The Amitofo Care Centre (ACC) - which is comprised of an administration centre, children’s dormitories, youth dormitories, preparatory school, kindergarten, library, activity centre, medical centre, vocational training centre, religious centre, CBO etc - is founded and directed by Buddhist clergy from the East with an aspiration and mission to directly rear and care for orphans of Africa within the humanitarian and educational umbrella. The main principles of ACC are based on local African culture, Chinese culture and Buddhist philosophy which are given to the orphans in need. This is considered a unique and remarkable characteristic of ACC although it must be stressed that none of the orphans have taken refuge to Buddhism, as the ACC respect their religious freedom and will allow them to choose their own religions as they enter adulthood.
After an arduous ten years, ACC’s caring programme has spread from one location to a number of African countries benefiting thousands of children and adults alike. ACC’s compassionate and philanthropic foot-prints have been left not only in South Africa but also in Swaziland, Burkina Faso, Chad, Gambia, Sao Tome and Principe, Nigeria, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Cameroon, etc. as well as Taiwan, Hong Kong, Mainland China, Singapore, Malaysia and several South American countries as St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The total orphans that ACC has adopted to date number around 3000.
The current ACC is in association with three charity institutes namely; the Yuan Tong Culture and Care Association (R.O.C.) , Pu-Hsein Educational Foundation of Taiwan and the Amitofo Charity Association in South Africa that continuously organize and manage ACC operations along with financial support.
Venerable Hui Li, born in Taiwan and tagged as the ‘African monk’, founded ACC specifically for African orphans in the early 90’s and is still the residing chairperson. With his enthusiasm and big heart to bring love and care to the orphans.
Ven. Hui Li has been awarded the “Loving of Life” medal by the Chou Ta-Kuan Foundation of Taiwan. He has also been invited by a number of First Ladies of certain African countries, some of whom refer to him as the Buddhist Albert Sweitzer, in praise of his significance and contributions thus far. Nowadays ACC, and Ven. Hui Li, is widely recognized as an international charity and educational institute and sponsored by numerous people in Asia.
For more info on the Amitofo Care Centre, click here.
