A. Yes. Many people ask to sponsor a boy or girl of the same age and gender as their own children or grandchildren. However, this may not be feasible depending on the needs of the students and Bushikori (Uganda) discretion.
A. Any one person or group who is willing to support and encourage sponsored children can sponsor a child. This can be individuals, home groups, work-mates, churches, Sunday schools, friends, neighbours or clubs; however, we will need to have a clear single point of contact for sponsorship funds and communications.
A. The Australian Support Committee is committed to ensuring that 100% of your funds go directly towards the student you sponsor. It covers school fees, school supplies, uniforms, medical care and welfare needs. Our costs in Australia are covered by bank interest, donations or fundraising.
A. Yes. Many sponsors wish to contribute towards the annual Christmas party and welfare. If you would like to give an additional gift for Christmas or for welfare needs please contact us.
A. We both believe and act with transparency and integrity. We are a registered charitable organisation. All financial support and donations made in Australia are tax deductible. We submit annual financial reports to the Australian Investment Securities Commission. Bushikori Christian Centre in Uganda is an accredited Non-Government Organisation in Uganda and submits annual financial and operational reports to the Ugandan Government.
A. Yes. Contact the Australian Support Committee before your intended visit. We will advise Bushikori Christian Centre in Uganda so that appropriate arrangements can be made to ensure you are able to visit with your sponsor student.
A. We recognise for a variety of reasons, you may not be able to maintain regular payments. In these circumstances, we will ensure that the support for the student is covered from other funds for a limited time; however, after continued non-payment we will contact you and offer you the option of making up the payments or cancelling your support. Where there are cases of anticipated temporary difficulty over payments, we are very willing to talk this through with you, so please contact us. If, for any reason, you wish to withdraw from your sponsorship, you are free to do so at any time. You may ask a friend or relative to take over the sponsorship from you. All we ask is that you think and pray before making such a decision, as we believe this should not be taken lightly. In these circumstances, the student you have been supporting will be covered until we can gain another sponsor.
A. This can vary widely, depending on many factors. We aim to give every student the opportunity to undertake vocational training or a tertiary course to enable them to gain employment. Typically sponsorship will continue until the age of 18, although many are older. This is because in many developing countries, children move up to the next level in school only when they reach the required standard. As many of the students in our care come from poor families they may have missed years of schooling.
When a student has completed their study they are ceased from the sponsorship program. Any further communication with the student is a private matter between sponsor and student.
A. When the student leaves our care, whether at the end of their schooling or earlier, we will try to let you know in time for you to write a final letter to the student. When your sponsor student leaves our care, we would be delighted if you then felt able to help another needy student.
