The UAC Child Sponsorship Program

Every year concerned international donors make it possible for children living in Buea to attend Jamadianle School. Without sponsorship these children would either be forgotten in large government classes, or they would not be able to attend school at all because their parents cannot afford basic requirements like food, books and uniforms. The United Action for Children (UAC) Child Sponsorship Program offers you a chance to make a meaningful difference in the life of a child.

How it works

The UAC Child Sponsorship Program was created in 2005 by a Dutch volunteer named Silvy Sas. Since then, 42 children have been sponsored, and we aim to get sponsorship for another 30 young students for the school year 2007-2008. The program pairs a child with a sponsor parent who sponsors a child for a minimum of one year, through one of three categories (see below) to attend Jamadianle. Following the first year sponsors are requested to renew their funding for subsequent years. A child will be selected by the school’s administration for sponsorship if one or more of the following circumstances apply:

only one parent takes care of the child,
one of the parents is chronically ill or disabled,
the parents have more than 6 children,
the child needs extra help because of health problems, learning disabilities etc.,
the parents have demonstrable economic problems,
the child is an adopted orphan.

Types of Sponsorship and Costs

In the Jamadianle sponsorship program is divided into three categories: A, B and C. The following are the prices for the 2007-2008 academic school year:

Category A - complete sponsorship This is set up for children in the most difficult situations. Costs: 125,753 FCFA (or €192 or £130 or US$246) per year or 10,480 FCFA (or €16 or £11 or US$20.50) per month. This includes:

tuition
a meal and drink every school day
school uniforms
text & exercise books
transport costs (school bus)*¹
administrative costs for the sponsorship program (mailing, pictures, paper for drawings, and school report)

*¹ MIVA Netherlands and MIVA Switzerland donated buses to guarantee safe transport for the children from and to the new school campus. However, UAC is struggling to cover the fuel costs.

Category B - complete sponsorship without transportation fees Costs: 98,753 FCFA (or €150 or £112 or US$192) per year or 8,229 FCFA (or €12.50 or £9.30 or US$16) per month. It includes the same as category A, except for the transportation costs.

Category C - assisting sponsorship This helps parents to offset school fees. Costs: 61,353 FCFA (or €93 or £63 or US$120) per year or 5,112 FCFA (or €7.75 or £5.25 or US$10) per month. This category includes:

tuition
a meal and drink every school day
administrative costs for the sponsorship program (mailing, pictures, paper for drawings, and school report)

Our Promise to Sponsor Parents

As a sponsor parent, you can rely on:

an annual update about the child’s progress in school, including an updated picture
a letter or drawing made by the child, bi-annually
being able to contact the child, the child’s family or the sponsorship coordinator

Contact UAC

Please don’t hesitate to contact Joan Arrey, our sponsorship coordinator at uacsponsorship@yahoo.com. We will be happy to answer any questions, or to send you a profile of current sponsorship candidates and/or a detailed breakdown of the costs of the sponsorship program.