NAMUTAMBA MUST DEVELOP (NAMUDE)

For a child who was nurtured at Namutamba, I cry tears when I get there. The place is so backward yet it would be among the most progressive in Uganda. To me Namutamba was one of the 1st places in Uganda to get civilization in the actual sense. The role played by the Lea Wilson Family when they got to Namutamba and eventually evolved the Namutamba Tea Estate and Dairy Farm as well as a primary school which later came to be called Namutamba Demonstration School was very instrumental in the initial fame which Namutamba enjoyed. It was real civilization; there was a lot of togetherness more so with the Rwandese who came from Rwanda to work on the estate. Today, Namutamba is a sad story. It is poverty, yet there are resources which can see the area come up very fast, however, these have to be nurtured and the community can easily be got to participate in their eventual welfare.

I would love to spearhead the Namutamba Must Develop (NAMUDE) initiative. As a trained Rural Economist, an innovator, a man who loves to see the welfare of others, it is my desired goal to see the area which saw me in childhood develop given the current indicators which are symptoms of poverty. This to me would be a worthy task as a reward to the area whose manpower (teachers) I was able to get a bursary to one of the best schools in the country – St. Mary’s College Kisubi after being one of the top 10 pupils at my primary Leaving Examinations in the then Mubende District. Currently, Namutamba a parish is found within Bulera Sub – County in Mityana district.

The focal area I wish to have my base is about 12 – 15 miles from Mityana town along Bulera road via Kitemu. The development I wish to be part of should see the following among others:
1. Easing of transport to and fro Mityana. Currently, if one misses the very early vehicles to Mityana, he/she has to hire a commercial motor cyclist for 12 or more miles at the cost of shs 7,000. This means that there should be improved taxi availability so that people are sure of getting a taxi to and fro Mityana at anytime they wish to travel;
2. There is need to use a better health facility as a magnet to attract people to be party to the innovations that may eventually change them, this, to offer services at highly discounted rates is in the right direction and also offer a number of services including maternity, antenatal, laboratory, admissions and a full time doctor and other specialized medical personnel. People to be encouraged to have savings with the facility and also be allowed to get treatment on credit or even pay in kind using what they produce in their gardens may all go a long way in promoting the health facility;
3. Conducting a baseline survey to bring out the people’s ills and endeavouring to cater for them can go along way in easing the lives of the people at Namutamba. These may include:
i. Availing a Filling station in close vicinity. Currently, those with vehicles can only fill from Mityana!
ii. The mobile money facility calls for going to Mityana to cash or even to send. Getting these services to the people is critical and very time saving;
iii. There are a variety of goods which people have to buy from Mityana yet they would buy them from some big shop around in the area and save, this calls for opening up such a shop with a hardware component;
iv. Setting up a collecting centre for merchandize which may be taken to market in Mityana or beyond;
v.
4. There is need to set up an NGO arrangement to oversee most of the community mobilization in the area this may undertake among other things:
a) Encourage the formation of single sex Self Help Groups (SHGs) as a vehicle to enhance the savings culture among the people and the working in group arrangement for their betterment;
b) Help with better innovations, for example the area has many cattle keepers who need to move from quantity of animals kept to quality as well as undertake zero – grazing;
c) The NGO may be able to encourage innovations which may help farmers to grow in bigger quantities and hence get means to process so as to get a bigger margin from their products;
d) There is poor agricultural undertaking. Better soil management as well as enterprise management can help the poor people move away from the misery they are currently in;
e)
5. There is need to work on the roads. The road from Mityana gets bad when one starts climbing Namutamba Hill after Bakijjulula. If there is away this road can be worked on, chances are that greater economic activity will be undertaken.

The above is my dream, it is my prayer that the Almighty God helps me to get partners with whom we can see the development of Namutamba real.
My contact:
William Kituuka
P. O. Box 2678,
Kampala,
UGANDA.

Email: wkituuka@gmail.com

My other works can be accessed on the following links:

http://williamkituuka.blogspot.com/

http://www.jckiwanuka.blogspot.com/

http://www.stmaryscollegekisubi.blogspot.com/

http://www.kisubibrothersuniversitycollegem.blogspot.com/

http://www.smackoldboysmagazine.blogspot.com/

http://www.anthonykyemwa.blogspot.com/

http://www.stpeterschurchofugandassisa.blogspot.com/

http://www.allsaintsschoollweza.blogspot.com/

http://thegloryofnamutamba.blogspot.com/

http://www.namutambademschool.webs.com/

http://www.namutambanurseryschool.webs.com/