Teenager raises money to help an orphanage build a primary school in Tanzania

Nineteen-year-old Palea Ilinca who is originally from Romania went to Tanzania during her gap year.

She joined an organisation called Plan My Gap Year (PMGY) and went to do a childcare programme at Rafiki Day Care, an orphanage.

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It was there she met the principal, Mr Joseph, who has been fighting for years to get the funds to build a free primary school for the children so that they can all get their right to education.

Palea Ilinca at the orphanage

Since then she has set up a fundraising page in a bid to help him reach this goal.

She said: “The aim of my fundraiser is to raise money to support the day care centre because these children only receive education until the age of five. After that the principal has to find people to support the children every year [to go primary school].

“Primary school costs $1,234 per child per year, which does cover accommodation and food but it is still very hard to find.”

She hopes the money she raises can help them buy land to build the school.

Kids at the orphanage

She added: “It is very sad that some of the children don’t get to be sponsored at the end of the year.

“There are still 13 children who have not received any sponsorship but if he opens his own primary school then all of those children from the past and from the present will get the education that they deserve."

Ilinca, who is currently visiting the orphanage said it is an amazing experience.

Palea Ilinca pictured right.

She said: “It is such a joy, and it is absolutely incredible because everything that they learn is through songs and dance.

“Every time one of the children does something well, they have this little chant that they sing to support the other one and it is so beautiful because they grow so much in confidence.”

She said the children are often taught right from wrong because sadly “abuse is a very big problem in the area”.

She added: “These children are very vulnerable and they are teaching them this since they are very young.”

She said she has currently raised £6,031 to go towards building the primary school but also hopes to use the money for other things including paying staff salaries and purchasing food.

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The orphanage offers children high quality education, being able to get them to do two-digit divisions and to read and write in Swahili and English by the age of five.

The only current forms of income of the Rafiki orphanage are the volunteer donations, and the chicken project, whereby the principal owns a farm of chickens and sells eggs to raise money for food, school supplies, uniforms, and to pay the teacher salaries.

The orphanage is a non-for-profit organization that was officially established in 2018. Back in 2007, founders Joseph and Josephine were still working as school teachers in Arusha, they had a dream to open a childcare centre to care for the children in their community. Their vision was to assist struggling families in their community, by providing an opportunity for the women to go out, work, and earn a steady income for their families, all while their children were safe and in good care.

For more information and to donate, visit: rafiki-orphanage-and-day-care-centre.