Our
STORY
STORY
We are locally-rooted
The Kamitei Foundation, established in 2002 by Jane Ngwatu and Jeroen Harderwijk, is dedicated to creating better education opportunities for children in rural Tanzania. With a track record of more than twenty years in the field, Kamitei not only provides primary schools with teacher training, books, learning resources and facilities, and nutritious meals for students, but we also provide a large number of students with school and vocational education scholarships.
OUR INSPIRATION
The Kamitei Foundation is named after Jane’s mother, the late Mrs Maria Motika, whose Maasai nickname was ‘Kamitei.’
As a Tanzanian Maasai woman born in the 19XXs, Mrs Motika did not receive a modern education, but through strength and resilience she worked diligently to enable her flock of eight children and several cousins get quality education.
Rewardingly, several completed vocational training, two have gained university degrees and all have built stronger livelihoods. Now employed by Kamitei, the two university graduates carry Mrs Motika’s legacy forward by creating similar educational opportunities for other children in rural East Africa.
our GROWth
In the early days, Kamitei operated with a small team of volunteers who worked directly with primary schools in Northern Tanzania.
Our field activities are based on multiple years of on-the-ground experience in rural Tanzania structurally improving education in the most effective and efficient manner, whilst keeping overhead costs to a minimum.
We operate in close partnership with the community leadership, creating optimal buy-in and alignment (communities co-invest in Kamitei’s educational activities). We operate on minimal overheads and continue to benefit greatly from the support of volunteers and international experts who work with us from time to time.