Oil Studies in Uganda: An Opportunity for Development

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Humanitarian Work: My Journey...

By

Mutebi Eddie,

Union Of Community Development Volunteers
Block 26, Plot 842, Professor Apolo Nsibambi Road, Bulange Zone 'A'
P.O. Box 35792, Kampala - Uganda
Telephone: +256 414 690 897
Mobile: +256 782 713 500

ucdvolunteers@yahoo.com 

Introduction
Being a member of the royal family in Buganda Kingdom I did not feel cheated being addressed without my inherited title, Prince.  And youthful as I was, humility was evident during interactions with the community and development partners. The humility was doubled with a so caring and generous person in me –a person with a listening ear, approachable, understanding, cooperative, and very helpful to people in need.

When there was no immediate action-help, I pledged to support them as soon as I was able. Before being reminded of the assistance pledged, I called to ask the persons in need to meet me to receive what they requested for. Interventions focused on areas and needs neglected either consciously or unconsciously by the community and government. Indeed I value the concept of service above self. 

After my studies, I role-played those traits to best benefit communities around me. I worked, first, as property manager. I used my strong and wide networks to win clients from all corners of central region and whoever came into it. As a property manager, I served his clients diligently to their satisfaction –a value which maintained healthy relationship with them. This character won me friends from highest levels of offices to the common people (at the grass-root) of this country –Uganda. 

Being people-centered and rewards from the healthy relationship with the community prompted me to go humanitarian in every view of work. It is now seven (10) years since setting out to serve the community I lived among. In the same period I was able to widen my scope of service the needy communities and areas served. I had been dismayed by the state of the environment that was primarily responsible for the ill-health, unproductiveness of the youth, children misery, and poverty within the city –where I began my work. 

The high population within the city did not only stress the communally-shared resources, but diminished the sense of responsibility towards both individual and community wellbeing. My main goal was to transform community life from one afflicted by disease, ignorance, poverty and helplessness to one full of potential to solve own problems with a smile –through public health development, educational programs for  parents and children (in their teens), and spirit of volunteerism. 

That was in line with the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): to reduce illiteracy, child mortality rates, maternal deaths, poverty, and HIV/AIDS and other diseases.  Reports confirm that 1 million people die of malaria annually, the majorities are children. By 2008, only 34% were using improved sanitation facilities. 


And world over, 800 million people are unable to read and write –mainly children and women. Ignorance, poverty, and ill-health impact impacted most the children. And according to UNICEF, at least 22 000 children quietly die each day due to poverty in some of the poorest villages on earth. The highest rates of child mortality were in sub-Saharan Africa, where 1 in 8 children dies before their fifth birthday — nearly 20 times the average for developed regions. In my attempts to reduce the visible burden of communities as those, my effort and community stretched from the city center to city-suburbs, and to 9 upcountry districts.

The Humanitarian Work

Humanitarian work began when I conceived the need to change the lives of the neediest of the communities. And through the Volunteer Health Program and Volunteer Orphan Care and Support Education Program, the different micro-elements pertinent to community survival were met. Those were: access to clean water and proper sanitation, better hygiene, HIV/AIDS prevention, orphan care and support, acquisition of vocation skills, environment protection, poverty eradication, and building of strong community development networks and partners. My work in those areas lasted 10 years (since 2002) in 9 country districts.

Volunteer Health Promotion

Health is a basic right enshrined in the national constitution and reinforced by several human rights instruments, which children are entitled to. Prominent among them is the Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC). I turned to the out-of-youth (between 16 and 30), who because of frustration to making meaningful progress in life, resorted to alcohol and drug abuse for a hand that would change not only their lives but the entire community that had serious public health concerns. The communities’ health concerns were: lack of safe water, risky sexual behaviors, drug abuse, and poor hygiene and sanitation. 

I realized that by transforming at-risk youth (using the youth-to-children strategy) into productive and productive ones, he could yield tangible results at many fronts. I rallied the youths (as change agents) to clean their immediate environment and provided them with work tools, knowledge about the importance of their work, life-kills, free information on reproductive health, career-guidance and  counseling, and some money incentive for their active engagement in community work. The incentives were more than sufficient to meet their daily fares and food throughout the cleaning exercise. 

Volunteers cleaned clogged water channels, collected and burned littered rubbish in schools, slums, and market places under my leadership. To the surprise of the beneficiaries, I never levied any fee from them to cater for the noble cause.  And as a token of appreciation and royalty to the cause, I engaged the same youth (as peer-educators and mentors to children) in advanced health programs involving community health education and construction of wells. 

As a reward to my successful interventions in that particular area of work, I attracted funding for UCDV from the church of the latter-day saints to sustain his long term efforts of achieving a healthy and happy community. At that stage, the youth were able to earn more for their work. They received a wage at the end of the day in addition to meeting their costs of transport and food. Most of these youths either headed families (of wives and children) or came from families destabilized by poverty and diseases, which gave them an added responsibility of tending for their young siblings and poverty-stretched parents (and grand parents). Therefore, by economically empowering the youths, he was reaching out to the vulnerable children under them.

Statement of Social Impact

The health promotion work kept the youth so busy that they hardly found time for the health-challenging risky behaviors like alcoholism and use of unsolicited drugs. It can be remembered that alcoholism has been responsible for the vast cases of child neglect, domestic violence and HIV/AIDS –especially among adolescent users. This was a direct contribution to the fight of mental illness among older children and youths that over the years was linked to drug abuse and alcoholism. The program provided meaningful employment to tens of young people, who now afford rent and food for their dependants. 

Besides, youths use their volunteering experience to offer private or commercial cleaning services for a fee during their off-hours. Community insecurity and domestic violence in particular –through which children suffer life-long psychological problems associated to drug use and redundancy was tremendously reduced. Money spent on alcoholism and misuse of drugs was saved from wastage by adolescents and older youths. Instead, it was used to improve family welfare. It turned the youth under his program into more responsible citizens and gave a predictably brighter future for than before. 

Access to clean water, proper sanitation, and information on common infectious diseases in health-risk areas reduced the incidences of HIV/AIDS, diarrhea, dysentery and cholera. 80% reduction attributed to water-borne infections was found after an evaluation of the sanitation and hygiene project in the last 10 years among communities he served. And no longer did families, schools and other sections of the community have to buy water or even queue and conflict for the few limited water supplies. With the use of alternative sources of water as aerial and ground tanks donated to schools and identified vulnerable populations, access to water was guaranteed throughout the year round. It saved households huge expenditures for water and created community peace in return. 

55 springs, 15 school latrines were constructed, and 15 (10, 000 liter capacity water tanks installed –solving a water and health hazards in 6, 480 households in Kampala (the Capital City of Uganda) alone. Elsewhere 9 other districts got their share. In Masaka (60 springs, 15 school toilets, 15 hand washing stations, 500 toilet slabs distributed, accompanied by a participatory hygiene and sanitation training package -PHAST) while Mbale, Rakai, Mukono, and Buikwe had the same share.  In Mpigi and Wakiso, 22 boreholes were constructed, 700 slabs distributed, and 15 water tanks installed accompanied by PHAST package while in Jinja had 5 springs and a borehole were built.

One of the beneficiaries wrote:

“We express our at most appreciation for such commendable task and your full participation at our center which has enhanced sanitation and hygiene for all this period. We further request for your continued voluntary charitable support…”

—    Joyce Lulindya, Administrator, Sanyu Babies’ Home, Namirembe Hill, Mengo-Kampala

While part of our strategic partnership, local politicians used the development programs run by me to get higher political statures. It eased their way into various political offices. However, lack of health facilities (for example; health posts and dispensaries) close to me for easy monitoring and evaluations was a challenge that at different fronts proved costly. It meant referring critical yet urgent matters to partners wherever they were to fill the missing gaps for me. I had to incur expenses to achieve my success with them, yet it would have been cheaper if I owned such facilities.  

Volunteer Orphan Care and Support Education Program

The right to care, protection and education are very critical in the welfare of the child; now and in the future. Prominent about me in the community I worked was the establishment of the children-sponsored scheme. The children’s wide but vital needs were parental care, food, clothing, education, clean water, medical care, and shelter –which the program entrusted itself with taking care of. 

The scheme targeted children abandoned by either irresponsible or impoverished families, or orphaned due to HIV/AIDS and other life-taking illnesses. Priority was given to children with dire lack of family and social support. The children are identified by their local leaders, who knew them well and brought to me. I through my staff kept records of all such children in a file box pending scrutiny and approval by both me and prospecting sponsor. It took a considerable period of time to find a sponsor, and it was very challenging task. My biggest asset was the Christian faith that, one day each one of the children under him will receive the education they need to become productive and responsible citizens. 

I spent relentless time and effort searching for child sponsors online and through networks while some who failed to get them (sponsors) in a shorter time, took with them my hard-earned income with special interest put on the girl-child. When I received more funding for the program, those who had earlier not benefitted took their day. Because of the children development burden for both I and the parents, benefiting families and youths undertook life-skills and reproductive health lessons to better their decisions on healthy living and career development (or economic well being). 

I was very passionate about hand-on skills. Children, who found themselves unable to pursue further studies or to find their career in different fields other than those provided by formal education, are advised to opt for hand-on skills training. The training involved wielding, kneading, tailoring, building, shoe-repair, motor vehicle mechanics, power installations, weaving, and hair-dressing. Skills acquired became part and parcel of their being for many years to come.

I also had strong working relations with foster homes and rehabilitation centers for the disabled children namely; Sanyu Babies’ Home, Nsambya Babies’ Home and the Kampala School for the Physically Handicapped. In those homes and the education facility for the disabled children, I found children, who were abandoned by their mothers in public places, that survived being drowned in latrines (again by their mothers), or deliberated taken to those homes by well wishers and families who thought it was necessary. I contributed to each of their mission statements by providing moral, physical and structural support. This program, however, was concentrated mostly in the city suburbs or slums. A lot of work on children demanded equal attention in the up-country districts. 

Statement of Social Impact

Some of the children, who excelled were retained by UCDV to work on his health and education programs as peer trainers and training of trainers for a fee while others either worked in big wood or metal workshops or start their own businesses. The wage income received was used to improve the general financial and health wellbeing of families (access to medicine, proper nutrition and siblings’ education) and to tend for them-selves. 300 children were direct beneficiaries of the program, 30 were confirmed ready to tend for them-selves after attaining building and other related vocation skills. 

Formal education was conjoined with the informal for both in-school and out-of-school children. From the reproductive health lessons (including negotiation for sex, goal-setting, and HIV/AIDS and other STDs prevention through abstinence, being faithful, use of condoms and medical circumcisions), parents have became more responsible towards their health and economic future. Indirectly, the program affected 49, 000 children –a combination of in-school, out-of-school and government-supported fraction (4 per family). While 10 years ago a family in the areas I worked had an average of 12 children, today it is fashionable for young people to have a maximum of 4. 

Parents and youth learned to measure their intentions to have children and marry against the available resources under their control. That delayed sex among adolescents under his program and accelerated prevention against HIV/AIDS. And it caused a lasting impression on young people, who if asked about the number of children they wished to have, the commonest response was 4 (children). They developed positive reasons for reproduction and looked forward to having numbers of children they could afford to care for until the age when they could move out to live independently.

Assistance to homes for vulnerable children was as follows: 1) At Sanyu Babies’ Home, 1 toilet and water tank was constructed, regularly cleaned their play-ground and donated toys since 2001; 2) At Nsambya Babies’ Home, I supervised its cleaning and ensuring of proper hygiene and sanitation for 1 month; and 3) At the Kampala School of the Physically Handicapped, I donated a tank, did painting of the school, offered firewood for cooking and conducted cleaning exercises. That did only help bring hope environment wellbeing to the children, but greatly eased the work of institutions, which directly took care of them in as far as planning, budgeting and expenditures were concerned. A section of the communities served reaffirmed the program contribution. 

“We thank you all volunteer members for their dedication and commitment towards this community service. Your services have been of great impact to the school…”

—    Director, Joy Mwesigwa, Kampala School for the Physically Handicapped, Mengo-Kampala

Conclusions and Future Actions

It is, as it has been, a long journey yet gratifying for in my effort towards dignifying lives for impoverished, disease-stricken and unsuspecting communities, which inflict worst damage on children and their future to come. However, community development needs are still huge for me. More children and reports of at-risk population fill his desk beyond those he or resources at his disposal can handle. For example; at least five children in need of education are brought to his office everyday. With the registered number (300) still overwhelming, the new figures provides me only with a bigger challenge to face. 

Focusing on sustainability of programs run by me is central to causing a lasting solution to children miseries. That is reachable with persistence of the care and support of children, enabling government fiscal policies (focusing on poverty eradication), increase partnerships and networks in his area of operation, establishment of community support units (as community-run orphanage and children support center, community-run savings and loan scheme, a community-run grade and high school, community-run vocation centers, community-run health posts, and community-run agribusinesses), scale up life-skills and reproductive health education, strengthen environment health education, and to focus funding on impact projects that addresses the real needs.  

And of course, achieving all those, necessitate having effective and efficient personnel, who are well remunerated beyond the current numbers and rewards. When the children are secure, the future is same for everyone.

Reaching Vulnerable Children Through Health and Education

Over the years (10) I have selflessly and compassionately contributed towards the welfare of children and community. I left the comfort of my family’s wealth and responsibilities as assets manager to transform the lives of most neglected sections of the community –focusing on the children using youth power. 

A community-based approach was employed, where if a community got empowered, the children followed. Both the out-of-school and in-school children reached were 49, 000 and 78 youths, who worked as change agents. The water-source projects were run side-by-side with environment health education, lessons on health decision-making and activities (involving tree planting, hand-washing, use and distribution of mosquito nets, and promotions of donor-supported immunization exercises, family planning, and HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention) in schools and community. 120 schools in 60 different communities directly benefited. Through a community development agency founded and run by me (Union of Community Development Volunteers –UCDV). My work helped to improve safe-water access and use, to scale-up prevention of the most common diseases among children (for example: diarrhea, cholera, malaria, and dysentery). 

While supporting the healthy development of children on one hand, the youths were being empowered on the other hand –with knowledge about their potential and practical skills. Acquired skills brought them income they much-needed to improve their welfare and self-managed projects for sustainable livelihoods. The youth effort under my leadership helped to create socioeconomic and health structures for children to survive and thrive.

While the youth (most of whom had children) were between the ages of 16 and 30), the children in question were from 5 and 18. It is worth reporting though that the programs went as far as helping the in-born and the less-than-5 to thrive parented by the volunteer program youths. 

Partners in that area of work were: local government department, community leaders, and internal and local non-government organizations –mainly with interest in volunteerism for community development such as the Uganda Water and Sanitation Networks (UWASNET), United Nations Volunteers (UNV), Volunteer Service Organization (VSO), and the National Volunteers Association. The partnerships were never in vain; instead they won me confidence, courage, and funding for UCDV –an umbrella under which I now work. 

More of such partnerships and networks are needed. In fact, the rewards from them now compels me to rethink the current partnership policy to include other organizations (non-volunteer based) and development agencies –with interests in children rights and advocacy, public health development, environment conservation, education, and poverty eradication. Strengthening structures for continuity of UCDV programs and replicating benefits to other vulnerable communities in the countryside has been his immediate need which from experience and drive the future is bright. 

By

Mutebi Eddie,

Executive Director,

Union Of Community Development Volunteers
Block 26, Plot 842, Professor Apolo Nsibambi Road, Bulange Zone 'A'
P.O. Box 35792, Kampala - Uganda
Telephone: +256 414 690 897
Mobile: +256 782 713 500

For What Purpose is Education?

Jacob Waiswa
Peace and Conflict Center
P.O. Box 7062,
Makerere University
Kampala-Uganda
jwaiswa@arts.mak.ac.ug

For the rural and semi-urban populace in Uganda, education is a luxury. It is a cost foregone in order to meet other basics like food, water, clothes, and shelter. What matters to the strategists today is the fact that he or she earns to live a meaningful life. If he or she has a source of money, then that is great enough.

Even for the middle class category, attaining a minimum of a certificate or diploma is satisfying while the highest honors like masters degrees and doctorates are preserves of the very rich or those that have been chanced with necessarily information infrastructure to apply for funding.

As a means of coping with the education difficulties, the major yet decent options for very many young people have been on-job training and entrepreneurship which constitutes the large informal sector.

The question however remains: what about education or life after school? At the end of the day, who is he or she? What contribution does he or she make to society? And is there job satisfaction?
Despite the challenges involved in achieving higher education, the time and costs of attaining it, nothing or very little will be obtained from the very expensive and time-consuming goal of attaining higher education.

That is so, because at the end of the day, graduates fail to apply the knowledge and skills obtained at universities and colleges. All they are left with are honors that they obtained bachelor degrees, masters and doctorates, or their higher grades.

Through weak recruitment processes, which ignores vital professional support skills, organizations and company get raw deals. Neither can the employees effectively and efficiently deliver to the expectations of their employers nor have the passion and desire to perform the jobs put before them.

In an experiment, 20 graduate students were asked to sign a petition against a contentious issue –in which the unusual examination format required students to answer four (4) questions rather than the usual three questions –without altering the usual three hours allocated for the sitting rather than retreating to murmuring, expression of displeasure, condemnation of the examiner, and giving in to repercussions that may arise like re-sitting the paper.

A volunteer developed a petition template and asked all aggrieving students to sign on it in support the idea of that the examiner either marks the best three questions only or scraps the fourth. The outcome was amazing which significantly represents the true nature of education system in Uganda. 3 students signed the petition (2 males and 1 female).

Within just 10 minutes, the one female asked to delete her name off the petition form. 5 males out of 2 females played a waiting game showing readiness to sign petition only if other students signed. 6 females out of 0 males feared repercussions from the examiner, 2 females out of 0 males said the man knew what he did was wrong but went ahead to do it, 1 male out of 0 females reported no change in the situation –regardless and vehemently opposed petition strategy, 1 male out of 0 females opted to fight the petition claiming it was irrelevant, while 10 others were unsure whether to sign or not.

The nature of the academic program was one that trained conflict transformers not conflict builders as it was noted when majority students preferred to let the conflict stand and to chose a negative label to permanently nurse against the examiner.

The African culture is also to blame: it promotes more of fear of senior citizens rather than respect. Most Ugandans would choose to suffer at the expense of their leaders’ sins rather than use available means to rid the nation of the bad leadership for sustainable peace.

Even the leaders know how effective instilling fear in their subjects can be so to administer according to their will. It is only the fearless yet respectful who make good friends with them, while the fearful yet disrespectful make permanent enmity and hatred for their leaders.

More males than females are willing to cooperate in order to change undesirable situation. Till now a petition in Uganda is seen as disrespect for the leaders. The principles of democratic governance and human rights are only read, not practiced. In Uganda teachers and professors are demigods –who are much respected as they have the means to determine academic future of their students. In fact one professor was once quoted saying: ‘I am the alpha and omega.’

Education in Uganda is not providing us the quality human resources we need. It has to be an obligation of organizations to retrain its labor force -considering their desired abilities and competence evidenced recruits through practical sessions -as better option than ‘vomited’ products through merely recruitment test. Academic democracy and governance needs to be developed in Ugandan schools and universities to enhance health student-professor relationship and collaborative learning and development.