Education: The EITZ Chayim School

The Eitz Chayim Elementary School now has 423 Jewish, Christian and Muslim students (up from 168 in 2024, its 1st year)! The pre-K through 5th graders learn, eat breakfast and lunch, and play together! Teachers work hard, care deeply and celebrate their students’ success. The students work hard too, learning reading, writing,& social studies, arithmetic & science, English, Hebrew, Judaic studies,arts and sports. 

What now? This year, all current classrooms are in use – and all still need: plaster and paint, solar lights, & furniture! Two more classrooms are needed next year.  A kitchen, a bore-hole for clean water, a second acre, and a fence to protect the entire complex are crucial.   More books, sports, arts and other learning materials are required to meet government standards for schools. Scholarships for Abayudaya families that cannot afford tuition will change lives, and the Abayudaya’s future! 

Education …agricultural improvements…and growing entrepreneurial opportunities This, Ezra Uganda’s 10th Anniversary year, is an ideal time to make it happen! You can help make it happen.

Health: Mosquito Nets & Bug Spray

We have provided dozens of mosquito nets to Namutumba families to help protect them from contracting malaria through mosquito bites during the night. However, a net is needed for each bed in the village. Moreover, each net only lasts three years, and many of the nets we previously provided now need replacing. We're currently working on gathering enough funding to provide the whole village with new nets, as well as bottles of bug spray to protect residents during the day. 

Jewish Life: Shabbat Meals

Since its founding in 2016 Ezra Uganda has funded provision of communal meals for Shabbat, festivals, and the High Holidays. Shared meals are an ancient Jewish tradition that now, as always, embody the spirit of Shabbat and holidays. They bring joy, help build community, and provide learning opportunities. But in Namutumba, these meals do even more: since many of the Abayudaya don’t have enough to eat, these meals also contribute significantly to better health. The meals are simple (though cooking for 100’s of people over open fires is not!) but are like Manna from heaven, and donors to Ezra Uganda are the angels who make them possible. 

Entrepreneurship: The Women's Sewing Project

Like millions of people world-wide, many Ugandans enjoy fashion. Several participants in Namutumba’s Abayudaya women’s group, wanting to learn to sew, proposed that we fund a sewing project. With our support, they bought machines, hired teachers, and spent months developing sewing skills. They have now started sewing clothing for retail sales.  They’re on the road to a self-sufficient business!

Education: Machine Repair

Soon after the sewing project began, another, related entrepreneurial opportunity arose. The participants learned that when the machines broke, getting them fixed was expensive, and no one could do it locally, making it even more expensive. Repeated problems led  participants to decide that, to save money, a group member needed to learn to repair the machines. They nominated a young male sewer who had unexpectedly joined the group. He had enough schooling to succeed and no responsibilities that would interfere with the training.  The Community Council approved their choice. Once he completes the training later this year he will be responsible for keeping the community machines in good repair; he’ll also be able to start a local machine repair business that will lead to further income.

Entrepreneurship: Agriculture

In 2026, volunteer experts with business expertise will assist the Community in exploring the potential impact of purchasing and operating a mill within the Abayudaya Granary that was built with Ezra Uganda support a few years ago. Currently, farmers must hire trucks to transport their harvest to the nearest mill at great expense. Then they pay for the milling process and the return trip. These expenses can mean there isn’t enough to eat much less to sell. 

Community leaders have asked about support for purchasing a mill. The estimated cost at the end of 2025 was US  $15,000. Having their own mill at least could reduce the milling transportation costs not only for the farmers, but also for the Eitz Chayim School. Could having a mill lead to development of a successful business? Exploring this question may lead to a potential business. It also would provide useful experience in developing business plans that could also lead to the development of other businesses.