IYANNA FOUNDATION . Arusha & Moshi, Tanzania
Protect. Educate. Empower.
Tuwalinde na Tuwaelimishe — Protect and Educate Them
We help children from difficult home backgrounds stay in school, think for themselves, and imagine a bigger future — and we work with their families and communities so that change lasts.
WHO WE ARE
At the meeting point of education, protection & family.
Iyanna Foundation is a registered Tanzanian NGO. We began as informal, community-driven work in 2018 and were formally registered in 2021. From our base in Arusha, our programmes reach children, young people and families across the Arusha and Moshi regions — especially those growing up with the least support.
What we do
Six programmes, one promise: protect and educate.
From the chessboard to the household — supporting the child, empowering the family, and strengthening the community around them
Chess for Development
Chess as a life-skills tool: school clubs, inclusive “Infinite Chess” for children with autism, and regional competitions.
Breaking the Cycle
Whole-child, whole-family support at Salei & Unga Primary Schools — education for the child, empowerment for the parent.
Support for Young Mothers & Children
A referral-based protection model connecting at-risk girls and young mothers to specialist care — with a safe house as our vision.
Life Skills & Reproductive Health
Youth-friendly, peer-led education that helps young people make informed, healthy choices.
STEM Education & Mentorship
Hands-on learning and mentors that close the gender gap in science and technology.
Reflective Leadership for Social Change
Building ethical, accountable leadership among schools, faith leaders and officials to protect children and prevent violence.
Our impact
Numbers that speak.
Every figure below is a child reached, a club running, or a leader equipped to keep children safe.
800 +
children reached through chess
8
school chess clubs across arusha
~ 600
children a year in chess competition
12
children with autism in infinite chess
23
children in the Breaking the Cycle programme
150
community & institutional leaders trained
Working across 2 regions — Arusha & Moshi
Breaking the Cycle
One child. One family. One future changed.
At Salei and Unga Limited Primary Schools, 23 children from difficult home backgrounds receive chess coaching, tutoring, sport and school essentials — while their parents build skills and savings
Pillar 1
Support for the child
Chess, tutoring, sport and school essentials, every week after school.
Pillar 2
Empowerment for the parent
Entrepreneurship workshops and Vikoba community savings groups.
Leadership
The people behind the work.
Prisca Lema
Founder & Chief Executive
Raised as an orphan in Arusha, Prisca turned early hardship into purpose. She leads the Foundation’s strategy, partnerships and programmes, and represents Tanzania in FIDE’s Infinite Chess work for children with autism.
Thea Elisabeth Haavet
Creative & Storytelling Partner
A filmmaker from Oslo and founder of Soulspace Film, Thea helps tell the stories of the girls and mothers at the heart of our mission, and supports Iyanna Foundation’s wider work
Reflective leadership
Change that reaches beyond the classroom.
With our partner UZIKWASA, we have trained school committees, faith leaders and government officials across Arusha to lead more ethically and protect children from violence. It’s a programme in its own right — and an approach woven through all our work, from chess coaching to the women entrepreneurs in our savings groups. We’re ready to bring it to new partners and communities.
150
community & institutional leaders trained since 2023
We work with
Proud to work alongside these partners.
Stories of impact & change
Chess and life skills at the East Africa Cup
75+ young people, two age categories, one chessboard. As featured on FIDE.com — how Iyanna Foundation used chess to teach life skills at East Africa’s biggest cross-border youth gathering.