About Uganda Orphans Fund

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The Cause
Currently, Uganda has 2.5 million orphans. Conservative estimates predict this number will grow exponentially as the AIDS epidemic sweeps a whole generation of parents away. The average Ugandan family has 7 children. When parents die, their children are too great a burden for extended family to carry. Relatives already struggle to provide for their own. As a result, the children are farmed out to different family members in diverse locations. Therefore, an orphaned child loses not only his parents, but often his siblings as well. Some are treated poorly by resentful relatives. Others try to survive on the streets. In all respects, they are outcasts.

In the north, many children have lost their families as the result of a 20 year war. They come from slum cities (IDP camps), initially created by the Ugandan government to protect citizens from the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a rebel group led by Joseph Kony. During the war, the LRA pulled young boys from their beds and forced them to be soldiers with a kill-or-be killed mandate. Countless girls were also kidnapped and used as sex slaves. Many have young babies though they themselves are still children. Some kids saw their own parents killed by the rebel army. The war has ended, but the kids left behind are traumatized beyond belief. Knowing only instability and terror since their abduction, they have reached the depths of despondency.

Our Vision
Founded in 2002 by Duncan Hill, Uganda Orphans Fund (UOF) is dedicated to the care and shelter of Ugandan orphans. Our aim is to rescue, stabilize, nurture and educate as many orphans as possible. Our motivation is love. We see these kids as Uganda’s future leaders.

Originally UOF partnered with other relief organizations and built 25 orphan homes in seven years, rescuing over a thousand kids. We left the ongoing care of the orphans to local church leaders, and other ministries in the area.

In 2006, UOF obtained “non-government organization” (NGO) status with the Republic of Uganda. This designation allows us to steward our own vision in caring for orphans.

Kasozi Village in Kamuli District is a prototype of the projects we hope to multiply. The village has 4 orphan homes, a school, a medical clinic, staff housing, a church, a soccer field and a large garden. Nearly 230 orphans live there along with 30 staff members (caregivers, teachers, a cook and a nurse). This diverse community represents three different tribes and has become one loving and cohesive family.

A typical orphan home costs $25,000 and houses 50-60 children. This includes beds, a latrine and a kitchen. Our next project is underway in the Gulu District up north where many war orphans are struggling to find their way. We hope to offer many of them a future and a hope.