Uhambo USA

About Uhambo

Children and their families do not exist in isolation. Inclusion needs to happen at all levels to be sustainable. Uhambo supports children with disabilities in Southern Africa, their families and communities to bring about sustainable inclusion. 

Uhambo is a 501c3 that was founded solely to further the impact of the Uhambo Foundation of Cape Town, South Africa.

Founded by an award-winning social entrepreneur, Shona McDonald, Uhambo Foundation is a South African nonprofit organization established in 2010. The organization grew out of the work of Shonaquip, a social enterprise that designs, manufactures and distributes wheelchairs, to bring about social change for all children with mobility disabilities in South Africa. Uhambo Foundation complements the work of Shonaquip and our partners in government, health, rehabilitation, educational, community and other settings. We focus on the following programs:

·         COMMUNITY SUPPORT: We offer support to individuals, families and communities, building capacity through Parent Champions and Parent Support Groups.

·         STIMULATION PROGRAM: All children have the right to opportunities for learning, development and education. Through the NDINOGONA stimulation program, we use play to develop the capacity of ECD and day care centers, special needs and inclusive schools to stimulate the learning and development of children with disabilities in the classroom.

·         SEATING SERVICES: In some cases in South Africa the waiting list for assistive and wheelchair devices can be as long as three years. We work with both centers and individuals to support those in urgent need of assistive devices and support skills training of repair technicians and capacity building for therapists.

·         TRAINING: We run training programs for social workers, other NPOs and service providers to help them to become more disability- aware, to enable them to screen and refer children and families affected by disability to existing, appropriate local support and services.

·         AWARENESS: Often invited to contribute to policy, conduct disability household surveys and develop resources for an inclusive society, Uhambo proudly lobbies for the rights of people with disabilities in less resourced settings such as South Africa.

Uhambo’s affiliates in the US, Netherlands and UK support the mission of Uhambo Foundation and Shonaquip abroad, seeking to further the impact of Uhambo's successful holistic model, mobilize resources and cultivate business partnerships to support Uhambo's expansion in Africa and eventually other developing countries.

Uhambo’s vision is to improve equality for children with disabilities through empowerment of parents and caregivers of children and youth with mobility and other disabilities (and their communities), in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.