History Of Errat Care Centre
In 2005, some friends from the Arusha region in Tanzania decided to combine their efforts to combat the problems they saw in the area surrounding Arusha. Researching conditions in the villages beyond Kwa Mrombo led them to believe they could do much to improve the quality of life for many people. Both children and adults were found to be severely deprived, suffering from a variety of health problems and social disadvantages. Local customs often contribute to a cycle of illiteracy, unemployment and poverty. Local infrastructure prevents people breaking free of this cycle – there are no paved roads and no electricity, so television, newspapers and other media are expenses beyond people’s means and they remained unaware of the Government’s sparse offerings for schooling and healthcare, which are several hours walk or a prohibitively expensive bus ride away.
The organization Errat Care Centre (ECACE) was formed by Teddy Nkwama and Rose Mroso through their own financial contributions, private donations and local government, and for several years they worked to provide basic needs such as clothing and food, also improving villager’s knowledge of many issues. The organization campaigns on behalf of the people to raise their political presence and give the vulnerable a more powerful voice. They are passionate about providing basic education in Kiswahili, English and Mathematics to children between the ages of 3 and 7 as there was no provision in the area, and no schools within practical distance with affordable costs.
In 2007 due to diligent lobbying, advocacy and campaigning the group received a grant of Tsh 2,044,000 from the Regional Facilitating Agency (RFA) under the CARF Basket Fund. It was spent on providing nutritious food for children and workshops for local leaders.
It soon became clear that for legal and practical reasons they would need to be registered as an official Non Governmental Organisation. On 4th June 2008 Errat Care Centre was granted NGO status under Section 12 (2) of Act No. 24 (2002).
Objective Of Organization:
- Ensure our existing provision for food, clothing and body lotion (important for the health of African skin) as well as our information sessions can continue uninterrupted.
- Build a floor and a toilet at the school building so people have a higher standard of hygiene at the centre. Further improvements to the building structure would include extra classrooms, more desks, glass windows and weatherproofing.
- Obtain the financial means to provide our students with extra food at the school such as porridge to ensure they have a higher standard of nutrition. For many children this is incredibly important as families live “hand to mouth”.