The Aga Khan Schools in Uganda

The sanctuary is home to 52 orphaned and rescued chimpanzees and has been one of the CAS projects DP students from AKHS, Kampala have focused on in the past due to the sanctuary’s need for support. Since September, current DP students have been visiting classrooms of the younger students at AKHS, Kampala to create awareness of how chimpanzees are endangered and the importance of supporting the sanctuary. Additionally, the DP students created t-shirts and booklets with information about the chimpanzees at the sanctuary that were distributed to the younger students. 

During the school’s mid-term break in October, the DP students visited the sanctuary to work with the staff and the chimpanzees. Upon visiting the sanctuary, the students could see that the sanctuary needed more support and resources for the chimpanzees, such as feeding utensils, medical kits and much more. The students decided to organise a fundraiser to help the sanctuary, from which they raised UGX 1,000,000. The sanctuary was very grateful for the donation and visited AKHS, Kampala to thank the students for their support. 

“Our goal for this project was to learn about the chimpanzees’ lifestyles and gain a deeper understanding of the environment in which they reside, in order to better cater for their needs,” DP1 student Kimora Komuhangi said. “Additionally, we were also required to experience the lives of those living in the nearby communities and nearby islands and see how they cope in this environment. I learned a lot about commitment, perseverance and how to evaluate my choices and actions. I also learned about my strengths and areas of growth.”