Two days ago i visited a family deep in one of the villages outside of Soroti Town. There i met Esther and Alice who have just arrived from a place called Amuria the day before. Esther and Alice were brought here by someone who needed help with his garden. The garden has been growing a lot of weeds and he needs workers to weed and harvest when the time comes.
Esther is 15 years old and Alice is 14 years old. Esther has never been to school and she has four brothers living at home. Initially there were 11 siblings in her family but six of them have since passed because of hunger. She will love to go school despite her age as long as she gets the support to pay for it. Alice is in primary six but have to suspend school to travel to this village to make some money to support herself. She has nine other siblings and hope she can continue her education because that is the only hope for her family.
Esther and Alice live in a make-shift grass thatch house currently occupied by a herdsman and his family of six. They spend their day weeding and digging in the garden or traveling a long distance multiple times to fetch water for the herdsman’s family. They told me they are lucky if they get a meal for the day. They were dressed in clothes held together by threads and some not fitting at all. They told me the clothes they have on are the only one they have and that they will have to wash and wear it wet each time because there is nothing else to cover themselves with.
Shelter, clothes, and hunger are not the only dangers facing Esther and Alice. These girls, as young as they are susceptible to sexual predators in this region. Where they currently live offers them no protection at all. The person who brought to work in his garden lives many miles away in Soroti town and will seldom come to check on them. Because of the degree of financial needs facing them, they are also vulnerable to becoming prostitutes. With very little money, girls like them are taken advantage of and eventually will end up with a pregnancy or HIV.
It is because of people like Esther and Alice that MADI works in Africa. Hundreds and thousands of girls are currently in the same situation. If you are reading this blog and feel compelled to change the fate of these two girls, please i beg you to not hesitate to do so. They are desperately in need of your help and for $45 a month for each girl, they can enroll into a boarding school where they can be offered shelter, food, and clothing and most importantly, protection from a destructive life style and a chance for a good education and the means to end the cycle of poverty.
During our conversation they begged me not to forget them when i go back. They asked me to help them and get them out of that village which i was not able to at the time. I prayed with them and as i was leaving, i could see them crying and i felt so helpless that all i could do was also cry. I am hopeful that someone will read this and have compassion in their heart to help Esther and Alice. Please make a difference in someone’s life today!