Roadblocks Encountered

Well, we (Heather, Adam, and myself) have been here for just over seven months now and a lot of progress has been made in growing the program since our arrival in August. We have made huge strides in the number of kids who attend soccer training sessions, have expanded the attendance to students outside HOPE Primary School, and have started an after school program from scratch, which has regular attendance of between 30-40 kids daily. And those are just the measurable results. The intangible results are even more important to us, as we have been able to witness the individual growth of many of the kids who have benefited from the programs. We have watched as shy kids who lacked confidence have suddenly become leaders, we have heard kids talk about their dreams and defiantly tell doubters that anything is possible. We have witnessed young girls who had been told they didn't belong on a soccer field willingly come to practices every weekend and start to enjoy playing the game, excited at the freedom presented to them indulge in their athletic pursuits. And there are so many other stories concerning the kids' development. Kids becoming friends with people from different schools, refugees able to attend school due to SWB help, kids starting to think critically and question social norms.

However, along with success comes challenges and we seem to have encountered our biggest challenge over the past few weeks. Despite all of the strides the kids have been making, many adults in the community struggle with change and are very traditional in their way of thinking. While we have been very culturally sensitive during our time here, we are also here to make a difference and to encourage change, and as such we have had to work hard to balance those two objectives. Since returning from the holidays in January, we have implemented the after-school program for one hour, three days a week. The problem is though, that parents don't understand the benefit of the after-school program, desiring instead that their children come straight home from school to fulfill household chores.

Additionally, and the most frustrating aspect to all this, is that our local advisor has essentially told us that we cannot run any programs out of our Youth Center unless he approves them. We have encountered many frustrations since our arrival here in August, and the more time we spend here, the more apparent it becomes as to why Uganda, and Africa as a whole, lags so far behind the rest of the world. People here are unwilling to change. That is civil rights are violated, why the educational system is outdated, why economies are failing, and why governments collapse and dictatorships are still prevalent almost everywhere.

It is difficult to bear witness to all of this firsthand, especially after all of the work we have put into this program over the past several months. We just finished sprucing up the Youth Center with paint, and now it looks as though our only viable option may be to find a new Youth Center completely, and maybe even transport our program to a new community that is more welcoming of our vision and goals. I think the thing that is the most frustrating about all of this, is that all we want is a better future for the kids that we work with. Seeing the growth that these kids have exhibited just in the time that we have been here makes us wonder imagine how much more incredible they will be five years down the road. It makes us determined not to pull out of Ndejje for that reason, but our efforts are being stunted by the adults in the community who are stuck in tradition. The next few weeks will be crucial in determining the future of the program here in Uganda, and especially in Ndejje.