Home Visits & The Difference M-LISADA Makes
Uganda ranks among the highest – ranking non-war-torn countries in the world in terms of the number of children and youth not enrolled in school.
The main reasons for this are the intersection of poverty, relatively high costs of schooling, a high birth rate, teenage pregnancy (UNICEF Uganda reports that about 25% of Ugandan girls become pregnant by age 19), and child marriage (according to UNICEF, 33% of girls who drop out of school drop out due to child marriage which is marriage before the age of 18). Uganda also has a population that routinely ranks among the 2 youngest in the world. A staggering 60% (or around 30 million) of Uganda’s roughly 50 million population are under the age of 18.
While it is hard to find precise numbers, some studies put the percentage as high as 1 in 2 children and youth not attending primary or high/upper secondary school. In Uganda, the stark reality is that not going to school is almost as much as a part of childhood as going to school. If it weren’t for M-LISADA, very few of the 135+ children in our Education & Sponsorship program would be able to go to school.
Our social workers, education, and health care teams recently (before the Ebola outbreak) conducted home visits for the non-resident children in our programs. Home visits play a vital role in understanding the circumstances, pressures, and potential risks children and their families face.
Home visits are also part of our recruitment and approval process for children accepted into our Bridge Education Program. At an individual and organizational level, they are a powerful reminder of why we do the work we do.
It is one thing to see a child enthralled in the safe learning environment of M-LISADA or in the spacious, green-filled environment of M-LISADA Passion Primary School. It is another to be visually and viscerally reminded of the multitude of vulnerabilities they face in the lives outside of M-LISADA.
Among the recurring themes or life conditions our staff encountered during their home visits were: violence against children, too much child labor at too young an age, neglect, abandonment, emotional abuse, risk of exploitation, and overcrowded living conditions in single-room houses. Visiting their homes intimately shows us the difference we are making in the lives of vulnerable children and their families. The visits also give our staff an important opportunity to engage with and Counsel parents.
Please email: mlisada.organization@gmail.com if have any questions.
M-LISADA's Mentorship & Holiday Program
M-LISADA’s vivacious between-term school holiday program took place between April 20th and May 25th. It included the following activities: tutoring/revision and working on school holiday packets. Counseling and guidance, debating, mentorship, brass band, guitar, gymnastics, and cultural dance. Special workshops were also designed based on requests and feedback from our children, collected through individual check-ins and assessments. These special workshops were dedicated to emotional support and encouragement; character values and development; leadership and life skills; goal setting and personal growth; and building trust and positive support systems.
A particular area of focus during this holiday period was our mentorship program. The focal points of our mentorship program were career guidance, employment readiness, sexual reproductive health, and 21st-century skills. During the holiday program, we worked with Sirimulalou (I’m Not Mad), a mental health community-based organization. Our first class with Sirimulalou divided 103 children into rotating age-based groups and interactively discussed career guidance, menstrual health, and digital awareness.
An exciting and new overarching component of our mentorship program is Design For Change. Design For Change is a theory and movement that gives children the opportunity to express their ideas for a better world. It encourages them to put their ideas into action and empowers them to change their lives and communities. It uses the following guidelines:
1. Feel anything that bothers you.
2. Imagine a way to make it better.
3. Do or implement your idea for change.
4. Share your story with your school, community, and the rest of the world to inspire other children.
Ebola in Uganda
A big thank you to everyone who has been checking on us amidst the Ebola outbreak that has crossed the boarder from Congo to Uganda. As of June 1st, there have been a total of 9 cases in Uganda. Six cases are currently active and health authorities are monitoring about 500 contacts.
Lead by our nurse, M-LISADA is following Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) and preventive measures in line with the Ministry of Health recommendations. We have also designed awareness fliers and informational materials that are being used to sensitize staff, children, and the wider community on Ebola prevention and safety practices.
The primary children in our Education & Sponsorship Program have returned to M-LISADA Passion Primary School. Since it is a boarding school that is mostly self contained it is currently one of the safest places our children can be.
Dreams Do Come True!
We are proud to say that at M-LISADA, with hard work and the right support, dreams do come true. We are overjoyed that last week one of those dreams came to fruition.
Kabuye Ronald graduated with a Bachelor-in-Law degree from Uganda Christian University, which is the most expensive and most prestigious law school in Uganda. Ronald came to M-LISADA from the streets when he was just 4 years old. For 15 years, he called M-LISADA home.
Ronald’s dream to become a lawyer took shape when he was at M-LISADA. Growing up, he was the chairman, junior staff and chief judge in M-LISADA’s Children’s Court. He also became thoroughly engaged in music and he plans to continue playing. He is looking forward to joining the Law Development Center and pursing a post graduate diploma in law, which will certify him as an advocate. In the future, he wants to help people by practicing public interest law.
Exams During COVID
The Ugandan Government recently announced that primary and secondary schools will officially open again in early January. This is great news. Other than graduating classes schools have essentially been closed since March 2020. The loss of close to two years of education has had a devastating impact on the future of Uganda’s youth.
School closings have resulted in a significant increase in teenage pregnancy, as well as an increase in prostitution and in mental, physical, and sexual child abuse. While the news that schools will open again was urgently needed, the reality is that many children will struggle to return to school. The financial impact of COVID-19 has plunged millions of families into poverty. The schools that are opening again are raising fees and asking for the payment of old fees.
A recent article in the New York Times quotes Uganda’s National Planning Authority as saying, “30% of learners are likely not to return to school” and that “3,507 primary and 832 secondary schools will never open again.” Having been unemployed for close to two years, thousands of qualified and experienced teachers have also left the profession.
Thankfully M-LISADA was able to adapt our education program and keep our teachers employed. In the last few weeks, we even managed to give end of year assessment exams to 102 students. (81 Primary and 21 Secondary). The students that pass these tests will be able to move into the next year of schooling when schools reopen in January. We are extremely proud of this accomplishment.
We are asking for your support to help us send as many children back to school as possible. If you are interested in sponsoring a child, or would like more information, please email: edu.mlisada@gmail.com
M-LISADA's Work on Kalangala Island
Kalangala Island has one of the highest HIV-positive rates in the world and is one of the most impoverished parts of Uganda. M-LISADA has been working on Kalangala island for more than six years. We are one of the only organizations to have a permanent-on-the ground presence on the island.
M-LISADA’s main management team recently visited Kalangala to oversee existing projects, which include staff training and capacity building, and to look at other ways we can expand our scope and impact on the island. Our team met with local government officials to discuss the possibility of working together to provide shelter and safe space for sexually abused children and young mothers during investigations and court trials.
M-LISADA has been chosen to implement a project on gender-based sexual violence. Our team met with the organization that is giving us the project grant.
In the past few years, the government’s restrictions on fishing has had a devastating impact on the fishing-dependent island. Our team met with a women’s group that is supported by M-LISADA’s partner, Masomo. The women were given a donation of 3 million shillings ($845USD) which they will invest in fish farms.
Food on Kalangala is currently very expensive and food is not being transported to the island because of low market sales. Our team spearheaded Masomo’s food relief distribution to over 100 families.
OUR MISSION
To protect, heal, empower, and support vulnerable children and youth through music, life skills, and education.
OUR VISION
To be a leading organization in transforming the lives of Uganda’s new generations.