MURCHINSON FALLS!

For the past two nights we have been off the grid at Murchinson Falls National Park. We experienced a completely new level of darkness, an entirely new environment and a lot of different animals. The campgrounds itself were a very interesting sight. Upon our arrival, there were wart hogs to greet us. That is when it dawned on most of us that we were in the middle of nowhere. Once everybody settled in, we sat around the lawn looking up at the stars and were awestruck by how vivid they were. The next day, we woke up bright and early for the sunrise and to cross the Nile to experience an African safari! The safari was phenomenal! We sat on top of our safari vans and snapped thousands of pictures of the wildlife that we encountered. After a tiring 4 hours of the safari, we experienced a 3 hour boat ride down the River Nile to view Murchinson Falls. The day was near perfect with the views and the magnificent Ugandan weather.

During our time on the safari, we learned that oil was found in the park. What do you believe will happen to the park in the next 5 years? 10 years? Will it make Uganda more sustainable or less sustainable? What was your favorite part of the safari/boat ride? What would have made your experience even better? 

Sure Prospects =)

Today we spent an exciting play filled day at Sure Prospects Institute. Sure Prospects is a school for both children with special needs and those with out special needs. After an hour on the bus we were split up into four teams to cheer on the students during the game day. We walked out on to the field and were greeted by cheers and smiles. The children, ranging from preschool to their last year of primary school, were watching and taking part in the games (relay race activities). It was interesting to see that many of the children were given spoonfuls of sugar during the games. Once we finished the games and giving the children many hugs and pictures we headed back to the school. Many of us sang songs (head shoulders knees and toes, and the hokey pokey) with the kids and danced.

Our group was lucky to meet the head master Francis and find out more about the school. The school has 320 students and 32 teachers. The average class size was 25 students with the exception of P1which had 50 students! I don’t know about you guys but I cant imagine being in a first grade class of 50 students. Another fact that Francis shared with us was the ratio of students with out disabilities to those with disabilities was 3 to 1. The students have a range of different disabilities from autism to learning disabilities to physical handicaps. However, teaching a variety of children is not seen as a challenge at this school but an opportunity to help teachers and students alike grow. Francis spoke of many of the children acting as supports for their fellow classmates. The school unites every student. This “buddy system” benefits all of the children.  Have you seen anything like this in American schools? The school also provides additional support for all students. The motto of the school is to teach to the individual not the classes. Thus there are one on one aids available, specialized classes, and other accommodations available. Francis talked about having teachers sit in on other teacher’s classes to help evaluate and supervise each other.

Lastly, Francis talked about the challenges the school and teachers face. The school depends on donations and selling crops as sources of funding. Also receiving accommodations for students with special needs to take their exams to leave primary schools has been a struggle. Francis hopes to work with the Uganda National Institution Board to create a certificate of merit for students who can’t test in “traditional ways”. Discrimination towards children and workers who have disabilities has been a struggle for the students and the school.

Overall today was an eye opening day. I know many of us wanted to take the students home! Given the challenges and successes of Sure Prospects do you think this school can contribute to sustainable development? Was there any moments or aspects that surprised you at the school? How does this school program compare to your schooling and experiences with special education programs at your elementary school? Lastly, what is your thoughts regarding discrimination against those with special needs in Uganda versus the United States?

"The Law is Male" ~ David Batema

Today's presentation was absolutely inspirational and really enlightening.  We were greeted by His Worship, Judge David Batema, who spoke to us about gender issues that exist in Uganda.  His Worship graduated from Makerere University Law School where he learned and determined that Uganda's laws are "male".  The laws are made to cater toward men, their ideals, wants, and perspectives.  Mr. Batema knew gender equality was a problem and that is when he began to preach about equality and became a magistrate.

This presentation was so uplifting, and the way he connected gender equality to the Bible, the government, and different cultures. Therefore, I believe that everyone was able to take something away from what His Worship preached about. It was personally hard to hear those stories that he told us about the differences between the way men and women are convicted in violent domestic and sexual acts.  I am interested to hear how all of you feel about marriage.  Do you believe when two people get married that one person has a property right over the other?

I found it kind of sad that it was not until 1995 that Uganda established, what I feel is a flawed law, saying that men and women are to be treated as equal. I liked the way His Worship said that, "the struggle for women's rights is not between women and men, but a struggle for justice and human rights." It is going to take a lot of time, patience, and as Mr. Batema said an attitude change, to see a change in how people perceive gender equality in Uganda.  I really could go on for days about how much I appreciated and all that I learned from "Sister Batema's" presentation.  It was so inspirational that I would love hear more from His Worship and the progress Uganda makes toward gender equality.

How did you feel about His Worship's presentation?  How did you feel about the reactions of the MUBS students to the presentation?  Do you feel that gender equality has an impact on sustainable development?

Mabira Forest Walk and the Source of the Nile

These past two days, we spent our time in the town of Jinja.  We stayed at Kingfisher Resort which is located on Lake Victoria.  It was a very relaxing and enjoyable environment.  We started off yesterday by heading to the source of the Nile River.  We first crossed the Nile by a dam that acts as a power source to the majority of Uganda.  We were not allowed to take pictures over the bridge due to security reasons.  We then headed down to the water by the source of the Nile.  The river looked a great amount like the Mississippi River which I would not have expected to see in Africa.  The water was moving with a very fast current where Lake Victoria met the Nile.  We were able to go right down to the river where we could have touched the water if we wanted.  Today, we were going to take a walk through the forest, but plans changed and we drove through instead.  The dense forest looked a great amount like a forest you would see in the United States.  Overall, I enjoyed both of these places and learned a great amount at the source of the Nile.  What is your opinion on using hydroelectric power from the Nile instead of other sources of energy? Also, do you think an increase in tourism at the Nile would change the sustainable development of the economy?

Old Mcdonald had a farm...and a clinic!

The past two days have given me quite the insight on what it would be like to live in a rural village. Visiting the farms in the rural village was a muddy but delicious experience. While touring the farms we not only learned about the different crops, we got to taste them as well! All of the work is done by hand which means farmers cannot get as much work done in a day as the farmers in the United States. After a wonderful lunch which was provided by the elders, we had a discussion with them. The elders explained that Uganda farming as a whole is not doing anything for sustainable development. They destroyed one of their biggest forests so they were able to make sugar. Farming is important to a nation, because it is how the nation feeds it's people. What ways can Uganda farming contribute to sustainable development while still feeding the people of Uganda?

The second day of the rural visit was spent presenting multiple floor plans to the elders for the health clinic we are helping to build. We split into groups where we each had a floor plan that we would explain and then were given feedback on what could still be added to the clinic. After presenting some students played soccer or sang songs with the children. Others had a meeting with the elders to discuss the different suggestions that were given. This allowed us to look at the floor plans and compare the suggestions with the plan the elders liked best. With the amount of money we have for this project, what suggestions should we consider adding first? What suggestions will best contribute to sustainable development?

Graduation

One of the graduate's son!

We made it just in time to Makerere University Business School for their graduation today. After going through security, we were ushered to our seats. There were two sides: one side had the graduates, the police band, and the dancers while the other was for parents and the faculty. There was a section in the middle with a red carpet for the Chancellor's procession. As we went across that section, the announcer called all the attention to the students from the United States. The principal, Mr. Waswa Balunywa, addressed the congregation which was followed by a dance. Then they announced the best male and female performing student. They each got a reward of 500,000 shillings (about $200). The Vice Chancellor addressed the congregation followed by the Chancellor, Mr. George Kagonyera. The Chancellor's speech seemed more political than about the graduates. He did tell them what not to do with their degrees. At one point, I remember him saying, "Don't use drugs" about three times in a row and he said to "avoid behavior that will conduct HIV and AIDS. It was interesting because he was so straightforward and direct about it. Afterwards, the graduates were then awarded their diplomas. Instead of saying each name separately, the Deans would ask each graduate receiving a certain diploma to stand up and present them to the Chancellor who would then congratulate them. Once the degrees were all awarded, the Chancellor closed out the ceremony. It was then followed by my favorite part which was the music and dancing! What similarities or differences did you see between graduation in the United States and Uganda? What did you find most interesting?

The Media

Today after an exciting morning at the MUBS graduation we got the chance to meet with a panel of journalists from different newspapers and media outlets in Uganda. We learned many interesting facts about the media industry, and how it connects to sustainable development in the country. Media can be a respected tool in Uganda and often influences government policy. The journalists emphasized that media still has a long way to go, despite its developing efforts. Some problems with the industry today are the fact that media ownership is still in the hands of big businesses and the government, and they dictate policy. Also, this ownership can influence much what is written in many of the local newspapers. It was expressed that one of the major problems is the caliber of journalists in Uganda today. Many of them are not professionally trained and will sit down and write a story from almost nothing. What are your thoughts about the presentation today? What do you think are some similarities and differences between journalism in American and in Uganda? What do you think Uganda could do to improve its media industry and positively influence the economic development in country?