few children in 2012 to now fully supporting the education, healthcare and basic needs of over 250 children and families in addition to providing jobs for over 60 Tanzanian men and women who are now able to independently provide for their families. “To us, this is not a charitable endeavor, but an investment that has the potential to bring a thousand- fold return in lives empowered for generations to come,” Mandy said. In addition to the Uru Academy, Mandy and Neema also provide other opportunities to the community including the Neema International Educational Sponsorship (NIESP), which invests in the promising youth of Tanzania by providing them access to high-quality private institutions where they can discover their full potential; Neema Bags, a social enterprise that was created to provide jobs for women in Uru as well as a means to fund Neema International projects; and the Digitruck, an eco-friendly classroom that promotes students’ learning through the use of technology. “We want full fixes, not just minor improvements,” Mandy implored. “We use a bottom-up approach that responds directly to the needs identified by the individuals in this community who are dealing with these problems on a day-to-day basis.”
children. By requiring the support of families, we focus our efforts on improving the child’s environment from every angle.” Furthermore, Neema empowers the nearby village economically through infrastructure, human capital development and job creation. Using this approach to reduce the cycle of poverty ensures that any contributed funds are sustainably invested in the projects that directly help those who need it most in ways that have been proven to work in this community (and not just what we think will work here because it works for us in the developed world). “The children in our programs will serve as leaders who are able to continue the future alleviation of poverty in their village themselves long after we’re gone,” Mandy said. Furthermore, Neema is much more than Mandy. While it did start with only her, it has grown to include eight administration team members (including Mandy) and 56 other employees. “Neema would collapse without my employees,” Mandy emphasized. “They are unbelievably powerful, poised, resilient and just remarkable human beings.” Neema has grown significantly in recent years, from helping just a
Mandy leading a lesson with some of Neema's students outside.
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