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Saturday 30 July 2011

Updates from our Ugandan partnership NGO

As many of you know, I spent the last 3 weeks at our partnership organisation in Uganda. I had a great trip and managed to do a good deal of useful work whilst out there.

The project has developed a great deal over the past year. Money was received from the US to build a library, which is now in full use with shelves of new books. Now the old library has been turned into 'a children's space' where the children's work (such as art work and trophies from sports competitions) can be displayed for their own admiration as well as for parents, local authorities and sponsors to see.
Additional funds have been received from other donors and these have been used for various purposes, such as building an additional house for the school. A gust house for visitors is under its way, with cement having been bought for it a couple of days ago.

The quality of the teaching and the care show to the orphan school's pupils is remarkable. Thanks to a nearby hospital and school, health checks are carried out by American colleagues once a month. And thanks to generous donors from abroad, all the children look healthy and happy having had enough food to eat on a regular basis.

Yet, additional teacher training is needed in order to maximize learning outcomes. Additional tutoring for hand-writing and checking the time on the clock is also needed. A new idea is to have a school band that could compete in national competition and through that bring reputation to the school, which is likely to help in getting further funds.

Donations are needed for a continuous need of food. The nursery also needs more resources - it is under staffed and under resourced as it stands. If you are able to donate anything at all, please contact: tiija@volunteereast.org.uk.

Also, volunteers are always needed. In particular, teacher trainers and music teachers are needed. Please contact Tiija at tiija.@volunteereast.org.uk if you are interested.