Purpose for the TripThe purpose for this trip was to view firsthand the situation in Kiryandongo Refugee Camp in the Bweyale region of western Uganda, where some 53,000 South Sudanese refugees are living. These people have fled the warfare resulting from the incursion of Muslim militia fighters from Sudan in the north, but they are also running away from intertribal warfare within South Sudan itself. The y have found their way over the border into Uganda, where the United Nations and the Ugandan government have set up 13 camps like Kiryandongo, which is the largest one.When I began organizing Africa Sunrise Communities and trying to decide what my focus should be in working with my own people, I had thought that my mission was to return to Uganda to work within this refugee camp in setting up an elementary school, teaching the children, and, through them, begin to reach their parents with Christ’s message of peace and reconciliation. However, this trip showed me that there are already educational opportunities available for children in the camp.
Conditions Within the Camp Several organizations are working within the camp. These include the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, International Rescue Committee, Windle Trust International, and several others.This Kiryandongo refugee settlement is on 27 square miles and contains a total of 18 “clusters.” Clusters are structured and designed to ease management of people and are basically smaller groups of people, families living together with an elected leader and supportive community structures.There is now much more tribal diversification in the camp than what I found when I was there last in 2014, though the Dinka and the Nuer tribes are still the largest groups.Living conditions are very primitive, with no running water or electricity. Homes are mostly mud huts. There are many water wells available, so water does not seem to be in short supply.There are schools, all of which charge at least a minimal tuition fee, even if they are called “free” schools. All children must purchase uniforms to attend school. School fees for children are typically about $12 tuition per child per month. One uniform costs around $9.School materials, such as chalkboards, textbooks, exercise books, etc., are procured by the United Nations. Because of all the variety of dialects spoken within the camp, the schools are taught in English. Most of the orphan children are out of school, as they have no one to pay their tuition and fees and to buy them uniforms.
Orphans Will Become My New FocusI learned that the one group that is not being served well in the camp is that of young orphans. These boys and girls have lost their families to war and have fled alone to the refugee camp, much as I did at the age of 7 when war first broke out between Sudan and South Sudan. While they may be assigned in the camp to other families in which to be raised, the truth is that many of these children end up abandoned and having to fend for themselves. I am beginning to see that my focus should be on these children.From what I could find out, the official number of orphan children is 1,800 within the camp, but the chances are good that there are many more not included in this official count.These children are in need of a place of their own – a safe place to sleep, where they can be taken care of, with food available, with the means to go to school, and a place to come back to after school. Group homes seem to me to be the best way to care for the children. A group home would house 10-12 young children, ages about 4-10. Setting up such a group home will involve renting a dwelling within the camp and hiring a woman or a couple to be houseparents to see to the needs of the children.Where Do I Go From Here?It is necessary for me to set up a local non-government organization (NGO) with a different name, as my American-based Africa Sunrise Communities will not be recognized in Uganda. My local Ugandan organization’s name will be “Rising Hope Africa.” One of the reasons for my trip to Uganda was to begin the process of setting up this organization and registering it with the Ugandan authorities. The registration process is complicated by the fact that I am not a Ugandan citizen. I am in the process of filling out the registration forms and sending them back to Kampala, the capital of Uganda. Each step in this process calls for the payment of fees, such as the $150 registration fee, which I must send back with the papers.When Rising Hope Africa is registered in Uganda, I will have to set up a physical office in Kampala, which is about 3 hours away from the camp. This means renting office space there. The office will need to be staffed, at last minimally. This demonstrates to the Ugandan government that my intentions are to stay in Uganda and to work with government and other officials within the refugee camp. I will be partnering in every way possible with the Ugandan government and the United Nations and other NGOs working there.How You Can Help 
I am currently raising support to enable my family and myself to relocate to East Africa. As my family will not be living within the refugee camp themselves, I must set up a home for them, in Uganda or in Kenya, and send my children to school. I myself will also not be living in the refugee camp, but must find lodging nearby.It will cost $100,000 for the first year. This amount includes travel to Uganda, renting and setting up a home there, getting the children settled in school, finding a place for me to live, setting up an office in Kampala, renting and setting up an orphan group home in the refugee camp, hiring houseparents, in-country transportation costs, my salary, and ministry expenses. After that, my personal expenses will be $50,000 per year (including salary, living expenses, transportation, fees, etc.,) and the cost for running one group home will be $30,000 per year. Africa Sunrise Communities needs partners who will come alongside and commit to this ministry. We need you to pledge to give regularly (monthly, quarterly, or yearly) at a level that you can give to sustain this work. If one hundred supporters would pledge to give $100 a month, that would provide funds for me to go back to East Africa and to begin the ministry to which God has called me. Will you partner with me to help the orphan South Sudanese refugee children in Kiryandongo Camp? Will you support me in my mission to bring hope, education, and the Good News of Jesus Christ to my people? May God bless you as you consider partnering with me in this work.Jacob Guot, Executive Director and Founder