Our background

Our foundation goes back to the commitment of Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c.. Jörg Baetge, who, during a visiting professorship at Kenyatta University in Nairobi, became aware of the frequent absenteeism of school children of semi-nomadic Maasaiin Kenya during a visit to the Maasai Mara in 2011.

With the help of the Lions Club of Munster Landois (LCML), he has worked for over a decade to ensure that the already existing Ilkeek Aare Primary School (IAPS) was expanded into a boarding school. Boarding and care at the boarding school allows Maasai children to attend school year-round and thus have access to education, even while their parents are searching for pastures for their herds .

Over the course of 10 years of IAPS project work, a steadily sThe Lions Club was only able to cover this need to a limited extent. This circumstance and the The focus on the expansion and continuous support of the school have prompted us to establish the “Jörg Baetge Stiftung.Home4Education” (H4E).

The foundation’s volunteers and the Lions Club Münster Landois, as one of the main donors, are now working together to expand and further develop the school.

Thanks to the support provided so far, IAPS has transformed itself from a very simple primary school into a modern boarding school by Kenyan standards. It provides classrooms and sleeping facilities for 540 students. That is a nice success. However, there are still many things missing that are important for the sustainable operation of the boarding school. The water supply during and despite the increasingly frequent droughts, adequate housing for teachers who often live far away, or the inadequate power supply are just a few examples. Therefore, we are constantly working to develop and maintain the school and provide sustained support when problems arise.

We are constantly initiating and working on projects at IAPS to improve the conditions for school operations. In the process, we construct or expand buildings or facilities and maintain or preserve them. We also work on projects concerning everyday things such as sports activities (play handball) or mobility (school car). The project work is a joint effort with our partners the sponsoring association of the Lions Club Münster Landois and the Engineers without Borders in Switzerland. On site in Kenya we are supported by the Lions Club Thika Chania Falls and our project coordinator Michael Muntet. It is precisely this on-site support that enables us to successfully implement even larger projects.