Ugandas Young Stars

One Me, One We

Amito Lydia :: Wanyange Girls Secondary School :: Age 15 :: Jinja District
The world today requires that one should not only try passively but actively look for solutions for situations where people see nothing but problems. When you do this you can make something out of nothing. People should not just sit back and wait for bread on a silver plate. People must be creative and self starters - most especially with the issue of youth unemployment. The youth need to learn practical skills such as entrepreneurship. This will help them be self-employed rather than jobless. The youth need to set goals and strive to achieve them. A person without a goal or vision is like a branch cut off of a tree. So the youth should not look to live

A newsletter for Ugandas youth, by Ugandas youth

Working Together to Promote Global Change

from hand to mouth. I think this is an effective way of promoting change because people get to know how to overcome challenges.

ogether as one, we can promote global change in our world. As one ME you cannot do it but as one WE we can achieve.
Tukamushaba mercy, age 16, bushenyi DisTricT

Oryem Simon Peter :: Age 22 :: Gulu Community Vocational School :: Gulu District
Unity Unity Unity Let us unite together for peace Let us unite and bring up our community Let us stand up and protect our people by word Let us build up our community. Unity Unity Unity Can some tell me what unity looks like Is it a man, woman, boy or girl I say unity is a heart of being together Unity is love, strength and power Unity is joy and peace Unity is sharing with others Unity is the heart of caring for everyone around you. In life you need to have joy. I feel very happy for my life because I know what joy is, and in my life, joy and peace come together. Where those two are, you will find two more things: love and pain. Be strong and you can overcome any situation in your life. If you like your life and you like peace then stand up and say it loud. Ever for peace building in our country. Ever for love and joy in peace building.
Ugandas Young Stars :: Volume 3 :: June 2012

Kyeru Mary :: Shimoni Core PTC :: Wakiso District

provide other basic needs. It was also my sister who advised me to go and join a teaching course which has been important to me. The woman I admire most is my sister. I did not always agree with her, but I knew she loved and supported me. This is because when our parents left us as orphans, she guided and counseled me to study first before doing other things. I took her advice. Luckily, she was able to pay my school fees. Further still, she was able to buy my clothing, feed me, and

I n te r n at i o n a l Womens Day - March 8

Every year on March 8, thousands of events are held throughout the world to inspire women and celebrate achievements. The day is an official holiday in Uganda, as well as in many other countries around the world.

There are so In conclusion, I love and admire many qualities I admire in my my sister because I can share nice sister. She does not discriminate words with her and she counsels against others. She me. She tells me, My I did not always agree with sister, study very hard is social, respectful her, but I knew she loved and and you will succeed and committed to supported me. each person she because in Uganda meets. I also admire they want educated the fact that she has become a people. doctor which earns her money and provides for both of us.

Nambolanyi Magdalene :: Shimoni Core PTC :: Wakiso District

is the number one priority in my life. She is able to support me with everything I need. In addition to that, I admire my mother because she is on good terms with my father. They have never fought in front of me. They Secondly, my mother can call me give each other total respect and and have nice words of counselthey also work together if they ing. She can guide have set a common She can tell me, My me on how I should daughter the world is goal. go about living in waiting for you after your studies. this world. She can In conclusion, I tell me, My daughter admire her because the world is waiting for you after she has shaped me to be what I your studies. What I have to do is am and encourages me to fit in to listen to her and get her knowl- society. edge and use it in order to live a happy life.

The woman I admire most is my mother. We do very many things together. Above all, she wants me to first finish my studies. I accepted this idea because education

Ugandas Young Stars :: Volume 3 :: Page 2

Ugandas Shooting Stars

We are Eddie, Simon, Junior, Julius, and Moses and we are part of The Breakdance Project, Gulu Branch. We live in Gulu town and some of us are students, some are not. We all have different lives and obligations but one thing that we have in common is that we all love to dance and be involved with our program where local youth are able to promote their talent and skills.

Ugandas Shooting Stars dont just talk the talk, they walk the walk. These youth are actively working to promote change in their villages, schools, and country. Below you can read about how this issues Shooting Stars, The B-Boys of the Breakdance Project, are using dance to promote social change in their community.

The B-Boys of The Breakdance Project, Gulu Branch :: Mwaka Simon Peter, Age 17 :: Ivan Julius Toolit, Age 19 :: Onen Junior, Age 23 :: Ojok Eddie, Age 17 :: Ouma Moses, Age 16
source of income. In The Breakdance Project everyone is a teacher and everyone is a student and our motto is each one, teach one. With an open mind and creativity, every mistake that someone makes has the potential to be a new move. When we come together using these attitudes and perspectives we promote leadership, teamwork, hope, and skills sharing in ourselves and other youths who join the program.

Breakdancing is a type of dance, usually associated with hip-hop music, which involves popping, locking, b-boying and b-girling. We also believe in breakdancing We were inspired to join the for social change. That means Breakdance Project at different that if we see a problem in our times and for differcommunity With an open mind and ent reasons but now we can create creativity, every mistake dramas through we work as a team that someone makes has and have been very the potential to be a new dance to highsuccessful since we light the issue move. came together. and come up with possible We love to dance because it is fun solutions. One problem that we and we are able to express our had been seeing in our area was creativity and feelings whether it religious conflict. We organized be anger, happiness, loneliness, the group and talked about it. etc. Our involvement with The After that we created a drama Breakdance Project also allows us to share our talents and skills with our fellow youths, teach the young ones, and meet new friends. We enjoy performing for the community and doing outreaches and we are sometimes even paid for our work. Therefore, dancing has become a

that promoted religious tolerance and understanding through breakdancing. When it was ready we preformed our drama for the community to bring more attention to the problem. People appreciated it so much that we were able to show it in Pece Stadium and Kanuda Grounds in Gulu District, Boma Grounds in Kitgum District, and Lango College in Lira District. We were very proud of ourselves for being able to make a difference. The five of us and our other friends have chosen to be active and promote social change through breakdancing. Its something that we love and weve learned a lot about the people we want to be and the kind of impact that we want to make in our community and world as a result. We hope that other youths around the country get active and work hard to be creative, share ideas, and promote teamwork because together we can do more.

Ugandas Young Stars :: Volume 3 :: Page 3

Osola Rose :: Age 17 :: Icheme Girls S.S. :: Oyam District

ly, I was treated and got better but it was a very bad time in my life.

World Malaria Day - April 25

* Malaria is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Uganda. * 100% of the Ugandan population is at risk of contracting malaria. * Around the world, Malaria infects 300 million people every year and kills up to one million people. * Ninety percent of malaria-related deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa. that dirty water if I leave it. I make sure that all the windows and doors are always closed to prevent mosquitoes from entering the house. I also talk to my parents about being prepared when we hear that people are coming to spray our house. Lastly, I ask my parents to buy mosquito coils to help chase away the mosquitoes from the home. When I do all these things I can keep myself and my family safe by preventing malaria in our home and lives.

I have been personally affected by malaria. This is my story of how the disease affected me. I didnt sleep under a mosquito net. Though people told me I should, I couldnt accept the advice. I thought that malaria wouldnt affect me. When I got sick they had to take me to hospital. I had no appetite. If I saw food, I would not feel like putting it in my mouth. I lost a lot of body weight and I had no energy. I thought that I was going to die because of the way the sickness was affecting my body. Thankful-

I would advise all people to work to prevent malaria in their lives and homes. People should sleep under treated mosquitoes nets because those who dont are more likely to be affected. Most especially pregnant women should sleep under nets to keep their unborn babies free from malaria. I now slash the bushes around my home since mosquitoes like to breed there. I also drain the stagnant water because mosquitoes can produce the young ones in

Ssemango Philimon :: Shimoni Core PTC :: Wakiso District

Malaria is spread by the anopheles mosquito. If one is bitten by that mosquito, he or she sometimes gets malaria. The mosquitoes mostly bite at night during sleeping hours and if you are not under a mosquito net, you have higher chances of getting the disease. Malaria is now the most deadly disease in Uganda. It has affected me in many ways. First and foremost, it has touched me emotionally because it has killed my relatives, both my brother and my sister. They were younger than me. The first one was the second last born of our mother and father. Her name was Jane and she died at the age of 10 years in 2008. This left us in a state of sorrow. But two years after that incident our brother David, the last born of our parents, also fell sick from malaria. He was taken to hospital but it was too late. He died one week later at the age of 7 in 2010. This second incident left me and my parents in deep sorrow and miseryto lose two relatives in a period of less than 3 years. Malaria has affected me economically as well in that whenever I fall sick, I use much money to buy
Ugandas Young Stars :: Volume 3 :: Page 4

medicine. It is very expensive. So we need to come together to fight against this disease. I also ask the government of Uganda to make sure that the medicine that cures malaria is readily available in hospitals and all health centres at a cheap price.

Transforming Leadership skiLLs Through sporTs

St. Francis S.S. For The Blind Students :: Madera, Soroti
domestic violence and sanitation. The Camp GLOW girls learned about goal setting, self-defense, and time management to name but a few. Our B.A.I.L. club was started by the 12 of us who attended the camps back in December. We wanted to take the good things we learned and share them with others. The mission of B.A.I.L club is to inspire leadership through sports at school and the community as a whole. Objectives of the club this year are: improve discipline, enforce time management, and encourage teamwork. We have a few events planned for this year. The biggest one will be a Paralympic field day where all the schools visually-impaired students will play games and sports and attend life skills sessions. Because 2012 is the year the summer Olympics and Paralympics will take place in London, we wanted to show our patriotism and sporting spirit for Uganda. We believe that all students will enjoy our Paralympic day.

At St. Francis S.S. for the Blind, we have started a leadership and life skills club called Building and Inspire Leadership (B.A.I.L.) The idea began during Camps BUILD and GLOW organized by the U.S. Peace Corps. The Camp BUILD boys learned about many things such as drug abuse, conflict resolution,

ThoughTs from u.s. peace corps norThern camp BuiLd

Okello Denish :: Age 20 :: Onyapoyere Village, Aramita Parish, Ngai Sub-County, Oyam District
My name is Okello Denish and cause I was invited to be a particimy nickname is Ogudu. I live in pant in Northern Camp BUILD in Northern Uganda. I have a wife April. From there I learned about and child who IGAs, agriculis 2 years old. I Respect your friends, be faithful ture, empowerdropped out ment, growth, to your spouse, respect your of school in S4 brothers and sisters, respect HIV/AIDS and your elders, and respect yourself. teamwork. in 2010 when Never take life unjustly and finish Good enough, my wife, who what you have begun. was also forced I was elected to drop out as chairperson of school, became pregnant. As of peer educators in our local I talk now my occupation is a youth center. Peer educators are farmer and I am struggling to go responsible for spreading inforback to school because education mation and positive messages to is important regardless of whethother youth in our area through er you have a wife or a child. outreaches and work at our youth center. I was very happy this year beAs I talk I have self-confidence and I know that I can guide and counsel my fellow youth. My message to my peers is to respect your friends, be faithful to your spouse, respect your brothers and sisters, respect your elders, and respect yourself. Never take life unjustly and finish what you have begun.

Ugandas Young Stars :: Volume 3 :: Page 5

Katusiime Winfred :: Age 17 :: Bweranyangi Girls S.S. :: Bushenyi District

Earth Day - April 22

There are many environmental water bodies by some Earth Day is celebrated around the world to challenges in the community as industries, which has emphasize support for environmental programs, the result of lack of knowledge of caused extinction of some. Some challenges include: aquatic animals like obtain public commitment and build community swamp reclamation, deforestafish. These fish could tion, overgrazing, water and land be used as a source of activism through a broad range of events and pollution and many others. Trees income and food. activities. in the forests which act as wild animals We can fight against As work like planting trees, properly habitats are cut youth, lets rise up environmental disposing wastes, and protecting degradation in Uganda and fight against down for developif we work as a team by environmental deg- swamps. Also the youth can teach ment purposes. communities ways of protecting uniting. Swamps which act radation, as we know the environment through dramas, as water catchment how important it is plays, songs and poems. areas are drained and flooding to live in a nice environment. We occurs. Industrialization has led to can fight against environmental An individual can make a differwater and land pollution because degradation in Uganda if we work ence but a group of individuals waste products are deposited into as a team by uniting and doing make major change.

y fellow youth from all over the world, lets save our world from environmental degradation,
ivan Julius TooliT, age 19, gulu DisTricT

famine, and drought because together we are strong.

Birungi Prossy :: Shimoni Core PTC:: Wakiso District

At Shimoni Core PTC, I can conmaintain soil fertility. I can also serve water in dry season in order conserve the environment by to water crops and flowers. I have avoiding poor methods of farming also slashed the compound here like bush burning and deforestaand planted trees tion. I can sensitize I would prefer all people the people who work and flowers which to work hand in hand for industries not have helped the ento be responsible for to dump wastes in vironment become everything around them beautiful. In addifor the betterment of our water bodies, hence tion, creating small preventing water environment. paths has helped pollution. keep people off the grass so as not to destroy it during In conclusion, I would prefer all the dry season. people to work hand in hand to be responsible for everything At times farmers at home have around them for the betterment listened to my advice to use betof our environment. ter methods of farming to help

Since I was born, I have admired the place in which I lived because the environment was conducive and favorable to me. As I grew up, I went to different schools where the environment was hostile, but I tried to cope by loving and caring for things around.

Ugandas Young Stars :: Volume 3 :: Page 6

maLaria
Kebirongi Agatha :: Rakai Community School of Nursing :: Age 20 :: Rakai District
Malaria! Malaria! Malaria! Caused by anopheles mosquitoes, What a stubborn disease it is. You claim peoples lives, disrupt families, cause pain to many, A causative agent of poverty far and wide. Oh! What a deadly disease, as simple as your name sounds. To children, endless is the story Pregnant women are neither spared or respected I remember falling victim to malaria, Fever, convulsions, vomiting, anaemia, What a painful situation that was! Malaria! Malaria! Malaria! What is your remedy? Is it sleeping under mosquito nets? Or is it slashing bushes around our homes? Maybe draining away stagnant water might work, I dont know if closing windows and doors before night is true. Oh! What a deadly disease! Imagine dehydration, wasting, anaemia, death, All are resulting of malaria. What a dynamic disease you are! Where will stubbornness destine you? Nurses, teachers, leaders, and community at large, Rise up against this monster! Get health education, sensitize people, Encourage people to prevent it, Encourage people to obey simple rules. Slash, draining stagnant water, spray with insecticide, I can overcome, you can overcome, we can overcome! Unity is strength!

Be acTive

Boys and girls at Ngais ASB Youth Center team up to educate the local community about hygiene and teach their fellow youth how to make a hand washing system called a tippy tap using all local materials.

Be active! Send us your stories and pictures of how youre making a difference in your community.

Ugandas Young Stars :: Volume 3 :: Page 7

aLcohoLism
Alcohol and Poverty Facts A 2002 Ministry of Finance Report highlighted excessive alcohol consumption as one of the key drivers and maintainers of poverty especially in the rural countryside. The report identified alcoholism as the number one priority factor for downward mobility of households. Children growing up in households affect by alcoholism routinely lose out on education and are negatively affected by stigma.

Drawings by Oweka Stephen Aboda :: Glory Special Needs Primary School :: Kitgum Town

more ThoughTs on The environmenT

Mwaka Simon Peter - Adriano :: Age 17 :: Gulu Central High School :: Gulu District
The environmental challenge that This can be solved if youth work I see and experience in Uganda is together to educate and mobilize poor disposal of waste like feces, community members. If we dont used condoms, and take action, people chemicals like insectiWhen we work together in Uganda will not be we will create a better in a position to know cides, among others. world to live in. It is mostly affecting the negative aspects water channels beof poor disposal of cause it makes it complicated for environmental waste, and the the passing of water during rainy problem will get worse. seasons by acting as blockages. Pollution of our water systems isnt only a problem in Uganda but is an issue for the whole world including countries like Canada, Namibia, France, South Africa, and others. What we can do to protect our environment from being misused is all do our part and work together. When we work together we will create a better world to live in.

Ugandas Young Stars :: Volume 3 :: Page 8

more ThoughTs on inTernaTionaL Womens day

Amito Lydia :: Age 15 :: Wanyange Girls Secondary School :: Jinja District
Traditionally, an African woman would be subjected to a lot of unfairness that made her position in the community quite weak. She was never allowed to take part in leadership roles. Women were totally disadvantaged in every field. However, in the world of today with its competitive nature, women are actively taking part in every field which is a great change. Celebrating International Womens Day in Uganda makes me realize that women have a potential and actually were born with the ability to transform every area of life. To the young women of the nation Dont let the past get hold of you and look forward to achieving more in the future, for you were born with greatness and it begins with your own power of choice.

s a result of my teachers positive encouragement and my effort, I now can write and read well. Teachers should never be cruel to biological children.

students when they bring their problems. Help them as you would your

akullu grace, age 17, lira DisTricT

Word puzzLes
1. An electric train is traveling east at 35 kilometers an hour, while the wind is moving at exactly 15 kilometers an hour west. Which direction and at what speed is the trains smoke heading? 2. Two men are walking into a hotel, and are planning to split a room. The hotel reception tells them that the room is 30K UGX. The men each pay 15K UGX, then go to their room. The hotel reception realizes afterwards that hes made a mistake, and charged the men too much; the room is only supposed to cost 25K UGX. He gives the balance (5K UGX) to a boy to give to the men. The boy realizes that he cant evenly split 5K UGX (he only has 1K bills), so he hands each man 2K UGX, and pockets one for himself. When the men paid, they gave 30K UGX Total. Right? But the men paid 13K UGX each=26K UGX. The boy gave 2K UGX to one man, and 2K UGX to the other man= 4K UGX. Then the boy kept 1K UGX for himself= 1K UGX. If you add up these totals, you get 31K UGX (26K + 4K + 1K). Why is there an extra 1K UGX all of a sudden?

Ugandas Young Stars :: Volume 3 :: Page 9

use your confLicTs WeLL

Okurut Leonard :: Ngora District, Teso Region
Conflict is usually seen as something bad. However, the differences of ideas that conflict presents us with give us the opportunity for different views and critical thinking. Conflict is human and conflict starts within an individual. We simply have to manage and resolve our conflicts well to reach sound decisions. Intrapersonal conflict should be handled well. It occurs on all thoughts we go through. Every new experience comes with strong conflict. Conflict is an everyday part of life. The question is not whether or not you will experience conflict, but how that conflict can act to teach you important lessons in your life. Take advantage of these situations so that you may learn, and you will have gained from something people usually see as a bad experience.

n E x t i s s u E s t h E m E : youTh responsiBiLiTy
1. young people often have challenging and serious responsibilities beyond their years. Tell us about an experience where you found yourself with adult obligations, such as having to work, getting married, having children of your own, experiencing major hardships, etc. 2. What do you think your relationship or marriage should be like when youre an adult? how will you avoid domestic violence and other conflicts in your home? 3. how has your life been affected by alcoholism? how can youth address these problems? 4. Do you think that youre a shooting star? (see pg. 3) Tell us about who you are and how youre actively working to promote change in your village, school, community, or uganda as a whole.

Essay submission GuidElinEs

Essay questions are optional. Please try to keep submissions for each question under 400 words. Write your name, age, school (if applicable), village and district on the paper.

About

U gandas YoUng stars

Ugandas Young Stars was first published by American Peace Corps Volunteers in February 2012. The newsletter is written for youth, by youth and is designed to be an open forum where Ugandan kids can express their ideas, opinions, and experiences regarding gender and youth-related issues. Youth write and submit essays which are compiled by Peace Corps Volunteers, used as articles in the publication, and then distributed in communities all around the country.

Ugandas Young Stars :: June 2012 Volume 3 Page 10 Published by United States Peace Corps Volunteers