Get to Know us
Our journey began not in a boardroom, but in the heart of the communities we serve. We saw a troubling pattern: on cold and rainy mornings, schoolyards grew quiet and classrooms became half-empty. We learned that this wasn’t just about avoiding discomfort—it was a silent crisis affecting millions.
We couldn’t ignore the reality that over a third of students were suffering from preventable respiratory infections like pneumonia and asthma. We saw the official reports from the Ministry of Education confirming that school attendance could plummet from 80% to as low as 40% during cold seasons. We heard the Uganda National Examination Board link these harsh conditions directly to poor academic performance, holding back the potential of countless bright young minds.
This was a problem we, as a team , knew we had to solve.
Driven by a shared vision, we dedicated over two years to understanding the challenge from the ground up. We spent 16 months on research and analysis, listening to the stories of students, parents, and teachers. We followed that with 13 months of intensive product development, designing, testing, and refining our solution based on direct community feedback.
From this deep-seated commitment, the Nowase 2-in-1 Jacket was born. It wasn’t just a piece of clothing; it was our answer. A durable, weather-ready jacket to keep a child warm and dry, with a smart design that transforms into a school bag to protect their precious books.
Our Vision
A future of students thriving in education with good health and wellbeing for excellence.
Our Mission
To equip students with weather-ready and functional wearable solutions to
support consistent school attendance amidst health threats.
At the heart of our mission is a simple yet powerful idea, captured in our name: Nowase, It’s more than a name—it’s a promise.
Not a day of school wasted to rain.
Every child should attend school without fear of the weather. Our jackets keep them dry, focused, and ready to learn.Not a child’s health wasted to the cold.
Cold weather leads to preventable illnesses. We provide warmth and protection so children stay healthy and in school.Not a single ounce of potential wasted.
Every child holds promise. By shielding them from harsh conditions, we help ensure their potential isn’t lost to preventable challenges.
With every jacket we create, we reaffirm this mission: to protect, empower, and ensure that nothing—not even the weather—stands in the way of a child’s future.
Protecting Dreams, Empowering Futures
Today, Nowase Africa stands as a youth-led social enterprise with a bold mission — to remove weather as a barrier to education.
Born out of empathy, innovation, and a deep understanding of the challenges students face, we are transforming how children experience the journey to school. Every jacket we create is more than just a piece of clothing — it's a step forward in the fight for equal opportunity, health, and access to learning.
With the Nowase 2-in-1 Jacket, we are building a future where no child is forced to choose between their health and their education. Our weather-ready solution ensures that students arrive at school dry, warm, and prepared to learn — even on the coldest, wettest days.
At the core of our work is a simple but powerful idea — that no child’s potential should ever be wasted. This belief is encapsulated in our name: Nowase, an abbreviation for “Not Wasted.”
Nowase is more than just a name — it’s our promise. A promise to turn challenges into solutions. A promise to turn overlooked problems into life-changing opportunities. And most importantly, a promise to ensure that no effort, no talent, no dream is ever wasted because of something as preventable as cold or rain.
Every jacket we create is a reminder of that commitment — to protect, to uplift, and to empower the next generation to rise, learn, and lead.
