Organization: Uganda Orphans Fund
Country: Uganda
Currently, Uganda has 2.5 million orphans. Conservative estimates predict this number will grow exponentially as the AIDS epidemic sweeps a whole generation of parents away. The average Ugandan family has 7 children. When parents die, their children are too great a burden for extended family to carry. Relatives already struggle to provide for their own. As a result, the children are farmed out to different family members in diverse locations. Therefore, an orphaned child loses not only his parents, but often his siblings as well. Some are treated poorly by resentful relatives. Others try to survive on the streets. In all respects, they are outcasts. Uganda Orphans Fund (UOF) is dedicated to the care and shelter of these orphans. Their aim is to rescue, stabilize, nurture and educate as many orphans as possible. Their motivation is love. These children are Uganda’s future leaders.