The Buhugu Initiative

Namataka and Namataka

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 06:33:00 +0000

When Nicole came to Buhugu in '08, she became Namataka, christened by the mums with whom she stayed.

Over the two months she was in Buhugu, she engaged with numerous young people through art, sport, reading and much more.

It was almost time for her to leave Buhugu, when Namataka crossed path with Namataka.

A young precocious girl, Namataka defies explanation. That she was bright was obvious. She figured her way around the computer with lightning speed. Though children in Buhugu are generally independent and self-assured, Namataka seemed to take it to a new level. However, in her disobedience we sensed a spirit that wanted to explore beyond the boundaries of her young life.

The two Namatakas connected almost instantly and became close in the short time they spent together. Did they recognise something of themselves in each other?!

When she left, Nicole left Namataka a gift - a pocket dictionary - a most thoughtful gift.

Young Namataka just graduated from P7, the final year of primary school, coming top of her school - Buhugu Primary.

Nicole-Namataka is now teaching in East Asia, currently Taiwan.

And the two of them are in touch, writing letters to each other.

And all of us are waiting in the wings, watching young Namataka's progress through her schooling. Her family background is such that, it is almost inevitable that she will struggle for fees and much else. And where necessary, we will do what we can to make sure that she gets through it.

Namataka in Buhgu

Nicole, and the Buhugu-Tee, in Cambodia.

It Takes a Global Village?

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 13:11:00 +0000

It was well over a year ago that we wrote about a young man who was causing a stir at the center with his skills on the computer and his spelling and reading abilities. It took us all by surprise partly because he was one of the most vulnerable children in the village, his basic needs barely catered for.

Last week, Namweru Abraham (aka Rogers) was taken by one of the volunteers to be enrolled at the Budadiri Boys boarding school, about 45 minutes walk from his home. All thanks to a good friend in Seattle who, when hearing Namweru’s story, immediately offered to look in to supporting his education.

Given Namweru’s adverse home situation, we looked for a boarding school that also provided better quality education and yet was close enough to his home.

Budadiri Boys was the leading choice. It was started by Catholic missionaries in the early 1900s. It was a day school for boys, until 2000 when a boarding section was added. It attracts students from around Sironko district (where it is located), and also from neighboring districts, such as Kapchorwa, which helps provide students with an environment that is inter-cultural.

We’ve had discussions with the headmaster, Nyereki Julius, and have confidence that the school will be providing Namweru with a more stimulating and healthier environment.

With the school taking care of his daily needs, the volunteers on the ground providing logistical and emotional support and financial support coming from a continent away, Namweru is now set to focus on things that delight him the most.

Thank you for all the support, everyone!

Namweru Abraham at Budadiri Boys on the day of his inteview.

A New Coordinator

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 08:13:00 +0000

A core volunteer since the early days, Sam completed his degree in Development Studies this past December. He is now taking on the responsibility of coordinating our activities in Buhugu.

Sam is also a key participant in the Low Cost Websites pilot, and has been in Nairobi for the past week, training, meeting partners and clients and building websites.

Now back in Uganda, Sam will spend time between Mbale and Buhugu working on both buhugu.org and buhugu.com.

Sam gazing into the rift valley from Ngong Hills, Kenya

The Computers are in a Box

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 10:06:00 +0000

Buhugu is without power, and has been for some months. The issue is over pay, we hear. The sub-county has been asked to pay some significant amount in arrears, and it doesn’t look like it will be resolved soon. At least, that’s what we have gathered from the various conversations.

So, for now, everyone is in darkness and we have packed most of the computers in a box and put them to rest. This is somewhat symbolic, as our approach is shifting from free access and training, to income generation and service delivery.

Mzei Ndugu, our “senior volunteer”, has offered to secure premises, with power, at the nearby trading center. Both he and his wife are strong supporters of our experiments, to say the least.

When the computers are resurrected, our focus will be on sustainability.

A look back at what they have achieved in a few years:

Hundreds of young people have become computer literate.
Trained tens of teachers, nursing students, government workers and those in the NGO sector.
The total reach is estimated to be between five hundred and one thousand people.
Provided the platform to experiment with rural IT outsourcing, that led to the launch of buhugu.com
Helped identify young talent in the community, in whom we are making further targeted investments.
Ultimately, they were the catalyst that brought the volunteers together and helped launch our other experiments.

Wangwe Rogers

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 07:32:00 +0000

It is true that the way we operate, our approach, is quite unorthodox, to say the least.

We don’t fundraise, we are team of volunteers and we are quite happy to try things, even when we think they have a small chance of succeeding, but feel it’s worth a try anyway.

All of this creates much confusion within the community. When they see a young man, working tirelessly, without pay, often against tough odds, they scratch their heads, or worse, assume that he is getting payment under the table.

Wangwe Rogers first came to our attention when during one of our first community meetings, he stood up and asked some biting questions to the leaders and elders present, such as: “you may be promising all this support to this project right now, but a year down the line, will your commitment still be there?” [paraphrased]. He was not yet twenty at that time.

He soon became one of our volunteers, though he was working fulltime at a nearby clinic. As the clinic closed towards the end of 2008, Rogers became a core volunteer spending more and more time at the computer center and the library.

We can now say that Rogers has single handedly ensured the continuity of our many experiments in Buhugu, during 2009. From liaising with the community members, managing community expectations, improving processes on the ground, taking care of the various assets, and generally being the face of the project in Buhugu, there are not enough words that can be said about how much he has contributed.

What drives him? He will laugh and say that he just wants to help people come up.

As mentioned in an earlier post, Rogers was recently hired by the Sironko District to work as an immunization coordinator at the rural health center at Buteza, some distance from Buhugu. However, Rogers now has a young family in Buhugu and we are happy that he will be near us when not in Buteza.

Thank your Rogers for all you have done, for us and others.

Together in Buhugu

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 07:22:00 +0000

A young man we met in Budadiri

Last week found many of the core volunteers of I Buhugu together for the first time in over a year.

Sam, Wangwe Rogers, Masiga Rogers (Geoffrey) and Sri were all in Buhugu during the week and it was good to take stock of things, talk about how far we have all travelled since first coming together, in ’07, and chat about the path ahead.

The young volunteers, Saad (in secondary school) and Wobaka Simon (final year of primary school) also joined in for some of our discussions.

Thank you to Carol and Beth for the good food!

And Happy New Year everyone!

buhugu.com Launched

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:02:00 +0000

.org goes .com! In preparation for the January 2010 pilot, we have just launched buhugu.com.

A Base in Nairobi, Kenya

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 08:07:00 +0000

Some of the volunteers have relocated to Nairobi and have been establishing a base from which to expand our experiments in Buhugu.

Nairobi is a dynamic, exciting city and things have moved very fast in the last couple of weeks.

We have been busy doing market research, building partnerships and laying the foundation for phase II of our rural outsourcing venture.

More on this soon.

Lunch or No Lunch

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 02:57:00 +0000

A couple of months ago, the volunteers in Buhugu put forth a proposal - to provide lunch for the children attending the nursery school, entirely subsidised by I Buhugu.

The deliberation was a difficult one. How does one quantify hunger, malnutrition or the general well being of children? How does it stack up on the priority list? Wouldn't it be better for the community to come up with a local solution? After all, agriculture is what Buhugu does best. However, we knew, instinctively and by studying other lunch programs, that sourcing the resources locally is not all that feasible given the logistics involved.

In the end, the vote was in favor of "sustainability" and the proposal was shelved.

Well, last week, this decision was seriously challenged by a couple of friends - a pediatrician and a pathologist. They stressed home the role nutrition plays in early childhood development. Even a temporary access to regular and balanced meals could potentially make a big difference, they argued. What more, they offered to contribute to the program if it were to be launched.

Grateful for their input, we are now reconsidering the decision. In the coming months before the next academic year, we will consult our advisors, have discussions with the parents and design program that addresses the immediate needs of the children, while challenging ourselves to come up with a more "sustainable" solution for the long run. Whether one exists or not remains to be seen.

Charles

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 03:29:00 +0000

As a co-initiator of I Buhugu, Charles has invested much energy and resources over the lifetime of the project.

Now, we are investing in him. Charles has been accepted to an evening MBA program at Makerere University and I Buhugu is contributing part of the fees.

Classes have begun and we wish Charles all the best as he juggles family, work (as Implementation Manager at Standard Chartered Bank, Kampala), studies and, of course, volunteering with I Buhugu.

As we expand our experiments with income generation in Buhugu, it is our expectation that Charles' newly acquired knowledge will be put to much use!

Words of Encouragement

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 02:20:00 +0000

"We were very impressed by what was happening at the Buhugu Resource Center and the enthusiasm of the young volunteers that manage it."

We are happy and encouraged to receive this email from our visitor from the US Mission in Kampala.

The Library Receives Visitors and Books

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 19:39:00 +0000

Mr Kintu of Mbale Public Library followed up on his promise and paid the library another visit. Travelling with him were visitors from the American Embassy in Uganda.

We very much appreciate them coming by and are grateful for the donation of books.

Mr Kintu is a dedicated librarian who truly strives to share his knowledge and resources, so more libraries could grow and flourish, especially where there are none.

If you are in the Mbale or Sironko area and would like to start a library in your community, do drop by at the Mbale public library (on Republic Street in Mbale town) and pay him a visit. His decades long experience in this field is invaluable and he shares what is at his disposal with enthusiasm and humility.

Briefs: Volunteer News

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 19:07:00 +0000

Congratulations to Wangwe Rogers, "the healer", who has been offered a position as a nursing assistant by the district government. He will be overseeing immunisations at the rural health center at Buteza. This is exciting news for all of us, knowing so well that getting a salaried position in Uganda is almost akin to winning the lottery. We are, however, losing someone who has overseen the operations on the ground so capably. Rogers will spend weekends in Buhugu and continue to volunteer at the center. Transition plans are underway.

Sam is returning for the last semester of his degree and will be fully supported by I Buhugu till graduation in December.

Some Quiet Time

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Wed, 06 May 2009 23:51:00 +0000

This blog is going to be a little quieter over the next few months due to travel. However, the eventual destination is expected to be in the vicinity of Buhugu, so we'll bring you fresh posts after the break.

If you are not already subscribing to our feed, may we suggest you sign up to have new posts delivered to your inbox?

For those of you in the "North", have a great summer, and if you are in the "South", stay warm. And if you are in Uganda, well, it's always beautiful there, isn't it?

If You are in the Bay Area

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 14:53:00 +0000

We recently received a mail from Books For African Schools. They are currently holding a book drive to benefit Buhugu Senior Secondary School.

So, if you are in the Bay Area, and have books you'd like to donate, please consider dropping them off at their collection point at 1261 Campus Dr., Berkeley.

For a list of books that are most needed, please see their books we want section. Books that are not needed for the school, but can be sold locally, are also helpful, as they help cover the shipping costs.

Please help spread the word.

The No. 1 Book

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 17:06:00 +0000

So, what's the most popular book in the library?

"Where There is No Doctor" by David Werner et al.

We added it to the collection at the suggestion of a nearby school that trains primary health care workers. It is full of practical advice and suggestions and covers a comprehensive list of health related issues, with illustrations that are customised for the local context.

"This book is very famous. There was one time we tried to get it for the community, but we couldn't find a copy in any of the bookstores", Chairman Alex mentioned as soon as he saw the book. "You better lock it up and monitor who reads it", he added laughingly.

According to Wikipedia, this book is "the most widely used health education book in tropical and sub-tropical developing countries". Printed on what appears to be recycled paper, it costs around $10 in the bookshops in Kampala.

So, if you are planning on travelling to a place where there might be no doctor, we highly recommend you pick up a copy (there are different versions for different parts of the world). It might come in handy and when it is time for you to leave, leave the book behind!

Or if you are able and are so inclined, help to spread more copies of the book around to where ever it might be needed.

Low Cost Websites

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 17:54:00 +0000

March has been a good month for Buhugu IT. We've been kept busy by the launch of a couple of websites, website updates and transcription work.

After much research, we have identified a number of ways to deliver low cost websites to our clients. In doing so, we are hoping to provide avenues for individuals, organisations and businesses who are currently not part of the digital information archive (the Internet), to add their voices to it.

This, of course, in addition to creating opportunities for knowledge transfer and income generation for young people in Buhugu.

Project Spotlight - here are two websites we launched this month:

JNUinfo: An information portal for (foreign) students at the Jawarhalal Nehru University in Delhi, India. We created a new site for JNUinfo using content from an older site, improving the look and feel as well as making it simple for the client to make changes.

Country: India / Belgium

Joge Rescue Center: A brand new website for a community project in Kenya that provides services to orphaned children and widows.

Country: Kenya / USA

Briefs

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 14:36:00 +0000

Meeting: last weekend, the volunteers gathered in Buhugu for a meeting. Charles travelled from Kampala for the occasion. The progress as well as the challenges were discussed. We are now processing this feedback and planning for the path ahead.

Positive Feedback: students who sat for national exams last year have now received their results. We are getting feedback from the community that the library has had an impact. During exam season, students used the library resources, especially the text books, to prepare and the word is that it seems to have helped. The best performer in the final year (S6) at Masaba Secondary School, the main secondary school in the region, is from Buhugu.

Sharon: one of our core volunteers, Sharon, also sat for the exam (S4). She passed, but not with great results. The advice she has received so far, from family, friends and mentors, is that she should not continue through the final two years of schooling, which is essential for those aspiring for university education. Keen to study further, she is considering her options from teaching, nursing to IT.

Mount Elgon

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 16:09:00 +0000

We have (finally!) launched the Mount Elgon website: http://mountelgon.net

Mount Elgon forms a graceful and inspiring backdrop in Buhugu. Tourism is not well developed in this part of Uganda and not many people have even heard of the mountain.

After much consultation with elders and volunteers in Buhugu, the staff at the Mount Elgon National Park and also people involved in the tourism sector in Budadiri (one of the bases for summit treks), we decided to launch an unofficial website featuring information about the mountain aimed at travellers.

It's a work in progress and hopefully will grow in to a comprehensive resource over time.

"The mesmerising beauty of the peaks in the early morning light, the rainbows after the rains, the bird songs, gorgeous sunsets, the glittering night sky, the Milky Way, the fireflies... At times it felt like we had stumbled upon a secret, and perhaps it was better to keep it that way." More on the about page.

Writing Our Own Manual

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 17:04:00 +0000

Last month we encountered a hitch - to do with money. Every month, the volunteers in Buhugu come up with a budget. It is discussed and items prioritised and the amount needed starts its journey from the US, via Kampala and Mbale before reaching Buhugu and being disbursed.

And last month, part of the money didn't reach its intended recipients. Many of the volunteers were discouraged at this news. We try, sometimes hard, to keep things honest and transparent, and this was a surely a blow.

But some reflection tempers the emotions and adds perspective. What does this piece of paper mean? For some, it's simply the equivalent of a few dollars. For others, it is something they can exchange for a product or service they dearly want or need. And for others, it represents a small fortune, an amount they have rarely possessed.

In Buhugu, the lives of all such people intersect. And as a result of this collision of worlds, the meaning of what this piece of paper means is regularly challenged.

Perhaps the hitch happened because there was a greater need (what if one's child was sick?). Or perhaps not. But, there are no quick conclusions.

How we deal with this will have a bearing on the "soul" of the project. What is our priority? Is it a clean balance sheet? Or is it achieving goals we set while pragmatically sweeping aside such indiscretions? Or is it openly sharing with each other the challenges, growing together, and seeing what comes of it?

It remains to be seen, for we are still talking about how to best resolve this. This is how one of the volunteers put it: "things are getting tricky but we will manage it... yes we can"

It hasn't been easy to share this publicly on this blog, for it is tempting to write only about what's good, the progress, the achievements. But that would be painting a skewed picture of the reality of things.

Sam

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 16:18:00 +0000

Sam, one of the core volunteers of I Buhugu, has just returned to university to start the final year of his degree program.

He is majoring in Development Studies at IUIU in Mbale (about an hour by road from Buhugu).

I Buhugu is partially supporting Sam's education through a scholarship.

We wish him all the best!

Briefs

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 14:26:00 +0000

The nursery school reopened today, the start of the 2009 academic year!

The computer centre and the library are also back in operation.

However, the Internet saga continues. MTN has slapped us with the responsibility of tracing past records of payment which they are yet to reflect on our account. We have located some, but the search for the rest continues.

It never occurred to us that the trickiest part of setting up Internet in the village would be the payment process. To quote Charles, in one of our emails to MTN: "An internet connection in village should be given priority just like any other or if you only attend to customers in your proximity you have to let us know."

Looking Back with Gratitude

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 19:34:00 +0000

A brief look at the year that has passed.

A library was launched and Internet came to the village. A nursery school opened its doors. Reading, art and sports each became a fad. IT services were delivered to the community and to clients in the US, and chickens were studied closely. Friends from near and far dropped by and kids wrote letters to each other.

We used our own resources, received help from friends and didn't apply for any funding.

We learned new things, made mistakes, at times worked hard, other times dodged work, we argued, played, laughed and even cried.

It has been a journey of discovering new horizons, of altering perspectives. It was a year of magic and mischief.

The Team:

Buhugu: Geoffrey (the chief), Rogers (the healer), Sam (the gangster), Sharon (the chick), Chairman Alex (the elder), Mzei Ndugu (the senior)

The travellers: Charles (the kayungirizi), Sri (the idiot), Oliver (the preacher), Nicole, Tristan

Kampala: Susan, Jeff

Virtual: N

Special Thanks:

Annet, Rebecca, Bulombi Simon, Saad and Wobaka Simon in Buhugu. All the young people who helped out with the renovation and continue to pitch in. The mums, Richard and Juliet for sharing their home with the travellers and the generous care. Esther and Zitah, the staff at the nursery school.

The elders and the leaders who so passionately made the case for this project to the community. The advisory committee for helping us steer this project. And everyone in Buhugu who supported the efforts and encouraged us.

Jeanne for visiting us in Buhugu with books and chocolates.

Peter, Dorothy and Don for the friendship, advice and support from three different continents.

Henk, Noah, Hyongjeen, Cindy, Moez, Ben and many others in the US for the laptops, books, support and encouragement.

And the readers of this blog, we sincerely thank you for sharing the journey!

It's a New Year

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 18:41:00 +0000

After a bit of a break, we are trying to reboot and swing back in to action.

Sam and Rogers are putting things in order at the library and computer center and opening the doors again.

Internet is down. We are wondering why it has to be so hard for MTN to account for money deposited in their account. Anyway, Getting this fixed is the biggest priority at the moment.

Otherwise, 2009 is promising to be an exciting year. More soon.

Education

noreply@blogger.com (Sri) — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 03:38:00 +0000

Every volunteer has a story to tell about education and their struggle to have access to it. There are stories of not being able to afford pencils, years lost for lack of fees, cutting the journey short or putting dreams on hold. There are also stories of family, friends, strangers and even the government stepping in, lending a hand, in big and small ways.

The stories are by no means unique. Just about every young person in Buhugu, and numerous other communities around the world, has such a story. The difference is that the volunteers have gone further than most in their quest.

It is no surprise then that for each of us, education remains close to our hearts.

When looking at Buhugu through this lens, a layered challenge emerges:

Literacy: statistics put the number at 30% - about 1 in three people, from children to those in positions of leadership, could potentially benefit from functional literacy programs

Access to education: while primary education is now universal, only about 25% of those who complete primary education are able to advance to secondary schools, primarily due school fees.

Quality and relevancy of education: Even where there is access to education, the quality and relevancy of the curriculum remains a challenge.

Access to resources: especially in rural areas, students have extremely limited access to books, labs, computres and so on.

We started off by providing access to books and computers and then started tackling early childhood education in the form of a nursery school.

However, the challenge that is staring in our face is that most students are unable to afford secondary schooling. And the number grows even further when considering higher education.

Faced with a vast challenge as this, one has to prioritise and look for areas where the impact will be the most.

One such area, perhaps an obvious one, is emerging. It is to identify promising students (of all ages) and invest in them through scholarships.

This is likely to shape up to be a main focus for the coming new year.