When the curve goes up again

If you’ve ever attended one of these pre-deployment training you must remember the famous cultural adjustment curve. As months passed I was trying to identify where I was at, and after some health challenges I endured, I feel like I’m back on track moving towards my adjustment phase.

This has been a hectic month, and here I’m telling some of the amazing experiences I had.

Kibuli Primary Teachers’ College 

The MONDO team has delivered The Digital Competencies Training in many classes of Kibuli college, to future primary’s teachers. As my class was growing every day from 54 to 67 students, the attendees were becoming more and more interested and committed in learning the topics and less shy in speaking up. Creating a slide presentation, researching, making online forms, were few of the points we covered. Running around the class to make sure everyone was getting on with the group work, I could spot a few at times falling asleep on their desks. I enquired a bit on what may be the causes, and found out that the students wake up at 4 every morning. Before the classes start at 7, they’ve already cleaned up their own school, had breakfast and prayed. After classes are over around 5 PM, they have a number of extracurricular activities and prayers, going to bed around 11.30 PM. With such a loaded schedule and little sleep, no wonder they feel like taking a nap every now and then, which sadly prevents them from fully benefiting from their learning experience. However I could not believe how fast everyone was in catching up with topics they never heard of before. 

Another interesting notion I got to learn is that every meal they have posho and beans, a very typical Ugandan food. These two ingredients together, actually, are a super nutrient combo, even though perhaps a little tedious if eaten every day. Every time I discover such different school habits from what I’m used to, I think about how education is perceived in Uganda. It is such a privilege, such an empowering tool for the future, that none would dare complain about the chicken that remains a daydream dish. 

UPA cultural and central branches

A fantastic 5 sessions’ training took place at Uganda Pioneers Association (UPA), where I trained a group of 9 “ICT Assistants”, who, as active members of UPA cultural and central branches in Nansana, will take the responsibility to train others members later on, to ensure sustainability for the project. The course delivered is based on the Mondo Digital Competencies Training, with a focus on employment and empowering tools, such as financial literacy and use of social media for business, besides the basic digital learning and online safety. In this photo, one of the sub-groups was working on a business plan. The picture beside is my sophisticated attempt at explaining how to promote a product via Instagram posts, on a  power cut day! 

For World Refugee Day, Suzzy’s story 

This month I have also started collecting successful stories from our beneficiaries. It was such a privilege for me to get to speak with Suzzy, one of the ICT instructors at our partner’s organisation YARID (Young African Refugees for Integral Development), a Kampala based NGO. Founded in 2007 by a young Congolese refugee, it aims to empower refugees and Asylum Seekers in Uganda, through vocational skills training, English classes and sport, in order to tackle social issues such as unemployment, ethnic conflicts and lack of access to education amongst refugee youth and to enhance social inclusion. 

Suzzy is a 22 years-old woman from South-Sudan who has big dreams about her career in IT, programming, and teaching, as not only she is committed to keep learning, but also to make this field more accessible as she acknowledges how challenging it is for a refugee to pursue a formal education, and a career. Like her colleagues, Suzzy is an inspiration for other refugee youth and a role model for other women, and we, through the Digital Competencies Training were lucky enough to have collaborated with her. Stay tuned for the full story!

Re-discovering Ugandan local gems

With my health, I recovered the energy to get to do as much as I can when in a new country: this months I went again to visit Kampala’s craft markets (where I totally fell in love with the local hand-woven baskets), and the Ndere Centre, where I got glued to the stage to admire and and being captured by incredible traditional dances and music from different parts of Uganda. Watch the video below if you think you can handle seeing someone carrying a pile of ceramic pots whilst dancing away…

 

 

Finally, it cannot go unmentioned how amazing the surroundings of Kampala are. Just over an hour away by matatu is the beautiful lakeside town of Entebbe, where deep tropical nature, magic sceneries and warm relaxed vibes are.

I managed to make the weekend getaway, also a enriching experience workwise, as Felicia (another MONDO EUAV) and I visited the Children’s Surgical Hospital, set up by  Emergency NGO, a non governmental Italian organisation famous for building emergency hospitals in war zones, or healthcare excellences to hand over to the local staff once they’re self sustained. As an Italian, I grew up being proud of their work, and it was a dream for me to finally witness some if their achievements.

I am looking forward to seeing what July’s adventures await. Watch this space for more successful stories, trainings and well deserved graduations 😊🌴