We had an amazing trip to Uganda recently to to see our current project partners and the work that has been taking place, as well as taking the opportunity to meet with some new potential partners. During a packed 10 days we visited Brother John at Archbishop Kiwanuka School in Mpigi, where we have supported a Contain-A-School shipment and a new dormitory build. From there we went on to St John Leonard School where Headteacher Tom Wankwasi showed us round the new school hall and the change the educational resources we shipped have made.
We then went to meet the amazing and inspirational AFFCAD team based in Bwaise, Kampala and spent a couple of days visiting Kabubbu, where The Quicken Trust have supported the transformation of this once isolated and extremely poor community.
It was a delight to be welcomed so warmly to Brother John and Tom’s Schools. We spent 4 days meeting staff and pupils, spending time in the classroom and experiencing Ugandan school life. It was great to see the girls’ dormitory build coming along so well at Dr Archbishop Kiwanuka School and to see how the new school hall at St John Leonard has transformed school life, creating a ‘heart’ and central hub for the children. We also got to grips with some of the ongoing challenges these schools face, as they aim to offer an education for some of the many children in need in rural Uganda.
Moving on from Brother John’s we visted a potential new partner. AFFCAD (Action for Fundamental Change and Development), is an inspirational grass-roots NGO empowering slum communities in Bwaise, Kampala. One of their key aims at the moment is the relocation of the AFFCAD run Excel School, that offers an education to some of the poorest and most vulnerable children in this area of Kampala. The current school isn’t fit for purpose, so the Uganda and UK AFFCAD team are working to relocate and rebuild the school – giving children in this area a long-term education future. It was a priviledge to take a ‘Slub Tour’ with the AFFCAD founders, to learn more about the daily challenges this community faces and the difference that education can and will make.
Since our visit we have been working closely with the AFFCAD team in Uganda and the UK on the school relocation and rebuild project and hope to see them succeed in 2018 on getting the new school up and running.
We finished our trip with a couple of days in Kabubbu with the The Quicken Trust, a charity’s worked for many years supporting the development of this rural community west of Kampala. The community now has a thriving primary and secondary school, however there is a need for locally based vocational training, providing the kind of skills that mean young people can get a job and secure a living for them and their families. We are delighted to say following our visit we have agreed to support the building of a new vocational centre, next door to the Secondary School in Kabubbu. The centre, once complete, will offer vocational training in childcare, hairdressing & beauty, tailoring, IT and secretarial skills.
The Quicken Trust – www.quickentrust.com
AFFCAD – www.affcad.org
