Manna4life has been providing education since 2014 to 120 and 160 students per year. Initially, it was with the Mango Tree School (which our partners operated), but it was beyond their means to continue in this fashion. Manna4life partnered with another private Christian school a few kilometers away and transferred all the students to the new school. Initially, the transition went well as the school hired all the teachers from the Mango Tree School.
When the global pandemic hit, many challenges began to arise. The schools were closed and then reopened about 6 times in 2020 with many of the graduates not being able to complete last year's grade levels until the end of December. Each time the schools closed there was a drop in attendance due to a couple of reasons. Some students needed to work for their families as many parents lost their income due to cutbacks at garment factories. Also, some families moved away looking for work, and some students of working-age also dropped out. Mann4life tried to counter this in many ways as they met with families individually and as a group to determine what needs had to be met in order to keep their children in school. This led to a few changes in the way the ministry provided support; they included providing food, offering additional subsidies for children's tuition, and tutoring students who were falling behind because of the school closures.
Funds go towards students' tuition, transportation, food program, and teacher support.