Encouraging our projects to be self-reliant.

St Zoe’s primary School was completed in 2007 and had an initial intake of just three classrooms. The school is now at the centre of a vibrant community with 400 pupils up to age 16, a vocational training centre, IT lab and land to produce much of its own food. The school is now self-funding, and apart from 8 pupils who HUGS sponsors, we contribute no regular financial support. We continue to be on hand to provide advice and support if requested.

HUGS has always supported our trusted advisors to aim towards self sustainability. The need for a good Educational and the barriers to schooling are great in Uganda and Rwanda. We are aware that HUGS money would be inadequate if it were used to pay for the running costs of a school.

Over the years we have worked with our partners to help them to generate income to supplement the students fees, and provide bursaries for the most impoverished. Most of the ideas about how to find resources to continuously improve the lives of our pupils come from local people, school staff and their management teams. They are a constant source of inspiration and creativity.

We have helped develop:

  • A two acre Coffee plantation at Little Shepherd School
  • The furniture building workshop at Good Shepherd School
  • Clothes manufacturing at St. Therese’s School.
  • Motor cycles available to rent out to local people.

Our sponsored university students are invited to contribute to the costs of younger school students when they qualify and begin their professional careers.

The relationships we have helped broker between organizations in the UK and the people in Uganda and Rwanda has lead to many sustainable relationships; such as the visiting team of eye specialist from the Moorfield Hospital who offer sight restoring surgery to the children we have assessed.

Because we work through trusted advisors our funds have never been misappropriated. We admit, at times money may have been spent more effectively, and we are honest and open to our sponsors about this, but we see this as inevitable when we are ‘in the business’ of creating new innovative ideas.