COVID-19 Emergency Response Project

When Uganda entered the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic it impacted everyday life, we thank you for your continued support and commitment to VAC-NET. During the period of total lockdown, women and girls faced increasing dangers and challenges to their health, safety and future. Our Access to Justice team remained connected in field supporting in resolving the spike in cases of violence and exploitation, and overall seeing a dramatic increase in the volume of psychological support that is being sought. Normally, we provide these types of services through our peer counselors stationed at Gulu Women’s Resource Centre.

Due to lockdown, we  offered tele-counseling. On average, four counselors a week received a case load of 20 to 30 each; that’s over 100 people per week who urgently need our support and resources—an overwhelming number.

VAC-NET's fieldwork largely depends on our local network of peer counselors and recently elected community leaders, who move within their villages teaching families about pandemic hygiene and prevention methods. Together with our Village Health Teams (VHTs), these VAC-NET leaders are on the front lines in communities that lack basic healthcare infrastructure, including PPE that would enable them to safely do their work, avoid infection, and slow transmission.

in total together we have supported 2,764 Victims of violence with pschsocial, relief and referal support including disseminating reproductive health information.

" I have come to appreciate the power of together that VAC-NET our community has instilled in us all of played a part in supporting each other, our families, sisters and our community this community togetherness strenthened us and reduced the vulnerability that was caused by the effects of COVID-19 pandemic."  said Nancy VAC-NET beneficiary 

All these achievements are because of your generous contribution enabling resilience for many families in Ugandan.

Moving forward, we need your help. please consider your gift to our efforts, ensuring the fight for equality, dignity, and justice continues. You can help us to multiply this impact with your generous donation.

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The reality and effect of COVID-19 has threatened the stability of food security, health and human rights, and it has challenged the us to reflect on how we can in this global village. Since women globally comprise 43% of the agricultural workforce. We are recognizing the importance of women in this critical area and we  have committed to supporting them with microloans to enable them to open land and buy seeds is not only as a quick solution but a sustainable one. We have provided self reliance business training and disbursed microloans includinge 650 agro loan to boost food security in Uganda.

In the emergency situation we have distributed food aid to 872 families enabling them to have constant supply of food, we have are supporting health workers and frontline workers with PPEs and Hand sanitizer to keep them safe.

The measures imposed as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Uganda have resulted in economic stress in families that are putting girls and women at a disadvantage. Many have been cut off from essential sexual and reproductive health services, economic activities, and social networks. 

"When the government announced lockdowns my family used their savings to stock on food and supplies, but sanitary pads were not considered. Those are normally considered a luxury. I am always glad to go to school as we can get the lucky girl pads from school,” Milam explains.

We responded by working with the District Task Force formed by the Ugandan government to distribute 6,015 sanitary pads to adolescent girls in and educational learning materails to young situdents sitted at since schools are clossed in Uganda. "There are millions of girls affected by the COVID-19 pandemic having been used to accessing sanitary towels in schools," Monica says.

All these achievements are because of your generous contribution enabling resilience for many families in Ugandan.

We hope you find this partnership valuable and worthwhile. Please help us tell our story to your friends and family about this important project you can as well share our link on social media, or just bring us in your conversations.We'd love to hear your story about why youve picked our project and we think your friends would like too. 

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