Bright Future Orphanage is a shelter for orphans in the area around Lake Bunyoni. HIV/Aids and other diseases are the main reason for the loss of family members/ parents of these children. In most cases their relatives don't have the financial and physical capability to care for them properly so they end up being rejected and or mistreated in a way that they need external help respectively are subject to the good will of their community. The orphanage supplies them with basic food and education. We are still working on a night shelter as well as constant medical care for the children who in many cases suffer from jiggers, disability, mental disorder and/or HIV/Aids.
Bright Future Orphanage was founded in 2015 by Bright Byamukama.
The orphanage is located in the mountain village of Kabungo, near Lake Bunyoni and not far from Kabale, the nearest major city.
Approximately 60 children aged 1-14 years find daily meals, minimal medical care and rudimentary education in the orphanage.
Most of the children have lost their parents (due to diseases like HIV, typhoid fever, cholera or malaria) and live with relatives who, however, place them under inhuman circumstances, since no resources are available and these families usually have to look after several children themselves.
From disregard over lacking love to torment, the children are not only healthwise but also mentally endangered. The children cannot go to school because of lacking school material, clothes and bad nutrition and they often suffer from diseases themselves. The children hardly ever get food from their relatives.
The communities of Buhumba, Kabera and Kyondo are direct neighbours of the orphanage. These communities suffer from heavy rainfall, also due to progressive climate change. These often lead to the destruction of property, severe erosion and crop failure. Hunger and diseases such as AIDS, malaria, dysentery, cholera are, as already mentioned, widespread in the region. There are no other NGOs nearby and the Bright Future Orphanage is the first orphanage of its kind in the area. There are some churches in the area, but religion is not a big issue and therefore their influence and support is scarce or non-existent. The people in East Uganda live together in small communities, independent of their religious backgrounds and shaped by ethnic tradition.
What can BFO currently achieve?
In the development of the orphanage Bright, with whom we work directly, faced a problem due to a lack of start-up capital. Rental costs and food costs are particularly difficult to pay. Children therefore tried to get something to eat in the direct neighbourhood, and since some people did not know what Bright was doing, attempts were made to sabotage his work. So far there has been no full acceptance of his work. Nevertheless, some neighbours have understood the importance of the orphanage for the children.
Through online portals, the founder himself has learned to speak English better and through a few simple exercises and songs has started to teach the children a simple knowledge. The children, who suffer from illnesses, improved above all also by the psychological care and demand lastingly their health condition.
Bight runs the orphanage alone (with our help) and has no financial means to hire workers. We would like to build a team, but at the moment it is really only about minimal needs: Food and care. However, there are many tasks for which we need helpers (e.g. trained teachers). Above all, we need our own land to build a school, dormitories, a clinic, water tanks and a library that would make the organization an educational center and not just a survival center.
We also need volunteers to help free of charge in various sectors. So far 67 children have been cared for in the orphanage and in the school in 2018. The children are divided into a baby group, a children group and a teenager group. The space is unfortunately limited. Some children are also exposed to child labour and some are ignored by their new forefathers. As already indicated, some children are forced to sleep on the floor without beds, which has led to wounds and injuries. There is also a not insignificant number of physically and/or mentally handicapped children in all groups.
