HOMEPAGE - Hakuna Matata

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Rehabilitation

750 patients with disabilities treated each month

More than 2,500 Children living with disabilities treated per year

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Sustainability

Employment

100 farmers and 8 vulnerable youths employed

350,000 trees planted to date, involving 2,000 local farmers

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Education

Over 2,800 children attending nursery schools

Education

Over 2,800 children attending nursery schools

ABOUT US

In April 2010, Davide Serra & Anna Barassi were introduced to Fausta & Tarcisio, two Catholic missionaries committed to helping local communities in Central Tanzania. This meeting sparked the idea for Hakuna Matata and since then, Hakuna has pledged over two million dollars to the ‘Help the Village’ project. Fausta and Tarciso’s passion for helping those less fortunate and Anna and Davide’s expertise and contacts have proved to be an excellent pairing.
Hakuna Matata trustees invest the vast majority of donations received into projects within Tanzania, however also give grants to other projects on a case-by-case basis.

Fausta Pina

Since moving to Tanzania in 1994, Fausta has devoted her life to helping others. She spends the majority of her time doing outreach work, visiting the many nurseries, schools and orphanages in the parish, as well as giving out urgent medicines and other essential supplies to the most remote communities. Together with Father Tarcisio they help the parishes of Mtwango and Ilembula. Fausta is quoted saying “I try to give what is necessary to those who are most in need”.

Father Tarcisio

Father Tarcisio Moreschi has been a missionary in Africa for the majority of his life, having previously worked in Burundi and Democratic Republic of the Congo, he moved to Tanzania in the early nineties. As the parish priest, he brings the Church to the community as well as dedicating his time to building and improving infrastructure for the parish; building orphanages, houses, wells, as well as small factories which employ some of the most vulnerable people.

HELP THE VILLAGE

We believe that giving disadvantaged children the opportunity to have an education is vital to the success of the charity.

Orphanage Villages

Ilembula Parish runs two orphanage villages in the villages of Ilunda and Ilembula. They currently employ 45 members of staff and house 150 children. They are run in an innovative and unique way with a set up referred to as a ‘Family House’. At the head of each house is a mother from the local community who receives training and a monthly salary to take care of the children. Typically, each house is home to 6-9 orphans thus enabling the children to be raised in an environment as close to a family unit as possible, as well as learning vital communication skills from their interactions with siblings.

Education

Donations from Hakuna Matata have supported the building and running of 70 nursery schools across the region, allowing over 1,500 children to access primary education and providing jobs to 125 local teachers. Currently, Help the Village supports 130 poorer children and young adults in the community to attend school by funding school fees and providing school uniforms, shoes and textbooks. With the help of Hakuna Matata’s donations, the communities are able to build an increasing number of schools in nearby villages.

Healthcare

Many people in central Tanzania, both adults and children are tragically living with HIV/AIDS, often without the appropriate medical care and advice. We deliver monthly subsistence packs on a regular basis to those who are suffering from or affected by these debilitating illnesses. These packs serve as a lifeline to those suffering and include basic food, clothing, hygiene products and medicines. Help the Village also provides transport to and from hospitals for women and children for emergency and routine check-ups as well as paying for some medication. We have also provided funds for the refurbishment and management of Ikelu Hospital.

PAMOJA PROJECT

A community initiative involving local people in sustainable farming and aiming at increasing revenues of their families.
We passionately believe that through initiatives such these, rural communities truly learn to live sustainably.

AlgeTrees

Hakuna Matata operates with the mission of bringing social and environmental benefits through the promotion of agroforestry projects. In 2019 in cooperation with Algebris Investments, Hakuna Matata started implementing climate change mitigation projects, mostly through reforestation and afforestation. Since 2019, over 350,000 trees have been planted. The project employs 15 staff to run the seedling nurseries and to date over 2,000 farmers involved in the initiative received trees and training on agroforestry practices. The project also teaches the young children in our care about the importance of the natural world and climate change. Many of the trees, when they reach maturity, will provide crops for the community such as Mango and Avocado.
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Vanilla

The climate in Central Tanzania is very well suited to vanilla production and working with local and European experts, this project aims to establish a sustainable and profitable socio-agribusiness activity focused on vanilla production. It seeks to address all aspects of the vanilla supply chain to bridge the gap between producers and the market, ensuring a traceable, high-quality product for buyers and higher profits for farmers. We currently have 2 net houses at Inuka, 1 at Mamre College, 1 in Ilembula Village, as well as an open-air site at Matema village. The project employs 5 full-time staff members, and 40 farmers have received training on vanilla cultivation practices. We expect to see our first harvest in 2025 with a predicted yield of 400kg of green vanilla beans. We hope this project will bring sustainable and reliable income to the region as well as diversifying the crops and growing the knowledge of the local community.

Mamre Agricultural College

Mamre Agriculture and Livestock College in Mayale is one of the only dedicated agricultural colleges in the area, providing students with the tools to help their communities for the future. Agriculture is the key industry of the area so the professional training that the students receive at the college is truly indispensable to the region’s growth. The college also provides 10 local teachers with a reliable income. In the past, we provided learning resources such as books and practical veterinary equipment and built student accommodation and classrooms. Recently, we’ve established two net-houses; the first for vanilla cultivation and the other for tree seedlings. We are ensuring that the teachers and students get technical advice on how to grow the plants and seedlings.

REHABILITATION

Community Initiatives

We are implementing community based inclusive development initiatives in the Southern Highlands of Tanzania with our partners. This new project started in October 2022 with development and strengthening of new partnerships in Mbeya Town and Kyela District. The funds of Hakuna Matata will be used to strengthen rehabilitation units in the Kyela District through training of staff and providing equipment to the rehabilitation centre. Hakuna Matata covers school fees and work internships to 20 youngsters living with disabilities to ensure future employment. With this initiative we will reach children and adults with disabilities in remote areas of Mbeya region.

Inuka Rehabilitation Hospital

Inuka Rehabilitation Hospital is the region’s first dedicated disability hospital, providing rehabilitation services to both adults and children with disabilities. On average, the hospital treats around 750 patients each month. Hakuna Matata helped with the establishment and operation of an orthopaedic clinic for the treatment of children with clubfoot, as well as supporting the procurement of an X-ray machine. Hakuna Matata also ensures the staff are well trained and pays the salaries of 3 physiotherapists.