About Kids For Kids

Kids for Kids was founded to provide sponsorship for education of children living in poor areas of Sub Saharan Africa- empowering them with the tools to build better futures for themselves. This is done through partnering schools here in Canada with primary schools in Africa, empowering our own Canadian students to think globally. Schools then take on a fundraising plan to support the school they are sponsoring. Kids for Kids will act as the liaison and offer support to the Canadian schools.

Our specific purposes are:

• to nurture social responsibility and global citizenship in school children in Canada through partnerships between Canadian schools and schools in Sub Saharan Africa;
• to provide financial support for children at school in Sub Saharan Africa, including but not limited to lunch programs, school supplies, materials, fees, uniforms and teacher salaries through educational and community events in Canada, and
• to address the Millennium Development Goal of free primary education for all through engaged citizenship in Canada.

Throughout the process the children assume ownership of the relationships.

Fall 2009 Newsletter ...

Embrace Rwanda 2009

This July Brenda and Bari were lucky enough to join Carolyn's team to Africa! We visited all of the projects, here are the updates!

Kenya - Project Hope

Tumaini School now has 237 students enrolled! Within the next month construction will begin on the new school building, very near the current site. This will give the school more classroms so up to 385 students can enrol. It will also enable the school to register with the government and graduate students from a recognised high school program. There were 70 students new students needing sponsorship at Tumaini. Kids for Kids made a committment to pick up 25 new students which are availble now for sponsorship!

The Tuamini Bead Co-operative is going strong, made up mostly of parents from our school it now consists of 8 members. They have rented a store front and display their craftmanship to the locals, but the bulk of their business comes from sales from Kids for Kids and our Belgian counterparts. There is now a group of parents who have started a tailoring business. They make wonderful African shirts. We have brought back some to sell.

Rwanda - Kigeme Primary and Secondary

Prior to our trip we were successful at getting 100% of our secondary students sponsored! This is a first since the inception of Kids for Kids! We met with lots of the students we are sponsoring and Time after time we heard how sponsorship changed their lives. Prior to sponsorship they spent all their energies trying to find school fees instead of studying. Thank you all! You are changing lives!

While we were visiting this year we took part in community service day and helped to clear the plot of land where another new school building will be built. This will house Form 2. Rwanda continues to move to increase the years of free education, currently to Form 1 and next year to Form 2. By 2011 Rwanda will be able to say that the first 9 years of schooling is available to all children without school fees being charged! Beyond Form 3 (Grand 9 level students will need to pay fees to attend school to study to go onto College).