The Work In Uganda

Pastor Paddy Luzige (pictured), who is the pastor of The New Life Church, a pentecostal church in a suburb of Kampala, is director of the work of Adoption Now! in Uganda.

Having been a "street-child" himself, he is fully aware of the problems and the needs that they face. This is what he has to say:

People think that it is poverty and AIDS that causes Ugandan children to leave home, but the problem goes beyond that. I have gone to rich families and have found out that they have lost kids to the streets, and seen that those children who have remained at home are miserable. Through approaching a number of them on the street and in homes I have identified that some of the things they want are:

• Self-esteem
• Meaningful time and conversation with someone they can trust and model
• Love
• A sense of belonging
• A sense of importance
• A sense of family

They need all the things that they were deprived of at home.

Many kids leave home because of rejection, neglect and abuse, so then their needs are primarily emotional, spiritual and psychological, not physical as so many take for granted. The lives of orphans and street-children are lives of hopelessness - unless someone gets involved.

Many of the girls are abused physically and sexually while living on the streets. Once they leave an orphanage, prostitution can become a way of life - in order to survive.

Hunger is a constant companion. Adequate clothing is always an issue. And if that were not enough, they are often considered social outcasts. Education is minimal. Sadly, even churches do not accept street-children with open arms.

Pastor Paddy has not sat back, like so many, not wanting to get involved. Not only is he actively involved in finding homes for street-children, he has taken in seven of them into his own home!

"Adopting" a child can make more of a difference than you can imagine, it can even change a nation! In November 2001, in Kampala we met Joan Kakwenzire who is in the Ugandan Government, she was an orphan whose school-fees were paid by some English girls, still unknown to her. She is now the President Museveni's advisor on poverty alleviation.