A new program director, a new year, a new school!

November and December have brought me to my knees with gratitude and excitement.  Since my arrival, I have been immersed in the programs, events, and a lifetime worth of education about all things Uganda.  This year 201 students attended school thanks to your hands, 130 pigs and goats are being raised to create a sustainable income stream, 79 coffee projects are growing to provide a livelihood to families.  This is your hands at work.  You amaze me!

I think the biggest news comes of course, from Uganda.  In November, Barbara Beek joined the team as the new Program Director in Uganda.  Barbara Beek, 23, of Belgian nationality, is a brand new member of the Into Your Hands team in Makondo, Uganda. She graduated from the University of Dundee in Scotland having studied Illustration and has until recently been in eastern Uganda working with youth in a livelihoods and entrepreneurial capacity.  Her international upbringing coupled with her passion for community empowerment and education are what motivate her in working towards achieving Into Your Hands Africa's mission and vision. Barbara is excited to be back in Uganda to support the growth and development of Into Your Hand Africa's programs and sustainable development efforts in the community.  She brings so much talent and educational programming skills to the group and is a joy to work with. 

 

The first week of December brought a huge programming opportunity to Into Your Hands Africa.  We are very excited to announce that Into Your Hands Africa will be extending it programming efforts to St. James Secondary School in Jjaga, Uganda.  Thanks to some extraordinary caretakers, Kris Fitzgerald-Rohr and Dean Rohr, this school is coming to life.  We are excited to welcome the school aboard and look forward to a vibrant program developing at a new school.  St. James Secondary School is a four year school perched on a mesa in the remote village of Jjaga, Uganda.  Since 2008, the Jjaga community has labored long and hard to make their school a reality because there were no other schools nearby and students were walking 10+ miles one-way to attend school (or dropping out after the completion of primary school).  

Now under the leadership of  Headmistress Nakyeyune Juliet  the school has made immense progress. Over the past year and a half, the community has responded well to the school's needs and has demonstrated the desire to be self sufficient.  To assist with this need and to supplement funds, Kris and Dean  Rohr created a student sponsorship program in 2010 which they have since coordinated and managed.

While visiting Uganda in June 2012, Kris and Dean spent much time at St. James S.S. and held meetings with the headmistress and staff, the Board of Governors, the PTA, and the students and community; talking about strategic plans and the vision for St. James S.S. to become as self-sufficient as possible. 

Now in partnership with Into Your Hands Africa and with the continued dedication of Kris and Dean Rohr, St. James S.S. is moving forward in becoming a strong, thriving, vibrant school which will continue to be a source hope and support for the Jjaga community.

St. Denis introduces new head mistress

After a long and anxious wait for the students and staff of St Denis, a new headteacher was finally appointed and arrived on 28^th Feb. Namulema Lucia has come from being deputy head in an urban school in Masaka in order to see St Denis through the next stage of its development. She was selected for her diplomatic nature and commitment to the continuation of the self-sufficiency project and will be closely supported by the Parish, our field officer, and a new projects manager to ensure that the school businesses continue to thrive and develop. 2012 will be a crucial year for the school businesses due to the launch of the posho mill and the potential of the other businesses to grow to the next level.

  

(Staff members welcoming the new head teacher (in red) and staff and stakeholders touring the St Denis businesses.)

After she had settled in, the new headmistress was given a tour of the self-sufficiency businesses in order to introduce her to her new role as business manager. She was joined on the tour by both Fr. Paschal and Fr. Andrew, Joseph Bunjacko (a member of the board of governers), Mukasa James (Projects Manager), Ssembatya Henry (Agricultural Manager) and myself. We spent time greeting each of the business managers, hearing about the current financial status of each business as well as the challenges each business manager is facing. As a group we then outlined the next steps needed to take each business to the next level.

 

(Staff and stakeholders touring the posho mill and a group shot of all project stakeholders.)

We will be working closely with the new head teacher in order to ensure that she has the support and training she needs to manage the future development of the St Denis businesses.

St. Denis opens the doors to the Posho Mill

After almost two years and a lot of teething problems, the St Denis Posho Mill finally opened its doors to customers on 1^st March 2012. Although the building and machinery has been in place for over a year, the mill was only connected to the electricity supply in February this year, to the great relief of the community who have been waiting and fundraising for its operation throughout 2011.

  

(The mill's first customer and the mill in operation manned by Laurence and Umar.)

An expert miller and machine operator, Umar Sentongo, was recruited from the nearby town of Masaka, and was responsible for putting the final engineering touches to the mill before the operational opening on 1^st March. We also recruited a casual worker from the surrounding community in order to assist Umar in dealing with the customers and operating the mill. Laurence, who was recruited because he is an ex-St Denis student, had previously been without a job but has since picked up enough skills to run the mill alone when the manager is not there.

  

(The mill manager about to switch on and customers queuing up.)

Since it is the maize harvesting season, the mill has been extremely busy in its first two weeks of opening and seen up to 50 customers per day, each milling between 5kg and 80kg of maize. The customers have been commenting on the high quality of the milled maize and are extremely pleased not to have to carry their maize 5km to the next mill.

The income has been between 70,000-100,000 UGX ($30-$45) per day in the first two weeks, but the mill is working hard in order to save up enough cash to pay the hefty electricity bill that will be on its way shortly. There is still a lot of hard work to be done to ensure that the mill turns a profit in its first year of operation. 

Meet a Student- Marion

Name: Marion Ssewajje  Age: 17  Class: S2 Boarding student

Marion, in her second year of the Hands of Hope Into Your Hands sponsorship, is a vivacious teenager with big aspirations for the future. She hopes to continue to S5 and S6 after finishing at St Denis in order to study journalism. If she fails to make the grades or doesn’t manage to fund herself through college, her back up plan is to run a hair salon in the footsteps of her mum. She currently spends the long summer holidays with mum who lives 4 hours away in the capital, Kampala. She is studying from St Denis because her Dad lives in the nearby village of Kyamukama and works as a teacher. He supplements his teaching income with subsistence farming, as many rural teachers do.

Marion’s favorite subject at school is English, which is easy to tell since her spoken English is extremely confident and fluent. She isn’t so keen on Geography or Chemistry since she finds them a bit of a struggle. Her favorite teacher is Master Ssenabula, the Biology teacher, since he’s very friendly and offers his students good advice.

   

I became interested in Marion because I saw the school secretary wearing a beautiful beaded necklace, which she said she bought from Marion in S2. When I asked her about it, Marion told me that her mum is part of a cooperative of women who make beaded necklaces out of colored paper and sell them either locally or to an American organization that sends them abroad. Marion has started making her own necklaces when she stays with her mum during the holidays and sells them to friends and other community members for 4000 shillings (just under $2) each. She buys small glass beads for 2000 shillings per large packet and threads them along side her own beads made from rolled up magazine pages in bright colors which are then hardened in varnish. I’m always thrilled to see students using their initiative to make some extra pocket money, which is a big boost to Marion, because she is one of 12 children being supported by her mum and dad, and needs to fund her own day to day needs such as soap and school supplies.

Marion’s favorite singer is R Kelly and her favorite song is “Hands across the world.”

Meet a Student Javira

Mulindwa Javira is an ex-St Denis student who is now in his second year of college at Mbuye Farm School, about 1 hour from Makondo. Having received sponsorship from Into Your Hands for college as well as his O Levels at St Denis, he is studying acertificate in animal husbandry and is due to graduate this year.

Javira and his mum with their IYH pig.

Javira with his pig and appropriate T-Shirt!

Mulindwa Javira is one of 9 children supported by his single mum, and they all live in a village called Ndeeba, about 20 mins motocycle ride from Makondo. In order to support her family, Javira’s mum practices subsistence farming alongside a goat rearing project, assisted by her son’s expertise in animal husbandry. Javira is also a beneficiary of the Into Your Hands Send A Pig Home Project, and his pig, now extremely large, has given birth twice to a total of 18 piglets, and is now pregnant again! 14 of the piglets have been sold at around 20,000 UGX each (about $9) bringing the total income of his piggery project to 280,000 UGX each (about $120) since 2009. This is a huge boost to a family of 10 whose average monthly income is below 30,000 UGX (below $13). The extra income is used to cover school fees as well as home needs and family sickness.

IYH Piggery project manager Kulungi with Javira.

When Javira graduates in a few months, he intends to use income from his piggery project to invest in a small business for himself. As he now has expertise in animal husbandry, he says it is likely that he will invest in more animal projects and expand the piggery project. He said to me that he wants to create his own job, rather than becoming another job seeker like so many of the other young men in the area.

I was struck by the commitment and ambition I saw in Javira, and he serves as an ideal role model for his peers and the younger students currently studying at St Denis. I asked Javira what he misses the most about St Denis and he said being able to use the computers (also donated by Into Your Hands) and his computer teacher, Mr Fred. 

District 5450 Rotary Project Safari

Dear friends,  Rotary really changes lives. See the video link below to view photos and be inspired! 

My Animoto Video

Send a Piglet Home Update Namabaale

In Namabaale Parish, IYH Uganda staff member Justine Nabukeera has been implementing and monitoring the Send a Piglet Home project for students of St Francis vocational secondary school. There are currently 25 students with pigs from the project, and three pigs have given birth in the last month to a total of 21 piglets.

A very pregnant mama pig!

Kasaanya Jude, Ssegawa Ivan and Bulungu Gonzaga are the owners of the recently born piglets, who have already been spoken for by eager buyers waiting to collect them when they are one month old. The students have already received half of the money for each piglet, which is required as a deposit, so they have already been able to use the cash for their school requirements such as books, shoes and school fees.

New born piglets

There are another 5 pregnant pigs in the program which will be giving birth over the next few months. Food waste, cabbages, cassava leaves, potato vines and maize bran are the most popular foods to give the pigs, who are mainly looked after by the students themselves. Boarding students have help from their parents who take responsibility for the piglets while they are at school in term time.

There are so many students at Namabaale interested in this project, because now they have seen their fellow students getting money from the piglets they also want to benefit! The current 25 beneficiaries will be donating one piglet from their first litter back into the program so that another 25 students can benefit from the program over the next year. 

Meet a Student Nasaka

Nasaka Gorette is a 15 year old female student in her second year of secondary school at St Denis. Her close family consists of Mum, Dad and her baby sister and she lives in Kyamukama village, a 30 minute walk from St Denis, when she’s not boarding at school during term time. She is originally from the Eastern Region of Uganda and therefore speaks Lugishu as well as English and the local language in Makondo, Luganda. Nasaka’s mum is a store owner selling everyday items, and her Dad is a farmer with 9 acres of land, growing bananas, cabbages, sweet potatoes and beans. Despite her enterprising parents, her family would struggle to pay the termly fees of 120,000 UGX (about £30) and she currently receives sponsorship from Into Your Hands. Her favorite subject is Maths but she finds Biology too difficult!

       

(Nasaka (left) with her best friend Lillian, and Nasaka with her certificate of thanks for her commitment to the school canteen.)

Nasaka has been extremely dedicated to working at the St Denis school canteen this year, part of the St Denis self sufficiency project. Her previous experience has been a great asset to the canteen and the other students who have received training from her. She initially worked one day per week during break times and after school, but her quick learning and trustworthiness meant that she was quickly given more responsibility and asked to work alongside less experienced students.

Through her work at the canteen, Nasaka says she has picked up skills such as fast mental arithmetic, has increased her confidence and gained respect from fellow students and teaching staff. As with many students at St Denis, Nasaka’s ambition is to be a doctor or nurse, but she also has the back up plan of one day having her own large store. When asked what other businesses she would like to gain experience in, Nasaka mentioned that she was also extremely interested in fish farming but would not consider working on the dairy because she is terrified of cows! Nasaka received a certificate of achievement for her work on the canteen as well as a small gift of exercise books from the headmaster.

Meet A Student

I am Basirika Gerald Kisuze aged 17 and Buganda by tribe. For the case of my background, all parents are still alive: Mr. Kakeedo Deo Ddamba and Namivubo Amyaga from Ttaba trading center Lwendaula village. We were born seven children including our older sister Nabbuye Fausta, next to her Nankya Maxersia, followed by myself Kisuze, Kiwamike Vicent, Nakizito Juscent, Nakaya Melda and our last born Namiiro Victoria. We are only two boys and five girls. My father was born by a soldier man the late Mark Ddamba who I didn't get a chance to meet implying the he kicked the bucked when I was not produced yet.

My father built a house which is not as such permanent as one may think of but it is semi-permanent with evidence from the mud which was used as morter. This house of ours in having five rooms. For a moment all of us children are still alive but our older sister went sick a recently. In the community at large we are poor and my parent Mr. Kakeedo is quite poor although he can slaughter cows every Saturday as his economic activity, plus faming and rearing pigs where he uses some balance of money and pays school fees. My grandmother is still alive for the father and my grandma on my mother's all are alive settled at Ssembabule Mawogola district. Their major activity is coffee growing which is grown on large scale. Our family is not rich although none can say that they are rich. My father has tried his best to educate his children, where my elder sister is at higher school, others are in primary level.

As I am continuing to proceed with my education my goal and ambitions are two. If plan A fails you improvise for plan B. Being a professional doctor is plan A, a professional teacher for a secondary school aiming at teaching chemistry, biology and agriculture is plan B. As far as my performance in those subjects is concerned if God wishes I am able to serve the country's children. 

Me there are some challenges I face as I am at school and in the community as well. The major problem at our school is shortage of laboratory equipments as far as science subjects are concerned comparing to St. Denis Makondo, and the school buildings do not give enough room for a bright student to go study because during rainy condition the roofs are leaking. In the community we are lacking roll models in education who could pursue us to love education which gives me enough confidence such that I can study to be a roll model in our family and society. St. Denis Makondo is having well constructed blocks most especially the computer and main hall block which are good for education compared to ours at Namabaale. Our buildings are lent to us by the primary school. I am a boarder but in this article I would like to put across this point that at St. Francis Namabaale we have few teachers, and are affected by jiggers (small insects that bury into the feet) due to dusty classroom blocks. Our school is only five years since it began and it is still infant. 

With my  sincere request I would like to call of the lord to bless you all.