Educare Program Mission
To ensure that school-going children or students have access to quality education, keep in school, and complete with capacities that increase their competitive advantage in getting employed or creating jobs
1. Genesis and rationale
The Educare program is one of the original programs of TDF. But its actual development was fully initiated in late 2021 by Dr. Bosco Bwambale (founder and current board chair) who handed it over to the TDF Secretariate for implementation and optimization. The other people that participated not only in the development, but also in implementing this program are Ms. Miriam Biira (head of the finance department), Mr. Joseph Mutabingwa (Human resources department), Mr. Stephan Tembo (programs manager), and Ms. Bridget Chance (office admin).
The initiation of the Educare program follows the need to consort strategies of building resilient livelihoods in households of all members and other people related to TDF. This is continuously geared to solving the societal hazards related to poverty and economic vulnerability. This is in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 1). One of the best ways to do it is giving children a decent education to increase their employability as well as enhance their capacity to create jobs in the future (SDGs 4 and 8). Contributing to these SDGs, this program, therefore, sets out to not only provide fees for children; but also provide scholastic materials that enable these children to perform well in school and increase their capacities to be employed or create employment thereafter.
2. Practicalities on the source of funds
How does the Educare program operate? How do we get fees that we pay for the children under this program? How do we get scholastic materials for those children?
How does the Educare program operate? TDF, under the Educare program, pays school/tuition fees for the child on behalf of the parent/guardian for the period agreed on to make sure that the children remain in school. An MOU is then drawn with the school where the child studies to be paying the fees. Normally, fees are cleared at once per unit segment in the MOU. The parent pays back in small amounts at a very reduced interest and in a period that is suitable for them.
How do we get fees that we pay for the children under this program? Since the coming into existence of TDF in 2016, a savings scheme was initiated and has generated enough money that we lend to these members in their groups. It should be mentioned here that savings money belongs to members of TDF and other groups that are under TDF. Important to note here is that most of the members as well as other people we reach out to are not that well to do. In fact, some are too vulnerable as well as marginalized and poor. That is why we have a submission to reach a level where this money can be given as a soft loan and revolving fund for these members as we grow this program. Any donor support towards this submission is highly most welcome. Of course, other donations in terms of supporting these missions are welcome too. This can be in terms of the provision of specific scholarship material. Moreover, many parents still fail to meet the necessary scholastic materials as they try to pay back.
How do we get scholastic materials for those children? For the scholastic material: we still depend much on donations and well wishes. We are interested in supporting the teaching and learning of compulsory core subjects such as mathematics. Such subjects are core for employability. The focus is currently on mathematics: several scholastic materials that parents fail to meet. These materials include mathematical sets, scientific calculators, graph books, etc. We highly call on your support in the provision of these materials to our school-going children.
3. How to become a beneficiary and/or get involved
For a school-going child to benefit from this arrangement, their parents or guardian is required to be a member of one of the groups under TDF. The groups are terms COLIGs: Community Livelihood Improvement Groups. Alternatively, the parent or guardian can become an individual member of TDF, but that is more complex compared to when belonging to the group. For more information, please get to us through our Contact Us page.
To develop or donate a project on a scholastic material: please get in touch under our Contact Us page
In line with EDUCARE, and enhancing skills for a living, we are establishing and managing an academy, located in the Rwenzori. The academy’s name is THRIVE TRAINING AND EDUCATION CENTRE (TREC).