2026 · Kyrgyzstan
Support for today,
a home for tomorrow
We did not simply hand out clothes and school bags. At a bright, open fair the children chose their own size and their own colour — because support with dignity begins with the right to choose.
Support for today, a home for tomorrow
The Altyn Uya story
Altyn Uya is a public foundation providing sustainable support for orphaned and vulnerable children in Kyrgyzstan — shelter, education and basic needs.
In Kyrgyz, altyn is not only the name of a metal — it describes what is held precious. Uya is the nest where a bird raises its young, shelters them and prepares them to fly.
Our name was not chosen at random — it describes the work. The place where a child feels safe, sits down to eat, does their homework and prepares for tomorrow is not a building to us. It is a home.
The foundation grew out of the Altyn Uya Care Home, founded in 2009, and was registered as a public foundation with the Ministry of Justice of the Kyrgyz Republic on 27 November 2020 (re-registered on 2 September 2024). Children live at the Novopokrovka Care Home and attend local schools, while across the country we run programmes in education, food, health, clean water and winter support.
Some needs cannot wait: a hot meal, a heated room, a doctor, the school bus, a coat, a pair of shoes, a bed.
They cannot be postponed to the next fundraising season. That is why the Care Home is open 365 days a year — in summer and winter, on holidays, and after a campaign has ended. A child’s needs do not follow a campaign calendar.
And there is what only years can give: lessons, a language, a trade, knowledge, confidence, independence — and one day the ability to build a life of one’s own.
Our children stay for supervised evening study at the Care Home and learn English and computer skills. The finest return on support is the day a child can live by their own work — and stand beside someone else in turn.
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billion
people lack access to clean water
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million
children and young people are out of school
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million
people face hunger
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million
people lack access to basic health care
Dignity, compassion and continuity
Not helping a child once — but standing beside them for years
A school bag is not just a bag — it is the chance to stay in school. A winter coat is not just a coat — it is being able to walk to school in the cold. A plate of hot food is not just a meal — it is the feeling of not being forgotten.
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Dignity
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Hope
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Enthusiasm
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Affection
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Friendship
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Compassion
Education
We support the homes where children live and learn
In towns and villages across Kyrgyzstan, we help cover rent, heating and running costs for many learning homes where pupils live and study. As long as these homes stay open, children studying far from their families can keep learning in a safe place.
Supporting one home means every pupil in it can keep learning: a warm room, hot meals and a quiet place to study.
Why we don’t just say “aid”
Aid is a single act. A home takes time.
"Aid" is often understood as a single act with a beginning and an end: a parcel is handed over, a need is met, a photograph is taken, and the job is done. A child's life does not work that way.
So the point is not to help once, but to build a sustainable space of goodwill — not to leave a brief mark on a child's life, but to lay ground that can accompany them for years. A home takes time, effort and patience — and above all, continuity.
Altyn Uya — Latest news
News from the field
Here we share our work, from Bishkek to the most remote villages. Every delivery is documented with photographs and video, recording what went where and to whom. Transparency is not won once — it is earned again every day.
Our field process in three steps
How we work
We never assess need on our own. The local administration, the school and the foundation's field commission work together. Then the delivery is made, documented, and shown to the donor. All three steps matter equally.
We work in coordination with local administrations, schools and social services. Orphaned and vulnerable children are identified by that joint commission — nobody enters the list on our guess alone.
We do not line children up and hand over boxes in front of a camera. Stands are set up in sports halls to create the feel of a fair, and each child chooses their own size and colour. The person receiving support has preferences too.
Every delivery is documented with photographs and video. For Qurban, the donor receives a personal video. We plan to publish an annual report on this site; until then, reports are available on request. If we make a mistake, we do not hide it — we correct it and say so.
Become a volunteer
Would you like to volunteer with us?
Every step of this work — from the campus in Novopokrovka to villages far beyond Bishkek — needs volunteers: a teacher for evening study, a team to set up stands on fair day, someone to translate a field report into Russian, an engineer to review a well survey.
The work in Kyrgyzstan is run by Kyrgyzstanis; partners support, they do not replace. You can be part of that solidarity too.