Jambo,

Every day it thrills me to see the difference Malaika Kids is making to the lives of our orphans.I remember when I used to find the poor children hiding in a corner of my yard in Dar es Salaam, and would bring them indoors to give them food and have them tell me their stories.  Then came the AIDS, and the old ways of looking after our kids could not cope any more.

That’s when my daughter in Holland and her husband asked me if they could help.  They said “if we raise the money and make a plan, can you start to do something much bigger to help the children?”

I said I really wanted to do that, and so in 2004 we began.

It has not been easy, we have had many challenges on the way, but the Malaika Kids team is fantastic.  There are phone calls and emails every day, and many different Trustees fly out every year to help – always at their own expense.

Our numbers and our recognition in Tanzania have grown, and the proudest day of my life was when in July 2010, former President Ali Hassan Mwinyi came with his entourage to officially open our brand new Children’s Village in Mkuranga.

Najma Manji
Chair and Chief Executive
Malaika Kids Tanzania