Kampala, March 09, 2022 – Sanlam Uganda, a group of leading diversified financial services in Uganda, has today announced a partnership with World Vision, a global not-for-profit organisation through which it will invest at least Ushs670 million towards the reconstruction of schools in Northern Uganda.
This is an effort to resuscitate the education sector and further enhance the quality of learning in the northern region.
At a press briefing to announce the partnership and investment, the CEO of Sanlam General Insurance Uganda, Mr. Gary Corbit, said the announcement was part of the Sanlam Uganda Inspire Initiative, the business’s umbrella corporate social investment arm.
The project is dubbed “Sanlam Blue Ladder Schools Programme”, a Sanlam Groupwide initiative through which Sanlam promotes quality education in Africa.
This has been made possible by our Sanlam Foundation Trust. The Sanlam Foundation Trust is a South African registered, non-profit developmental organisation that has over the last 10 years invested more than US$40million in the education sector, financial literacy initiatives, health (HIV/AIDS), enterprise and supplier development initiatives and employee volunteerism.
“I am excited to announce that we are partnering with World Vision a renowned not-for-profit organization, whose mission aligns with our Inspire Initiative’s intentions, to bring change to our education sector,” said Mr Corbit.
“Through our Sanlam Blue Ladder School Project, we are investing over Ushs. 670 million to help improve the learning environment in several schools and communities in Uganda.”
A number of sectors, including financial services, were disrupted and remain challenged due to the Covid-19 pandemic, while some have remained resilient.
One of the sectors that was not spared was the education sector. The sector was literary shutdown, leaving at least 15 million children in Uganda out of school for close to two years.
“Sanlam is cognizant of the fact that access to quality education in Uganda has not been a privilege for many children – especially in rural Uganda.
A number of students in rural areas have had to persevere with studying in dilapidated buildings or areas with barely a building, while some continue to learn under tree shades.
Yet, Goal 4 of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals calls for providing access to quality education to children across the world,” Mr Corbit said, adding that the investment announced today will be made over a three-year period and that with this investment, Sanlam Uganda is confident that the quality of education at the schools will improve tremendously.
Under this initiative, Sanlam’s first area of intervention is Lamogi-Omeny Kimac Primary School in Pader district in Northern Uganda, which was adversely affected by the pandemic, moving from bad to worse.
The grant to the school will go towards the reconstruction of the classroom facilities, the provision of scholastic materials to the pupils, and improving the teaching environment for teachers.
Speaking at the announcement of the project, World Vision Uganda’s Regional Programme Manager, Eric Okonye, emphasized the need for such projects in light of the current poor education most Ugandan students are subjected to.
He further noted that “the environment in which teaching takes place is a critical contributor to the children’s capacity to not only learn while in class but also attend school in the first place.
Dilapidated infrastructure means that when it rains or when it is hot, the lessons are interrupted and children are more likely to abscond or even drop out altogether.”
The phased-out project will have three buildings constructed which include a three-classroom block, a storage facility and an office which will be beneficial to students, teaching and non-teaching staff.
During the construction of these facilities, Sanlam through World Vision has sought to use professionals and top-notch engineers that will meet the standards of the project.
In addition to the buildings constructed, Sanlam Uganda will also provide scholastic materials to the primary school, in a bid to provide the pupils with proper reading materials that will aid them in their education journey.
Mr. Jason Evans, the World Vision Uganda National Director affirmed the organisation’s commitment to enabling children across the country to achieve their full potential.
“What this partnership does, is not only ensure that local corporations like Sanlam are directly involved in solving the needs of Ugandan communities, but that children such as the pupils of Lamogi-Omeny Kimoc get a fair chance at life through accessing education in an enabling environment,” he said.
