Greetings from all of us at Kitega Centre Uganda, great thanks to all our friends and well-wishers who have journeyed with us from the start of this year 2020. You have all made the work of Kitega possible.

Reports from the just concluded home visits has pointed out how much desperate the children are and wanting to get back to the Centre. With the government easing some of the lock down and business the tailoring group of student have reported back to undertake tailoring lesson this was done mainly to keep them active and learning, so they are now producing face mask with the support of Muzee.

There are plans to get some of the children at the Centre at three times a week, since most of them are now tired of staying at home and the team is ready to carryout different activities with them for example counseling and guidance for the older girls and boys.

Relief supply distribution.

Over 50 Centre children families were provided with food relief supply which included flour and beans.

Relief supply being sorted out for distribution to families.

ZIMBA KABUYONJO PROJECT.-A LATRINE FOR A FAMILY.

Will you make a family’s dream come true?  We are blessed to be a blessing to others.

In 2018 a needs assessment was carried out by our church and community mobilisation development partners in three villages; Katungulu, Bugomba and Kitabuli, they gathered the most pressing needs faced by different communities.

Sanitation and hygiene were identified as greatest problems facing these three communities.

Several households had no latrines and this was the greatest problem that the development partners decided to address.

In Katungulu:

With a small seed grant from the Kitega Community Centre, the leaders decided to carry out sensitization and awareness sessions for the entire community on hygiene and sanitation. This motivated the community to start doing something to address the problem.

Last year over 50 latrines have been constructed, that is 50 households having latrines.

We would like to continue this partnership with the communities to ensure that more latrines are constructed:

£40 will provide a family of seven with a hygienic pit latrine, reducing illness and promoting good health in the entire community at large. The £40 will cater for the iron sheets, digging up a pit hole and purchase a concrete basement for a latrine. Other costs will be met by the households as a community driven initiative.

The “Zimba Kabuyonjo” or “help a family build a pit latrine” project is expected to benefit about 529 families; that is approximately 3000 people to benefit from the project in three different communities. The vision is to improve the sanitation and hygiene levels of many families and also to reduce the high diseases. The aim of this project is to establish a modern community which enjoys good health, which in return will improve healthy living.

You can donate £40 or more; then send a picture of your toilet at home so that after the project is successfully carried out we can twin your toilet and a pit latrine or latrines you fundraised for and then we can send you the latrine.

Under this lock down five latrines were built in Katungulu Village, these have been inspired by the Zimba Kabuyonjo initiative which is similar to toilet twinning.

Thank you so much!

“LET’S MAKE IT HAPPEN”.

VICOBA plus Session.

Getting used to the new normal with a few Vicoba members holding Vicoba plus session, having it in mine that the standard operating procedures(SOPs)  is observed ! Mainly of social distancing.

Vicoba plus Umoja group members in a session.

Demonstration garden.

It is exciting to see community members trying to pick the idea of small kitchen gardening from the Centre and implementing them on small scale plots of land around their back yard during this lock down,this will reduce on the high levels of famine in home.

A Cuppa Zoom meeting with Kitega CC.

The lock down came with many opportunities mainly the use of internet to connect with families and friends of Kitega Centre both national and international; a cuppa meeting was to update everyone with the ongoing activities and new projects at the Centre.

Let’s watch the space for next Zoom meeting with Kitega Centre in a few weeks to come.

One on one with Hannah Anderson.

Before coming to Uganda, I had written a list of things I was going to do whilst living in Uganda. However, I had been here for less than 6 weeks when the Ugandan Government started putting in stricter measures due to Corona virus meaning my ideas and plans were no longer possible. Furthermore, the decision of the Ugandan government to close the airport meant I was no longer able to return home if necessary, which worried my family greatly. Despite this, I felt I was not ready to leave the centre so I decided to stay.

Over the last 5 months there have been many things I have learnt and reflected upon. One thing I have learnt is how much “doing” is engrained in UK culture. Especially as a volunteer we feel a need to strive to the next project or task so we can be as useful as possible during our time here. The lock down has allowed me to just “be”. Just being opens up a space for others to talk and has enabled me to listen. Whilst visiting members of the community, their openness and vulnerability in sharing the difficulties or the situations they are facing has allowed myself and other members of the team to more effectively support them through prayer, encouragement and a listening ear.

Secondly, it has allowed me to learn more about the children’s backgrounds and home situations. This can be vital to explaining the children’s behavior or their characteristics whilst at school. The visits provided me with a deeper understanding of these children, their families and their journeys to school. Furthermore, it showed the families that even though the children were unable to attend school that the centre still values, cares and wants to support the children. It was also wonderful to see all the children again and how happy they were to see us.

Thirdly, it has grown and strengthened my relationship with God. I am currently living over 4000 miles away from home with no clue of when I will next see my family but God has provided me with a peace that transcends all understanding. Every day he is leading, guiding and prompting me in his way and will for my life. There have been times I’ve been anxious, worried and concerned but time and time again he reminds me that he is my cornerstone. He has promised me that he has a future and a plan for my life. It is difficult to see how God is working in the Corona virus but he is in complete control and he has been teaching me that we just have to trust in him.

Lastly, I have discovered is the importance of living in community. I was disappointed that my plans were not going to be fulfilled but the blessing of this situation is the relationships I have developed with the staff and members of the community. I feel I have relationships that are so much deeper than they would have been if we weren’t in lock down. They have become my family away from home. We have laughed, danced, sang, prayed, worshiped and shared our struggles and our testimonies with one another (as well as a birthday cake or two). They have patiently answered my numerous daily questions about Uganda and have listened to my worries or concerns whilst living away from home. I may not see a giraffe or a lion during my time here in Uganda but I will leave bonded to people due to the circumstances of living together during a pandemic.