The Association to Connect Lives in Mozambique (PVM) has an office in a slum district of Pemba, Cabo Delgado Province, Mozambique, and works with a total of 100 local staff.
Its core activity is the "terakoya" (community school). Through education, public health and meal provision, it protects children's lives and healthy learning. This leads on to "terakoya workshops," where young people learn skills such as welding, mechanics, bread-making, IT and carpentry, and to a "small business project" that serves the slum community. According to the website, the Pemba terakoya currently serves 500 children from the slums and from families displaced by terror and conflict.
The site also describes local conditions: 15% of children live on one meal a day or less, and infant mortality exceeds 8%. In June 2026 it called for monthly supporters for the terakoya, and its articles also report first-aid training at the terakoya and lectures and performances at schools in Japan.
Key points
- A step-by-step path toward independence, from terakoya to workshops to a small business project
- A terakoya attended by 500 children from the slums and from displaced families
- Monthly newsletters give a steady view of life on the ground
Why this organization's work stands out
Support grows with the children, from meals and hygiene to learning and skills training. Running the work together with local staff is also a foundation of its activities.
Newsletters and activity articles are updated often, so readers can follow daily life on site. Beyond donating, events and lecture-performances offer other ways to learn about the work.
Editor's comment
The description of hungry children rushing into the terakoya in the early morning brought the daily life there close to me.
Details on the activities and how to take part are on the official website. Please take a look.