In Search of a Happy Ending

I used to sponsor a number of kids in developing countries through World Vision and before I came to Uganda I went through the box of letters and reports from the community development projects that I had kept over the years, and brought with me photos and information about a little boy called Muhamud Lubega whom I sponsored in Kiwoko, about 50km north of Kampala, from 1994 – 1998. 

Kiwoko is in the Luwero Triangle, now in Nakaseke district, and was badly impacted by the 1981 - 1986 war in which the current government came to power.  World Vision started a Community Development Project in Kiwoko in 1987, which was completed in the late 1990s and handed back to the community itself to maintain and administer.  Kiwoko has since grown into a bigger township.

In 1995 World Vision started to phase out Community Development Projects in favor of larger Area Development Projects; today there are 53 ADPs in Uganda with 106, 362 out of a potential 129,960 total children being sponsored.  The nearest ADP to Kiwoko is Kasungombe in Nakaseke, which is mainly US-sponsored, and is about to phase out.

I’ve passed by World Vision’s offices in Kampala several times and contacted them last week to see if I could find out how things have improved in Kiwoko over the last 15 years.  Muhamud’s family left the community in 1998 so I didn’t expect to be able to track him down after all these years (he would be 26 now), but I had the name of the project manager (another Janet) and thought if I could contact her through World Vision it would be interesting to call her for an update.

SImon Peter Esaku is Senior Communications Manager and has been with World Vision of Uganda since 1997.  Simon Peter kindly agreed to meet with me and had done some research to find out what information he could for me about Kiwoko.  Tragically I learned that the project manager fell sick and passed away more than 15 years ago, and her fiancé was killed shortly afterwards in a boda-boda accident.  However some of the World Vision staff have been with the organization for 15 years or more and remembered Janet.

Simon Peter also gave me some political geography lessons about Uganda.  The smallest administrative unit is a Village, then a Parish, then Sub-County, then County, then District.  There are currently 112 Districts and talk of adding 30 or more new Districts.  Uganda keeps subdividing and adding Districts mainly for political reasons, redrawing boundaries to ensure that the incumbent government retains a majority in Parliament - sounds familiar?  Every District must have a Health Center IV (even though there are not enough trained medical professionals to staff existing clinics), one woman MP and another MP, as well as other senior staff - jobs for the Boys (and Girls).

One of the World Vision drivers in Kampala was himself formerly a sponsored child, and comes from the Kiwoko area and had the phone number for the local village LCIII Chairman (Chief).  Francis, one of the child sponsorship staff called him and chatted in Luganda while I waited in the office. The Chief remembered Muhamud and said that he used to help him write letters to me as his sponsor!  He said he’d try to track him down and put us back in touch.  I am very curious to hear how Muhamud is doing, what happened to him after we lost touch, and also to give him the photographs I have of him aged 7 and 11; apparently very few Ugandans have childhood photos.  It’s possible that if they find Muhamud and arrange for us to meet that World Vision would want to cover the story and include it in their communications material to sponsors.

 I am hoping that the story has a happy ending - watch this space for updates!