SiGMA Foundation reaches new heights

The SiGMA Foundation has completed a landmark venture in Africa that brought together adventure, endurance and tangible social impact. A team of 20 participants successfully summited Mount Kilimanjaro before travelling on to inaugurate a series of educational, community and clean water projects in Uganda and Ethiopia, all completed in February 2026.

This initiative forms part of the Foundation’s ongoing commitment to merge challenging expeditions with long-term development work, turning each step taken on the mountain into a direct investment in vulnerable communities.

Turning a summit into classrooms in Uganda

After conquering Africa’s highest peak, the group’s first stop was Uganda, where the SiGMA Foundation marked the completion of two key kindergarten projects aimed at strengthening early childhood education.

In Nawaikoke, in the district of Kaliro, the Foundation supported the construction of the Rosemarie Rapa Kindergarten, a new building that now houses three classrooms and a staff room. Welcoming up to 200 children, it provides a permanent, dignified and child-friendly learning environment. The project is designed to give local children a strong start in education, while providing teachers with the facilities they need to deliver lessons effectively.

Keith Marshall inside one of the classrooms at the Rosemarie Rapa Kindergarten in Kaliro, Uganda.

In Kasese, another rural community saw temporary and unsafe learning structures replaced with the Marie Louise Marshall Kindergarten, a new three-classroom facility also serving around 200 children. Built as a permanent, weather-resistant school, it offers young learners a secure and welcoming environment, protecting them from harsh weather conditions and giving families the reassurance that their children can attend school safely. Together, the two projects represent a significant boost to early years education in underserved areas of Uganda, addressing infrastructure gaps that often keep children out of school or in precarious conditions.

Empowering communities and learners in Bonga, Ethiopia

Following the work in Uganda, the SiGMA Foundation team travelled to Bonga, Ethiopia, where multiple projects came to fruition, deepening a long-standing engagement with the local community.

The Adrian Tonna Community Centre, developed in association with 1xBet, was inaugurated as a revenue-generating multi-purpose hub with shops, meeting halls and guest rooms. The income generated from these facilities is intended to fund teacher salaries, cover ongoing maintenance costs and sustain community programmes, with a particular focus on women’s empowerment and long-term self-sufficiency. By combining infrastructure with a built-in livelihood model, the project aims to ensure that support for education and community services can be maintained well into the future.

Education infrastructure in Bonga also received a major boost. The Jake Vella Elementary School provides classroom space for approximately 200 students, allowing children aged 10–12 to continue their education in an environment that is less crowded, safer and more conducive to learning. The Antoine Cesareo St Peter and St Paul Kindergarten in nearby Jimma, Ethiopia, offers quality early education to some 200 pupils, easing overcrowding and opening up places for more children to attend school. Both projects directly respond to local demand for more space and better conditions, helping reduce dropout rates and support continuous schooling.

Recognising that access to clean water is essential for both health and education, the SiGMA Foundation also oversaw the installation of a water harvesting system at Wush Wush Kindergarten in Bonga. The new system is designed to secure a consistent supply of clean drinking water for young children and staff. This intervention is expected to improve hygiene and overall health, reduce time lost to water collection, and enhance daily school operations.

Adventure-driven philanthropy with lasting impact

The Kilimanjaro expedition and subsequent project inaugurations exemplify the SiGMA Foundation’s model of adventure-driven philanthropy: participants undertake physically demanding challenges while directly contributing to long-term projects in the communities they visit. Fundraising, awareness and hands-on engagement are woven together so that the impact continues long after the expedition ends.

Through this latest venture, climbers, sponsors and partners have collectively helped deliver transformative infrastructure serving over 1,000 children across Uganda and Ethiopia.

By linking a summit on Africa’s highest peak with concrete investments in classrooms, community facilities and clean water, the SiGMA Foundation continues to demonstrate how a spirit of adventure can be channelled into practical, measurable change on the ground.