The Kisangaji Project is a 501(c)(3) public charity that helps support the village of Kisangaji, Tanzania by providing support to both the Primary School and the village of 4000 inhabitants. Founded in 2008 by Lisette Wright, the Project focuses on supporting the village's primary school and infrastructure needs. All proceeds raised go directly into supporting the village or into fundraising efforts. The Board of Directors is an all- volunteer Board whose reward is in helping those in this remote village thrive.
Our Mission Statement To aid in the development of the village Kisangaji, Tanzania by supporting the Kisangaji Primary School and to enhance the well-being of the villagers by providing assistance with basic health care and other needs. Every human being deserves a chance to thrive.
What Have We Done Since 2008? With our advocacy with the local government, your donations, and with significant private funding out of the Founder's pocket, these changes have improved village life in the last 13 years:
1. Village Infrastructure: 4 water wells, 1 solar-powered water well in construction, construction of three houses (one for a doctor and two for teacher's), classrooms, cement bridge over the River separating the village, and ongoing water-well maintenance. Electricity came to the village in late 2017. New teachers restrooms and medical clinical expansion and improvements have been made possible with the Projects funding.
2. Primary School: Textbooks, sporting equipment, desks, blackboards, classroom supplies, copier/printer, laptops, school uniforms and notebooks.
3. Medical Clinic: From 2008-2015, the medical clinic in the village was virtually abandoned and little used. After construction of the doctors house with project money in 2016, the government sent Stephan--the village doctor who has been there since 2017. In 2019, he and his wife had their first child and they have made a nice home for themselves next to the village dispensary (medical clinic). His education is the equivalent to the USA's physician's assistant. Supplies purchased by the Project for the dispensary including basics such as antibiotics, Tylenol, IV stands, blood pressure machines, unltrasound machines, syringes, and other items.
Access to clean water, a medical clinic, and electricity: YES, a lot has changed and been accomplished since 2008!
Want to volunteer, participate, or travel to Kisangaji? Contact Lisette Wright for information: help@kisangajiproject.org.
If you would like to contribute, your donation is tax deductible, 97-98% of the donation goes directly to Kisangaji. Just click below:
This section is under construction!
LATEST NEWS
2023 Updates
What's Happening in 2023
2023 Trip Report: The Project was again able to bring a substantial amount of donations into the village. Donations were used to accomplish the following: make improvements to the medical clinic by providing furniture and a large amount of day-to-day medical supplies, add solar panels to the medical clinic, pipe electricity to the primary school, provide for a solar-powered water pump from the water well to the school bathrooms, added the secondary school as a receiptient of project funding, and provide children with school uniforms and supplies for school operations including daily lunch for the students. One of Lisette's nieces came with her in 2023 and she now reports she has "the bug" to go back. There were a couple of bumps in the trip, and after days of consideration and reflection, Liz set for a new path forward for accountability at the Primary school. That was in September 2023. To date, all requirements for maintaining ongoing future Project donations to the primary school have been met, and exceeded. Stephan, the doctor, was reassigned to a different village and we said our good-bye's--- he was there for 6 years and grew the clinic to what it is today. I met his replacement and am further excited to report that the medical clinic now has running water--provided for by the government.
Medical Conditions found in the Village: Malaria, HIV, Typhoid, Worms, GI disease, urinary tract infections: these are the top medical problems the villagers face. And, there is still a substantial part of the population who view illness as a weakness and are ashamed to go to the medical clinic for assistance. Both he and the nurse do try to educate people, but for some Traditional Mbuwgi elders, this is the way they know how to live life.
NEW SLIDESHOW in 2023! This 20-minute slideshow will give you a sense of the journey to Kisangaji, what life in the village is like, and on occassion, the "extras" that come at the end of a working trip in the village: Zanzibar & safari's. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_MiI3nWAhQ
Success: Challenges and Resiliance in Kisangaji
To read about the actual process of building a teacher's boma in 2011, including news about the village, the hardships and determination of everyone to see this project completed, go to the blog that was kept during the stay in Kisangaji.
Below is our 14-minute film about Kisangaji, the teacher's house construction, and the urgent need for access to clean water. Please watch this video and consider making a tax-deductible donation to help bring clean water and support to the village.
The Kisangaji Project 5721 Emerson Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55419
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