July 2026: Announcing Africa & Latin America-Caribbean grant winners, Special Projects, a personal message

Kindness to Animals Has No Boundaries

AKI News: July 2026

Announcing our 9th annual Animal Welfare Organization

Grant Program (for Africa & Latin America-Caribbean) Winners!

Out of 123 proposals received, we selected 41 finalists, 21 in Africa, 20 in Latin America/Caribbean. Then our 12-member Africa committee and 10-member LAC committee reviewed the 41 proposals, followed by the AKI Board’s review. Fourteen proposals made the final cut, 7 from Africa and 7 from LAC. Our 2026 Africa & Latin America/Caribbean Animal Welfare Grant winners are:

Africa Grantees COALA Senegal Animal Smile Tanzania Rwanda Animal Welfare Organization The One & Only Sanctuary Ghana Zambezi Animal Welfare Zambia ESSAV Ethiopia National Council SPCAs South Africa

LAC Grantees Org ARI Honduras Quatre Pattes Haiti Huellas de Amor Colombia Animalover Solidaridad Peru Animal Love Rescue Costa Rica Equinos de Honduras FUCAEP Panama

For their grant project, Org ARI in Honduras will spay/neuter 22 cats and dogs living at a children’s home and up to 30 more in the surrounding communities. The cats and dogs at the home provide emotional support to the children, many of whom have suffered abuse (as have some of the cats and dogs now living at the home).

Org ARI taking care of the dogs

With the grant from AKI, the One & Only Animal Sanctuary in Ghana will build and equip a kitten area at their sanctuary to relieve overcrowding and provide a healthier environment for rescued kittens.

The cattery for spayed and neutered cats at The One & Only Animal Sanctuary. The kittens will soon have a separate space, where they can get proper care, feeding, and monitoring in a stress-free environment.  

Read about the 14 2026 grant projects here

The review of proposals and selection of grants is a very busy and emotional time. The most difficult part is having to tell so many organizations that we aren’t able to help them. The best part is telling new grantees that yes, we will support their project! The most uplifting and emotional part is the virtual kick-off meeting that we hold with each new grantee to discuss their organization, grant project, and challenges.

After each meeting, I’m so inspired by what I hear from the grantees and so grateful that we can help them. I only wish that all of you could join me in the virtual meetings and hear what I hear from these dedicated, smart, highly competent and effective organizations.

I’m especially thankful to our recurring and monthly donors

whose consistent support during these highly fraught times

has meant that we can support so many organizations

who do so much for animals at a fraction of what it would cost in the global north.

These 14 grant projects are dedicated to you.

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NEW! Our Special Projects

In the June newsletter, I mentioned two new funds established for previous AKI grant recipients:

• In South Africa, the SPCA Grahamstown’s Good DOG Fund for spay/neuter and vet care in marginalized communities; and

• in Haiti, a Spay/Neuter and Emergency Fund for Fondation Alliance Verte.

We created a new space for them on our website, Special Projects, where you can read about their work and designate your donations:

The new Special Projects page

You’ll also find on the new Special Projects page:

• Our ongoing support for the cats and dogs rescued from the Mityana, Uganda scammers; and

• Our cutting edge, 1st of its kind Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Plan for AKI Partner Liberia Animal Welfare & Conservation Society’s Humane Education Program.

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Updates from our Partners

Our Partner Organizations receive ongoing support for their priority animal welfare needs. Here are updates from three of our Partners about how they’ve put your donations to work for animals.

AKI-HaH-Namibia Emergency Fund Update: From January through June 2026, our partnership with Have a Heart has helped 211 dogs and 13 cats

• 21 dogs received emergency veterinary care

• 13 cats received emergency veterinary care

• 190 dogs received preventative care at community dip day events

Read the update here

Our support for Twala Trust’s community dogs and senior dogs: Most recently, Twala used AKI funds for:

• Food for the animals-Doggy Tuesday community dogs and for the sanctuary animals (including the farm animals, horses, and donkeys);

• Construction and repairs at the sanctuary (borehole pump, solar invertors, panels, wiring, installation, kennels);

• Medicine, vet supplies, and shelter supplies are also a big expense, much of them covered by AKI; and

• Transportation (repairs, fuel, maintenance)

How Twala spent 2025 donations from December 2025 through June 2026

But the bottomline, the story behind the finances is that your support to AKI for Twala Trust (Zimbabwe) helps the Doggy Tuesday dogs and the Waggley Tail Club’s senior dogs and helps the Twala staff manage it all!  

Read more about the AKI-Twala partnership

Sarah (Twala Trustee) wrote to us, “We are so proud to be an AKI partner organisation. Thank you for seeing the value of what we do, and the importance of these beautiful, loyal and clever rural dogs who deserve a good life, as well as the other animals we care for at Twala and within the community, where the community residents are so appreciative of what we do.”

Red is one of the beautiful, loyal, and clever dogs living a great life at Twala as part of the Waggley Tail Club. Read about Red and other Twala dogs here.

Our support for the Bam Animal Clinics-Uganda Donkey Welfare Program: AKI Partner Bam recently returned from the Elgon region in eastern Uganda, where they taught humane saddle making to donkey owners and held free vet clinics, during which 100s of donkeys were helped. All of this is supported by AKI and your donations!

During the training in Tuikat, Bam staff demonstrated how to properly fit a humane saddle. The saddles are made from sisal sacks and padded with old clothing or dry grass. Properly designed and fitted saddles help distribute weight evenly, reduce wounds and pressure sores, and improve overall health and well-being of the donkeys. Donkey owners actively participate in these sessions, making and fitting sisal saddles, ensuring that these skills can be replicated within their communities after training has ended.

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Help us reach a larger audience. Please forward our newsletter

to an animal-loving friend.

THANK YOU!

Thanks to your support, we’re helping effective animal advocates and animal welfare organizations working in conflict areas and impoverished communities. We’ve seen so many examples of people helping animals even when their own lives are so difficult. In countries where we work, it takes just a little to help a lot. Thank you SO much for helping!

We are gratefully yours,

Karen Menczer, Founder/Director

& the Animal-Kind International Board

Our Partner Organizations work in Uganda, Namibia, DR Congo, Ghana, South Sudan, Liberia, Zimbabwe, Honduras, and Jamaica. You can donate to AKI’s general fund or designate your donation to one or more of our Partner Organizations.

Our 2026 (9th annual) Animal Welfare Organization Grant Program grantees work in: Tanzania, Ghana, Senegal, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Zambia, South Africa, Haiti, Honduras (2 grantees), Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, and Peru.  

AKI: Since 2007, helping animals and the people who care for them in resource-poor areas.

We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization; donations to AKI are tax deductible in the US to the extent the law allows. 100% of your donations are used to support our Partner Organizations & our Animal Welfare Organization Grant Program.