BACKGROUND

Hope Academy School is a project of the CWOI, a women’s organisation whose purpose is to empower women by helping them realise their purpose in life, potential and inner worth.

Like Joanna, there are so many children out there who have dropped out of school because they are not able to pay school fees.

Pastor Chinyere, commonly known as Centia (Innocentia), visited the village of Saragoit (nicknamed Budalangi) in Kenya. The village looks like a forgotten land. The first time Centia went there was in 2009, on a school day, at 11 a.m. To her surprise, she was met with hundreds of children, ranging from age 3 to 16. Concerned about the situation, she sought to know why the children were not in school, only to find out that the children could not go to school because of distance, safety and poverty. The nearest school was about 5 miles away; hence, children under the age of 12 could not walk that distance. The children were also required to cross a river on their way to school and back, which posed a serious threat to their lives. Furthermore, those who were old enough to walk to school were not in school because their parents could not afford to pay a small amount for school fees.

Touched by the plight of Saragoit, a strong desire to provide the village with a school grew in Centia – children are our future, and we all need to invest in their lives for a better world. As a result, we started Hope Academy School in the village, to ensure that the children there have access to education. Having started with five classrooms, the academy is fast developing into a fully-fledged educational institution.