Akwenyutu Iteso Child Education Enhancement Project

PROJECT HOLDER              :     INTERNATIONAL CHILD WELFARE ORGANIZATION

ADDRESS                             :        C/O P.O. BOX 124, KUMI

                                                          (UGANDA (E.A)

CONTACT PERSON             :        MS  JENNIFER ALUKA.

POSITION                            :        EXECUTIVE  SECRETARY

EMAIL                                  :        icwo1989@gmail.com

TELEPHONE                        :        +256 782 221089.

NATURE OF PROJECT        :        UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION

* This Project includes an element of Christian education teaching and instruction

PROBLEM STATEMENT:

Poor Learning Environment in schools, contributing to poor performance of Primary Education Pupils in the Districts of Bukedea, Kumi and Ngora.

INTRODUCTION:

Uganda is inland Country here in Eastern Africa. It got its independence on the 9^th October 1962 and has had nine heads of state and almost all of them came through the gun except one who was democratically elected. All which landed this nation, into untold sufferings and painful deaths, leaving behind hundreds of thousands of parentless children the widows and the maimed.

Uganda has a rapid growing population of 36.8 million of which 6.7 million are orphans while  5.3 million are helpless widows. 50% of Uganda’s population are estimated to be carrying the HIV/AIDS. AIDS here is spreading like a bush fire.

Although Uganda is said to be waking up from its economic crisis but already hundreds of families are seriously embattled by poverty, illiteracy un-employment and persistent hunger.

There’s little being done about this bleeding and helpless nation where the death toll has exceedingly risen and which has left many families miserable and desperate.

Therefore the Teso Community is being trapped in the vicious cycle of continued violence displacement, insecurity, poverty illiteracy, disease and hunger.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

Until late in the year 1985, the economy of Teso sub-region was based largely on the production of crops and livestock (cattle, goats, sheep, pigs and poultry*).*

Therefore, the people of South Teso like many others in the North and North Eastern Uganda suffered socially, economically, and culturally as a result of the rebel insurgency and the Karimojong incursions. The series of wars left behind pathetic scenery of devastation and horror.

Agriculture and livestock production came to a half at the height of cattle rustling.. Over seven million livestock were lost to both rebel hands and the Karimojong warriors who were massively armed.

Those who were lucky to remain alive fled to live in the IDP camps and the systems of education collapsed for years. All schools in the region were destroyed and forced to close down.

Although some charitable Agencies appeared in with the handouts of relief supplies, but for how long could this going.?

Under the millennium development goals, the Universal Primary Education was introduced into the community without awareness and community education.

It was misunderstood and mishandled therefore bearing no fruits at all.

International Child welfare Organization is coming up with a program of capacity building to meet the stakeholders and several partners for the enhancement of primary Education in both rural and urban schools.

PROJECT GOALS:

The project is aimed at enhancing poor performance of school children due to child - class over - population per class teacher, and the distressing conditions of poverty, disease, famine and hunger.

• Advancement of literacy in the poverty stricken community.
• Promotion of girl child education to reduce abortions, early marriages and child pregnancies.
• Procurement of enough educational facilities to motivate the target group.
• Build self confidence and innovativeness.
• Achievement of increase knowledge on various issues and to prioritise on them.
• Redirection of misdirected priorities.
  

OBJECTIVES:

• To strengthen school governance in all affected and targeted schools.
• Create intensive awareness amongst the stakeholders and the entire community responsible for the welfare of children.
• Increase capacity building   amongst the teachers, PTA’s SMC’s, and the child guardians to have good working relationship for the progress and development of the schools affected by poor performance.
• Build   a firm foundation in the community to participate fully in the school activities for the benefits of their children.
• Build and repair decay morals in all school-children and hence lead Christian life.
• Enhance the morale of children and their teachers in sharing available resources and to fully attend their school lessons without dropping out of schools.
• To advocate and lobby any possible support needed to enhance the children
  

PROJECT DESCRIPTION:

Akwenyutu Iteso Child Education Enhancement Project is described as an eye opener and the intervention in participatory approach to create positive change in the better implementation of UPE (Universal Primary Education Programmes as required under the millennium development goals of UN declaration charter.



PROJECT IMPACT:

The impact of Akwenyutu Iteso Child Education Enhancement Project will be heavily and positively felt through all the target group, who will be fully involved. The impact will be analysed as follows:

Socially:

The project is expected and will create a sense of team unity and interpersonal relationship between the school staff, the children and the child guardians, and hence promote conducive learning environment to achieve better results.

Economically:

The project is expected to empower the affected schools to access educational facilities and learning materials to improve on teaching methods of education and better management of school pupils. 

Environmentally:

The project will educate the beneficiaries the importance of environment conservation and the natural resource management to improve on their families.

PROJECT ACTIVITIES:

The project activities to be carried out in the year 2012/2013 include the following:

1. Intensive Awareness creation and mobilisation
2. Capacity building
3. Advocacy
4. Empowerment of stakeholders
5. Procurement of educational facilities and materials
6. Enhancement of school curriculum
   

PHASE ONE: 2012: (Intensive awareness creation and mobilization)

• Community leaders
• Local authorities
• Education authorities
• Schools and their management committees
• Clan leaders.
• Religious leaders
• Youth groups
• Men’s groups
• Marginalised groups
  

PHASE TWO: Training of Trainers (TOT’s) (4 workshops) year 2013

• Deacons
• Chaplains
• Change Agents
• Community developers
  

PHASE THREE: Training of stakeholders 2013 (six workshops

• SMC’s
• PTA’s
• Teachers
• Parents/Guardians
• Civil servants
• Local authorities
• Clan leaders
• Religious leaders
• Education partners.

PHASE FOUR: Advocacy and Empowerment

• School children
• Parents/guardians
• SMC’s
• School Teachers
• Education authorities
• Local authorities

PHASE FIVE:   Procurement of Education facilities, Materials & Enhancement of school curriculum

• Parents/Guardians
• SMC’s
• PTA’s
• Schools
• Education authorities
• Local authorities
• Religious Leaders etc.
  

IMPLEMENTATION ACTIVITIES

 

 

 

 

PROJECT BENEFICIARIES:

Akwenyutu Iteso Child Education Enhancement project is expected to benefit directly 693, 423 beneficiaries (children) in 30 UPE schools that are poorly performing in the Districts of Bukedea, Kumi and Ngora. The schools are identified in both rural and in urban areas.

The beneficiaries shall include:-

• Orphans
• Disabled
• Street children
• Juvenile Delinquents
• School Drop outs
• Abandoned children
• Displaced
• Refugees
• Poverty stricken

COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT:

The participatory rural appraisal will be used here in carrying out the community needs assessment.  Village teams will be formed here which comprise of community leaders, the teachers, clan leaders and local authorities, NGO’s as well as CBO’s.

Public relations and building of a rapport will be quite easy since the targeted parents/guardians will be working with other member together.

Tools like observations, group discussions and oral interviews are used. A checklist will be developed to give guidance and ensure that adequate relevant data is collected.

The Parents/guardians of the children are expected to play an active role by freely narrating and articulating their own experiences inform of generative themes with the support of the TOT’s as the facilitation team, we shall be able to come up with the relevant needs identified as shown priorities.

The matrix ranking techniques involving the community is to be used and later a focussed group discussion will be held to confirm the prioritised needs.

MONITORING AND EVALUATION:

Monitoring:

Monitoring is a continuous process to:-

• Improve on the management of the programs and supporting the activities and to ensure optimum use of funds and other resources.
• Strengthen the capacity of staff and the target group to monitor and to evaluate the project.
• Meet the requirements of the funder to see their resources are being used effectively, efficiently and for agreed upon objectives.
• Keep track and improve on effectiveness relevance impact and cost effectiveness
• Improve on efficiency and adjust work plan.
• Therefore, the purpose of monitoring Akwenyutu Iteso Child Education Enhancement project is to ensure efficiency and effectiveness.

The monitoring exercise will be an on-going basis. The following area will be monitored:-

• Resource use.
• Time schedule adherence
• Benefit flow
• Target group participation.
  

Evaluation:

The evaluation of this project will be carried out effectively at the end of every phase and yet the final evaluation to be carried out at the end of the project time of implementation.

This improved will help to access and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the project program. The evaluation will help us compare the inputs and outputs from the development activities and to enable the target group come up with major decisions about the state of the project program.

The evaluation team will be formed with external staff and will therefore concentrate on the following aspects or areas of the project:

(i)                 The vision, mission or simply the statement of goals or objectives in order to find out whether the initial and intended objectives have been realised.

(ii)               The assessment of the project or the program operational efficiency in terms of:-

• Financial aspects
• Managerial aspects
• Technical aspects
• Economic aspects

(iii)             The assessment of impact of the project to the beneficiaries, i.e. direct benefit or indirect benefit.

(iv)             The assessment of the cost and benefit items

(v)               The assessment of the process methodology and the steps in the implementation of the project.

PROJECT SUSTAINABILITY:

Justification for the Project:

In Uganda today, the extent and depth of poverty is very astonishing and about 86% of the entire community live in absolute total poverty, hunger, unemployment and illiteracy with an income estimated to be half a dollar, a day or less per person to meet food, shelter and other basic needs.

Not surprisingly, hunger, malnutrition and associated diseases are wide spread. Therefore a large percentage of people do not have access to sufficient food to lead healthy productive lives and hence more hundreds of thousands are embattled by poverty, un employment, hunger and illiteracy.

Amidst the community is the highest population of youths who are who are dormant and idle due to lack of productive skills and adequate relevant knowledge and therefore Akwenyutu Iteso Child  Education Enhancement Project is identified here as a viable initiative intended to address the plight of the entire children in the UPE as the education is the background of development in this nation.

Sustainability of the Project:

International Child welfare Organization, is a faith based organisation that aims at improving on the poor living conditions of the Ugandan Community regardless of religion tribe or colour. This will be done through the involvement of the target group and other beneficiaries in the project activities and related problems which have incapacitated this community in the past. It is in this view that we feel that the target group and the stakeholders be involved.

In the initial stages of the problem identification, planning, implementation monitoring and evaluation, this will make the community confident of project ownership.

Therefore all the partners and the stakeholders of the project have to participate fully in all stages of the project.

In order to sustain this project ICWO expects that all the partners and stakeholders will:-

• Participate in all project activities.
• Provide their time
• Contribute in terms of resources
• Actively get involved in full supervision and management of the project
• Protect the project and its assets
• ICWO will train the TOT’s to help in the facilitation including the stakeholders work together for achievement of their children in the affected schools.
  

Financial Sustainability:

It is anticipated that after the completion of the funding, Akwenyutu Iteso Child Education Enhancement Project is expected to become sustainable. Below here the following activities which are expected to generate financial incomes to sustain the project:

(i)                 Financial contribution from parents and guardians of the children.

(ii)               Contributions from Local governments of the district.

(iii)             Finances generated from the initiated projects.

(iv)             Finances accrued form general fundraising

(v)               Membership and subscription fees

(vi)             Finances from church contributions and well wishers. 

 

PROJECT BUDGET:

 

 

 

OWN LOCAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Conversion rate is 1 Euro is equivalent to shillings 3,000/=. Therefore the International Child welfare Organization, Inc is seeking the amount of Euros 68.986 for the implementation of this worthwhile project.