Education Uganda Project #8599

Help educate 650 vulnerable children in Uganda

by Global Backpack Project

Project Report | Aug 10, 2012
Greetings from Global Backpack Project

By Karla Bean and Emmanuelle Jarmon | Project Leaders

Sunflower Project

Progress Continues in Uganda

Despite unimaginable challenges, the Kayunga community in Uganda continues to work to promote human values and sustainable development. Its most recent project is the Sunflower Project. Sunflower is a two-season crop. A bi-annual harvest provides for a more stable income source while lessening the impact of a poor growing season. Sunflower can be mix-cropped, allowing the growth of other crops like corn, sweet potatoes, or nuts. Sunflower seed can be consumed personally or can be sold. The rest of the plant can be used as animal feed.

The Butakoola Village Association for Development (BUVAD) is empowering community members through the cultivation of sunflower seed for oil, as opposed to the increasingly unprofitable but culturally popular coffee crop. Coffee has become unprofitable in Uganda for a variety of reasons including disease, climate change and international competition. For this reason BUVAD has turned to alternatives encouraging diversification of crops among Ugandan farmers.

Central to BUVAD's goals is the Sunflower Garden at St. Michael's Bwetyaaba Primary School, one of the pioneer farms. The purpose of this garden is to educate children on how to grow sunflower and how to make money from the crop. The students in the focal areas grow and harvest the seeds, BUVAD buys the produce from them and the students can use the money to buy lunch and school supplies that they otherwise may have gone without as observed in most schools.

Global Backpack Project commends BUVAD for the tireless work it is doing in the Kayunga District of Uganda and continues to actively support the children of Bwetyaaba Primary School by equipping them with sturdy backpacks and essential school supplies. At GBP, we envision a world which supports education for all girls and boys so they may reach their unlimited potential in school and life.

We hope you will join us at the Back-to-School Fun Run on September 2^nd in Portland to help raise funds for children both locally and overseas. If you are not in Portland, please consider making a $20 donation to provide a new backpack and school supplies to one student at the Bwetyaaba Primary School. Together we can help children succeed in school, one pack at a time.

Thank you for your continued support!

Links:

Back to School Fun Run

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May 11, 2012
Community Action in Uganda

By Karla Bean and Emmanuelle Jarmon | Project Leaders

Community Action in Progress

The children of Bwetyaaba Primary School are now enjoying their new 4000-liter water harvesting tank thanks to our partner organization, BUVAD (Butakoola Village Association for Development). BUVAD and the local community have successfully completed 4000-liter water wells made with discarded plastic bottles as bricks. This innovative water project addresses the urgent need for fresh, clean water for the children of Bwetyaaba Primary School. In Kayunga district, nearly 20 people are admitted to the District Hospital per week with a water-related disease such as malaria, typhoid, bilharzia or dysentery. At least four of these people die each month.

A recent local survey found the water in Butakoola to be a health hazard and a major contributing factor to the spread of these identified diseases. As such, BUVAD has identified 64 sites within the Kayunga District for water wells and is currently seeking funding for this important project.

At Global Backpack Project, we see the strong connection between water and education. With fresh, clean water nearby, children can attend school instead of spending the day fetching water. They miss fewer days of school due to illness and are better able to reach their full potential. We applaud the Butakoola community for making sustainable changes for a healthy, hopeful future.

We are committed to continuing this community effort by striving to ensure the girls and boys at Bwetyaaba Primary School have the school supplies and resources they need to make the very most of their educational opportunities.

As a generous supporter of GBP’s efforts in Uganda, we invite you to give again as your support makes an immediate, remarkable impact on the children and community of Butakoola. Your support not only provides backpacks and school supplies to the children, it also drastically improves access to education for the most vulnerable girls and boys.

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Feb 10, 2012
Greetings from Global Backpack Project

By Karla Bean & Emmanuelle Jarmon | Project Leaders

Hello from our friends in Uganda

Thank You from Uganda

We are pleased to announce another successful delivery of school supplies to the girls and boys of Bwetyaaba Primary School. With your generous help, GBP delivered 270 backpacks, 230 pairs of shoes and stockings, 1200 exercise books, 60 geometry set, 500 ink pens and 288 pencils in November 2011.

"The children were very grateful and happy! It was great joy all over! Many appreciations from the children, teachers and parents at Bwetyaaba." - BUVAD chairman Ssemutumba Stephen

A vote of thanks was extended to GBP and BUVAD (GBP's partner in Uganda) by the community leaders and the board of governors of Bwetyaaba Primary School for the great work done in changing the community livelihood, especially for the children.

GBP's main goal in Uganda is to improve access to education for orphaned and vulnerable youth in the Kayunga District. With this last delivery we have made great strides to reach our goal of providing each child with the resources they need to attend and succeed in school – a new backpack, uniform, school supplies, and shoes.

Want to help us ensure each child has a backpack in hand in 2012? Here's how you can continue to help:

Spread the word by sharing this email with friends and family or via Facebook and Twitter.

Text GIVE 8599 to 80088 to donate $10 to provide a new backpack to a student in Uganda.*

Make a donation as a gift to friends, family and co-workers on GlobalGiving.

*From US mobile phones. Messaging and data rates may apply.

Did You Know…

Enrollment increased by 59% in sub-Saharan Africa (66% for girls) in the past 10 years.
However, 72 million school-aged children around the world still aren't in school. Most of them are girls.
Each extra year of a mother's school cuts infant mortality by 5 to 10%.

About Global Backpack Project

Global Backpack Project is a grassroots, community-based non-profit run entirely by volunteers in the Portland area and around the globe.

Our Vision

We envision a world which supports education for all girls and boys so they may reach their unlimited potential in school and life.

Our Mission

Global Backpack Project exists to encourage a desire for learning by helping children feel prepared for school. With the help of local communities and partner organizations, we seek to make a difference in the lives of children, just as they seek to make a difference for themselves and their communities.

Thank you again for your on-going support of Global Backpack Project.

Best wishes from all of us at GBP.

Global Backpack Project

Happy!

Ready to learn!

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