On a return trip to Uganda last year I was
amazed to meet the Mukasa family once more and see firsthand how they
had managed to climb out of extreme poverty through their own hard work…
When in 2005 I first met Richard and Peter (15 and 16 years of age)
their situation was desperate. The boys whose parents had died of Aids
when they were twelve – were living in a squalid mud hut on a dry acre
of land surrounded by barbed wire.
Peter the elder of the two was mentally disabled which left Richard
as the head of the household. The boys were. severely malnourished,
plagued by malaria, an hours’ walk from clean water with no electricity,
no lights, no food, no medicine, no mosquito nets, no education, no
family and little hope for the future.
Today however thanks to the help of a local
charity, recommended by Concern, the Rakai Counsellors Association, and
some small funds from a handful of Irish donors, the boys have been able
to transform their lives and climb out of poverty through their own
efforts and combined hard work.
Their house now has a tin roof which harvests rainwater, providing 10
months of clean drinkable water collected in a protected barrel onsite.
The provision of mosquito nets has helped keep malaria at bay while
some basic agricultural training, tomato seeds, tools and a new bicycle
now means they can cycle each week to the local market and sell their
produce.
Their farm is doing well their crops are high and well irrigated –
working together the boys have diversified and added bananas, maize,
potatoes and green beans to their tomatoes. The boys have also saved up
enough profits from their tomatoes to buy another two acres of land and
Richard hopes in the future to gain an apprenticeship in town in a metal
works or motorcycle shop to supplement his farming income.
Their future is in their own hands now and their continued hard work
is likely to help the boys to continue to thrive and stay well.
Those of us who donated to the boys have been fortunate too. We have
had regular direct contact with the charity involved, the Rakai
Counsellors Association and the organisations’ Director, Fred Kasozi
regularly emails and texts us with updates about the boys – nothing too
excessive or time consuming, just a few lines of news here and there.
Their progress has been a real source of pride and achievement and we
have had a great sense of satisfaction knowing that all our donations
are being spent directly in Uganda with this family as we intended and
that the impact of our funds is being maximised.
The boys’ story also offers hope to us all and shows that our
donations can make a real difference and we can help end poverty, even
if it is one family at a time.
While our situation is unique and our connection with the family
particularly strong given my own trips to Uganda, widespread access to
broadband, YouTube, the internet and mobile phone cameras etc in Africa
should mean that in the near future many more donors will be able to
experience as close a link to the recipients of their aid and equally
maintain a reasonable control over how their donations are spent.