Let
the beauty of what you love be what you do:-Rumi
After finishing
my university in science in Information Technology at Uganda Martyrs University
in May 2015 I took my Internship at RWECO in order to match knowledge and
practise of application o IT. The five month internship period was very
interesting with satisfying experience and a best place of its kind in practicing
my IT knowledge and getting hands on skills.
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| Miss Babra Masika Arinaitwe during one o her IT training sessions |
At RWECO I was place at the Kasese district E-society resource
centre. Waking up every morning to the thought of sharing knowledge and
learning something new is exquisite especially when it involves hands on. During
my time at RWECO I learnt more about networking, computer maintenance, soft and
hard ware. Like my supervisor normally say, being an Information Technology
(IT) specialist is like being a medical doctor, you can’t say you know it all
and very perfect because each day is a new learning experience since we face
different computer related challenges.
RWECO (Rwenzori
Consortium for Civic Competence) is a consortium of four organisations namely:
KALI, Good Hope for Rural Development- Kiburara and RICNET, RIDE-AFRICA. RWECO
and all the four member organisations were accredited by the electoral
commission to observe the presidential and parliamentary elections on 18th
February, 2016 and the local government elections that followed. RWECO applied
ICT tools to report on the election observations that were done by telephone
SMS and the online platform. Where both short term and long term observers reported
post-election violence through SMS to 0788929022 and plotted on http://hrcp.or.ug/main. The on line platform also
allows reports of any human rights abuse and conflicts in Rwenzori regions.
THE ACTIVITIES PARTICIPATED IN.
On 11th
march 2016 I participated in a one day training workshop on ICT-enabled access
to information and government accountability by Kasese District Local
Government (KDLG) in partnership with Collaboration on International ICT Policy
for East and South Africa (CIPESA) at Verina Gardens hotel Kasese municipality
During
the training we had different facilitators presenting on issues like; how KDLG
promotes access to information, access to information law in Uganda, how ICT is
used for citizen participation elsewhere in Uganda.
The
power of one, if fearless and focused, is formidable but the power of many
working together is better: - Gloria Macapagal
I participated
in group work where different questions were discussed in a participatory
manner and thereafter presentations were made to the rest of the participants. Thus: presentations were very impeccable
On 18th
March 2016 I participated in a field visit to Kakindo women’s group in Maliba
sub county Kasese district with one of the donors of RWECO from the East African
children’s Fund. The field trip was led the coordinator RWECO Mr Baluku Jimmy Odyek with
some staff members from RWECO, RIDE Africa, Guide radio. While in maliba we
visited Kakindo women’s group demonstration gardens and Nkaiga Primary school.
At Kakindo
women’s group we were welcomed and briefed about their activities and objectives
which include, but not limited to: creating public awareness on HIV/AIDS
through drama and radio talk shows, practising kitchen gardening, involvement
in savings and credit scheme and sensitisation against domestic violence. They conducted a neighbouring assembly presided over by a speaker where different
stake holders in the community like the LC1, police, parents, and other members
of the community participated by addressing issues about causes of violence
against children at household and community level, how to prevent it and where
to report forms of violence against children.
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|
One
of the members of Kakindo women group explains how they prepare and plant crops
in the kitchen garden using ridges.
|
They
also demonstrated how to make local reusable sanitary pads. The main leading
cause of school drop outs among the girl child in Maliba Sub County is due to
lack of sanitary pads to use during their menstrual periods since most of the
people in the sub county are low income earners or peasants and can’t afford a packet
of sanitary pad of shillings 3000 per month especially in circumstances where
you find parents having like five girls in need of sanitary pads. Kakindo women’s
group was taught how to make local reusable sanitary pads by RIDE Africa, and
of which sanitary pads are given to the girl child in schools and in the
community. They train some girls in
making local reusable sanitary pads for themselves and that has increased the accessibility
of sanitary pads among the girl children in the entire community in the area.
The Kakindo
women’s group members later took us to some of their demonstration gardens
where they prepare nursery beds and kitchen gardening. They were given seeds by
RIDE Africa, and each member took a different species of seeds to plant in a nursery
bed, and thereafter the seedlings are supplied to other members so that they all
plant in their respective kitchen gardens.
We later
visited Nkaiga Primary School in the same sub county. The staff members
welcomed us and the pupils sung, recited a poem and acted a play about violence
against children.
In the
afternoon, RWECO staff led by their Coordinator, together with the Executive
Director of East African Children’s Fund Mr Fassil Mariam visited Agape of Hope
in Nyamwamba division, Kasese Municipality. Agape of
Hope main goal is to empower the youth and the young mothers with knowledge and
skills in hair dressing, tailoring and hand craft. Agape of Hope works with schools and community
to address issues of youth reproductive health and menstrual hygiene management.
Gratitude
to my supervisor Mr Mumbere Samuel Mkamba and the entire staff of RWECO in
particular the Coordinator Mr Jimmy Odyek , the E-Society staff, I thank you
for the help you have rendered to me during my stay at RWECO.
BABRA
MASIKA ARINAITWE
Bsc IT (UMU)
