Rukundo International Transforms Lives of Orphans and At-Risk Children in Uganda
More than half of Uganda's population, a whopping 67 percent,is either poor or highly vulnerable to poverty. That translates to 8.4 million people trapped in absolute poverty and 23.1 million people prone to poverty (according the United Nations Population Fund).
Rukundo International (RI), a civil service organization, works every day to combat the effects of extreme poverty in Uganda. Its mission is to create a healthy environment that supports children in their intellectual, emotional, spiritual, and physical development.
One of the organization's main programs is its Clean Water Initiative. Through this project, RI provides access to safe, clean, drinking water in public primary schools in Kabale. As a result, children no longer need to spend two to four hours a day fetching water that often isn't safe to drink. In this way, RI helps these children spend that time focusing on their education.
Another one of RI's programs is its Scholars Program. With this program, RI provides scholarships to high-performing students who would otherwise be unable to continue their education.
Doreen Abaho, one of RI's scholars, finished primary school when she was seven years old. She was unable to continue to secondary school, however, because her family lacked the funds. With the help of RI's Scholars Program, Doreen is now a senior at Hornby High School, coming closer to achieving her dream of becoming a lawyer.
Rukundo International was one of 600 organizations around the world that participated in TechSoup's Storymakers 2016 campaign. Through its video, RI was able to share its mission, goals, and impact.
