How Effatà Italia Charity Organization ODV was born

Effatà Charity Organization was created out of the love and dedication for Uganda of Silvia Marcolin. Silvia is a young woman from northern Italy who has been living in Uganda since 2020. Silvia is based in Kisoga, Mukono district. 

Every day Silvia meets vulnerable children, women and families who experience difficult situations of disease, malnutrition, violence, abandonment and dire poverty. She listens to their stories and acts to respond to their needs. This work is supported by a network of Italian families and philanthropists who are involved in the projects and making financial and in kind donations. Over the course of the years the project grew into an organization and Effatà Charity Organisation was registered in Uganda. Effatà Uganda is supported by its sister organization Effatà Charity Organisation in Italy. This set up allows for effective collaboration between the two sister organizations and more importantly the transfer of funding between Italy and Uganda without any intermediary steps and costs.

Support provided directly where it is needed

All donations made in Italy and abroad are managed and used in a accountable manner to respond to the assessed needs on the ground. This includes for instance payment of school fees, medicines, hospital bills and the provision of hunger survival kits for malnourished children. The organization also supports vulnerable families with small intervention aimed at building their resilience such as renting land to cultivate, purchasing animals for farming and building accommodations. The main project that Effatta’ is implementing is building a Children Home for orphans, abandoned and disabled children.  You can read more about this project here.  

So far away, yet so close: we build relationships

Our objective is to go beyond supporting vulnerable families and individuals by building relationships. Every day Silvia walks for kilometers on dirt roads, in the heat or in the rain: she meets people in need, visits families and listen to their stories. Such stories are shared with us making us feel closer to Uganda.  

For “school adoption” the sponsoring family receives a photo of the child and his/her education report cards every six months. Once a year they also receive drawings and letters from the child and can send letters and photos too. School adoption lasts several years and through time the relationship between Uganda and another country is built into a lasting one.