To get to know our Uganda staff is to better understand our mission and our work. We have 6 staff members in Uganda and each of them brings something different to the table. This month we will meet Cathie, our Uganda Advisor! Cathie is our BSSP Advisor, Co-founder of WOCAP (our partner organization), and is responsible for many decisions in Uganda.
In what ways have you seen progress?”...This was the question a woman recently asked me at one of our events. She was eager and excited, wanting to hear more. “Progress”…this is an interesting term when we are working with people. How do you measure progress in another person’s life…and better yet, who am I to do that?
Muwanguzi and her children live in a rural Ugandan village forty minutes from the nearest town. Here in Bubugo village, attending school above Primary 7 (the American equivalent of 7th grade), or even regularly attending school at all, is rare. Studies show that 68% of Ugandan students are likely to drop out before even completing primary school (Mwesigwa).
Why, 20 years after primary education, and 10 years after secondary education, was made free, is finishing primary school a rarity, rather than the norm? This is a look into the Ugandan school system and what makes it the way it is today.
Bet you don't know these 10 things about BOH in Uganda! Why do students shave their heads? What are the villages like? Where does US staff stay? Find out here! Area Size: WOCAP, our Ugandan partner organization began in one village, Namagera. Since then, WOCAP expanded to include women from two others, Bubugo and Nakulkwe (but BOH's Uganda office is still proudly located on Namagera’s main road)! These villages have people dispersed throughout wide rural areas and could include a few thousand people.ABOVE: BOH's sign on the main road in Namagera. BSSP Coach Emmanuel painted it himself! US Staff Visits: While in Uganda, we stay in a room next to Cathie, WOCAP founder & current Uganda BSSP Adviser. We enjoy sharing meals, watching soap operas,...
Sugar came up again when I spoke with Ahamed, our Beads Project Coordinator, and asked about the effects of the recent and serious drought in Uganda. Among other shortages, he told me that the women were having a hard time affording sugar. Since the 9 month drought, sugar prices doubled from 3,000 Ugandan shillings to 6,000 or even 7,000 shillings. In my “America-ized” mind, this didn’t mean much. In US dollars, the price of sugar went from $0.83 to $1.67 - pocket change in our understanding. Also, why even mention the price of sugar, if there were dire shortages of actual food?
