Our Partnership with Abide Family Center

Over 56% of Uganda’s population is under the age of 18. Among these 17 million Ugandan children, 11.3% are orphans, and 8% of children are considered critically vulnerable. One of the reasons for this vulnerability is the high number of children born with HIV/AIDS and/or having an HIV positive parent. Low-income families feel that they have few options to provide financially for their children, and some make the difficult decision to leave their children in an orphanage in hopes that they will receive what they need.  Empowering mothers to become economically self-sufficient is critical to keeping families together.

We’re partnering with Abide Family Center to offer income-generating programs so that parents and children in eastern Uganda are able to stay together. Through the project, 100 mothers are enrolled in a 5-week program that includes classes on parenting, health, and business management. The program will culminate with each mother starting her own small business under the guidance of Abide staff. To date, among the 366 mothers supported by Abide Family Center, 79% are successfully small businesses and 80% have enrolled their children in school!