Family Participation Model Of Sponsorship
For as long as Children of Uganda’s (COU) history, we have run a fully funded sponsorship model with school fees paid 100% by the organization through the generous support of our sponsors..
We are now in the process of a major paradigm shift. Most recently, we reached the decision to establish a new Family Participation Model which is a cost sharing system. This decision was reached in consultation with locally based organizations who utilize this same model, including Compassion International, Vision for Africa, Mercy Ministries and ARMS, among others.
Effective for the 2024 school year, parents and guardians of our sponsored students will be expected to share the cost of their children’s education with COU by contributing approximately 20% of school fees. This will give families sufficient notice to prepare financially and to have any concerns addressed ahead of time.
Family Empowerment is our #1 objective and we are confident that this next step towards independence and accountability is necessary to advance our mission.
We have had many discussions among our staff, partner schools and organizations, as well as local community leaders and came to this decision together. We believe it will help achieve the following:
• Begin to break the “dependency syndrome” whereby families are relying solely on COU to meet the needs of their children. Many are simply too relaxed and are not playing their role as guardians because they have no financial investment in their student’s education.
• Establish a true partnership between the organization and our families – working together to educate and uplift Uganda’s future leaders.
• Motivate our students to work harder and to value their education even more because they will see the sacrifices their family is making for them.
• Improve sustainability across our programs. The cost of full sponsorship is ever-increasing and is quite a heavy load on us as an organization. Sharing the cost of education with guardians will allow us to invest in more empowerment projects that benefit entire families.
It’s important to note that 2024 will be a pilot year for the new Family Participation Model. Its viability will be tested to establish what works and what may not, what is likely to be sustained and what isn’t, it’s short and long-term benefits, etc. Data will be recorded throughout the academic year and an evaluation will be carried out at the end of 2024 to ascertain the best way forward.
Sponsorship fees will remain at the current level to ensure that no child is dropped due to their family’s non-compliance. It will take a lot of effort to get our guardians fully on board, but we are confident it will be worth all that effort. Again, sharing the cost of education with our families has tremendous benefits.
Our hopes for the future include more empowerment camps for students, income-generating activities for parents and guardians, as well as advanced healthcare and counseling for youth and their families.
All of us here at COU are excited about our shift and we are looking forward to embracing the future together with our beneficiaries, sponsors, donors and stakeholders. We thank you for your continued loyalty and support.
Kind Regards,
