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Category Archives: Children

Keeping Children in School While They’re at Home during Covid-19 Lockdown

Keeping Children in School While They're at Home during Covid-19 Lockdown

Our Early Childhood Development initiative in the Lamwo district modified its strategy of operations from a classroom environment to a community setting as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown, which resulted from the closure of schools. This emergency response choice led to APPCO and the community leaders to identify people inside their communities to lead the community ECD centres. ECD facilitators were the name given to these groups of persons.

The ECD facilitators are the link between APPCO and the communities. They hold sessions at the communities’ homesteads where children between 0-8years from the neighbourhood participate in various play and learning activities. The initiative is designed to encourage youngsters to value education while they are at home and to look forward to when schools reopen.

The impact of this method was felt throughout the communities, as evidenced by the high turnout and testimony from parents who reported various good changes in their children’s behavior as a result of attending the sessions.

IMPROVING FACILITATOR MOVEMENT

Because of the great distances between these centres, ECD facilitators were given bicycles to help them get to and from them. All the members were enthusiastic about this effort and praised APPCO for taking it.

Back to school Campaign in Gulu district.

BACK TO SCHOOL CAMPAIGN  IN GULU DISTRICT.

Appco conducted a back-to-school campaign in northern Uganda following the long break as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown. The campaign that had engaging activities targeted community groups. The community dialogue had various groups participating to remind parents that they have a responsibility for sending their children back to school since the new school year was soon starting.

Learning, going to school, and remaining in school so that they can complete school is the most important activity in a child’s life because it prepares children for the world of work, brings hope and dignity to children and their families, and opens doors to a prosperous life filled with knowledge, experiment, and wonder. The discussion focused on taking and supporting children to remain and complete school. Disability Inclusiveness where Children with disability have equal opportunities with children without disabilities Emphasis was put on parents and caretakers to take children to schools that they can afford.

As part of the community participation, the members were argued to create advocacy posters messages. Posters were displayed with different messages and discussion was generated from these posters as shown in the above pictures:

Our Project coordinator Murungi Prosy during the discussions emphasized that “Every child has a right to Education, health and protection and every parent or caretaker has a responsibility of spending quality time with their children”. She encouraged parents to “set examples” for their children to follow, create an enabling environment at home for children to freely discuss body changes, HIV, and understand the unique needs of young people, especially adolescents getting the urge to be attracted to the opposite sex.

Empowered to become an Entrepreneur

Empowered to become an Entrepreneur

Meet Munyunyu Brenda, a senior 3 student at St. Johns Namuyenje, in 2020 she moved from Busia where her parents are based, and came to live with her elder brother in Mukono District where she met the opportunity to obtain baking skills that she is currently practicing.

“ At the beginning of the AGE  project, we were invited for dialogues together with our parents, guardians, and peers and told the objectives of the project among which was to help skill the vulnerable girls for socio-economic transformation in the face of Covid-19 in Mukono district, I was among the many girls who participated in the on-going skilling sessions and was able to benefit in various ways, given that we have been in the lockdown and we have been staying home for a while, I would always allocate my time well and make sure that I seek permission from my brother to come to attend the skilling sessions at the safe space in Namuyenje.

I always practice what we would be taught at the safe space and that’s how a few months back I started my small business of baking, I make snacks and sell to people within our trading center and that is how I manage to purchase scholastic materials that I use at school. At the resumption of school learning, all I asked my brother to do was pay school fees since I had saved some money that would help in meeting other school-related costs from my snacks business.

And as I speak today my business venture is growing since, I have continued baking and selling the snacks at the school canteen something that has earned me the nickname “Munyunyu snacks” among my peers in school funny it is but not deterrent of my goal which is to be the largest baker in our trading center here. I am happy though that I have been able to inspire many young girls in our community and school who have also embraced the idea of engaging in income-generating practices as I do, now that we are being trained in various skills courtesy of this intervention.

Munyunyu and her peer are among the many girls who have and are currently benefiting out of the AGE project interventions being implemented by APPCO and cluster partners in the Mukono district as a response to the COVID-19 inflicted challenges and aims at contributing to the empowerment of girls in and out of school with SRHR and socio-economic friendly services

APPCO supports refugee and host community children with scholastic materials

APPCO supports refugee and host community children with scholastic materials

APPCO is supporting over 8,600 refugee and host community children with scholastic materials to support keep them in school. Over 12 refugee and host community primary schools have been supported in Yumbe and Lamwo districts in Westnile supported by Education Can Not Wait (ECW)

Community Mapping- Children With Disabilities in Post Conflict Uganda

Effects of wars on CWD in Uganda:

There have been several political unrests, including the recent Lord Resistance Army-led conflict in northern Uganda, which lasted from 1987 to 2007 and created almost a million internally displaced persons who were subsequently constantly raided by rebels.

One of the greatest effects of this war was the increase in the number of CWD. Many victims suffered physical, sensory, psychological and emotional trauma, including loss of limbs, sight and hearing, due to attacks with weapons and land mines. Physical trauma is often addressed first; however, mental trauma, if untreated, may lead to mental illnesses and post-traumatic stress syndrome disorders. Unfortunately, people with mental illness aren’t often deemed victims of war because their scars aren’t visible.

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