Invisible Children Conference

The IC conference was centered around advocacy and empowerment of teachers and students. We were welcomed by Jolly Okot, the country director of IC and Patrick Mduga, the program manager of the Schools for Schools initiative. Their opening message was to encourage a more positive societal attitude towards teachers, by first building confidence in pride in the teachers of Northern Uganda. Many teachers did not choose the profession but were instead assigned to it due to lower examination results. Part of the teacher exchange is to expose the partner teachers and the staff at the partner schools to teachers who are passionate about their job and feel that it is valuable. Jolly talked about an experience arriving at the airport in Dubai and seeing an escalator for the first time. How she was frightened and embarrassed at her ignorance. She emphasized how we learn best through experience.

On the first day of the conference, each participating school from the first two teacher exchange groups (I am group 3) presented on a variety of topics: improving economic standing of teachers, improving communication between students, teachers, administration, and families, meeting student needs given changing curriculum, using current resources to promote need for more resources, overcoming the hurdle of large classes, balancing personal and professional life, and managing with minimal contact hours. Each school presented on one topic, they would describe the issue and then present short term and long term solutions. At that point the issue was opened up to all member of the conference. I was struck at the degree of conversation, and number of solutions offered.

We would break off into small groups by school and discuss how each of the issues mentioned appeared at our individual schools. This was the first time our group met our partner teachers. There are six of us placed at St. Joseph’s Layibi College. Our partners were there as well as the director of studies. It was so exciting meeting them. Their energy is wonderful and they seemed to have an excellent sense of humour. Because it was our first day meeting, we ended the day with dinner at a fancy hotel. The conversation was easy and fun. We came home very optimistic about the next six weeks.

The second day of the conference was centered around empowerment of students. We participated in a fishbowl – observing students participating in workshops: basketball skills, drama, art, rapping, and hip-hop dance. The last three were fascillitated by the youth from the previously described Bavubuka All Stars in Kampala.

I was most fascinated by the art table. The students had never used paints or a paint brush before. The only art they had done involved paper and pencil. What completely blew me away were all the questions from teachers regarding the mixing of colours. They were watching Zuzu from Bavubuka mixing red and yellow to make orange and utterly amazed. She described how adding white could make it lighter, or adding blue would make it brown. Then a teacher asked how to make blue and she explained that blue is a primary colour. She explained that primary colours can be mixed to make other colours but cannot be made by mixing colours. I got goosebumps at the level of interest and excitement in the teachers and couldn’t help but think back to Jolly’s comment about the escalator in Dubai.

We met back with our school groups and talked about student programmes at our schools. We were regularly told by teachers at other schools that St. Joseph’s Layibi is one of the top schools in the region and we are very fortunate to be there!

The day ended with an exhibition of the student workshops. The rappers performed in a mixture of English and Luo – their piece was called “Power to the People of Gulu!”. It ended with the dance to much laughter and cheers. The students certainly did feel empowered.

All of the teachers, both western and Ugandan, felt that they had gained a great deal by participating in the conference. The goal of increasing excitement and positivity towards the profession was achieved.

Orientation and Inspiration

We’ve had many presentations / lectures in the last couple of days. It is hard to know what to write about it all. I’ve filled two small notebooks already.
We’ve had a general overview of the education system in Uganda. Invisible Children (IC) chose to focus on Secondary Education as they realized that there are 100s of NGOs working with primary school and only 2 others supporting secondary schools.
As you are likely aware, I read a great deal about IC before I left, summarizing a number of their programs in an earlier post. I had a good feeling about their philosophy but one can’t help but have a little scepticism with any agency. I’ve been incredibly impressed with the people I’ve met, their thoughtful approach to projects, ability to identify what is and is not working, and implement new initiatives as needed. They are also committed to creating something that will persist.

Of the 90 people employed by Invisible Children in Uganda, only 5 positions are held by non-Ugandans and none of those are the most senior positions. Although I was familiar with almost all of the programs described, I was blown away at the thought that went into everything including how to choose students for scholarships, how to pay fees, roles of mentors, selecting contractors for building projects, choosing economic opportunities etc. Everything is directed by needs identified by people in Uganda. The schools which are part of the schools for schools fundraising provide a list of priorities determined by a committee of students, teachers, and parents. In year one, all schools prioritized clean water and sanitation.

Schools themselves must come up with 5% of the cost of any project as a way of creating ownership and also demonstrating that after IC leaves, the school will be able to afford to maintain itself. Some of the exit goals that must be met for a school to “graduate” from schools 4 schools are:

Student: teacher ratio of 60:1
Student: textbook ratio of 3:1
Student: latrine ratio of 25:1

So IC started with the scholarship/mentorship program, then schools4schools to improve the schools and learning that the students were receiving but they realised that all this was meaningless if students went home to see their parents unemployed and didn’t see hope. This pushed IC to implement economic development initiatives and provide training to those employed in the programs on how to save money, and invest in their communities. Their latest initiative is to grow cotton. This area of Uganda is known for its fertile soil and with peace in the area now people are able to return home to their fields. 4000 farmers will grow organic cotton and Eden apparel (Bono’s wife’s company) has agreed to buy it.

One presenter specifically addressed our roles as participants of the teacher exchange. He said that it is simply the relationships we build with our partner teachers which will create change. Many teachers in Uganda did not really choose the profession and it is not always highly regarded by society. So simply sharing our passion is enough. After the teacher exchange each year the schools experience a “high” and motivation increases.

My new home is Elephant Graceland

The drive to Gulu was long but there were some beautiful sights along the way. Especially breath-taking was driving by a section of the Nile River where there were rapids. . . soooo much water! Then just around the corner we had to slow down suddenly due to all the baboons on the road.

Our accommodation at the Tailoring School fell through and we were told we would spend the first week at a hotel. But no one told us ahead of time that we would be at Elephant Graceland Hotel! You have to love the name. We are staying one or two to a room and there is a bathroom and shower IN THE ROOM! This is quite luxurious compared to what we can expect for the rest of the stay when we will stay on bunk beds that are three beds tall and where there is one shower for 26 people. . . but that isn’t until Monday.

The night we arrived we unpacked. Actually there are still 8 people waiting for their bags. Someone suggested a craft fair. . . in each room we displayed all our wares from the market and described our purchases and compared prices. We had dinner at a place in town and then crashed. This is when we discovered the disadvantages of Elephant Graceland. . . the hopping club a few doors down which plays loud music late into the night combined with Skippy, the howling dog who seems to live in the alley next to our rooms and his distant friend, Enrique, who replies. Thank goodness for ear plugs.


The last two mornings we’ve had breakfast at Elephant Graceland on the front porch and then walked just over 1 km to the Invisible Children House for our orientations sessions. Last night when we returned home around 7:30 pm (it is already dark) we sat up and talked for hours about the program, education in general, the war, and more. I am with such a wonderful group of people. I am sure it will be an amazing six weeks.

Bavubuka All Stars

We started the second day with breakfast at Backpackers with Whitney Houston’s “The Bodyguard” soundtrack in the background. We packed up the bus and headed to the handicraft market. This was to be our one day to shop for many of the items we would see there. I picked up a couple of masks from the region but others really cleaned up, making the most out of our 45 minutes.

From the market we headed to the Bavubuka House. This was a very inspiring place. We walked in and the walls were covered in children’s drawings. The Bavubuka (the lugandan word for youth) Foundation was founded by a Ugandan Hip Hop artist Silas “Bavubuka” Balabyekkubo and Canadian Film director Aaron Elton. Their goal is to connect youth from diverse background with music, arts, and sports. We arrived on “cipher Tuesday” so all the aspiring hip hop artists were together to write and perform. They call their particular style of hip hop “Luga Flow” because they rap in Luganda, the language in Kampala.
The hope is that the youth will support each other, mentor each other, and push each other. There are a number of rooms available in the house for youth off the street if they can follow the house rules: no smoking, alcohol, drugs, working at night, inappropriate language etc.

I had goosebumps as the caretaker spoke. He seemed so full of love, pride, and optimism. When he spoke of donors who had provided recording studio equipment, a press for making t-shirts, and soccer cleats, he said, “We are thankful to our donors. They believe in us.”

And they have big dreams. Their hope is to build a community centre on the site where they can have art, dance, and recording studios, classrooms, computer lab, photo lab, gym, and more.

We are excited because a few people from the house are coming to the conference in Gulu this weekend to share their experience with people working with youth in Northern Uganda. The people coming have never left Kampala so this trip will be an incredible experience for them I am sure.

Many of us left with souvenirs such as a Bavubuka All Stars Hip Hop CD, printed t-shirts, jewellery, and art cards as we boarded the bus for our 5+ hour drive to Gulu.