What is the Women Empowerment Internship in Uganda project all about?
The Women Empowerment Internship in Uganda focuses on the training and mentoring of vulnerable women within the rural communities of Jinja. The training that interns provide will be centered around basic entrepreneurship and small-scale business skills.
Uganda is a developing country with a high volume of vulnerable women. Amongst others, this includes single mothers, women living with HIV/AIDS, victims of domestic violence, and women living in extreme poverty. A lot of the women in these communities are illiterate, have no source of income, and lack the opportunities to thrive.
Women’s vulnerability in Uganda arises from social inequality and from unequal power relations, which grant women less access to and control over assets and resources than men. Therefore, many women find themselves within the informal sector. Unfortunately, the majority of such women lack basic entrepreneurial skills, sufficient access to capital, markets, and collateral, all of which are necessary in the startup of small businesses. There is a need to support and aid vulnerable women with entrepreneurship skills in order to help them out of the cycle of poverty.
By contributing to the women’s empowerment program in Uganda as an intern, you will be able to contribute to alleviating poverty for the many vulnerable women and their families, enabling them to create sustainable livelihoods.
Why choose this Women Empowerment in Uganda project?
- Learn about the sustainable development model of empowering rural women
- Contribute to a women’s empowerment program
- Learn about how vulnerable women in Uganda make a living and care for their families
- Share experiences with the women and communities
Role of the Women Empowerment Intern
As an intern involved in the Women Empowerment program, you will be providing a group of women with basic business training. You will mentor them on managing startup loans for small-scale business development. Working together with the community colleagues, you will meet and interact with women within their community, and create interactive training methods to develop their growth.
In addition, you will also be directly involved in disseminating basic health information to the women. The ultimate objective is to empower vulnerable women to fight poverty, and to become self-sufficient so that they have the capacity to provide a meal, education, and other basic needs to their children.
What skills do I need to be a Women Empowerment intern?
Economics, business administration, community development, any business profession, and any health students/ professionals can apply for this internship opportunity. A good level of spoken English is essential for this placement.
WHY JOIN THE PROJECT
FEATURED VIDEO
PROJECT TESTIMONIALS
Where will I work in Uganda?
The local community organization you will work with is located in the Buikwe district, Uganda in a rural setting with around 3 staff members. It is 12.5km away from Jinja town, on the shores of Lake Victoria. As the second largest town and commercial center in Uganda, Jinja has around 90,000 people. It has a major rail connection to Kenya and the Indian Ocean, and is famous as the historic source of the Nile River.
Accommodation
Interns will be living with host families. The living conditions are generally considered middle class by local standars and therefore, you will have indoor plumbing with running water, electricity and your own private room.
Jinja is now the adrenaline capital of East Africa, with many tourist activities including white-water rafting, kayaking and quad biking, all set in a stunning natural setting with charming colonial architecture. You may also want to get involved in taking nature walk or explore Jinja town centre with its various market.
Details & Costs
- Duration: 3-6 weeks
- Cost: £1364/ $2129 for 3 weeks. See drop-down menu for additional weekly pricing
- Requirements: Age 18+
- Location: Jinja, Uganda
- Working hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00 - 17:00
- Project availability: January through November
- Arrival day: Last Saturday of each month, except for December
What is included
- Accommodation: Host family
- Meals: 3 meals a day
- Airport: scheduled pickup and dropoff from Entebbe International Airport in Uganda
- On the ground transportation: to/from projects included
- Access to personal online Kaya Community account including:
– Pre-departure information pack
– Fundraising Guide
– How to Manage your Money Abroad
– Learning Reflection Guide - On the ground training: cultural and safety orientation and project induction
- Internship support:
– Certificate upon completion of your internship presentation
– Supervision from qualified professional - Support: 24-hour support including emergency contact numbers from local team
- Excursion Planning assistance from local staff (activity prices may be extra)
What is not included
- Flights
- Insurance
- Visas
- Police/Government Background Check; US and UK citizens will be processed through Kaya (admin fee applies). All other nationalities must provide local police check.
- Routine or country specific vaccination if applicable
- Any costs for COVID-19 PCR tests required pre-departure and in-country
Pictures from our Women Empowerment in Uganda project
Easy 4-step application process
APPLY ONLINE
Apply for a Kaya program and pay your application fee to apply for your space on your chosen project. Our advisors will then contact you to guide you through the next steps.
TELEPHONE INTERVIEW
Once we’ve received your application, we’ll review your details and be in touch to arrange your informal telephone interview with your Kaya Placement Advisor.
CONFIRMATION
Following your interview, we will provide you a placement offer. Once you are ready to confirm your placement and dates, you can pay your confirmation fee to book and secure your space.
GET PREPARED
When you have confirmed your project dates we'll send you your Welcome Pack and lots of other helpful information to assist you with preparing for your placement.