So, what exactly did you do in Uganda Liam?

Been meaning to post this for a while...

So in case you were wondering here's how I spent 5 months in Uganda whilst Jo was doing her VSO thing.

After seeing Jo to work on her first day at WADUP I was bored within 30 mins so arranged a meeting with a school in Kampala that we had heard about before we came out here. Kabalagala Community Academy (KCA) is a urban school for orphans and street children from the community of Kabalagala in Kampala. It was setup by a charity based in the US called iHUG and has approximately 60 children from 6 up to 16. Initially I was asked to help raise the IT skills of the teachers through 1-to-1 sessions which soon turned into full day training sessions during the school holidays. Whilst I was with KCA they received a shipment of second hand PCs from the UK so I was also able to help them setup their first IT room and run the initial lessons with some of the teachers. Add to that a weekly dose of Primary 2 Maths (Teacher Liam!), running a couple of PE sessions and an inter school sports day and I was kept busy at the school right up until my last day. For my farewell each class (Primary 1 to 4) performed a traditional dance during their weekly Friday afternoon golden hour and I received a stack of thank you cards and gifts from the children. I will miss the teachers and children of KCA but will follow their progress with interest from the UK and hope to remain involved with the school if I can help in any way.

I also worked with GYDO, a small youth focused organisation based in our local village of Gombe. Working with the director Michael, we setup and ran a Functional Adult Literacy (FAL) class for local youths and adults with the objectives of introducing new skills and information to the learners to equip them with the tools to improve their livelihoods and prospects. I specifically facilitated a 12 week course of day-to-day business skills for the entrepreneur with focus on the everyday challenges faced by business mean and women in Uganda. We worked in detail on the students business plans such that when I left a number of the students were ready to approach financial institutions for the finance required to get their business ideas of the ground. The classes were held at the local church in open air classrooms which in itself was an experience I will always remember.

The US Peace Corps are pretty visible in Uganda and they have a larger presence than VSO. Given that our nearest town Wakiso was the in-country training centre for new PCVs (Peace Corp Volunteers) we ended up spending a fair amount of time with our colonial cousins. One guy in particular, Nicholas, caught my attention as soon as he mentioned setting up a football making business in Uganda with the specific objectives of increasing sport participation and introducing income generating skills to needy social groups. I was soon helping Nicholas out where I could in terms of project advice, working through ideas for the structure and ethos of the organisation, fine tuning the production process and establishing marketing contacts with the likes of the local Super League team Firemasters and their manager. As part of the project we went to Nairobi to visit an existing ball producing initiative (Alive & Kicking) and also visit a tannery to see how the leather was produced and to place an order for an initial consignment. Production and sale of the footballs is due to start in Jan 2010 and if successful in Wakiso the model will spread across Uganda in small workshops bringing good quality footballs to local Ugandans at a price they can afford whilst creating employment and income generating skills for some of the more needy social groups (those living with HIV/AIDS, single parent families etc).

These were the main projects I was involved with. Add to that some consultancy to another local NGO looking to setup a volunteer placement scheme, helping Jo out at WADUP with some project management advice, setting up a swim club at the local pool and showing new volunteers round the big dust that is Kampala and my 5 months was pretty hectic in the end. A far cry from the pool-side, cocktail swilling lifestyle I had envisaged for myself when our Ugandan placement came through although that was never really my style. I've been privileged to gain a unique insight into one of Africa's most alluring countries which has blown any previous perceptions or misconceptions I had about Africa clean out the water. Along the way I've met, helped, confused, enlightened, learnt from and laughed with many people and the experience was well worth it. Nice Time Uganda, thank you.