The Margaret Okari Children's Foundation is dedicated to educating and caring for orphans in rural Kenya. We operate a residential school in the Kisii hills where we serve more than 220 orphans and vulnerable children from preschool through 8th grade, providing them with a nurturing home, food, medical care, and one of the best academic programs available in the region. We have also helped dozens of children attend secondary school and have two university graduates.
In rural Kenyan villages where people struggle to provide for their own basic needs, caring for orphans can pose severe hardship. Orphans often leave school, unable to afford school fees or forced to spend their days working. Child labor, abuse, early marriage, early childbearing, and low educational attainment are common. We intervene to alter the trajectory of orphans' lives, empowering them with a quality education, a supportive living environment, and the tools to build vibrant futures.
Recognizing the transformative power of education, we work to provide orphans with the best academic foundation possible. Each year since opening, we have ranked in the top 8% of 135 schools in our district on national exams. With an annual budget of less than $100,000, this means we consistently deliver one of the best academic programs in the region - while also providing a nurturing home for a vulnerable group of children - at a cost of less than $1 per child per day.
In the words of our Founder and Executive Director, Kwamboka Okari: "We believe that educating our orphans has the power to shape not only their destinies, but that the collective power of educated individuals can influence the destiny of Africa herself." As a foundation, we are committed to providing marginalized children with the opportunity to grow into educated, engaged, self-reliant citizens of Kenya and the world. We would be honored to have you join us!
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
