Author: GRI Social Media Team

Just like the success story of our fruit tree orchard in one of our recent posts, today we are proud to share yet another beautiful step that we have taken together with you towards sustaining the feeding program at Ubuntu Model Primary School.

Continuing from last year, in March this year, we planted maize on 2.5 acres of land (alongside vegetables grown by learners and GRI) to supplement the feeding program.

This initiative ensures that learners have food even when supporting partners are unable to assist. This approach to sustainability not only serves its intended purpose but also contributes to environmental conservation and provides hands-on learning experiences for our pupils. Concepts like germination, among many taught in class, are practically demonstrated in the school garden.

At Global Refugee Initiatives (GRI), we are dedicated to improving the lives of refugee communities by supporting them in vegetable production. We are proud to support over 100 refugee farmers in growing nutritious vegetables like Sukuma wiki, green pepper, onions, cabbage, spinach, and okra.

These vegetables are sold locally within the settlement to other refugees, and some are bought by traders from the Bweyale market (A market close to Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement). This generates vital income to support their household needs.

We are thrilled to announce our partnership with FAO, which has facilitated the construction of our second irrigation solar system. This innovative system enables our farmer groups to engage in block farming, producing vegetables and passion fruits even during the dry season.

Together, we are making a difference and empowering our communities to thrive! 

When designing our school feeding program, we envisioned a diet rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and other healthy nutrients. To achieve this, we decided to plant our own orchard with a variety of fruit trees, including mangoes, papayas, soursop, and guava. This initiative aims to benefit the school now and for generations to come. Today, we can proudly say that our vision is starting to unfold.

Focusing on papaya, one of the fastest-growing fruit trees in our orchard, the students have begun enjoying its fruits. They are served and relish the sweet, fleshy fruit as their dessert. While our primary focus is on the nutritional value it provides, our beneficiaries are delighted by both the taste and the quantity served. This fruit has certainly met the expectations of everyone involved.

With your support, we are steadily improving lives and health!

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This week, Global Refugee Initiatives (GRI) proudly joined the Run for Climate organized by Tree Adaptation Uganda (TAU)! Our involvement featured patrons from schools in the Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement and the host community, who are part of GRI’s Environmental Kids Club project. This initiative empowers young minds to protect and cherish our environment.

Together, we run for a greener, more sustainable future! 

In solidarity with humanity, we unite with UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and partners in observing World Refugee Day 2024. GRI places significant importance on safeguarding the rights of all displaced individuals.

Global Refugee Initiatives Uganda welcomed Linda van der Hoek from our donor foundation Wilde Ganzen to strengthen our partnership. She visited the Bweyale field office, toured the Ubuntu Model Primary School in Kiryandongo Refugee Settlement, and saw projects like the Environment Kids Club and livelihood block farm. GRI anticipates as stronger collaboration with Wilde Ganzen in the coming year(s).

The second school term of the academic year 2024 is here! With all Administrators, teachers, learners and non-teaching staff active and prepared for the term, we were curious to hear what the headteacher, Ms. Agnes Nambooze, had to say about the past three days since the beginning of the term;

” We are proud to announce that approximately three-quarters of our learners reported on the first day of the school term; Provision of meals (both breakfast and lunch) for our learners commenced on same day and our dedicated team of educators and staff have ensured that the teaching and learning process is running smoothly, providing a nurturing environment for our learners to thrive.
Besides that, our teachers have been diligent in preparing the necessary teaching materials, guaranteeing that every lesson is engaging and enriching. Their commitment to excellence is reflected in the positive feedback we have received from our learners and their families. Together, we will continue to nurture the academic, social, and emotional growth of every learner who walks through our doors.”

This affirmation is a testament to our collective efforts in providing a high-quality education that meets some of the diverse needs of the refugee child.

Thank you for joining hands with us to support the refugee child through education.
Continue to support our Education Programme by reaching to us through info@griuganda.org

Kiryandongo refugee settlement is currently receiving new arrivals from Sudan as a result of the ongoing political civil war in their country. However, accommodating these newcomers places a significant strain on emergency relief supplies needed by refugees to begin their resettlement journey. These supplies include water, shelter, food, healthcare, education, soap, clothing, and fuelwood. Despite efforts by the Ugandan government (OPM) and UNHCR to provide relief materials, the demand remains high due to the large number of refugees in need.

With the onset of the rainy farming season in Uganda, the Global Refugee Initiatives (GRI) is assisting new refugees by imparting skills in vegetable production. This initiative aims to provide refugees with access to a diverse and nutritious diet, including green leafy vegetables such as Sukuma wiki, purple eggplant, white eggplant, carrots, okra, green pepper, cabbage, and onions. GRI also prioritizes the health of refugees by ensuring they have sufficient land for farming, collaborating with OPM and equipping them with the necessary skills for vegetable farming as an emergency livelihood intervention.

So far, 200 new refugees have received assistance under this program.

We also call upon donors to join our cause in providing essential support to these refugees, ensuring their basic needs are met and fostering their integration into the community. Reach out to us on info@griuganda.org

At GRI, we recognize that a hungry child can never concentrate in class. Considering that over 80% of the learner population in most of the settlement schools in Kiryandongo Refugee settlement are refugee children who face a lot of hardships in their families, making feeding a big challenge, we chose to make the feeding program one of the priority programs at Ubuntu Model Primary School, which acts as our laboratory.

Under this program, learners are served with nutritious porridge made from a blend of soya beans and maize flour for breakfast, and beans and posho (maize flour) plus some vegetables for lunch. As supporting refugees has never been a one-man effort, Feed the Hungry East Africa (FTHEA), one of the education partners within the settlement, came through to support in the same program by availing 100 boxes of Manna pack, each box containing 13.5 kilograms this first term. Manna pack is a nutritious and scrumptious food very much adored by our learners; it comprises of rice, assorted vegetables, soy and vitamins.

Just like FTHEA, we encourage you to complement our efforts in this cause! You can reach out to us on info@griuganda.org

The Environmental Conservation Program by Global Refugee Initiatives is presently executing an agroforestry project across three schools: Bidong Primary School and Ubuntu Model Primary School, both serving refugees, and Bweyale Public Primary School, representing the host community.

This is intended to reforest the community and provide vegetables and fruits for improved nutrition for learners in the long run.

For the success of this activity, we fenced off the club plots for each of the schools to deter intrusion by animals and unauthorised persons.

Schools enthusiastically embraced this project, willingly engaging in and actively participating in all its activities. During our visit to Bidong Primary School, a school for refugees, we noticed Mr. Leo Okabo, the patron of the Environmental Kids’ Club, eagerly participating in the tree planting activity. When asked about the source of his joy and involvement, here’s what he shared:

“𝘞𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘎𝘭𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘭 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘨𝘦𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘷𝘦𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘉𝘪𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘗𝘳𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘚𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭. 𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺.“

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