Busia, Kenya

For some time now we have been supporting a kindergarten and primary school in Busia, located in the western part of Kenya near Lake Victoria.

Prior to the arrival there, some forty years ago, of members of the Mill Hill Fathers, an English teaching order, there were no schools in this area. Starting from scratch the fathers were able to create a community centre to serve the educational needs of the children. This has grown quite sizeably in the meantime and currently there are two hundred and seventy five children attending kindergarten and primary school, of which seven are full orphans. Government funding is meagre and the centre depends on independent support to survive.

Our support goes towards affording these children with school fees, a school uniform, other clothing, school books and the very needy with lunch - often their main meal of the day.

There is no local industry and most of the people are subsistence farmers who depend on a small plot of land to feed their families. Money is scarce and most of them cannot afford even the smallest of school fees. AIDS is still a major problem and many orphaned children either live with a single parent or with the family of a relative. It is these children that we seek to support.

The kindergarten and school is run by Sister Maria Goretti Ingaso of the Sisters of Mary Order. Our support funds go directly to her so nothing is lost in administration.