Fr George Grima smiled appreciatively as he received a cheque handed out by Foreign Affairs Minister George Vella yesterday as part of Malta’s Overseas Development Aid budget.
The donation will go towards the completion of dormitories for 300 children living in Nyabondo, Kenya, who are mentally or physically disabled.
As the founder of Missionary Movement Jesus in Thy Neighbour, Fr George, 63, has spent nearly half his life caring for children in the poverty-stricken countries of Kenya, Ethiopia and Brazil.
Any previous structures have been eaten away by termites
“At the moment, we’re building two homes in Kenya for disabled children. Any previous structures that were made of wood and mud have been eaten away by termites,” he explained to Times of Malta.
“In these countries, disabled children are abandoned as they’re not considered people. The families don’t even touch their disabled child as they believe he’s accursed.”
In the Kenyan town of Bondo, the Missionary Movement is building a home that will cater for children who are blind, deaf and suffering from speech disorders.
This year, the movement is celebrating 25 years from its founding – an event which Fr George aims to mark by building the first home for disabled children in Jimma, Ethiopia.
The home will offer quality education and help the children acquire knowledge and special skills. It will also help them develop their potential, leading them to independent living.
“We managed to convince the Ethiopian government that the disabled are individuals because we believe that disability is not inability.
“The government was going to sell us the land for €82,000, but after hearing us out, it decided to give us the land for free.
“We would need around €1 million to build the school. But the Lord provides.”
He recalled his meeting with Pope Francis last month.
“The Pope told me: ‘George, never forget that the poor are not garbage to us. They are Jesus’s.”
Fr George’s Kenyan project was one of 15 other projects carried out by various Maltese NGOs and individuals who were given donations amounting to €90,500. The projects’ recipient countries are situated in Africa, Asia and Central America.
The funding is part of the overall expenditure that Malta dedicates yearly towards development and humanitarian projects as part of its Official Development Assistance.
Some of the projects are related to education, like the construction of schools and youth centres in diverse locations such as Pakistan, the Philippines and Mozambique.
Other educational projects focus on vocational training. One project in Nigeria addresses conflict mitigation among youths.
Children and other vulnerable groups will be given training and support to pursue their education, which will enable them to become self-sufficient and improve their and their families’ lives. Other projects are health-related, such as equipping operating theatres in Ghana.
Addressing the Maltese voluntary workers and their representatives, Dr Vella applauded their efforts in improving the standard of living of deprived people.
He urged those who applied as individuals to join registered NGOs to ensure maximum transparency and accountability regarding the way taxpayers’ money was spent.