August 2020 Update.

#RiseOverCovid Creativeness during the lockdown

Warm greetings from everyone here at Youth With A Vision to you over there! We are privileged to share with you what we have been able to accomplish with your generous support during the past month of August 2020.  The global battle to beat Coronavirus had signaled an era of innovation and experimentation. 

NO MORE SHAME PERIODS

Imagine, every 6 in 10 already impoverished girls and women in Uganda are trapped by menstrual poverty and fail to access sanitary pads during their periods. The lack of access to sanitary pads not only affect hygiene standards but also creates barriers to the development of girls and women. Thanks to the funding from Lucy Honeyman and her Project The Project, a UK based charity. We provided a two days workshop to address the issue of sanitary pads for girls and young women in Uganda. The workshop was held on 13th and 14th August 2020 at Kayirikiti L.C1 Community Centre. 20 girls and women selected from different parts of Greater Masaka participated and learned a variety of skills including; how to use, clean, store, dispose, and the advantages of reusable over disposable sanitary pads. They learned how to measure and cut different partners for making pads, sewing different partners using their hands and sewing machine, and how to sew bags for pads storage. The participants also gained ideas on business planning and management and were empowered to discover available business opportunities in making reusable sanitary pads.  Girls and young women are now able to make their own reusable sanitary pads using their hands! And we have plans to work with them further to enable them to start enterprises in reusable sanitary pads. The training was conducted by a team from TOKENS OF LIFE UGANDA. 

Standard Operating Procedures were followed including pre, during, and after screening for COVID-19, and none of the participants developed signs and symptoms of the pandemic. Testimony 

"For so long, sanitary pads have been one of the barriers to the development of a woman. I am so glad that I am now able to make my own reusable sanitary pads using my hands! I will pass on the skills and knowledge to my fellow women. Thank you! "  Namujju Catherine

Youth Empowered to recovery

We are helping youth whose enterprises collapsed during the lockdown to get back on their feet. We are also helping other new unemployed youth to start up their enterprises and become sustainable. Before the global COVID-19 outbreak, we had enrolled over 65 youth on our Finance Scheme which empowers less privileged unemployed youth to become economically independent. At the time we went into lockdown many of their enterprises were in starting stages so they subsequently collapsed. Many youths had just made stock for their enterprises and had not made any savings. The lockdown their stock perished and youth diverted the remaining capital to food and other essentials. The majority of them are now unemployed, uncertain and coming to Youth With A Vision for support. Because of your generous donation and support, we have been a solution to many youths who had lost hope after going back to the state of unemployment and uncertainty. We are trying to lift the youth up. We are giving them the knowledge to engage in relevant enterprises. During the month of August 2020, we trained 60 youth (30 boys and 30 girls) in business management skills. Youth have learnt how to manage finances, and risks such as COVID-19, and the importance of saving. New participants have learned how to write a business plan, and the importance of a business plan. They have learned how to start and manage a small business, how to assess the business market, risks, and how to effectively utilize business finances. We provided a stimulus loan of £255 ($320) (€303) (UGX: 1,150,000) for one young woman to boost her second-hand shoes and cosmetics enterprises.  Our next plan is to provide internship and startup loans for 20 new youth, and stimulus loans for 40 youth to establish, and boost their individual enterprises to become financially sustainable.

"Because of Coronavirus, my business shut and collapsed. I spent all the savings I had made on food during the 5 months of lockdown!  Thank you for accepting me for a stimulus loan. It is going to help boost my business and I am hopeful of getting back to where I was before." Brenda

Home Schooling

Some of the children accessing education during this period.

Undeterred by empty classes and spectra of the pandemic, we have continued to provide a series of home learning programs to take education into homes of less privileged students. We engaged vulnerable students, their parents/guardians, and teachers to ensure that learning doesn’t stop even during the lockdown.  We sourced packed and distributed self-study materials to 200 students across Masaka, Uganda. We continued to provide television classes to over 20 students and radio classes to over 50 students, an opportunity that would not be otherwise available due to a lack of access to a television! We worked with 4 volunteer teachers to guide students to solve challenging concepts they encounter during their homeschooling. There are still many less privileged students who come to us for television classes but sadly we turn away all of them because we did not have enough television sets to support their learning.

Vocational Skills

"I am glad that I have made my  own scarf." NAKAYONDO SHADIA. We have continued to provide vocational skills to students during this period of Covid-19. We aim at producing all-round citizens who can be able to sustain themselves even if they fail to make it through the mainstream education system. We have provided weaving and baking skills to 30 children and youth. This initiative is greatly helping students to stay connected to their education ambitions and also minimize possible antisocial behaviors as a result of redundancy.  Thank you so much for your support.

Food distribution during the lockdown In this period when the government of Uganda is easing the lockdown and some people are slowly returning to work, we are now scaling down on our food relief. We are now focusing on the children who are under our direct care, single parents with large families, and daily income earners whose workplaces are not yet allowed to open. Thanks to donations from Chay Target and Andrew Hince. Your donations helped us to successfully provide food to 86 children in our foster families, and 25 single mothers and unemployed youth whose workplaces are yet to be allowed to open, through the month of August 2020.    Our major task is to provide food and other essentials to all the 86 children across our foster families who have to rely on us for everything they need in their everyday life. 

We supplied liquid soap to more households

We have continued to make liquid soap and distributed it to vulnerable households to empower members to maintain proper hygiene and regular hand washing as a measure to curb the spread of COVID-19. We bought ingredients, produced and supplied liquid soap to 100 families outside of our direct care. Each family received 10 litres of liquid soap. Making recommended liquid soap by ourselves, helped to offset the costs of already made sanitizers. It also becomes easy for us to supply liquid soap to more vulnerable families.  We will continue to provide liquid soap to facilitate proper sanitation among vulnerable families. 

An Appeal  The lockdown due to COVID-19 has had a huge impact on many of the children, youth, and families we work with. Sources of livelihood are blocked at present and they are facing a critical shortage of funds for their essentials. This means that when schools open for the academic year, our students will need additional assistance to continue their education.  We will have to provide support for education, lunch meals, and stationery of our scholarship students. Our partner schools need support by way of constructing permanent classrooms and toilet facilities before they can open for the academic year. Unemployed youth need support to start or boost their enterprises if they are to recover from the pandemic. Only with your help and monetary aid will Youth With A Vision supported students and youth be able to cross this economic hurdle and continue their education. We have therefore merged this year's Dine So They Day with a campaign code-named #RiseOverCOVID, and it will be running from 20th September to 31st December 2020, with a target of raising £28,000 ($36,000) (£34,000) (UGX: 126,000,000) for:

• Constructing 2 Classrooms to support quality and affordable education for over 700 vulnerable children at our partner schools – ST. Catherine Nursery and Primary School Kisaalizi in Kyotera District and Aunt Sarah Junior School in Rakai District in Uganda.

• Constructing a disabled access toilet for children at Safe Care Primary School.

• Providing financial literacy, business internship, business mentorship, start-up, and stimulus loans for 30 to start up or boost their enterprises to become sustainable.

From 1st October 2020, this campaign will be up for donations both on PayPal and GlobalGiving where we shall compete for a share of $20,000+ in bonus prizes and incentives for most funds raised, most unique donors granted to projects raising at least $5,000 from 40 unique donors.  

• We appeal to you to participate in this campaign, to help us to raise funds and support the less privileged children, students, and youth across the Greater Masaka region in Uganda to achieve their true potential.

• We appeal and invite you to fundraise for our campaign when it comes online on GlobalGiving. We appeal and invite you to become our fundraising advocates for this campaign.

• We appeal to you to support our students and help them achieve their true potential. No amount is too small! The more the merrier!

Other Ways you can get involved

Help us to raise £1,100 (€1,320) ($1,400) UGX: (4,950,000) so that we buy a motorcycle to have a breakthrough with our pressing transport demands. Contributions can be made on www.youthwithavision.info/donate and specified as "motorcycle". A donation of any amount will be highly appreciated. 

Become a friend of Youth With A Vision Friends of Youth with a Vision are active members contributing £25 to £1000 annually. Joining as a friend you will receive a personalized membership card and updates about our work for you to read and evaluate. Friends are recognized by their subscription categories as;

• £1000 Steward

• £500 Samaritan

• £250 Ambassador

• £50 Bridge

• £25Visionary

Sponsor A Child 

Sponsoring a child is an effective way to contribute your help to individuals and communities in need, without ever leaving home. ​ Your gift will help provide your sponsored child and other children in desperate need with the basic necessities that can help them reach their God-given potential, including access to resources like clean water, better nutrition, basic healthcare, education, spiritual nurture, and economic opportunities for his or her. https://www.youthwithavision.info/sponsor-a-child

Buy from Our OnlineShop

 youthwithavision.info/shop and Gift Catalog https://www.youthwithavision.info/gift-catalog are great places to pick up lots of great gift merchandise for you, your friends, and family, all of which is just another way that you can make our vital work with the vulnerable children, youth, and families possible. Most of these merchandises are made by children and youth on the program!