In Wandago, Uganda, the local school was struggling. Teacher and father Maganda remembers a time when children skipped classes to work for their parents' businesses, drug use was common, and "a lot of child abuse tendencies such as neglect" were rife.
His school, St. Peter Primary, was defined by chaos: students came and went as they pleased, teacher motivation was low, and parents prioritised their distillery work over education. Maganda said, "The overall performance of the school was extremely poor."
To tackle these deep-rooted problems, Children on the Edge Africa (COTEA) introduced our Child Protection Team model in Wandago.
Child Protection Teams are made up of local volunteers, elected by their own communities. They receive support, basic resources and training from Children on the Edge, along with training from other local services, like police, social workers and counsellors, who they network with on behalf of their communities.
They then deliver community workshops, link local people with service providers, provide small business loans to improve financial resilience, and become the ‘go-to’ people in the community for child protection. They serve as a voice for the children and are trained to uphold rights and tackle abuse and neglect.
Maganda and his colleagues learned how to better understand and mentor the children at school through workshops with the Child Protection Teams. He told us that as a result the entire teaching style shifted. He proudly states: "Teachers are now like parents towards the learners, which has enabled the children to love coming to school."
The change within the community has been astonishing:
Reduction in Abuse: Cases of child torture and neglect have been reduced, thanks to the CPT home visits and Child Rights Clubs.
Growth in Confidence: The sensitisation talks built confidence among the children to report their grievances, breaking the cycle of silence.
Academic Success: Maganda notes the school’s performance has dramatically improved. They recently achieved a record number of top grades in primary exams; a jump he credits entirely to the community’s combined efforts.
Maganda says: “We owe all these efforts to COTEA because of the work that they carry out in our community.”
By supporting community-led models, your generosity helps local leaders like Maganda create lasting safety, dignity, and confidence that creates brighter futures for children in Uganda.
