Our beginning
UP Zambia’s work began in 2014, when a group of community members in Lusaka began to bring blankets, toiletries and other items to Lusaka’s Kamwala Remand Prison to help meet the physical needs of the juveniles in custody there. Expecting to simply leave the donations, we instead encountered boys who were desperate to interact, asking not to be forgotten. And so Undikumbukire Project—meaning, “remember me” in a local language—began.
Our growth
As we continued to spend time in Kamwala Remand Prison, it became clear that visits alone would not address the root problems behind the juveniles’ incarceration: first and foremost, they needed someone to defend their rights in court and advocate for the speedy resolution of their cases.
And so Undikumbukire Project Zambia was born to meet the need for legal representation for juveniles, provide social support and advocate for a restorative juvenile justice system in Zambia.
