Looking Forward

As Faraja enters its third decade, the Faraja Fund Foundation is expanding its reach to serve thousands more disabled children and families in Tanzania. We will create a Faraja ecosystem in which we support and partner with local schools, churches, health care providers and communities to expand services to a broader universe of children with physical disabilities.

Our 20-year track record gives us confidence for continued success in our expanded mission. For families in Tanzania, we hope to turn the despair and challenge of a disabled child into a promise of hope, health and fulfillment.

The need is urgent, and we know how to make a difference.

Faraja Forward: The Background

As we neared Faraja’s 20th anniversary, we began to examine what else could be done to help more children with disabilities in rural Tanzania. How could we expand the dream, fueled by the belief that all children deserve the opportunity for full and productive lives, regardless of their limitations? Armed with two decades of knowledge, experience and relationships, we sought to expand beyond Faraja Primary School, to move forward from serving hundreds of children with disabilities to serving thousands. This new mission is called Faraja Forward.

Faraja Forward: Assessing the Need

It is well documented that the incidence of children with disabilities is extraordinarily high in Tanzania. The research shows that there continues to be dramatic burdens for children with disabilities and their families. This is particularly true in villages where poverty is rampant and children with disabilities struggle with discrimination, abuse and often abandonment by one or both parents. The feeling of hopelessness for these children and their families is crushing.

There is a need for funding of services and equipment in the poorer villages. These services include health care, surgeries, physical therapy, mobility devices such as wheelchairs, access to education and vocational training, and programs for emotional support.

Faraja Forward: Expanding the Vision to Reach Thousands

There are existing Tanzanian organizations that serve children with disabilities; however, these organizations are not prioritizing and reaching thousands of disabled children in need who often live in the poorest areas of the country. As a result, these children and their families are without desperately needed health care services, mobility devices, education, emotional counseling and community support.

The Faraja Fund Foundation will partner with existing Tanzanian organizations to extend their reach to the unserved. We will collaborate with committed partner organizations to expand the reach of a broad range of support, including education, health care, and spiritual and emotional

Faraja Forward: Expanding the Vision to Reach Thousands

The goal of Faraja Forward is to raise $2.5 million. Funds will support priorities in each of our three areas of focus:

Continue the Faraja Legacy

Your support will help to jumpstart the innovative Faraja Forward partnership, enabling dedicated organizations to join forces, coordinate efforts, and best serve Tanzanian children with physical disabilities as they build meaningful lives of capability. Will you join us?