Women’s Empowerment in Uganda – Virtual Program

Women’s rights, education and empowerment is a major focus within our Uganda community. Interns will be able to choose from a variety of projects ranging from economic health, public health, and women’s health to help bolster the female population!

It is important that all interns have a base understanding of the local culture and sustainable development while working on their projects. To provide this context Kaya will provide the following:

WORKSHOPS

As part of the program, interns will participate in live interactive cultural workshop sessions led by locals. These online sessions will allow participants to dive deep into the traditional and modern culture of the host country of Uganda. Each cultural workshop will address different aspects of Ugandan life such as food, work culture, and health and Covid-19. Several of the sessions will be focused on language and communication, so you can learn and practice important phrases and greetings (and avoid faux pas!) when communicating with locals.
The local team will also lead several workshops on sustainable development practices in action. The sessions will correspond with the different phases of the project work to make sure interns have the tools and feedback needed to hit the ground running and make the most out of time with the community and host organization.

WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT PROJECTS

HIV/AIDS support

Working in the Buikwe District, interns will learn about the impact of HIV/AIDS in the local community. HIV/AIDS has been a catalyst to many other challenges. The virus makes it difficult for the affected to hold a job, and therefore purchase land to provide enough food for a family. This not only affects the individual suffering from HIV/AIDS but also their whole community.  Children have trouble getting enough nutritious food and paying for school, creating a whole new cycle of challenges.

Our virtual interns will work with this community and assist with projects addressing food insecurity, nutrition, and subsistence farming of up to 100 households affected by HIV/AIDs. Interns will undergo a community assessment consisting of learning local practices, conditions, seasonality of food, cultural norms and more to help create an action plan. 

The impact this project will have includes:

• A decrease in the number of households with food insecurity related challenges. 
• Increase in skills acquisition by households through trainings in farming methods.
• Increased household food production.
• Proper utilization and consumption of food in households

Microfinance

Interns will work with a local community NGO that works in the Buikwe district. Women in this community are affected by a wide range of challenges including HIV/AIDs, being a single mother, domestic violence, and extreme poverty. This negatively affects their personal and family health and well being. The ultimate goal is to reduce and/or alleviate poverty from women and their families starting at the household level so as to attain stable and loving families.

This NGO supports women’s empowerment and lifting women out of the poverty cycle through providing micro loans to vulnerable women. The NGO requires all loan recipients to attend business training on profit and loss, marketing, customer care, and business diversification among other topics, facilitated by Business Mentors. The loans are given on a revolving basis of 6 months. Once the small loan is paid back, it is given to another woman within a group. The NGO offers full time Business Mentorship support for all women groups running businesses with the micro loans.

Interns will learn about the Sustainable Development model of empowering rural women and the dynamics of micro-financing and micro-enterprises for women at the grass-root level. Interns will work with a group of women who each own a small business. Projects may include:

• Providing weekly skills training to the group, including providing some simple homework.
• Take part in listening to stories of the impact of microfinance and how this is changing the lives of vulnerable women and their families.
• Create content such as story or blog writing, social media and assist with management and updates. 
• Assist with mentoring women to improve on their small business plans. This may include listening to business challenges and offering solutions. 

Women’s Health

Adolescent girls and young women in this Ugandan community face many sexual and reproductive health challenges. The majority of adolescent girls lack access to menstrual hygiene products such as sanitary pads, tampons, etc.

Additionally, in some communities, menstruation is considered taboo. Some young girls are forced to use unsanitary materials such old cloths, rags, banana fibers or papers. This may be harmful to their health and increases their susceptibility to Urinary Tract Infections.

This project helps address the problem of menstrual hygiene through interventions such as health awareness talks on menstrual health and community outreach among young women. The project also trains young women to make economically friendly, reusable sanitary pads. Support will be provided so these adolescent girls can begin a small business selling these affordable, reusable sanitary pads to other girls in the community, enabling them to survive economically while addressing the problem of menstrual health.

Interns will assist with training, providing educational materials, and developing promotional content.

Community impact includes:

• Reduced rates of school drop-outs for young women
• Improved sexual reproductive health outcomes among young women
• Improved household income for young women
• Improved knowledge of the issues surrounding menstrual health that affect adolescents of both sexes

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