Benaja Kailu

Name:  Benaja Kailu
Gender:  Boy
Age:  13 years old
My favorite subject:  Technology
Something I am proud of:  Going to school
Something I like to do with my friends:  Play football
How I help at home:  Sweeping and washing dishes
A word that describes me:  Focused
Something I have learned about God:  He loves us
Home & school information:  Benaja lives with his mother and siblings in the city of Ndola in the Copperbelt Province of Zambia. He has been attending the Haven of Hope primary school in Ndola for several years and is now in grade 7. His twin sister attends school with him. At the Haven of Hope school, Benaja has been receiving a quality Christian education, daily meals, and medical care. When he advances to grade 8, he will begin attending a government-run secondary school. Sponsorship will support his continued education and care through grade 12.
Community information:  Haven of Hope's students in Ndola live in a number of "compounds" (shantytowns), where families often reside in small brick homes without running water or electricity. In the Copperbelt Province, copper mines provide the primary source of employment; however, the overall unemployment rate is high. Disease, including HIV and AIDS, has greatly affected the compounds, leaving many children without one or both of their parents. Poverty also keeps many children from attending school, as families struggle to meet their basic needs and afford school fees. The Haven of Hope school serves the poorest compounds in Ndola. The families and guardians of its students do not have the means to pay for their education and would be unable to send them to school without support. The language spoken by these students at home is Bemba, but at school they are also learning English, the official language of Zambia.