Partner Community · Eastern Uganda

The Jews of Uganda. אבאיודאיה · Abayudaya

A century-old Jewish community living quietly in the hills of eastern Uganda. They keep kosher, celebrate the holidays, sing Shabbat in Luganda, and welcome the world to come and pray. Today they number around 2,600, across 14 villages and 16 synagogues.

2,600 Jews in Uganda Today

14 Villages

16 Synagogues

4 Partner Jewish Schools

The Community

"People of Judah" in Luganda.

The Abayudaya are one of the most extraordinary Jewish communities in the world, a community that found its way to Judaism not through migration, but through scripture. A community that survived Idi Amin's brutal persecution in the 1970s, when the count dropped to 300, and then rebuilt itself, generation by generation.

Today the Abayudaya are full of Jewish life: Shabbat services, kashrut, brit milah, bar and bat mitzvahs, song in Luganda and Hebrew. They keep the calendar. They welcome travelers from every continent. And they educate their children in a system that, like much of rural Uganda, depends almost entirely on outside support to function.

The Namutumba Jewish Synagogue in Eastern Uganda

A Brief History

From one chief, to 1,500, to 300, to 2,600.

The Abayudaya story is improbable, painful, and ultimately inspiring. Here are the chapters that matter.

1919

Semei Kakungulu reads the Torah.

An African chieftain and military leader, Kakungulu founded the community after reading the Torah and adopting Jewish customs and laws. He circumcised his sons and himself, and the Abayudaya community in Eastern Uganda began to practice Judaism.

1960s

The community grows to 1,500.

By the 1960s, the Abayudaya had around 1,500 followers, with synagogues, schools, and a flourishing Jewish life across multiple villages.

1970s

Persecution under Idi Amin.

Synagogues were destroyed. The government prohibited Jewish observance. Many Abayudaya felt forced to convert to Christianity or Islam to survive. By the time Amin left power, only about 300 Jews remained.

Today

~2,600 Jews. A community rebuilt.

The younger generation rebuilt what was almost lost. Today the Abayudaya number around 2,600 across 14 villages and 16 synagogues. They welcome visitors, host musical Shabbat services, and educate the next generation.

Where We Work

Four Jewish schools. One mission.

We work with four Jewish schools in the Abayudaya community, each with a distinct character and a specific need. Together they educate over a thousand children.

350+ students · K to 7

Tikkun Olam Primary School

Founded by Yoash Mayende in 2015 to foster opportunities for Jewish children to learn and participate in their Jewish education. We built a kitchen and run a 5 acre School Lunch Farm that feeds students breakfast and lunch every day.

Our work: School Lunch Farm Project · Daily meals

Interfaith · Mbale

Hadassah Primary School

Founded in 2001, Hadassah serves Jewish, Christian, and Muslim children together, a beautiful model of coexistence. We've added a 6 acre farm and urban garden teaching best farming practices and feeding the students. 23 students received goats through Give a Goat.

Our work: 6 acre farm + Give a Goat

Jewish school · K to 4

Ben David Primary School

Located in northern Uganda. Our Give a Goat program here is generously funded by a Minnesota family who donates a goat for every B'nai Mitzvah at their synagogue. A direct way to introduce US teens to their Jewish peers in Uganda while practicing Tikkun Olam.

Our work: Give a Goat · Mitzvah sponsorship

Jewish school · K to 7 · Putti

Jonathan Netanyahu Memorial School

Located in Putti village in eastern Uganda, students at Jonathan Netanyahu Memorial are recipients of our Give a Goat project, another community where one goat compounds into school fees, food, and dignity.

Our work: Give a Goat · Putti village

Mitzvah Projects

A Bar or Bat Mitzvah project that actually changes a life.

In Uganda, one in three primary school children doesn't attend school every day. School lunch is often a student's first and only meal. The Abayudaya are full of heart, spirit, and faith, but resources are thin. Your project, your sponsorship, your goat: they land hard here.

Keep a Girl in School

Keep a girl in school for a year.

$25sponsors 1 girl · 1 year

Provides a full set of reusable pads, underwear, health training, and pain relief, ensuring a student never has to miss up to 20 days of class per year due to period poverty.

Keep a Girl in School →

Give a Kid a Goat

One goat. One child. All kosher.

$2001 goat + shelter

The Give a Goat program puts a child in business. One goat's milk and offspring fund school fees, uniforms, and books. Kosher. Multiplies through our pay it forward model. The classic Mitzvah project: visible, tangible, lasting.

Give a Goat →

Sponsor a Student

A full school year.

$480tuition + supplies · 1 year

A full year of school for one student in the Abayudaya community, covering tuition, school supplies, and all other needs. Education is the surest way out of poverty. School fees are the most common reason kids drop out.

Sponsor a Scholarship →

"Global Village Connect made my Bar Mitzvah project special and let me make a real difference in the world."

— Dante Reminick

תיקון עולם

Tikkun Olam

To repair the world: one goat, one lunch, one student at a time.