Steadily increasing numbers of children have been moving away from their families and communities to live and work on the streets. When asked what led these children to move to the streets, the majority cited a combination of push and pull factors. A lack of school fees or academic investment in the children meant many had never stepped foot in a school or dropped out after a few terms. In addition, these children identified violence, abuse, and neglect at home as being a compelling factor that also led them to believe that life on the streets while difficult, would be better than enduring the betrayal trauma and harm inflicted by those meant to love and care for them. While many amazing community organizations are already attempting to reunify street children back to their families, we did not have any organizations actively preventing children from coming out onto the streets. As a result, Eleazar African Foundation developed a strategic plan to stand in the gap to prevent children from coming out onto the streets by directly meeting the needs identified.

Eleazar African Foundation believes every child deserves to be free from violence, abuse, and neglect and full of play, learning, laughter, and confidence. We are encouraged to provide quality services to fulfill the rights of every child to access education, to participate in cultural and creative activities, to express themselves freely, and to have their basic needs met. Since our humble beginnings, we have adopted a two-pronged approach to coming alongside our children as we champion each of them through two main streams: education and counselling. Eleazar African Foundation believes every child deserves to be free from violence, abuse, and neglect and full of play, learning, laughter, and confidence. We are encouraged to provide quality services to fulfill the rights of every child to access education, to participate in cultural and creative activities, to express themselves freely, and to have their basic needs met. Since our humble beginnings, we have adopted a two-pronged approach to coming alongside our children as we champion each of them through two main streams: education and counselling.

In addition, the Eleazar Center is the first and only outpatient mental health counselling center in Lira city. We offer individual, family, and group counselling to anyone in our community and advocate for the mental health and well-being of all of our neighbors, especially those affected by poverty, trauma, relationship difficulties, and psychopathology. Through our counselling center, we offer deep healing and inner-work to promote health and felt safety, so that we can all live harmoniously and productive.

We are empowering the local community to invest in the lives of vulnerable children and youth, thereby encouraging them to live fully into God’s purposes. When families and communities invest their resources and nurture their children, they are cultivating the next generation to move beyond. Furthermore, Eleazar African Foundation believes in supporting and enhancing the potential of vulnerable youth by developing their purpose, knowledge, skills, and talents for the benefit of their community

Eleazar African Foundation operates in post-conflict Lira, which is impacted by intergenerational transmission of trauma, abject poverty, oppression, and marginalization. We believe that vulnerable children and youth belong to our entire community and it is our collective responsibility to help them develop hope and inspiration even in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles