EASTERN AFRICA:
Partnering with the Poorest of the Poor
The Marianists minister in Kenya, Malawi and Zambia, where they face the challenges of hunger and malnutrition, unspeakable poverty, the AIDS pandemic, and little education. The Marianists meet the challenge by sponsoring three schools, a parish, and three skills training centers.
In Nairobi, Kenya:
Our Lady of Nazareth Primary School
Our Lady of Nazareth is located in the middle of Nairobi’s largest and worst slum named Mukuru, where 350,000 people struggle to survive. In Swahili, mukuru means "garbage dump." The roads there are unpaved and pungent smells of excrement and wood fires fill the air. Ramshackle houses of tin, plastic, and wood have dirt floors, no running water, no sanitation, and no electricity! Hunger, disease, and physical and sexual abuse of children are common.
The only way out of this wretched place is education. Thus, the importance of Our Lady of Nazareth School where 1,800 slum children are enrolled! For these children, OLN is the only means of breaking the ugly cycle of poverty in which they were born.
How you can help: Sponsor a child for $125, which pays a year's tuition and one hot meal a day. For most of the children, it is the only food they will eat that day. You will receive the name and a photo of the child whom you are sponsoring. A donation of $600 sends a deserving OLN graduate to high school for one year. The Marianists rely almost exclusively on donations to keep OLN’s doors open.
Sponsor a child as a gift: For Christmas, birthdays or other special occasion you can give the gift of a sponsored child. A special gift card and the photo of the child will be sent. The recipient of your gift will receive two letters from the child during the year.
Learn more about Our Lady of Nazareth
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IMANI
(In the Kiswahili language of Eastern Africa, "imani" means faith, while the acronym IMANI stands for Incentive from the Marianists to Assist the Needy to be Independent.) IMANI's ministries include the Chaminade Training Center and Maria House.
Chaminade Training Center is an outreach program to young men and women that provides the opportunity to learn trade and life skills to become employable and able to support their families. In addition, IMANI’s job creation program teaches business skills and provides job placement service to its students while also providing loans to assist some of them in establishing their own small enterprises.
Maria House stands as a beacon of hope for very poor, unwed mothers and pregnant women. It was first established 20 years ago in response to the terrifyingly high abortion rate among poor slum-dwellers. The programs at Maria House offer hope for women in distress by empowering them through skills training to create a better future for themselves and their children. Over the years, Maria House has helped thousands of women to become self-reliant and economically self-sufficient. It is “Mary’s House” where women find hope and acceptance!
Partner with the Poor at IMANI - DONATE NOW!
In Mombasa, Kenya:
Marianist Development Project
Much like our programs at IMANI, the Marianist Development Project offers skills training to unemployable young people to empower them to become financially self-sufficient. Located in the Bombolulu slum, MDP has become a center for youth who struggle just to subsist, at best. Here, they learn psychosocial, trade, and business skills needed for employment. Through the job creation program, graduates are placed in full-time jobs or they are assisted in starting their own small enterprises.
St. Martin de Porres Parish
In this very poor parish of more than 3,000 families, the Marianists provide sacramental and evangelization ministry in the heart of the Bombolulu slum. Food assistance and other outreach programs are integral to the ministry at St. Martin de Porres.
Partner with the Poor in Mombasa - DONATE NOW!
In Karonga, Malawi
MIRACLE (Marianist Institute of Rural Artisans for Christian Life Education)
Malawi, the second poorest country in the world, has a population of 11 million people of whom more than one million are orphans. The life span in Malawi is only 38 years and two-thirds of Malawians live on less than 50 cents a day. Amid this misery, there is MIRACLE because we believe that empowering the youngest and the poorest is the best way to heed Jesus’ words that when we do it for the least of our brothers and sisters, we do it for him.
MIRACLE is a job skills training program for unemployable orphans who have lost their parents to the AIDS pandemic sweeping sub-Saharan Africa. Integral to MIRACLE is religious and value education. The curriculum also includes modern farming skills and low-cost irrigation techniques to help these young people become food sufficient by raising their own vegetables. Each day, students are fed a hot meal of beans and cornmeal which, for most, is the only food they will eat that day.
Upon the completion of two years of training, these young men and women are placed in apprenticeships for six months and then assisted in securing jobs or in starting their own small businesses. With employable skills, small loans, and gifts of work tools, miracles happen. Despair is replaced by hope.
Partner with the Poor at MIRACLE- DONATE NOW!
Chaminade Secondary School
Established in 1963, this high school is a national boarding school for boys. Even though its facilities of concrete floors and concrete blocks are deplorable, it nevertheless is ranked academically among the top schools in Malawi. Because of the pervasive poverty in the country, few students can afford the full tuition and boarding fees which are only $54 a term. There are 300 boarding students, 40 percent of whom have lost one or both parents to the AIDS pandemic.
In 2000, an academic program in reading, math, and language skills was added for both boys and girls in the Karonga area who do not pass the government exams to be admitted to a secondary school. These children are accommodated after the regular classes end for the day. All of these children depend on financial aid to further their education.
Partner with the Poor at Chaminade Secondary School - DONATE NOW!
