About Us

ABOUT US

OUR MISSION

Our mission is to Empower and Inspire the disadvantaged youths to acquire skills for a self- reliant life. Achieving growth and development through socio- economic empowerment, rights advocacy and putting an end to early marriages.

We will achieve this through skills training, capacity building, administrative support, participation of stakeholders and evaluation of our works.

OUR VISION

We envision a world where all young people are inspired and equipped with skills to realize the future they want, regardless of where they live or their background.

WHO WE ARE

KIHOROBO YOUTH DEVELOPMENT LINK – KiYoDeL is a registered Non-profit organization found by Owembabazi Cynthia Cinderella. It was found in 2014 and officially registered in 2019 both in Uganda and Belgium.

KiYoDeL operates in Uganda with head offices in Belgium.

WHAT WE DO

We focus on the most underprivileged, vulnerable and marginalized youths living in poverty in rural areas of Kihorobo and neighboring villages, who drop out of school due to different challenges that hinder them from joining higher education (secondary school education).

The project is setting up a youth skills training center (Vocational Center) to give the underprivileged, vulnerable and marginalized youth an opportunity to learn self-sufficient skills among others including tailoring, carpentry, woodworking, building, making handcrafts and tips on starting and managing small businesses. We are aiming at increasing the youths’ ability to create their own jobs and become favorable candidates for employment opportunities and consequently fight against child marriages and poverty.

OUR STORY

I spent a big part of my childhood in Kihorobo village. I was lucky enough that my parents were working in the city and could afford to take me and my siblings to school up to higher education.

During my primary school days, 1 out of 10 girls finished primary school education. I remember during school holiday coming back home and finding our playmates with babies of their own at the age of 13-14-15years, they were already married. I did not understand it at that time, I thought it was normal since no one ever complained.

As I grew up I realized that it’s not normal for girls to get married at such a young age. Youths drop out of school because of various challenges such as; long distance from home to school, lack of funds/ support, parents have no stable income, lack of sanitary hygiene facilities (girls during their menstruation periods stay home), there’s no motivation for them to stay in school, no employment opportunities etc.

More than 15 years later, the situation has not changed much. Girls and boys still marry/ get married at a very young age they barely finish primary school education, those who finish primary school education do not go further. Most parents still cannot afford to buy sanitary hygiene facilities for their young girls and this still keeps girls out of school during their menstruations.

In 2014 I decided to be proactive and work towards changing the lives of the youths by supporting and motivating them in different ways. I mobilized my family, and friends to support me support the youth.

In 2019 we decided to register KIHOROBO YOUTH DEVELOPMENT LINK officially as a non-profit organization, both in Belgium and in Uganda. To enable support a bigger number of youths and communities. We aim at making what we are doing more sustainable.

OUR LOCATION

KiYoDeL is based in Uganda in Kihorobo village, Rwoho Town council, Rukoni sub-county, Ruhama county in Ntungamo district. It’s approximately one hour drive from Mbarara town (Western part of Uganda).

Our Objectives

To roll-out vocational workshops in Uganda in to enable youths learn and acquire different training skills.

To promote and provide career guidance and coaching to the youth to create meaningful careers for themselves.

To promote and encourage creativity and innovative power among the youth by sensitizing them to participate in vocational associated activities.

To mobilize financial and other resources needed to support the organization’s youth related programs and initiatives.

To assist youth, disadvantaged and marginalized girls by providing services that equip them with skills and knowledge.

To provide Counseling and Guidance services to youths and other disadvantaged persons on psychosocial and economic related issues.

Our Core Values

Impact:

To create a change that matters to the youth and the entire community.

Empowerment:

To encourage the youths to take charge of their lives. By addressing them in their situation and encouraging them to take action in order to improve their access to resources and transform their consciousness through their beliefs, values, and attitudes.

Self – realization:

Our ultimate goal is to see every youth fulfil his or her own dreams by tapping through their full potentials.

Innovation:

Focusing on making a difference, in a different way.

Accountability:

Being accountable to the youths that we represent, while also providing a transparency accountability to our funders and stakeholders.