Located in Makindu Village in Najja sub county, Mokono District, Kansas College, a school of 45, was founded this very year by the Pastors at Uganda N.O.W. Outreach. The facilities are still in their developing phases, with one bloc for students, and another under construction.
Kansas College was the result of a trip by two members of Uganda N.O.W., to Paola, Kansas. Christine and Deo visited Sunflower Elementary on behalf of their NGO, and the results were an immediate success. Students at the elementary school collected 15 boxes of shoes, currently passing through customs, and raised the 600 USD required in order to pay shipping. Doors have been opening for Uganda N.O.W. , but the schools have many more needs.
The reason for our visit was not to simply tour the school, DDI was also invited to attend the on- site consultation of Living Water, a non profit that shares the expenses of boring holes in the ground to construct clean water wells. Living Water does more than this however, it also trains the people on how to care for the equipment over long periods of time, an urgent need evidenced in a pump a few hundred meters away that is only 2 years old, but has fallen into disrepair.
A lack of training and accountability for the villagers has lead to the broken pump, and many like it across the country, since many drillers simply drill and leave. To further these problems, many drillers do not drill properly, resulting in water that runs dirty after only a year of use by the village.
Living Water stands apart because of its supplementary village outreach programs, which encourage a village council to deal with repairs, and even collect small monthly fees (equal to around 2$ per month) to use pumps, a fund that can serve as a reserve for these sorts of repairs.
In addition, they provide consultation to the villages, for hygiene lessons dealing with clean water, as well as religious services. Furthermore, they provide instructions on how to sustain the well’s existence over the years, implementing measures like fencing the well to keep out curious children, or animals. Also, advocating strategically placed latrines that may contaminate the quality of the water.
An additional reason for the visit was in order to view the progress the construction on a new pit latrine, being put in place to account for an increase in student population this coming year. Uganda N.O.W. focuses on nutrition, opportunities in education, and water (N.O.W.), and the Pastors are doing a standup job of getting this college off the ground after its first year, progress evidenced in the foundation laying for a brand new facility, which could house around 100 students in the classrooms.
Something amazing about Kansas College is the length of the trip to reach the school. We had to drive 2+ hours out of Entebbe, and cross the wetlands by means of a tiny road, built as recently as around ten years ago, and the only way to reach the islands other than by boat. The marshes are even teeming with abundance, with corn stalks and tea leaves as far as the eye could see. Uganda is not a poor country.
The children were on holiday, but DDI has been invited to return in a few weeks in order to teach some English classes, and have the students participate in art-making that could raise funds in the states.
Stateside, DDI has been assigned with the task of helping raise money for school fees, which are as small as 1 dollar per day per student, an incredibly small amount when you consider its impact on the lives of these rural villagers, many of whom walk miles to reach this small campus.
In addition, Uganda N.O.W. has asked for assistance in raising funds for the construction of a new bloc, as numbers of students are slated to increase as the school stays open. The need in Kansas is high, but the will of the students and their teachers is strong.
DDI has pledged to aid in funds for the construction of a pit latrine, and to help offset costs for the well being built.