Uganda Children’s Centre in collaboration with Mastula commonly known as “Mercy” a former beneficiary of the organization, now a prominent girl child advocate hailing from Katwe ghettos, started a project titled, “Promotion of ghetto youngsters’ talents and girl child rights through entertainment advocacy”, designed to uplift the living standards of children, youths and more specifically the girl child living in ghettos. This is done through raising ghetto children’s desperate plight and needs through advocacy campaigns.
The project taps into talents and gifts of ghetto children and youngsters to fully develop their potentials through organized training, uplifting and nurturing to create professional teams that disseminate advocacy messages on girl child rights and other social, economic and cultural issues affecting ghetto communities. A band known as “Ghetto Girl child advocacy troupe” was formed and is currently conducting organized performances in local communities and educational institutions.
This girls-only-band, is constituted of young girls from ghetto communities empowered to appreciate their rights, and are passionate and enthusiastic to support fellow youngsters with right and unbiased information, skills and knowledge to develop new perspectives about their lives. Katwe ghettos form a wider section of Kampala informal settlements, where many vulnerable children and youths remain
unattended to, or have no access to basic education, and are at risk of indulging in petty crimes, sexual abuse and other antisocial behaviors. Record high numbers of youths are unemployed due to lack of marketable skills and supportive systems to nurture and mentor them into responsible community members.
The project aims at reaching out to 100 girls in one year both in school and non-school environments to have them sensitized about girl child rights, reproductive and sexual rights, family planning, gender-based violence, environment protection, financial literacy, non-violent conflict resolution, and menstrual hygiene management among others.
The band traverses through ghetto communities particularly in hard to reach and live areas. Special performances are organized for very important persons such as politicians, diplomats and people manning international organizations in the country.
This is aimed to bring policy makers, international community and academia to appreciate deplorable conditions in ghetto communities, untapped talents of the youngsters, and the fateful plight of the girl child.
The project identifies and integrates youngsters in UCC mainstream projects such as formal education sponsorship and vocational skills training, to support completion of their education cycles and realization of sustainable livelihoods. The project’s good practices are shared in print and social media platforms.
By end of the first active year of the project, there will be improved and professionalized talents of ghetto youngsters, well-adjusted social behaviors, reduced crime rates, increased school enrollments, reduced early teenage pregnancies and marriages.
We thank MEM for the financial support, local leaders and entire ghetto communities for appreciating the project. Special thanks go to UCC team, trainers, and the ghetto girls for accepting to join the project. We shall keep updating about the progress.