Neema International is a nonprofit organization dedicated to investing in the lives of Tanzania's promising youth through education and sustainable building projects. Our work is based in Uru, a remote and impoverished village at the foothills of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Neema currently supports over 200 orphaned or vulnerable children from the community and has provided jobs for over 50 local men and women. With no affordable daycare or pre-primary schooling in the area, most children do not start school until they enter government funded primary schools at the age of six or seven, which as research shows is well past the most critical years for child development.It is for these reasons that Neema International created Uru Academy, the first-ever sponsored early childhood education center for children ages 1 to 7. At Uru Academy, we have created a safe and nurturing environment where children are free to be themselves, grow, and make mistakes without the fear of corporal punishment that stunts the development of so many children across the country. In addition to receiving a free, high-quality education with a student to teacher ratio of 5:1, the Uru students are also given proper nutrition, healthcare, clothing and other basic needs their families cannot afford. Uru Academy is funded by Neema International's Education Sponsorship Program (NIESP). Each child is matched with an individual outside sponsor who donates the funds to cover the child's tuition and needs. NIESP continues to sponsor these children once they graduate from Uru Academy and pays for their fees at private schools outside of the village that offer the same quality education as Uru Academy for secondary school, high school, and through to the completion of their university years. We additionally built and manage a children’s home in Uru. We are committed to ensuring that all our children are given the opportunity to reach their fullest potential and become productive members of their communities.