Italian charity organisation Happydu Onlus on Saturday inaugurated a centre named ‘The Happydu Village Renata’ in Swakopmund’s Mondesa residential area.

Happydu is a non-profit organisation founded in Italy in 2010 to improve the quality of life of children, mostly orphans, adolescents and single young mothers, who live in precarious conditions.

Speaking at the event, Happydu Onlus president Andrea Gesualdo said the organisation was started after his first visit to Windhoek’s Katutura area in 2010, where two of his friends were volunteers at an orphanage.

“We realised the need to offer assistance to these children and more who need our help and that is how Happydu was created. We are a very small organisation, but we aim at making impactful changes through it,” he stated.

The centre, he further said, was made possible through donations from the Italian community in Swakopmund as well as a large donation by their late friend, after whom the centre was named.

“Renata, who died last year, has always had the dream to travel to Namibia with us and assist children here. Unfortunately, her dream was cut short when she died, but through this, we are fulfilling it,” he said.

The centre at Mondesa consists of a kindergarten and pre-school and will offer after school classes, sports activities as well as psychological support within the school-going mothers’ project.

Swakopmund Mayor Louisa Kativa at the same event expressed gratitude to the Italian organisation and community in Swakopmund for enabling the construction of the centre.

‘Education is an important element in our society as it plays a role in driving out poverty. Moreover, a conducive environment is one of the key factors that aid in early childhood development and I am positive that this is what is promised with this new opening,’ Kativa noted.

She expressed hope that the centre will continue to offer quality education to the needy children in the community.

Kativa further expressed gratitude to the organisation and its supporters for also providing employment to the unemployed in the community.

The organisation has a similar centre in Windhoek’s Soweto residential area which was established in 2017, with over 900 children supported thus far through its 18 projects in Namibia.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency