Mbarara Parents Primary School
Mbarara in the early 2000's was a refugee area for persons displaced from war torn countries of Congo and Rwanda. Women and children were a common sight all over the streets of Mbarara , some on their way to the Nakivale refugee camp, others searching for a livelihood in the town area looking for employment as house maids, gardeners or cattle handlers. The children did not have an opportunity to study because their mothers could not afford school fees given the circumstances in which they were in. The Aids epidemic had also left many children orphaned, and homeless, and the number of these children were increasing by the day.
Mbarara Parents Primary school was started on this background, for children who had nowhere to go, and no one to care for them. Father John Baptist Bashobora laid a foundation for these children, and with his team they bought a what used to be a homestead with some unsightly buildings in the leafy Kakyeka area of Mbarara, This school became an answer to the many children loitering the streets, and Father Bashobora offered them education, shelter, food, dressing in form of uniform, care takers, and minimal medical attention.
The school caters for basic primary education which follows the national syllabus, additionally they are taught how to groom themselves and taught about minimal survival skills of handiwork, engaging in sports and counseling. Due to the prevalent high poverty levels, the school has become an alternative to low income earners. Children walk for very long distances to the school, some coming in from as far as 10 kms from the school to harness an education. These children are often times staying with grandparents who are very old because they are their only surviving relatives, and do not have any source of income. These children walk barefoot, lack scholastic materials and study in congested classes.
The only food available at school every day is the standard Maize flour/Posho with beans. Though this is welcomed with open hands, this may be the only meal of the day for these children, and is not a balanced diet. If land was available, they would be enjoying a balanced diet of vegetables, potatoes, bananas and fruit.
The school still has a long way to go:
Mbarara Parents Primary school was started on this background, for children who had nowhere to go, and no one to care for them. Father John Baptist Bashobora laid a foundation for these children, and with his team they bought a what used to be a homestead with some unsightly buildings in the leafy Kakyeka area of Mbarara, This school became an answer to the many children loitering the streets, and Father Bashobora offered them education, shelter, food, dressing in form of uniform, care takers, and minimal medical attention.
The school caters for basic primary education which follows the national syllabus, additionally they are taught how to groom themselves and taught about minimal survival skills of handiwork, engaging in sports and counseling. Due to the prevalent high poverty levels, the school has become an alternative to low income earners. Children walk for very long distances to the school, some coming in from as far as 10 kms from the school to harness an education. These children are often times staying with grandparents who are very old because they are their only surviving relatives, and do not have any source of income. These children walk barefoot, lack scholastic materials and study in congested classes.
The only food available at school every day is the standard Maize flour/Posho with beans. Though this is welcomed with open hands, this may be the only meal of the day for these children, and is not a balanced diet. If land was available, they would be enjoying a balanced diet of vegetables, potatoes, bananas and fruit.
The school still has a long way to go:
- The school is in dire need of more classrooms and dormitories in the near future
- Some of the buildings are in dire state, with no good drainage systems and furniture for all the students
- The sanitation units are very few as compared to the population of students who use them; and are not constructed to standard, posing as a threat for disease transmission
- Some of the classroom floors are bare with no cement
- Access to fresh drinking water is almost extinct. The facility needs an overhaul
- Most girls in the school cannot afford sanitary wear, this reduces retention in school due to stigma from other students especially the boys. Alternative sources need to be sought so that the girls can have an equal opportunity to study and compete in exams
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AFFBF, Inc. proceeds go to support The Father Bash Foundation in Mbarara, Uganda. AFFBF, Inc. is authorized by Father John Baptist Bashobora and is not associated with any other groups in the USA.. AFFBF, Inc is an all volunteer organization. American Friends of the Father Bash Foundation, Inc. 6525 Pine Meadows Drive - Spring Hill, FL 34606 Established by Sister Margaret Catherine Sims on June 15, 2006 |
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