time has health benefits for people with chronic diseases and can even decrease the likelihood of death. This may be due to the fact that giving helps to reduce stress.
• Giving enhances social connections. Giving builds connections not only between the giver and direct beneficiaries, but between organizations and other people. Getting involved with a charitable organization is a great conversation starter and may inspire others to give as well.

The Benefits of Providing Educational Support to Children in Uganda

An excellent way to maximize the benefits of giving to children is to support African schools, which provide children with the tools they need to build a more promising future. Simone’s Kids in Nakaseke, Uganda provides education and meets basic needs for children in order to help them break the cycle of poverty. Your donations help purchase school supplies, textbooks, food, and other necessities for all Ugandan students in our care. The Village, is our monthly giving program. We believe it takes a village to raise a child and you can play a part in giving the students of Nakaseke, Uganda a future!

Join us in giving back this year with gifts that provide hope to our students in Uganda. Make a difference by shopping at the Simone’s Kids Store or donating to Simone’s Kids today!

Studies have identified a close relationship between student nutrition and school performance: students at nutritional risk have worse school attendance, grades, and behavioral conflicts than those who are adequately nourished. Fortunately, problems linked to poor children’s nutrition are reversible, which is why parents and regulatory organizations in wealthy nations are focused on the quality of school meals. However, in places like Africa, where food insecurity can be endemic, proper nutrition is a luxury.

Prevalence of Food Insecurity In Sub-Saharan Africa

Nutritional deficiencies are worst in the poorer countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. In those like Uganda, where poverty is compounded or driven by overpopulation, many households rely on food assistance from foreign aid programs and humanitarian nonprofits to provide daily meals. General food insecurity is a major obstacle to getting basic nutrients. Without them, adult functionality is reduced; children are unable to thrive or

 retain what they are taught in school, which negatively impacts their futures.

Effects of Food Insecurity on Children

Uganda’s global hunger index (GHI) shows that a high percentage of children experience inhibited growth because of nutritional deficiencies, and 53% of Ugandan children between 6 months and 5 years are anemic. It’s no surpris e, then, that their academic development is impaired as well. In 2020, one head teacher remarked: “We saw how our children were behaving. In the afternoon, they would be dizzy all the time and were not concentrating in class.”

Feeding Programs in Ugandan Schools

Recently, UNICEF has implemented nutrition services training as part of a feeding program in the Kole District of Uganda, and administrators are working to do the same in fifteen districts in the most food-insecure parts of the country.

Part of the program involves cultivating community or school gardens for growing produce and other garden goods. Some of it can be used for food, while the rest can be sold to buy meat, grains, and other non-produce foods. This means that schools may well become the most nutritious source of Ugandan food in every community.

However, more comprehensive educational and care support is needed to meet students’ basic health care needs and teach them about nutrition and disease prevention. One powerful way to accomplish this is to make donations to Ugandan charities and schools as well as those elsewhere in Africa. A high-quality education coupled with essential wellness care equips each student with the tools necessary for improving their own quality of life and that of their communities.

Simone’s Kids in Nakaseke, Uganda provides education and meets basic needs for children in order to help them break the cycle of poverty. Simone’s Kids’ Lunch Line program emphasizes the importance of good nutrition and enables every student to receive one to two meals a day while attending school. Your donations help purchase school supplies, textbooks, food, and other necessities for Ugandan students. Make a difference by shopping at the Simone’s Kids Store or donating to Simone’s Kids today!

New Ways to Give: Many Charities Now Accept Cryptocurrency Donations

Cryptocurrency, whose invention in 2009 first brought the world Bitcoin, has largely been on the rise in value and popularity for over a decade. Since then, other forms of the blockchain-based digital currency known as crypto have emerged. The total value of all cryptocurrencies, now used by over 100 million users globally, currently exceeds $1 trillion. Resourceful and tech-savvy charities and nonprofits have taken notice, and some are beginning to accept crypto donations. 

Cryptocurrency May Strengthen Economies In Developing Countries

Many may not know that from its inception, crypto has been envisioned by some as a means for decentralizing global wealth and strengthening economies in low-income or developing countries. Almost nowhere is this more valuable than in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Simone’s Kids in Nakaseke, Uganda provides education and meets basic needs for children in order to help them break the cycle of poverty. We strive to give each student a successful future through education, healthcare, adequate nutrition and ministry. Donating Cryptocurrency is one of the most tax-efficient ways to support the mission of Simone’s Kids! You can check out more information at: cryptocurrency – Simone’s Kids. Your donations help purchase school supplies, textbooks, food, and other necessities for Ugandan students.

Cryptocurrency Donations Benefit Both Charities and Donors

Charitable crypto donations offer significant benefits. The Giving Block, which is designed specifically to help nonprofit and charitable organizations accept the currency, is currently the most popular platform. Such platforms help charities benefit from crypto donations in a number of ways:

• • Bypasses the capital gains tax for donors 
  • and charities. Because crypto donations aren’t subject to the capital gains tax for either the donor or the recipient, charities receive the full value of donations.
  • Offsets other tax obligations, encouraging more giving. Crypto holders must pay taxes on the currency they bought, sold, received, or exchanged during the year as part of their capital gains. However, these can be offset by charitable donations, a major incentive to donate cryptocurrency to avoid tax each year.

• Diverse funding options. Crypto donations diversify income for charities and nonprofits. Because the majority of crypto owners are under the age of forty, organizations that accept this currency can tap into a new donor pool. In doing so, they make younger generations feel valued, which encourages donor support.

• Requires minimal effort and resources. Crypto platforms automate the process of receiving donations and generating tax receipts, so nonprofit staff can spend valuable time on other efforts.
• Is becoming increasingly secure. As the crypto market grows in value, the infrastructure for secure storage and policies for dispute resolution increase and solidify as well.

For more questions: FAQ – The Giving Block

Health Care Systems in Africa

Global health authorities have long agreed that African healthcare systems are in need of significant reform. Although reasonably high-quality care is available in some major cities to those who can afford it, national health programs are gravely underfunded. There is a general lack of utilities infrastructure for providing things like clean water and electricity, and qualified health care workers are scarce. Few African countries offer medical insurance, and in those that do, only a fraction of the population have access to coverage. 

The need for high-quality healthcare in Africa is especially dire given the prevalence of diseases like HIV/AIDS, hepatitis, typhoid fever, rabies, malaria, dengue fever, and other deadly maladies. Systemic reform and comprehensive educational programs are needed to improve healthcare throughout Africa. Nowhere are these more needed than in poor Sub-Saharan countries like Uganda.

Healthcare in Uganda

In Uganda, which has a high poverty rate, healthcare is largely privatized. Patients and their families pay for care out of pocket, which pushes many into financial straits. Other Ugandan healthcare issues include the unregulated nature of medical care and the fact that about 80% of Ugandans live in rural areas, where preventive medicine is largely inaccessible. All of these factors and more contribute to widely inadequate Ugandan healthcare quality.

How to Support School-Based Health Care for Ugandan Children

One way to mitigate the problem at its root is to provide basic health care needs for African children in the schools they attend. By offering health care in places that Ugandan children and families already frequent, it is made far more accessible to all communities. In 2012, USAID and its partners launched the Uganda School Health and Reading Program (SHRP). In addition to supporting literacy, the initiative works with Ugandan schools to maintain an HIV/AIDS prevention curriculum. 

However, more comprehensive educational and care support is needed to meet students’ basic health care needs and teach them about disease prevention. One powerful way to accomplish this is to make donations to Ugandan charities and schools as well as those elsewhere in Africa. A high-quality education coupled with essential wellness care equips each student with the tools necessary for improving their own quality of life and that of their communities.

Simone’s Kids in Nakaseke, Uganda provides education and meets basic needs for children in order to help them break the cycle of poverty. Your donations help purchase school supplies, textbooks, food, and other necessities for Ugandan students. Make a difference by shopping at the Simone’s Kids Store or donating to Simone’s Kids today!

When 2020 started, not a person in the world correctly guessed how COVID would affect us all. It has brought millions of people worldwide down to a new standard of living. Our students are now behind in all academic areas and it has changed the way we will look at new sicknesses that we encounter. Uganda was not exempt from the challenges that everyone everywhere faced during the pandemic.

There were immediate concerns when the pandemic was first declared in March.  Uganda is a country whose culture embraces and depends on physical touch in everyday interactions—something that doesn’t mesh well with controlling the spread of a highly contagious disease. Little did we know, it was the start of something so much bigger than we could have ever imagined. Up to this very day, the entire education system in Uganda is full of uncertainty.  As a ministry with the primary business of educating students and interacting with families, this is particularly challenging for Simone’s Kids.

In the last week of March this past year, the government shut down all primary schools, high schools, colleges, and vocational institutions.  It was initially a one-month shut down but, similar to other places around the world it continued…and continued…and continued.  As of now, the majority of our students have spent 11 full months without attending a single class.

In Uganda, there are classes that are considered “candidate” classes which include promotional exams that are governed by the Ministry of Education.  These are similar to in the U.S. where students must pass exams to be promoted to middle school, or 8th grade going to high school, or finishing high school to go to college. Thankfully, the  government allowed candidate classes to resume last fall, under strict operating procedures. While we are truly grateful that those students have been able to study, we are also extremely worried for the other ¾ of our student body who are soon approaching a full year without school. This is alarming for several reasons, but one of the biggest is because of our students’ home lives.  Most of our students have families that survive on agriculture, and most parents and guardians are not educated past an elementary level. Studying and catching up at home is not a likely scenario for most of our students.

We are expectant that our teachers are going to do everything in their power to catch our students after so much lost time, but we don’t know what system the government is going to put into place to promote/retain students. The president has proposed that the semi-candidate classes will resume on March 1^st allowing three (of twelve) of our remaining classes to get back to school. Hopefully, in the next couple of months, we will be allowed to continue opening up more classes.

While COVID has really been a burden for our school at first glance, we have also been able to witness great things.  We have seen God provide financially for our organization time and time again.  Because of this, we have had the opportunity to do some pretty amazing things on and off campus during the mandatory “break”.

We were able to make food deliveries around the community for our most vulnerable families.  We were also able to construct an extension to our boys’ dormitory at the high school, place concrete pavers all around our primary school walkways, all while providing a partial salary to all of our staff who were not able to work during the pandemic.  In the US, we were able to hold a small gala to celebrate 10 years of ministry for Simone’s Kids where we raised enough money to purchase new land.

With the government starting to make concrete plans for our students to get phased back into learning, we are optimistic that once again we will see God’s hand during this new year.

Every student at Simone’s Kids has a story. Many students come from difficult backgrounds, and school isn’t always feasible. Thankfully, because of God’s Hope and our scholarship program, children are given the opportunity for free education and hope for the future. One of our students, Phoebe, has recently graduated from God’s Hope and after many accomplishments is going onto her next endeavor.

Phoebe began high school at Simone’s Kids in 2014 with Don and Sandy Detar as her sponsors. Phoebe lived with her father in Nakaseke and was a boarding student during the school year. As one of fourteen children, Phoebe never got much help from her father.

The Detars have embraced their role as sponsors and have visited our campus in Uganda multiple times. During their visits, Don and Sandy have spent personal time with Phoebe, visiting her home and meeting her family. They even took her shopping for shoes, clothes, cookware, and hygiene items. The Detars have exchanged letters and sent gifts throughout their time as sponsors.  One year for Christmas, they were able to gift Phoebe her own Bible. Don and Sandy have generously established a personal mentoring relationship with Phoebe- one that will continue!

Phoebe recently graduated from God’s Hope High School. She is the first child of her family of fourteen siblings to complete high school and will be the first to go to college. Phoebe wrote a letter to Don and Sandy thanking them for the impact that they made on her life, and how encouraged she feels to go onto college. When the Detars learned that Phoebe graduated and would be aging out of Simone’s Kids scholarship program, they still wanted to help. Don and Sandy decided to continue supporting Phoebe’s education and are going to fully pay for her to attend college.

We are amazed! The Detars became Phoebe’s sponsors six years ago and they’re willing to continue to invest in this young girl’s life. They are giving her the means for a college education she would most likely never receive any other way. Phoebe plans to study business administration at college in Kampala for the next three years.

Graduating high school and going onto college is often very rare among families in Nakaseke. Phoebe is excited that she is the first of her siblings to make it, and is overjoyed by the love and support the Detars have given her over the years.  Their mentoring relationship will continue as she pursues her studies and establishes her life, which is showing more promise than ever!

This is just one of many amazing stories about how God is working in the lives of the students we serve through Simone’s Kids. We are thankful for each and every one of our scholarship donors- you make an impact in these student’s lives and give them the hope for a big and bright future!