Our Projects
EACP supports small impactful projects in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda that deliver real tangible benefits for children in need. Working with our local partners, and drawing on their local knowledge, we invest in much needed projects that create immediate and lasting change. Our projects focus on enrolling street children in school, addressing barriers such as the lack of school uniforms, improving learning environments with better materials and classrooms, and providing access to clean water and sanitation. Additionally, we empower families and communities through training, employment opportunities, and health awareness, ensuring long-term, sustainable benefits.
Key Initiatives
School uniforms​ and school enrolment
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Class learning materials​
To promote more effective learning in class EACP supports the purchase of new class materials to supplement existing limited stocks of school books. Each year our partner schools improve child attainment, and many more children reach the grades to progress to secondary school.
School meals locally produced
There is good evidence that better nutrition improves educational outcomes for
deprived children (World Bank, 2016). Since 2022, East Africa has been hit by the global cost-of-living crisis as food and energy prices have soared. This particularly affects poorer families who spend most of their income on food and energy. Our school meals programmes for around 1,700 children provide a locally grown nutritious school meal of maize, rice and beans, produced in simple school kitchens. This one meal a day improves child nutrition, encourages school attendance, raises educational attainment, and supports low-income families.
New classrooms
A new 4-classroom school block at Faith Primary School in Busia, in rural eastern Uganda, was recently completed. This new block represents a major improvement on their old stick and mud rooms with earth floors, infested with dust mites and infectious 'jigger' fleas, and no doors or window protection to keep out the wind and rain. Faith has seen a significant improvement in student learning outcomes and exam performance since becoming an EACP partner school
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After
Solar lighting in schools​ and homes
Global warming disproportionately impacts poor rural communities in East Africa. Most of our schools do not have access to mains electricity. Solar lighting is great for both schools and families. Some of the many benefits include: increased evening study time of 1-3 hours especially in winter; increased productivity of children and staff; health and wellbeing benefits from reduced kerosene use; cost savings; and improved safety and security from fire, animals, and snake bites at home and in the school compound. Also, families in East Africa spend up to a quarter of their weekly earnings on kerosene. Kerosene lamps are dangerous, expensive, and have serious adverse health and environmental effects (WHO, 2020). £10 will buy a study lamp for a child while a larger lamp (£30) will light a whole family room. Solar lighting brings people together and makes them feel safe after the sun sets.
New boreholes providing precious clean water
To improve community access to clean safe water we have supported three new borehole projects at Bugondha, Kimenyulo, and Nababirye Primary Schools, in Kamuli, Uganda, and refurbished the existing well at Joy School in Nairobi and HRCO in Uganda. This will reduce disease and illness and massively improve health outcomes for both children and the community.
Disability and access to education​
​Many children with disabilities in East Africa don't attend school because of stigma surrounding disability, inadequate facilities and lack of trained staff. EACP provided 10 wheelchairs and support to enable 10 children with physical disabilities to make it easier to attend school and to receive a full education, learn life skills and reach their full potential. We have also supported Let The Children Hear, a child hearing loss UK charity working in Kampala, to train local audiologists to support around 650 children with their speech and hearing.
Inspirational leaders who have known poverty
Rossholme, a partner school, was founded by Joyce Aruga and her colleagues. Joyce struggled to complete her primary education as she was blighted by severe family poverty. She was able to continue her secondary education by living and working as a house girl for a family as child labour. However, the financial struggle of attending school was so great that she dropped out of school.
In 2005 she was accepted by Tumaini Children's Home, who paid all her secondary School fees. Being a very successful student, she was then sponsored to complete her school teaching certificate at the Presbyterian Teachers College (Chogoria) in 2009. After graduating, she taught in 2 schools in Mathare – the second largest slum in Nairobi. In 2013, she attended the BBC’s 100 Women Conference in London and after impressing delegates received support to establish Rossholme School in 2016.
Sarah Waithaka who helped found Joy school in 2004 had a very deprived childhood and had to overcome many challenges to complete her education. As a child she fell into an open fire and had one arm amputated at the elbow. As a determined young woman she qualified as a teacher and her first post was in a school based in the slums of Nairobi. During these early years she became aware of the desperate need to provide quality education. With the help of friends, supporters and colleagues she established Joy School, supported by the School Board and the local community.
School homes for orphaned and vulnerable children
Two of our partner primary schools are also home for around 140 abandoned
orphans or children in care who have suffered abuse. To support the 50 girls and boys who currently live at Faith school we have replaced two dilapidated stick and mud dormitories with more permanent brick built accommodation with doors and windows to keep out wind, rain, and wild animals.
Joy School in Nairobi, with around 350 children, is also home to around 90 vulnerable children. Joy provides a caring and supportive environment for these children. We worked with Joy to build a new dormitory block with bunk beds for around 60 young girls aged 4-13 living at Joy. In the new dorm girls are much happier, and their learning and school attainment has improved. More importantly, these girls are safe and not at risk of abuse, domestic violence or living on the streets. The girls’ washroom block, linked to the new dorm, was also completed. This comprises 6 functional shower-toilet cubicles, and a clothes washing area.
Support for secondary school
School tuition costs are state supported in East Africa, but families still have to pay for additional school fees, uniforms, stationery and books. For example, it costs around £75 to equip a child for each year secondary school. This can be a real challenge for very deprived families. EACP assist selected children, who are academically able but very deprived, to take up hard won places at secondary school by purchasing school uniforms and textbooks including in maths, English, and science. These children are monitored, supported and mentored through each stage of their education to ensure success.
Mosquito nets
EACP help to support the provision of mosquito nets for around 150 vulnerable children who live in our partner school dormitories and to vulnerable newborns in local hospital maternity units. We reduce their risk of malaria and other infection, especially during the rainy season. Treated mosquito nets typically last around 2 years and need to be replaced regularly. This approximates to around 75+ per year on an annual cycle of renewal with our partner organisations. Treated bed nets are thought to be responsible for the lion’s share of the reduction in malaria cases worldwide since 2000. In 2018, there were 228 million malaria cases that led to 405,000 deaths worldwide, according to the World Health Organization.
