About Us
In 2010, while teaching English to refugees in Kampala, Missy encountered students facing significant barriers to safety and stability. Discovering a critical gap in holistic care for refugee women, she partnered with Refuge and Hope to open Uganda's first shelter for refugee women in 2013.
Over the next five years, Missy and her husband Francis continued working with refugee families. In 2018, they envisioned Amani Sasa as a holistic ministry model, providing hope, healing, and restoration. Committed to community leadership, they built an organization led by those they serve.
Amani Sasa offers comprehensive services for entire families, addressing trauma, economic empowerment, and family restoration. Our model is distinctive in three ways:
1. Whole Family Support: We serve men, women, and children, recognizing the unique needs of each.
2. Community-Led: Our team includes 30% refugees and 50% program graduates, ensuring culturally appropriate and transformative services.
3. Faith-Based Empowerment: We integrate spiritual, emotional, and economic support, providing counseling, education, and vocational training at no cost.
Our approach is grounded in dignity, hope, and human potential, ensuring all refugees have access to the support they need.
OUR CONTEXT
OUR MINISTRY CONTEXT
Uganda hosts over 2 million refugees, the largest population in Africa. Despite progressive policies, refugees face barriers like limited employment, inadequate housing, and trauma. In Kampala, these challenges are acute because of limited services for urban refugees. Amani Sasa partners with refugee families through providing critical care and opportunities and resources needed for healing and rebuilding.
WHY WE EXIST
We offer trauma-informed care and empowerment, filling a critical gap since 2013. Our community-led movement, with 49 East African leaders, serves over 650 families annually, unlocking potential and demonstrating achievable restoration and leadership.
WHAT WE’VE BUILT
Since our founding, Amani Sasa has grown into a community-led movement. Today, our team of 49 East African leaders—many of whom are refugees who have walked through our programs—serve over 650 families (2,500+ people) annually. Through our holistic, wrap-around services, we strengthen families and communities by addressing trauma, abuse, and poverty while unlocking the God-given potential that exists within every refugee family.
Our staff understands the refugee journey because they've lived it. This lived experience is not incidental to our work—it is central to our effectiveness. When refugees see people who have walked the same path now leading their healing and empowerment, it transforms what's possible. It demonstrates that restoration is real, that leadership is achievable, and that their potential can be realized.
OUR STAFF: COMMUNITY LED LEADERSHIP
At Amani Sasa, we believe refugees are leaders and agents of change—not beneficiaries of charity. Our 49-person team reflects this conviction: 30% are refugees and 50% are program graduates, bringing lived expertise and cultural competency to every aspect of our work.
Our organizational structure ensures genuine partnership. Our Uganda-based leadership team manages all operations and program design, while our CEO provides strategic support. This model means our services remain responsive, dignified, and transformative—and our staff model hope by demonstrating that healing, stability, and leadership are possible.
