Creating a fundraiser plan

First: the information booklet about Soft Power (the Norwegian version) is finished! Will use it as an extension of the fundraiser plan.

The web pages for the fund is also progressing, and will be up on the domains mirembe.no and mirembe.eu soon. Here’s a preview! Still looking for a good encounter, so that info will be up later. The idea is to put up a web based system that is transparent and simple for people to follow. Will keep you updated! Let’s make sure that Soft Power will be up and running soon, and that Sarah’s house will be able to grow, and take in more teens in need as well! Right now I will start raising money for a digital knitting machine to make the first draft of the design for the corn/banana/bamboo yarn baby sweaters. It’s quite expencive ($5-6000), but I’m positive. This is exiting!

Everything else to vanish

Photographic series in progress: Ugandan women. – just a preview:

Organize or Starve

Found this image (to the left) by googling: In the 1930s demonstrators marched through the streets of London carrying a banner reading “Organize or Starve”. This message is as true today – change must come from within.

Uganda is one of the countries in the world that is characterized by rampart corruption, and at the same time: one of the biggest aid receivers. Despite this, there seems to exist a taboo in discussing corruption – especially in humanitarian assistance.

Personally I found it difficult to trust people in Uganda (also got the ‘pleasure’ of beeing robbed as well as having my bank account hacked & ripped off), but have learned that it is necessary to find a balance between trust & control, trust & my own anxiety. You’ll meet a lot of sad situations when moving around in Uganda, but I got a feeling that some of them was also created by my own prejudices and values as a visitor.

The most important thing I learned was the necessity of including the locals in projects. There’s a big need for a more effective communication, and to include locals in whatever supportive work you do. Fighting poverty starts at home and in the community.

Style Your Poverty

Art project in progress

The photographic series “Style Your Poverty” is a part of an exhibition project titled The Dependency Syndrome. The project questions the role of foreign aid as a development tool, and is a political and ironic comment on the culture of aid – “Poverty as a trap” vs. “poverty as fuel”. The dependence syndrome in Africa has come to mean the surrender of valuable national assets in return for cheap trinkets and poorly designed and manufactured transient goods and equipment. Not the least: aid is correlated with corruption, has fostered dependency and implanted bureaucracy.

I use an analogue Leica for this series, and will publish the work later, but sharing a couple of snapshots.

A mattress for Rashid

Rashid is home from hosptal until the 17th, when the next surgery will take place. I visited him with and brought a mattress, given by Tonje Dahle from Norway. Until now he has shared one with his brother. To prevent the risks of infections and other conditions, it will be good for him to be able to sleep alone. Thank you!

Leaving Uganda – for three months

I´m leaving Uganda today! Going to Kampala in minutes. I’m leaving with a double feeling of ‘wanting’ and ‘not wanting’. It will be good with distance for some months, but It’s a bunch of people I’ll really miss over here! Hope to come back with some renewed energy, and some good perspectives on further work. I’ll miss the site & people in Malindi. Doing barbeque by the river Nile – picking corn and sugar canes.

When returning to Uganda with my partner in March ’12, I hope we are ready to start building Soft Power – even short time to raise the money. I’m leaving Uganda, and beginning Norway. Beginning the work to ensure that Soft Power is raised. That will be an interesting challenge!

This has been two intesive months, but the next period here will perhaps be even more intensive – if the knitting business is in progress, and we can start training the women. Planning to stay at least three months upon arrival then. Will start preparing asap! I’m leaving Uganda, but Uganda is not leaving me.

‘House of Two Sarahs’ is getting ready…

The temporary House of Two Sarahs is getting ready! It’s very simple, and in the same standard as the rooms of the rest of the kids & youth at Hadjets’, but the girls loves it! Bought them new mattrasses, bed nets, some curtains, a mirror etc., and then also some new clothings and books. Sharing a few pics (my digital camera was lost in the robbery, so these ones is by Jessie).

Robbed!

It’s said that 60 % of street kids and youth in Jinja live of theft, as a means of survival. I just met a couple of them – on my last evening in Uganda, and my bag containing money, camera, some documents and my passport, is forever lost! Had to postpone my travel, as I needed time to arrange with a new passport. Anyway, I wanted to stay an extra week, and so I was given… New retour is December 8.

There has been some experiences during this trip, both positive and negative, and I would say 99% of the negative ones have had to do with money (in one way or another). Some people seems to think that europeans can use money like it’s falling from a tree. There is a lot of stories told, one more sad after the other – but truth and lies mesh and blend. People are desperat and lie very easily. The most tragic lie I’ve experienced was a story about the death of a son, to have money for the funeral. I have paid school fees for kids, to experience that the next moment the kid is beeing used to get more. I’ve been provided with the most interesting budgeting!

Said this, there is good people around! The situation here is just making some people frantic. Even indulging in self-pity now, I would recommend coming here! Just have to be a little bit careful!

The re-creation of Ntuyo Rashids hand

Rashids operation went well, but for medical reasons the doctor desided to do it in two steps, so have to wait a bit to see the result of it! Next operation will be in about three weeks. The extra time makes it a bit more complicated for the parents, but Rashid is in a brand new, private hospital in Jinja, and is taken very well care of. They all are actually.

Final budget ended on $739.80 (NOK 4341,-), so a little higher then predicted – but this includes physiotherapy in the aftermath as well. Rashid and his family wanted to thank all supporters from Norway! They could never done this alone, and is very, very grateful. The costs covered is years of income for this family.

I’ll leave Uganda in a couple of days, but my partner will be here – and follow the next step.. So will come back with updates!

Land for Soft Power

Today we had a walk around the ‘Mama Wa Miti‘-land in Malindi, and the location where Soft Power is intended raised! It has a view to the river Nile! The realization will happen as a co-up between Mama Wa Miti, and Norwegian Mirembefondet (The Mirembe Fund), wich is a new established project fund for developing women-own sustainable businesses in the area of Art & Crafts in Uganda. There is also plans for rooming and training of teens without network/family, through House of Two Sarahs. Mirembe was a name given by the womens network in Malindi. As a gesture of respect, as they are an important part of this, it was decided used for the fund. Mirembe means ‘peace’ in Luganda.

The project has already got it’s first funding: NOK 5000,- from a company in Norway, Nordic Shelter AS.

Soft Power can be built right on the top hereThe land is beautiful!

House of Two Sarahs

House of two Sarahs – Soft Power extended (an intro further down).

Sarah is out of hospital, until she is ready for the operation. Think we’ll now how and when on sunday. She is now in her new home outside Jinja, and everything turned out better than I ever hoped. Here Sarah also met Sarah (2), an orphant from the same area as herself – and also the same tribe: Bugosa. They share a similar background, and found each other immediately.

The Two SarahsI’ve bought material to fix up an old building for both Sarahs to live together, on the land of Hadjet. Sarah has got a couple of sponsors from Norway, that will provide some money for her every month, for medisins, food, school etc., but the house I had to pay for myself. I’m thinking about the possibility of raising a small building with more rooms, as it was very difficult find a good place for Sarah to stay. No one – either families or orphants homes, wanted to take teens. It’s a big need, as it is alot of young girls (and also young mothers) here that for various reasons are left alone.

House of Two Sarahs

With the two Sarahs in thoughts, I started mind drawing the concept House of Two Sarahs – a new and different ‘rooming’ that house and train teens (Soft Power extended). I’m looking at the possibility for intercultural exchange, where internationals can come and share their different skills in an artisan or ‘master-in-residence’ program, in exchange for food and accommodation. My plan is that the house will be raised by a relatively small group of financial supporters – who’ll have a close relational connection to the progress of it. In return, locals have to provide the land (which they’ve already done – same spot as the Soft Power building, in Malindi). The house should be economically self-sustaining within a given period.

The planning is in it’s first steps, and will need some time to mature.
Coming back to it!
Sharing some pics from the moving:

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Banga

There was a bit of beauty in my inbox today! Mako Veronica had painted a picture titled “Banga”, made a video of it, and wants to sell it to raise money for kids in Uganda. The money is intended kids that need help continuing school – through The Story Of Sleep Wells Scool fees program! I find it very beautiful! Mako is in Los Angeles, but could send it in a tube anywhere in the world.

Thank you Mako!!

‘The Story’ on Facebook

Facebook can be a powerful tool! Via Facebook the project has raised money for almost 50 mattresses, 8 kids get to go to school, including Innocent (supported mainly by myself) and Sarah – who’s got several supporters! Sarah and Ntuyo Rashid (pic.) gets also both medical treatment and operation, after a note on Facebook! Sarah has even got sponsors to start a new life, in a new place, and is starting Boarding School in February.

Soft Power

The consept Soft Power has got NOK 5000,- to build a knitting business for rural women in Malindi, East Uganda – and Walle, via Nordic Shelter AS writes (in Norwegian):

“Dette er det beste prosjektet jeg noen gang har sett for å hjelpe fattige i uland. Det beste er filosofien bak, som er enestående ved sin bærekraftighet og vet at den lar de involverte beholde sin verdighet. Prosjektet er lett å realisere, men er i første omgang eavhengig av innsats fra “ildsjelen”, i dette tilfelle Amina Bech. Nordic Shelter AS gir med glede 5000kr som en første innsats til etableringen av “Soft Power.”

Det setter jeg pris på!
Thanks! Amina

The Story Of Sleep Well has got a new Facebook fan page. Feel free to like it!

Rashid, The Story Of Sleep Well – extended

Sarah is improving

It’s quite amazing to see the big improvement of Sarahs disease, so the first part of the medication has shown out to be very successful! I’ve might have said it already, but it is so fun to be around Sarah now! She’s totally changed as a person. She is fun, makes a lot of jokes, loves the camera – and laugh all the time. Very pleasent!

Later this week we are going to see a new specialist, to see what the next step in the treatment should be. More to follow!

Pic.: Sarah and Innocent. - Sarah shows off with her 4000 Ugandan Shilling (about one dollar and 50 cent), a couple of meals at the hospital.Sarah, me and Innocent..

Pillow talk

Yesterday I got Innocent to make a drawing about his dreams on a pillow cover, to see if something like this could be used as a part of the exhibit content. Here’s the result! I think I will choose another way of approaching on the next try.. Innocent is probably a little “intoxiated” by the fact that he knows me to well, and want to go with me to Norway. Nice with the Ugandan flag on top of the air plane though!