Sarah Nininger, Founder and Executive Director
I’m grateful to call myself the Founder and Executive Director at Action in Africa. After 18 years, I've gained a clear understanding of my role and its limits, allowing me to lead this organization with strong support from others.
On our first visit to Uganda in 2008, I noticed similar philanthropic organizations in our community. Today, we're grateful to still be here, continuing the work.
The learning curve since my teenage years has been steep, but we’re still here. And we’re starting to grow rapidly as we expand the community-led model that has served Nakuwadde so well. Our annual operating budget of $1.5 million helps us accomplish our mission to advance the social, personal, and economic development of children, youth, and adults in Uganda through greater access to education and other life-changing resources on a daily basis.
Our team is composed of two dozen staff members in Uganda to sustain and enhance the programs and in the U.S. to grow funding.
Despite challenges over the years, our team and I always stick it out, and we’re starting to see our young students not only graduate with a university degree, but become integral members of their communities.
This isn’t where I thought my life would be 18 years later, and I've changed my trajectory in life quite drastically to pull this off. I think a lot of nonprofit founders and executive directors have sacrificed things to “make it work,” whether personal goals and dreams or time with family. The stakes are high when making sure that staff are paid, students are in school, the lights are kept on, and meals are prepared, but we’ve never settled for anything less than success. Our resilience makes us unique and different, and we can (and do) pivot on a dime because we’re in tune with our community.
With the growth of the Action in Africa team, I’m becoming more mindful of the sacrifices we all make; the pressure can feel overwhelming when the work is life-changing. When I get in my head about how hard this job is, I always bring myself back to the stories and impact on the lives that have changed. We recognize that over 78 percent of Uganda is less than 30-years-old, so every day we commit to empowering the country’s future doctors, teachers, lawyers, artists, and community leaders.
What’s beyond inspiring, is that we’re actually seeing this happen in real time. And as they’re growing up, these young leaders are creating a ripple effect by impacting their homes, their neighborhoods, their schools, and their communities. They’re becoming inspirational figures with far more of an accomplishment than I could even comprehend.
my frienD Shaki
Shaki and his family used to live along our driveway, just outside our gates at The Center in one of three rental stalls. Things were quiet, slower those days, when we first started growing our programs and services. So we would close our doors and go sit on his veranda with him and his mom to drink Coca-Cola and create chaos. Every night I looked forward to laughing with Shaki’s family as we bathed the kids and cooked dinner outside.
While living in Uganda, I witnessed the exploitation of people with disabilities. Some families would have them beg on the streets, but the money wasn't used for their care, medication, or necessary services. I recognize this is a broad generalization, but after seeing disabled Ugandans crawling through the streets, begging at intersections, often dirty and mistreated, I became deeply concerned about Shaki’s future without proper support.
I saw a kid that deserved a chance. My brother, Trevor, has Cerebral Palsy, so kids with special needs has always been my personal passion and commitment.
shaki today
Thanks to funding from the Special Needs Scholarship, a team of professionals have given Shaki the physical therapy to support his ability to walk with support mechanisms like crutches. Being mobile comes with the opportunity to attend school and achieve a higher education while avoiding exploitation.
The staff at Action in Africa created a lifetime plan to allow him to give back to his community in ways that he is able.