St Ritah School

Uganda is experiencing many social challenges

Like in the developed world, current social and economic trends are disrupting many existing child care arrangements in Uganda. Urbanization, work-driven migration and the increasing participation of women in the labor market are transforming family structures. A decline in extended families, armed conflicts, the HIV/AIDS pandemic and environmental degradation have resulted in large numbers of orphans and families confronted with major difficulties in the upbringing of young children. Family and community structures are evolving and Uganda is going through rapid social and economic changes, early childhood programmes complement the roles of parents and other caregivers in raising children during the early years.

 

Existing schools are grossly inadequate in Masaka

Masaka District, where the school will be located, has a total of 193,232 people. The community has many needy homesteads with over 5,206 orphaned children, and 2,316 disabled children. Large numbers of disadvantaged children cannot afford the education costs of the area, hence a need for an affordable model primary school to support and equip them with the necessary skills to reach their full potential. In the area there are currently 13 small, inadequate primary schools with no buildings, poor education standards, lack of good teachers, lack of safe water, lack of scholastic materials, and the few schools in the area are poorly located.

 

Early childhood development is crucial to uganda's future

Early childhood development is key to a full and productive life, and to the progress of a nation. When investments are made in mothers and young children, children’s risk of dying under the age of 5 is reduced, they stand a better chance of doing well at school and they are also more likely to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty. However, in Uganda, only a tenth of children between 3 and 5 years are enrolled in formal pre-primary education. Investing in the early years is not only in the best interest of children, it is also key to developing human capital. Uganda’s future as a middle income country depends on providing the tools for upward mobility and building an educated and skilled workforce. Building this school is one of the most efficient ways to accomplish this goal.

 

Project objectives

• Provide a safe environment for children to learn
• Build better language skills for students right from the beginning
• Provide physical well-being, social and emotional well-being and basic cognitive skills
• Create jobs for recent graduates who specialized in teaching
• Reduce dropout rates among orphans, those living with single parent, malnourished children and others
• Reduce the risk of having street children and child labor
• Give all children the chance to attend school
• Refresh our Community with the construction of a New School 
• Construct a model school that instills morals and a sense of discipline to our needy pupils

 

Timeline of the project

• Phase One (June 2024): will involve building the ground floor of the flat block, toilets and a kitchen. This will have four rooms on the ground floor to work as classrooms for baby class, middle class, top class and one room for administration. The kitchen will have modern stoves and storage, and rainwater harvesting will commence. The first beneficiaries will begin studying Jan 2026.
• Phase Two: will involve the building of the first floor and second Floor. The first floor will serve as a main hall or dining room and the second will be used as teacher's quarters.
• Phase Three: will involve building works on the ground floor and first floor providing seven classes for the primary section which will serve as classrooms from primary one to primary seven.
• Phase Four: will involve building a second floor and a separate block. The second floor will be a girl’s dormitory with a special room for their caretaker. The separate block will contain a library, a computer lab and a boy’s dormitory.

The land has been acquired & a budget crafted

A two acre plot of land has been acquired in the Mukungwe municipality of the Masaka district and a budget has been created for Phase One. The construction of the school will begin as soon as we raise the initial funding of $30,000 USD.