Background:

Started in 2008 by STEPHEN KAPERE, Youth for Charity Missions International (YOFOCHM) is a registered Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) in Uganda.

STEPHEN KAPERE was inspired to startup the organization as a response to the challenges young people in his community were facing including unemployment, immorality, illiteracy, inequalities and others.

Growing up in a society of inequalities, and faced with much poverty, Stephen felt the need to mobilize, empower and engage young people into life changing programs that would add value unto their lives for the betterment of our communities and for God. Stephen then initiated community programs and projects in leadership, charity, evangelism, girl/women empowerment, skills training and children education sponsorships that have to date been of national importance.

As much need to reach out increased, and with little funding to support his team execute a lot of activities at the organization, Stephen resigned his media job to fully commit to the organization. Stephen is a committed Activist with a great passion for God & Community – Based Initiatives in Uganda. And over the years, he is supporting & creating opportunities for young people in Uganda dedicating his life towards eliminating inequality, empowering women and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all.

Our Focus:

Besides our Leadership, Evangelistic, Charity, Entrepreneurship, Moral renewal, Talent & Skills Development programs among young people in schools & communities, we are now focused on empowering girls & young women. Through girl’s education sponsorships, girl’s rights advocacy / awareness campaigns, young women empowerment programs, we create opportunities that have empowered women and secured for them a productive place in a developing society.

We respond to the needs of young girls and teenage mothers in our society: the sexually abused, orphans/needy girls and single mothers who have lost or been abandoned by their husbands: providing them with access to: education, accommodation, Hygiene supplies & financial support to start a business.

Why Girls?

In our culture, men dominated women, making them inferiors. This thus means that supporting girls / women is urgent and should be everyone’s struggle in the present world, and it is why our organization has prioritized campaigns against gender inequalities / gender-based violence where most of our sisters and mothers suffer inequality from men in society due to culture and tradition background.

Our society dictates that women are not allowed to inherit / share their father’s property, are not supposed to address public gathering, are not supposed to stand in any position of leadership. They are only good for Kitchen, giving Birth and that is why parents would not take them to school since it was looked at as waste of money. When raped, sexually harassed, divorced, abandoned, No one would listen to them.

Our intervention is one way to make their voice heard, and penetrate gender biased societies. And as a result, we are registering great numbers of girls / women graduating, taking up important positions of leadership and participating in the development of their communities”.

When girls are empowered, it benefits all of us. Investing in girls is key to reducing poverty: Girls who receive an education marry later, have fewer children, and are more likely to get healthcare for themselves and their children.