Uganda@50

23rd March to 27th March 2015

FOWODE E-NEWS

 

FOWODE E-NEWS, P.O BOX 7176, Kampala Uganda | Plot 15 Vubya Close, Ntinda Nakawa Rd. Email: fowode@fowode.org Web: www.fowode.org.

Facebook: http://facebook.com/FowodeUganda

MY LIFE NEVER REMAINED THE SAME – EMILY OWEMBABAZI

 

• MY LIFE NEVER REMAINED THE SAME – EMILY OWEMBABAZI

• FOWODE YOUNG LEADERS HOLD DEBATE

 

Fowode is commined to continue empowering women and men so that they can influence th e communities in which they live in

Emily Owembabazi was on the verge of giving up when her husband abandoned her and went to Kampala to “look for money” to support his family’. Emily stayed at home as a housewife. Reality hit her when he cut off all forms of communication and never returned home. The 32-year-old mother of 3 had to take on a new title of single mother.

She didn’t know where to start from, as she was dependent on her estranged husband. Stress, anger, frustration and lack of income to support her family set in.

“That is about the same time, people came recruiting people to join the FOWODE vulnerable women’s group. I didn’t know what the price of participating would be, but I allowed myself the chance to see where the journey would take me.

I learnt how to work hard and be able to fend for my family, pay school fees for my children including my step daughter with or without his support. After attending FOWODE’s enterprise development trainings, I began thinking deeply about the project I could do. I saved some money, which I used to pay tuition for my tailoring course, and later I bought my own sewing machine. I soon realized that sweaters had ready market. I therefore worked hard and raised some money, which my brother topped up, and I bought another sewing machine for making sweaters.

I later joined the FOWODE Village Budget Club and I am now very assertive and aware of my rights and responsibilities as a citizen. I no longer allow to be delayed or mistreated at the health center because I know where and how to complain. I am more aware of the issues that are in my community. Whenever we visit schools, I use it as an opportunity to interact with my children’s teachers to find out how my children are performing. I no longer miss school Parents Teachers Association (PTA) general meetings because that is good platform for me to participate in planning for our school.

She encourages all women to have power, wisdom and ability to make a difference in their communities and that women should learn to work hard and desist from being dependent on men. I keep on wondering how hard life would be for me had I sat down and waited for support from my husband.”

“ The only thing that stands between a woman and what she wants from life is often merely the will to try it and the faith to believe that it is possible” says Emily Owembabazi ,

At FOWODE, like never before are committed to empowering women in the fifteen districts of Uganda where we work. We are convinced that women that are empowered in turn change the communities within which they are living.

MY LIFE NEVER REMAINED THE SAME – EMILY OWEMBABAZI

 

Our mission is to promote gender equality in all areas of decision making through capacity development, community empowerment, policy engagement and strategic partnerships  

The FOWODE Young leaders alumni were one of the organizers of a national debate that was entitled "Voter

Bribery free elections, A Future the Youth Desire” to follow the conversations please follow the hash tag

#YouthDebateUg. This conversation was broadcast live of WBS television.

About 300 youth in Uganda, from Universities across the city gathered to discuss this pertinent issue, the key

question that emerged from the discussion was who was to blame for voter bribery and it came out strongly that

it takes two to tangle. Therefore the youth have a role to play in ensuring that they speak out against voter bribery.

While Fred Ekakoro the president of the FOWODE Young leaders association (FYLAA) believes that the youth

of Ugandan should work diligently to provide for self-sustainability. He encouraged the participants to engage

in voluntary activities as they strive to defy the “something for something” attitude that is common among the

young people of Uganda

Some of the participants were pessimistic to even the consideration of even going to vote because they believe

that unless there are electoral reforms, there is no way the elections will be free and fair.

Lilian Aber one of the panelists asserted that corruption impacts directly on our economy status and that

children in schools are no longer working hard to succeed because some of them that have rich parents will have

a job as soon as they have graduated.

Gender and Governance News you might have missed

FOWODE  YOUNG  LEADERS  HOLD  DEBATE      

Drama as Mbabazi wife storms NRM meet

Drama ensued yesterday when President Museveni’s guards denied the wife of ex-prime minister Amama Mbabazi entry to the NRM Women’s League conference.

Ms Jacqueline Mbabazi is the national chairperson of the women’s league. However, when she arrived in the morning hours, Special Forces Command officers informed her she was not on the list of the accredited 112 NRM district chairpersons who were supposed to attend.

For several hours, Ms Mbabazi was locked out of the meeting. She sat disconsolate and vowed to stay put until the party chairman, President Museveni, arrives in the afternoon.

See more: http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Drama-as-Mbabazi-wife-storms-NRM-meet/-/688334/2664686/-/1a3rgez/-/index.html

Why this is a dangerous moment: Uganda confirms Shabaab threat, US issues attack warning

UGANDA said Thursday it was boosting security over threats by Somalia’s Al-Shabaab militants, hours after the US embassy in Kampala warned its citizens of a possible imminent terror attack.In an emergency warning issued late Wednesday, the US mission in Kampala said it had “received information of possible terrorist threats to locations where Westerners, including US citizens, congregate in Kampala, and that an attack may take place soon.”Ugandan defence spokesman Paddy Ankunda said the warning was “absolutely” linked to the Al-Qaeda-linked Islamists, who carried out a major attack in Kampala five years ago.“We’ve always known there’s a threat and we’ve warned the public,” he said, adding the militants appeared to have “have identified vulnerable points” as possible targets and that security had been stepped up in response to the threat. Uganda is a key contributor to the African Union’s AMISOM force battling the Shabaab inside Somalia.

See more: http://mgafrica.com/article/2015-03-26-uganda-confirms-shebab-threat-us-issues-attack-warning#.VRPa-gCROCM.twitter

'Opposition not to blame for poor service delivery'

GOVERNMENT spokesperson Ofwono Opondo, has challenged local governments not to blame their failures in service delivery on the opposition.Opondo who is also the executive director of the Uganda Media Center revealed that majority of the local governments are under the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) and hence should take full responsibility.“We cannot say that opposition is frustrating service delivery in local governments where majority of our councils are dominated by NRM. It either incompetence or negligence which is causing all this,” Ofwono said.

See more: http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/666238-opposition-not-to-blame-for-poor-service-delivery-ofwono.html

FOWODE E-NEWS

P. o Box 7176, Kampala, Uganda

Plot 15, Vubya Close, Ntinda Nakawa

Blog: fowode.blogspot.com Web: www.fowode.org Twitter @FOWODE_Uganda Facebook: http://facebook.com/Forumforwomenindemocracy