Poverty! Poverty! Poverty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This has almost turned out to be a song in our community.

Poverty, as we are aware that almost the biggest percentage of the entire national population lives below the poverty line. One wonders about the cause of this situation and how it has spread quickly to reach all corners of this county – Uganda!!

But still the answers are far way.

Living below the poverty line means people being unable to compete with international standards. In our community therefore, the question will be how many can afford for their needs like medical care bills, school fees for  their children besides the universal primary and secondary education and how many can sustain the need of their homes? The answer is indeed tear calling because a few can and even those who can afford, is out of bigger struggles.  People have no jobs, and those who have earn less meaning that their expenditures are greater than their incomes.

The infrastructure is poor which can’t support faster development. The roads are full of pot holes, market centres and trading centres are far and out of reach, hospitals are at long distances which make every thing hard hence tiring up people in poverty.

I will request that you agree with me that one of the causes to this situation is corruption in offices where even when one wanted to get a job, he will have to pay some money and just buy the job; this has made many young men and women who have no money to buy jobs to stay unemployed. This has also been followed up by embezzlement of funds from the central government at the local levels mainly districts which has lest the people at the grass root not helped, they don’t receive the services intended that can bring some development.

Being that in our communities most people base on hoes to earn a living, you find that at time of harvest the prices for the agricultural produce go low, so the continuous changes in the prices of the produce and the problem of middle men or dealers has made the farmers not benefit from their energy and time they invest in the garden with the hopes of getting some funds to run as activities like paying fees for the children.

There are many causes but I feel they are not worthy to discuss instead we need to have our minds focused on how we cam help communities like ours to also come out of poverty. I know that the Heaven can’t come on Earth but at least the clouds should come near that even the shorts ones can touch I mean the low income earners and the farmers can also develop and live above the poverty line

I think the government will need to pray the bigger role in the solutions, to come up with nice procedures and formats which will her the people become more active and directly share on the national cake.

Organizations that give support should also come up to help the communities develop by putting up the necessary infrastructures that will lead to development enhancement.

With all the above, I wish you well, hope to hear from you in comments

By:

Dhakaba Meddy

Hillside Secondary School

In July 1981, the New York Times reported an outbreak of a rare form of cancer but medically know as Kaposi Sarcoma. About the same time, Emergency Rooms in New York City began to see a rash of seemingly healthy young men presenting with fevers, flu like symptoms, and a pneumonia called Pneumocystis. About a year later, the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) linked the illness to blood and coined the term AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). In that first year over 1600 cases were diagnosed with close to 700 deaths.

As the number of deaths soared, medical experts scrambled to find a cause and more importantly a cure. In 1984, Institute Pasteur of France discovered what they called the HIV virus, but it wasn’t until a year later a US scientist, Dr. Robert Gallo confirmed that HIV was the cause of AIDS.

Following this discovery, the first test for HIV was approved in 1985. Over the next several years medications to combat the virus were developed as well as medicines to prevent infections that flourish when the immune system is damaged by HIV and AIDS.

So where are we today? Thanks to an ever-changing array of new anti-retroviral drugs and improved funding for early medical care, AIDS related deaths in some parts of the World are declining. People are healthier and living longer. But, in other parts of the world, the AIDS epidemic rages on. Some estimate that 40 percent of persons in the sub-Sahara region of Africa are HIV infected. Many of these people don’t realize they are infected, resulting in the infection of others, adding to the spread of the disease. Another grim reminder of the epidemic is the number of African children orphaned by AIDS. Streets are clogged with children who have lost their parents to AIDS, have no food, and no place to go. And with no money available for expensive HIV drugs, the epidemic is expected to get much worse.

KITAKULE MICHEAL Patron teacher Musita C/U Primary School

I have taken time studying about HIV/AIDS but I have come to believe that it is so much a funny disease and its spread is doubled by our selves. In the entire story, you will discover that there is some point of selfishness and mercilessness.

Cross generation sex. This is where a person like a girl plays sex with a man who is 15 years above her age. This is two-way traffic scenario; that it applies to either girls and boys or men and women.

Social – cultural problems for example in Africa where a man dies and then the wife (the widow) is given another man the brother to the deceased husband to inherit her. So incase the deceased was positive to HIV/AIDS, then the brother will directly fish it also or vise versa and hence spreading it out.

Stigma – where some people fear to tell their partners what their status is as in line with HIV/AIDS. In one case in our village, a man tested positive and he started taking ARVs alone and he didn’t advise the wife also to get tested and start taking ARVs.

Gender Issues – where some partners say after all my partner has other lovers, let me also have others (they call them side dishes), is one of the chief causes that have lead to the increased spread of HIV/AIDS

It has been heard through rumor for a long period of time that some men and women don’t want or neglect to use condoms for their personal reasons. They always claim that sex with a condom is eating a sweet in its cover. This has rendered many to the hungry roaring lion – HIV.

Having shared with you some of the causes, I wish to share with you also the best ways I think and feel HIV/AIDS can be best prevented;

For parents/ guardians and teachers, the best way we can help the children is by talking about HIV/AIDS with them. Talk to children and carry out HIV/AIDS activities at school assemblies, form HIV/AIDS awareness clubs at schools, and have days for guidance and counseling where you encourage them to abstain. This will help manly the children to grow up when they know the dangers of the disease when they contracted it. It will scare them away and they will take great care of their lives.

For my dear ones who can’t abstain, using condoms becomes a better choice for you and also being faithful to your love partner. Side dishes should be deleted if one has to survive the AIDS scourge.

Could anyone have foreseen that the mysterious illness affecting a few gay men in 1981 would become the epidemic of the 20thcentury? Much progress has been made, but still so much needs to be learned. Until then the epidemic continues. So we need to take great care.

I dedicate this article to my pupils of Musita C/U Primary School and to all the children of Hope Children Club (H.C.C)

By: KITAKULE MICHEAL

Patron teacher Musita C/U Primary School

This goes to my dear students who are getting out for their holidays and vacations. Gone are the days when the good old piggy bank or the regular monthly allowance was the only source of income for kids and teenagers. Today, times have changed to an extent that you have fourteen-year-olds attending school, working part time, and in the process, probably earning more than a seventy five-year-old retired pensioner!

The desire to earn one’s own money (to later splurge on one’s own desires!) has propelled a lot of youngsters (some as young as ten-year-old) to take up a variety of odd ‘jobs’ and come up with innovative ways of making an extra buck. Vacations are a time when most kids think of taking up some jobs in an effort to pocket some extra cash.

The following section of this article will showcase the same, i.e. some quick and easy ways to make money for kids during this big December – February holidays.

There is much you can do like offering service delivery;
All you need in this case is a good bicycle and a strong pair of legs! Delivering newspapers, parcels, milk cartons, etc. are jobs that have been popular among kids for over half a decade! Of course, in today’s times, jobs like flower deliveries have become much more well-paying and wider in scope as well. You can tie up with your local grocery stores, department stores, chemists, etc. and offer to provide home delivery services in your neighborhood. Pizza delivery, with the generous tips associated with it, is another fruitful option that you could consider during evenings.

Nowadays people have bought vehicles both in villages and in towns. So a car washing job can be applicable be in town or in the village.
This is something that you can do on one particular day of the week (preferably a Sunday). You and a few friends could form a Sunday car wash group. Spread the word, post a few fliers in your locality and you could soon find yourself with a thick wad of cash on Sunday evenings! Sounds tempting, doesn’t it?

This is for those dear ones who have been acquiring computer skills from BROSDI – computer centre that chances of you being a youngster who is computer illiterate are remote (if you were, you wouldn’t be reading this!). Despite the modern computer revolution, that exists all around us. Most people are illiterate with respect to computers and Internet. In such cases, when you stay with such people who have computers in your area, why not make good use of your skills and monetize them too? You could offer to teach basic computer fundamentals to such people in return for a small tuition fee or something similar. Believe me you will come back to school on the term opening when you are another small boss in class.

(I know you all love this)

There are quite a few places which offer part time jobs or temporary jobs to youngsters and teenagers. One of the possible work options could be as an assistant in a library, grocery store, shopping mall, department store, etc. You could make use of these opportunities to gain some precious work experience and also make some money during your vacations.

One thing that I wouldn’t over look is the agricultural services. More of us are from villages and there are quite a few people whose houses have spacious gardens, flower beds, lawns, ponds, water fountains…basically everything except time to care for them! You could make use of such opportunities to provide a few gardening services such as weeding the garden, watering the plants, cleaning ponds and fountains, trimming hedges, etc.

This was a brief overview on fast and easy ways to make money for kids. Always remember, maintaining a proper balance between studies and work is very important. Earning your own money as a youngster is a good thing, but if you start ignoring your academics, you may literally have to pay for it! (Pun intended!).

BY:

Amodo Francis

Patron Teacher – Busoga Secondary School

Mubezi Rose makes her point

The high rate at which the AIDS pandemic is spreading has left a question in the mind of everybody and has raised concern as to who is responsible for all this. It is always hard to determine who is more responsible for the spread of HIV/AIDS between females and males but in our last discussion/debate held on 3^rd/October/2009, the theme was HIV/AIDS and the children suggested the motion or topic to be “Females are responsible for the spread of HIV/AIDS”. Children had much to share, some were supporting the motion and others were against it and in their own views, this is what they said;

PROPOSERS’ POINTS

Many women work in lodges and hotels; this exposes them to many men, thus spreading the virus

Women are more than men so this sets them to go lure a number of men.

They spread through breast feeding

The are many sugar mummies (old women) who go with young boys after their husband’s death and in most cases use money to get them.

More Women go for sex as a source of income with any man who can pay can sleep with them and most of them are infected as compared to the number of men.

They dress in short and transparent skirts or dresses as to attract men.

Early marriage by young girls before knowing the danger of HIV /AIDS

Young girls go with sugar dads (old men) who some times are affected and at the same time have young men they love.

Women are easily persuaded over with gifts.

There are many women prostitutes on streets and suburbs.

Most women neglect counseling from elders and usually shy away from safe sex methods for fear of annoying their men.

According to the bible women are the most tempting creature to man.

Artificial beauty leads to the spread of HIV / AIDS.

They spread through birth.

Women don’t control them selves when angry.

OPPOSERS’ POINTS

Mukyama Mark P3 gives his views

Men convince girls to go for films and after-wards go for bad actions like sex with them and promote cross-generation sex more than women.

Men get many wives and some time divorce after they are affected with the disease.

Men persuade girls with small gifts.

Men defile young girls and infect them with the disease.

Men rape women and girls hence spreading the disease.

Men use the influence of alcohol and other drugs to spread HIV /AIDS.

It is men who initiate love not women

Some bosses force women workers to love them and have sex with them.

Men want to show off as they have more powers than women so they can spread the virus more than women

Men use their wealth to spread the disease by going with any woman they come across.

Men have more capacity to seduce and are more cunning than women

NEUTRAL VIEWS

Both women and men are concerned and responsible for the spread of HIV/AIDS because they all have blood and they are human beings

Both men and women can give and receive HIV/AIDS so they are all responsible for its spread

During intercourse the semen stays in a woman for at least three days hence when she sleeps with another man within that period its easy for him to get infected

BY:

NEZIKOKOLIMA

HCC members that attended

Almost Two-thirds of all people living with HIV are found in sub-Saharan Africa, although this region contains little more than of the world’s population, AIDS has caused immense human suffering in the continent and the whole world at large. The most obvious effect of this crisis has been illness and death, but the impact of the epidemic has certainly not been confined to the health sector; households, schools, workplaces and economies have also been badly affected.

Of recent and in the past million adults and children have died just as a result of AIDS. Since the beginning of the epidemic more than 15 million Africans have died from AIDS

Although access to antiretroviral treatment is starting to lessen the toll of AIDS, still fewer than one in three Africans who need treatment are receiving it. The impact of AIDS will remain severe for many years to come.

As members of HOPE CHILDREN CLUB (HCC), we are committed to abstinence from sex till the right time.

“As children, we have been affected by the pandemic and it is hard to overemphasise the trauma and hardship that we are forced to bear due to the effects caused by HIV and AIDS. The epidemic not only causes us to lose parents or guardians, but sometimes childhood as well.” Children explain

“As parents and family members become ill, we take on more responsibility to earn an income, produce food and care for family members. It is harder for us to access adequate nutrition, basic health care, housing and clothing. And this directly limits us from going to school. Many of us are now raised by grandparents or and others left on our own in child-headed households. Our elder brothers or sister are heading the homes and this has left us with no love from our parents” Kaluba explains

We would love to call on all the concerned bodies that the way forward to this problem is prevention. Firstly, it is crucial to prevent us the children and the babies from becoming infected with HIV at birth as well as later in life. Secondly, if efforts are made to prevent adults becoming infected with HIV, and to care for those already infected, then fewer children will be orphaned by AIDS in the future. To our fellow children our there, ABSTAINING will be the better solution.

By:

Hope Children’s Club Members

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Members who attended the debate

In the past African cultural settings, education for the girl child was almost a taboo and if a girl went to school, the best and highest level she could reach was primary or junior level. I will not say that parents were primitive, but they felt giving the girl child fees and an opportunity to reach school was wastage of resources. However, I am told that the only good and better institution they could prepare girls for was marriage because they expected bridal price. Sorry to the past generation.

During our discussion (debate) “Girls should be given priority to education”, under “NEZIKOKOLIMA” project, children shared ideas and views that made everybody agree that “educating the girl child is educating a nation” and that it was of great importance to have girls go to schools. Among the reasons raised are;

Girls are the mothers of tomorrow’s generation (nation), so they need to be educated in order to make good mothers and thus create a very good and productive future generation.

Mubezi Rose – Lugolole Learning Centre

“Educating a girl is not wastage of resources instead it is a better investment for the parents because when girls get employed they think of their parents first than boys who think of their families (wives and kids) and their parents – in law” Rose explained.

When ladies are educated, the health and hygiene in homes and families is improved because they will know what to do and how to do it.

The area councilor who was the guest speaker gave an example of a lady who went to the hospital and she was instructed by the Doctor to first shake the syrup before giving to the child but instead she forgot to shake the syrup and shook the kid.

Denying them opportunity to education is destroying their talents. Many girls have been successful, their talents have been so helpful to communities and if really given chance to education, girls make good leaders who are more development oriented.

“If we want our communities grow and develop, we should not leave other groups behind, we need to have all groups together for each has its own potential and can cause effect. The discrimination is against God’s setting because God created all equal and with a purpose and reason. Girls should be taken as boys are and also women should be handled the way men are handled. This will make us all more suiting before the presence of God the creator” Wabailewa Shaban Said

By:

Mathias Walwana

It is now a week since the holiday season for the mid term started, but how are parents spending it with their children? Parents tend to keep a low pace on their children when they are back home for holidays and keep  blaming teachers for not guiding children while at school, but parents, too, have a role to play more especially when the children are back home for their holidays.

Have time and check your child’s report and discuss their performance.  Call your children on table, ask them why the performance was poor in that case and also encourage them when the performance was good. Teachers take time to prepare a termly report card, so that a parent should look at it.

A report card usually involves the progressive performance — just right from the beginning of the term and mid-term exams. It also has comments from matrons, wardens and a comment from a class teacher as well as a head teacher. Parents should read these comments and if there is need to discuss anything with the school administrators, they should do this early as in doing such, it will help the children improve where there is weakness and it will create a triangular relationship among the three parties i.e the school, parent a and the learner thus successful learning.

Parents need to study the school circular and make note of important dates of the term’s activities; visitation days, career days and class days as this will help keep on truck and follow proper timetable.

Look at the school requirements you need to send your child with and put the money aside to avoid last-minute planning when even the children are just ready for reporting back to school. Holiday time would be the best time to pay school fees. You can send your child to a bank to pay to avoid last-minute queues and stress on banking lines. Whether you pay early or not, make sure you pay school fees.

Work out a holiday programme with your children. If your child must leave home to revise and discuss with friends, go for revision to public libraries or community resource centres like the BROSDI resource room and internet café or go shopping, a parent must know their child’s whereabouts. We are living in a tricky society of child abuse and child sacrifice, so parents need to be concerned about what their children do and at what time and where they go. Unclear programs should not be part of the program as they will waste much of the child’s time which could be good for concentration on books or do some productive work at home.

Have time for your children. There is a temptation to postpone issues that need to be discussed with your child. You need to make time to discuss your child’s fears, worries and anxieties; this will help a child build confidence in you as a parent.

BY:

FRANCIS AMODO

PATRON TEACHER BUSOGA SECONDARY SCHOOL

Hope Children’s Club (HCC) is to benefit from the new project named “NEZIKOKOLIMA.” This project has been initiated with the main aim of gathering information from the grass root level where the news writers for the press and journalist hardly reach. There is a lot of information that has been left out yet it might be of help to the rest of the world. This project will be funded by Citizen Journalism Africa (CJA) in partnership with BROSDI

HCC members at the launch of NEZIKOKOLIMA

In this project, children will have to share their ideas on themes generated by themselves with the help of their patron teachers. Among the themes are; HIV/AIDS, education, agriculture, children rights, stigma, property and land rights, sexual health and reproductive health rights, culture, environment, poverty, hygiene and sanitation and child abuse. Topics will be generated from the selected themes and the children will discuss and bring out their views which in the end will be posted

Kiwanuka Ben makes a point

This project will help children learn and be free to express themselves, learn how to share, build on their grammar and speech skills and also to build on their debating skills

Kiwanuka Ben of Busoga Secondary school is one of the members of Hope Children’s Club, when asked his view about the project, he said “this project will be good for us as a young generation in building our careers and also it will help us gain more skills especially in writing articles.” A lot is awaited as fruits from the project and indeed much will be.

Thanks to the Citizen Journalism Africa and BROSDI for the support to Hope Children’s Club

By

Mathias Walwana

Batambogwe Primary school HCC Members

“Predicting what tomorrow would be is hard but that can’t stop us from imagining and thinking of what our future should be when we grown up” Batambogwe primary school Hope Children’s Club (HCC) members share out their thoughts of what  their future should be.

We have many people who we admire during this time at school starting from our class room teachers, Heads of departments, Head teachers and many other officials.

Dreaming is fascinating, and seeing the dreams come true is much pleasing. It makes us feel more grateful that all those people are successful yet they were at one time like us and they had their own different focuses about what their future should look like and that is why they are there.

“I love want to be a medical doctor and am reading much to see that my target is reached, I spend most of my time in books, go to the BROSDI centre in Mayuge for revision in the RESOURCE ROOM and learn how to use computers that I can have more knowledge” Nambozo Phiona explains

“I wish to have a good job and work in a good office. My dream is to become a lawyer and in my career, I will advocate for children’s rights mainly the orphan children”  Beritha Namuwaya letting her wishes shared out.

Not only being lawyers or doctors but the members go on to tell the different kinds of jobs they want to do in order to have their future bright.

Some of us wish to become teachers, administrators, agricultural officers and engineers. We hope securing this will make us have beautiful lives that we will manage even to take care of our dear little brothers and sisters when we secure good jobs.

Begining a new day in School

We would love to thank Hope children’s Club for the support and opportunities it has given us the orphan children to gain hope and to be in position to compete favorably with the rest of the children and we are also happy that we can have our ideas shared on the internet.

Thanks

Batambogwe Primary school

(HCC Members)

I think abstaining from sex until the right age or till marriage is a better idea;

Life is a continuous process of living by the human beings. So if one miss uses it, it will end up losing it and it is not reversible. Abstinence is one of the best way we can keep or selves from acquiring diseases like HIV/AIDS which might claim our lives as instant as possible hence making us not to stay longer and enjoy the world.

In this manner, abstinence means staying away from sex until marriage. Abstinence is concerned mainly with advantages which dominates most of it than disadvantages. It is better to abstain in order to have a bright future, finish up studies, reach the ivory tower because you will be free from sexually transmitted infections and it is also interesting if some one is free from any disease and he or she is working and has a nice home. But reaching at all this takes some task of determination and measuring what is better and doing things in the right time.

To my dear sisters who are still young, abstaining will help you not to get pregnant when you are still small, help you go on with your studies and thus make your selves ready for better future.

Early sex is cause by many factors and among include; moving at night where by one might be forced (raped), being not focused where many are deceived by simple presents, then a lot of peer influence. My idea here is that stick at one thing at a time, sex and nice presents will meet you in the future. I will love to end by a question; what is your view about abstaining from sex until marriage?

Written by Kaluba

Hillside Secondary School