Changing Education

Team member Carla shares some reflections from earlier this week.

Listen dear friends to God’s truth, bend your ears to what I tell you. I’m chewing on the morsel of a proverb; I’ll let you in on the sweet old truths, stories we heard from our fathers, counsel we learned at our mother’s knee. We’re passing it along to the next generation – God’s fame and fortune, the marvellous things he has done. Psalm 78 (Message Translation)

It is another warm day here in Uganda, I can’t believe how 'at home' I feel here despite the contrast between here and Ireland. The people we have met have been amazing, I can feel our group coming together in fellowship and getting to know each other a little more, sharing stories with each other, some of which I have found hard to hear because it breaks my heart to hear the pain that these wonderful people are having to live with daily.

Today’s sessions were focussed on the importance of encouraging, nurturing and teaching children.

Some of the statistics I heard today have shocked me, 50% of the population of South Sudan have been displaced. As well as the conflict, this displacement is having a direct impact on the children having access to education and staying in education. The girls in particular have many difficulties staying in education.

Before hearing these difficulties and learning about the days for girls project, I would never have imagined that the solution to a young girl dropping out of education would be a sanitary product. Only 1.3% of 16 year old girls are still in secondary school.

I find it encouraging that everyone here at this conference from South Sudan is committed to changing this for their young people and I am honoured to be a small part of bringing the resources and teachings here to Uganda to help them to deliver some of those hopes and goals in their own communities when they return to South Sudan.