CHILDREN SAFE UGANDA ORGANIZES A VERY SUCCESSFUL WORLD AIDS DAY AT KAWOMYA VILLAGE NABBALE SUB-COUNTY MUKONO DISTRICT

Children Safe Uganda (CSU) organized a very successful World AIDS Day Commemoration in the little known Kawomya Village at Kawomya Roman Catholic Primary School, Makukuba parish, Nabbale Sub-county of Mukono district. The day’s activities started with Football and Netball matches between junior and secondary teams of Children Safe Uganda (CSU) and Kawomya (Primary and Secondary School). The matches with some music in the background induced a number of people to turn up for the World AIDS Day. The occasion was taken as opportunity for both Kawomya Primary School and Children Safe Uganda to sing with the message focusing on AIDS awareness and its impact to Uganda communities. It was great seeing a group of three senior staff at CSU sing to the audience a song with a lot as regards HIV/AIDS information. The Director, CSU Mr. Moses Ssebaggala had the opportunity to brief the audience why his organization was involved in Makukuba Sub – County of Mukono district, where a number of single sex Self Help Groups (SHGs) have already been formed under their guidance. The food served to the community was prepared by the Self Help Groups of the areas, and this was spearheaded by the group which holds its meeting every Wednesday at Kawomya R C Primary School. Before the closure of the activities for the day, the people present were divided into three groups. The Primary School going and Secondary school children were each a different group as well as the mature people. Each of these groups had issues pre-arranged for them. The mature group had time to benefit from a session where volunteers to CSU made a presentation on the whole spectrum from how HIV is contracted, the testing, discussing the outcome with one’s partner to mention a few. This presentation done in English Language with the assistance of photo impressions was translated by Mr. Herbert Kiwalabye who is the expert at SHG formations at CSU. The primary section group benefited from interaction with Barbara who is a staff of CSU. They were free to interact on a cross section of matters to do with HIV/AIDS. Lastly, the Secondary Section had good time with Mr. Ssebagala who moderated the session very successfully.

The day had two masters of ceremonies who kept on interchanging and this made it more interesting. The 1st Master of ceremony was Mr. Kakooza Joseph who is Secretary LC 1 Kawomya who at the same time happens to be a member of one of the men’s Self Help Groups and indeed a good mobilizer. The 2nd was Mr. Herbert Kiwalabye of Children Safe Uganda. The Guest of honour for the day was the Chairman LCIII Nabbale Sub – County, Omulangira Ndaula, who in his address to the community present praised CSU for the mobilization efforts so far done in his Sub – county, and thanked the Director for having organized a very successful World AIDS Day in his area, which had been the 1st of its kind yet very educative to the community.

Before the Sporting activities took off, the Chairman LCI had welcomed the people to his area and he was grateful to CSU for having chosen their village to host World AIDS Day to the extent of transporting children all the way from Bweya (Kajjansi Trading Centre – Entebbe Highway) to Kawomya to do sporting activities with fellow children from his village. He pledged continued cooperation to see that efforts meant to develop the area are given a lee way. I had opportunity to get two real life stories from a lady teacher who attended the function at Kawomya. The 1st had much to do with HIV/AIDS. As we had lunch, this teacher told us of a woman who got her daughter to a friend for employment. The girl was 1st taught computer skills before being recruited into the company. When the training in computer skills was completed, this potential employer called the girl to his office. The girl was told of an interview she had to either pass or fail before being recruited. The interview the employer said was to have protected sex with her. This was against the ground that he did not like the men at work to just have advantage with a girl brought into the system when (he) the one who had recruited her had not got any opportunity with the girl. The girl accepted the test, she was given condoms and the big man closed the office, had his go and that was it! However, this is against the background that it was a friend lady who had brought the girl for work! The second life story was by the same teacher who had opportunity to be supervisor at one school. At that school, two centres were having primary Leaving Examination (PLE). What surprised this lady was that some children did not even know how to write their names on the top of the examination answer papers! The head teacher would actually have T-shirts made with the school name as identity that these children were actually attending at the School! She later learnt that the Head teacher could actually go around picking children and register them for examinations though this were not actually attending at his school such that he would end up with about 50 children registered for PLE! This shows you how far the decay has gone in Uganda schools.