Stories from the Field: Final Weeks in Kazigo A

By Naomi Muyanga

Sara and I finished the baseline surveys on Monday. Then Tuesday was the eye care and WASH sensitizations and it so happened that the VHTs did not mobilize and we had to walk around the village home to home mobilizing (I even rolled a piece of paper to act like a microphone and moved around at the last minute), but irrespective of our efforts, not more than 50 people turned up for the sensitization which was so irritating, but we had to bear it.

Wednesday and Thursday were sanitation pushes – hands on at VHTs homes from Kazigo A and B respectively. Both teams worked together to accomplish the last though it rained heavily on Wednesday and it seemed like we won’t work, as UVP staff also just dropped the materials and left but later in the evening, we started vigorously and managed to complete the task.

The community meeting where the survey results were released was a success, but still after an intensive mobilization on that very day. Titus and Patrick did a demo on safe water which was so fun where they put cow dung to mean faces into drinking water and asked whether any of the community members could take it!

Crazy, but true! - “What fun was in the blog this week?” I asked Derek, but he responded with “time’s new roman? Calibri?” I said, “What language are you speaking?” “The font was times new roman, that’s what I said!” He repeated only to realize it was a misperception of the word fun for font, everyone in the house giggled for over a minute.

Stories from the Field: Borehole Improvement Day

By Lauren Smith 


Friday morning kicked off bright and early with the first Kazigo B borehole improvement day.  Approaching the borehole, shovels, pick-axes, hammer, and sunscreen in hand, we were pleasantly surprised to find the caretaker there and ready for action.  First task: dig trenches to drain the nasty puddle at the end of the borehole and clear away the brush.  Armed with enthusiasm and total confidence in our tool wielding abilities, all four of us mzungu ladies stepped up to the borehole for the first swing.  Shovel digging skills, Gloria and Emily, check.  Hoe swinging skills…well, Lauren found those could use some work.  Turns out that while the caretaker (who is most likely twice our age) could effortlessly dig a trench in a few graceful strokes, us mzungus were in need of some serious practice.  After a few amusing swings, resulting in laughter and raised eyebrows from the Ugandans present, the Ugandans took over trench digging duty.  But, while we may be in need of some lessons in the art of swinging a hoe, we can collect and place rocks like pros, shovel and swing a machete with the best of them.  SP took on fence building, and Dan played paparazzi, documenting the event with four cameras dangling from his arms at a time.  We had a great turnout. Three of our VHTs came to help, and in total, about 15 community members participated in the improvement day.  In a few short hours we’d successfully transformed a dirty and overgrown borehole into a model borehole.  Trenches dug and lined with stones, brush cleared, pedestal cleaned and fence constructed, everyone was in good spirits, proud of the results, and covered in mud.  He who is the dirtiest had the most fun!

Lauren is interning in Kazigo B village this summer. 

From Iganga to Arkansas: Former UVP intern brings Ugandan health into the high school biology classroom

By Jennifer Jehnsen

I was a Team Leader for the Uganda Village Project’s Healthy Villages Initiative in summer 2009. In Nabitovu village, we focused on education outreach about insecticide treated mosquito nets and Waterguard as well as distribution of these at a subsidized price. We also focused on training the Village Health Team with knowledge about First Aid, HIV/AIDS, obstetric fistula, and malaria. These would become the leaders of the village in terms of health. Our day to day involved planning community meetings with village, district, and church leaders and doing community outreach at health centers and at schools. My biggest challenge was getting community members to come to outreach meetings. It was hard to have any sort of advertising in terms of when these were going to take place, so we really had to rely on word of mouth for the location and times of these community events. 

UVP solidified my interest in global health, particularly in rural health, because I witnessed the lack of resources for healthcare in rural areas, specifically for primary care. I saw the health centers without medicine or doctors, the clinics with one nurse and thirty people waiting in line. I've seen similar issues in rural areas in the U.S. and believe that the lack of adequate access to primary healthcare in rural areas needs to be addressed.

Currently, I am a high school biology teacher in McGehee, Arkansas. This summer, I am teaching at the Arkansas Governor’s School, a 4-week gifted and talented program that provides students an incredible opportunity for intellectual growth and social interaction while living on a college campus. I am using the knowledge and skills that I gained from being a Team Leader to educate my students about the public health approach toward tackling neglected diseases found in the developing world. I love talking about my experience in Uganda with my students. They usually have a lot of questions about what the people are like, what the buildings are like, and what the schools are like. I like to incorporate the health issues that I worked with in Uganda into my lessons so that my students can make real life connections about the relationship between biology and health.  I share with them challenges and successes our team encountered while setting up programs to prevent malaria, HIV, and waterborne diseases in Uganda. We also discussed the importance of community educational outreach and sustainability when implementing public health programs. 

 The students created skits for educating people about malaria prevention, and designed prototypes of sand filters that will not only filter pathogens out of the water but also provide a way to dispense water without recontamination. We had discussions about the stigma attached to HIV/AIDS and its affects on prevention, treatment, and testing. The final project will involve the students designing a budget and project proposal for a public health initiative that will address a tropical disease found in a developing nation. 

The main focus of my class is that epidemics of neglected diseases are not caused solely by the virus, bacteria, or protist; economic, social, and cultural factors also contribute greatly to the spread of the disease. My goal for the students is to understand the complexity of the issues in international health and that the spread of these diseases cannot be stopped simply by distributing free medications. I hope that my students will spread awareness about the issues people are facing in Uganda and like a chain reaction, more and more people will become advocates for people living in the developing world.

Jennifer Jehnsen interned with UVP in 2009 and was a team leader. She currently serves on UVP's internship task force. Since attaining a BS in Environmental Sciences and minor in Global Poverty & Practice from UC Berkeley, she has been working as a high school biology teacher in McGehee, Arkansas. 

HIV and UVP: Healthy Village Teams work to combat HIV in Iganga

By Gwendolyn Wernersbach 

HIV rates in sub Saharan African remain a major public health concern globally.  Uganda in particular is considered by many to be among the world's earliest and most compelling national success stories when it comes to combating the spread of HIV.  In recent years, Uganda experienced a decline in HIV prevalence, however, new reports show that the HIV prevalence rate has increased slightly, and that women are disproportionately affected compared to men.    

The HIV prevalence rate in Iganga is estimated to be higher than the national average by about eight percent.  Rural populations are most affected, as access to HIV testing, counseling and treatment are more difficult to come by in remote areas.  According to the Ugandan Ministry of Health, 85% of the population of Uganda does not know their HIV status, which demonstrates the impact and importance of these services.  Access to HIV counseling and testing is compounded by the fact that AIDS-related stigma and discrimination remains the single most important barrier when it comes to behavior change and public action. 

The Uganda Village Project (UVP) is helping to combat rates of HIV in rural areas of the Iganga district by providing HIV counseling and testing services through our Healthy Villages Team program.  The Village Health Teams work with local partners, including St. Mary’s, to conduct culturally appropriate outreach activities to educate communities about basic HIV prevention methods, and often incorporate dance, drama and music performances in to their messaging.  Additionally, UVP is actively involved with distributing condoms in collaboration with partner NGOs, and also administers voluntary HIV testing for villagers as a way to eliminate fear, stigma, or costs associated with travel to a clinic. 

Meet our friend Naigaga Sarah of the Nabitovu village.  Naigaga Sarah is a 34-year old mother of three children, and a proud member of the UVP Nabitovu Village Health team.  She is pictured below holding her youngest child as she waits to speak with the counselor about her results following a routine HIV test. 

Naigaga Sarah comes from a polygamous marriage, she is wife number three and the youngest wife in the home.  "We all came to test today," she said smiling.

"Since Uganda Village Project came into the village, my co-wives, my husband and myself have been testing for HIV at least once and sometimes twice every year.  As a Village Health Team member I encourage others to come for testing and mobilize the village for the HIV education sessions as well. I am happy for the opportunity Uganda Village Project and their donors have given us, by bringing testing right to the village level.  They test at the health centre as well, but it is far and walking there can sometimes be tiresome, therefore bringing testing to us is good and we are grateful."

In 2011, 1,421 HIV tests were administered in nine villages.  So far this year, as of July 2012, 1,623 HIV tests have been administered in eleven villages.  For those that test positive, they are referred to The AIDS Support Organization (TASO), their closest health center, or Iganga district hospital for follow up care and treatment.    

In these ways and many more, UVP is helping to reverse the trend of HIV in Iganga district.  We can only continue to do this important work through your help, generosity and support.  Learn more about how you can make a difference by supporting UVP’s HIV prevention efforts in Iganga here.   

Gwen is passionate about global public health and humanitarian relief efforts, both domestically and internationally. She has worked in the areas of HIV prevention, refugee health, nutrition, fitness, water and sanitation projects, and public health emergency preparedness. Gwen has served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Lesotho, and holds an MPH from Emory University in Atlanta. She currently works with the American Red Cross and serves on the board as a Member At Large for UVP. 

Stories from the Field: Baseline Surveys, WASH Sensitizations, and HIV Drama Group

By Lindsey Anderson

On Monday, after the team leader meeting, Derek, Felix, and I arrived home and Naomi and I left for a few baseline surveys on the complete opposite side of the village. Our goal was to get as many as possible and then head home to help with our group dinner with Kazigo B before dark. We ran into one of our VHTs and he kept taking us to more houses… As dusk began to arrive, he said we only had 10 more houses for this side of the village, so we thought: why not? By the time we finished the last house, it was almost completely dark and we had no phone and no light, and our VHT left us…so we had to start the 25-30 minute walk back home. After about 5 minutes, it was pitch black. Naomi kept trying to scare me because she was saying there was someone following us and she kept grabbing my arm. Finally, we ran into Dan and Simon Peter from the Kazigo B village and they helped guide us the rest of the way home.


On Tuesday, we had our WASH sensitization at the secondary school in Nabitende. It was not as successful as some of our other sensitizations. High school kids in Uganda are very similar to high school kids in the United States. If they decided they already know the information (or just don’t want to listen), they aren’t going to hear anything that we tell them. But, I’m sure the information came across to a select few...


On Wednesday, we had our HIV sensitization with the God’s Messengers drama group, who arrived 5 hours late because of a diver mishap. When they finally arrived, Sara and I got into the back of the pickup truck (with about 20 other people crammed back there) and drove around the village mobilizing. It was a crazy experience!! We were shouting, dancing, and I even beat on a drum for a few minutes. It was a lot of fun. Once we got back, we all got together to entertain the audience by participating in the local dance! Every single one of us got the chance to tie a scarf around our waists and shake our hips to the beating drums. The audience had a lot of fun watching us, and we had a lot of fun dancing for them! 


Lindsey Anderson is interning and living in Kazigo A village this summer. 

Family Planning Success Stories

By Maureen Nakalinzi

The following are four success stories about UVP's family planning services. 

For Our Children

Forty-eight year old Nabirye Alizikyi lives in Nakamini village in Iganga District. She is a mother to 10 children and she recently decided with her husband’s support to have a tubal ligation procedure done. When asked for the reasons why she had this procedure, she said, “I am disabled so I am afraid I won’t be able to look after my children very well if I continue having more children and my husband doesn’t make enough money. We also want our children to get an education hence we will concentrate on the children we have now." She was grateful for the support given by Uganda Village Project towards this accomplishment.

The Breadwinner

"I am called Naibira Zabina and I am 30 years old. I live in Nabukone Village in Iganga District.  Although I am married, I am the breadwinner of my home because my husband has three wives and he doesn’t earn enough to provide for all our basic needs. I have also always had difficulties with all my pregnancies hence the doctor counseled me and my husband to not have children any more. At first my husband did not support my choice of method, however after we were counseled by a UVP family planning services provider about the benefits of family planning, my husband gave me permission to go and have a tubal ligation procedure done. I feel happy because I will be able to plan for my family efficiently as I will not be worried of getting pregnant again." 

Spacing Our Children Out

"I am called Nakanda Jenny and I live in Nawansega village in Iganga District. I am a mother to five children. My husband and I are both farmers and we both understand that much as we want to have more children, we need to be able to plan for them and properly care for them. After we were counseled by a UVP family planning service provider, we both agreed to use the Norplant and we are both happy that we will be able to space our children very well and also meet their needs without the risk of unintended pregnancies."

Making an Informed Decision Together

Nabirye Loy is 30 years old and lives in Nakamini Village in Iganga District. Although she had planned to have six children, she now has nine children, a factor she attributes to not being able to access correct knowledge about family planning. As a result, she became afraid of using any method. But recently, thanks to the presence of UVP in her village, she was taught about family planning methods and later together with her husband; they made an informed decision to have a tubal ligation procedure done. 

Maureen Nakalinzi works as UVP's Health Villages Program Coordinator on the ground in the Iganga District.

Stories from the Field: A Most Awe-Inspiring Week

By Alicia Majeau


Although I have already written two blogs about the happenings in Kidaago B, I asked my team if I could usurp the right to reflect upon life in the village once again.  This was, in no way, due to any particular affinity for writing on my part, but simply because this past week is the one I feel has been the most awe-inspiring for me, and likely the most impactful for our community.  The week of July 9 was the sanitation week for Kidaago B.  During this period of time, we shared the results of our sanitation baseline survey with the community, trained the Village Health Team members in building basic sanitation structures, and went compound-to-compound, trying to improve individual households’ sanitation.  Over the course of the three days of the actual sanitation push, my team (working in cooperation with our awesome housemates from Kidaago A) built a total of 38 tippy-taps (hand-washing devices), built or improved 27 trash pits, built or improved 15 plate stands, built 12 latrine covers, created drainage for two washrooms, and helped begin or improve 10 latrines.  While many of these terms may seem arbitrary and their impact vague to those who are unfamiliar with sanitation in a village setting, they are all hugely important, yet fairly simple, devices or steps that can be taken to protect water sources, reduce disease, and generally improve health.

My awe at this week does not, however, come from these numbers that reflect sanitation improvement, or even from the incredible tenacity of my teammates and housemates, facing long hours in the field laboring under a hot sun.  Instead, my awe is inspired by the eagerness of the villagers to improve their community’s health.  To begin with, Kidaago B has some incredible Village Health Team members.  One man in particular, always eager to serve his community, spent all three days of the sanitation push working with us to assist his neighbors.  Even after we had finished working hours at the end of the day on Friday, this VHT, Awali, requested that we leave him materials to continue the work for a couple more hours independently.

The three days also resulted in story after story of people putting in more effort to improve sanitation than I ever expected.  In order to convey a sense of ownership, we charge 500 shillings (a subsidized price) for materials in order to build a tippy-tap.  One man, in particular, claimed he did not have the money necessary for such a hand-washing device.  Upon witnessing us build his neighbor one and teach both the adults and children the proper method of hand washing, he eagerly asked us if we could build him one as well, suddenly finding a way to afford it.  My team also found family after family who had chopped wood prior to our arrival for use in building a tippy-tap or plate stand.  Word spread like wildfire throughout the village that we were moving around doing this push, and the response was overwhelming.  The appreciation of the villagers, when I, myself, was appreciating them and their efforts so much, made every bead of sweat and muscle ache entirely worth it.  It is difficult to say whether this effort will continue once my team has left, but I truly believe that with the help and guidance of the VHT that I cannot say enough good things about, Kidaago B will soon be a village to be rivaled in sanitation levels.

Alicia Majeau is an incoming graduate student in the Molecular Microbiology and Immunology Department at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She interned with UVP in 2011 and returned this summer to serve as an Administrative Team Leader in Kidaago B village. 

Stories from the Field: Eating in Uganda

By Hannah Hennessy


One of the best parts about traveling to a foreign country is getting to try all of the local food.  Before I embarked on my trip to Uganda, I wasn't quite sure what to expect of African food. It's not a type of cuisine that I had previously tasted, but I made a commitment to try everything, just as my mom taught me.

So far, I have loved the food in Uganda. All of the different kinds of rice and beans and vegetables covered in amazing sauces and full of strong flavors. Overall, there have been only a few foods that aren't too popular. In Nakamini, we have basically outlawed posho (cornmeal and water, basically a less flavorful polenta) and matoke (the Ugandan equivalent of mashed potatoes made with flavorless bananas). However, everything else is free game.

Some of our team favorites are fish stew and okra, chapati with guacamole, pizza on chapati crust, French toast, sukumiwiki, and basically anything with g-nut paste and honey.

Our best meal, however, coincided with our team Fourth of July celebration. Preparation began with the slaughtering of two mzungu (or GMO white) chickens in our backyard (slaughtered by myself and Modest). The meal continued with the boiling of fresh maize and sukumiwiki cooked with Jane's special sauce. Finally, Berna made us authentic Ugandan fried chicken. Basically, it was the best meal ever!!!

All of my culinary worries are long gone because (almost) all of my experiences have been amazing.

For the remainder of the summer, I plan on continuing to explore my food options and improve cooking my favorite Ugandan dishes (so far my small repertoire consists of chapati, fresh passion fruit juice, and charcoal stove pizzas).

Hannah is an intern working in Nakamini Village this summer. 

Stories from the Field: A flushing toilet, a shower, or a washing machine?

If you could only have one, which would it be? A flushing toilet, a shower, or a washing machine.


Gloria: “The toilet to avoid having to walk at night with possible snakes, ants, or dogs on the way to the latrine.”


Corrie: “I would take the shower because it makes me feel good on the inside and clean on the outside.”


Lauren: “The shower because I like hot water sprinkling on me from above.  However, I don’t mind being outside in an open shower as long as there aren’t any kids spying on me from the trees.”


Emily: “The toilet, because once at night I witnessed our neighbor kill a poisonous snake.  I like having a flushing toilet in the house.”


Simon-Peter: “The toilet because it stays clean.”


Daniel: “The toilet because I don’t mind the other two.”

And if you had to give up only one for a lifetime, which would it be?

Gloria: “The shower, because I think the basin showers can be refreshing sometimes.”

Corrie: “I would give up the toilet because I dislike washing my own clothes and appreciate my showers.”

Lauren: “I would give up the toilet because I like the convenience of washing machines and would keep the shower.”

Emily: “The shower because I still feel clean after my basin showers.”

Simon-Peter: “The washing machine because I like washing my clothes.”

Daniel: “The washing machine because I can wash my own clothes!  I would feel lazy if I didn’t.”

Gloria, Corrie, Lauren, Emily, Simon-Peter, and Daniel are all interns working in Kazigo B this summer. 

Stories from the Field: Slaughtering Chickens & Meeting "Mr. Mayor"

By Sara Jenks

The past week has proven to be the most low key thus far.  Naomi and I continued to conduct baseline surveys while the others were in town on Monday.  Unfortunately only about half of the residents were home and another portion ran at the sight of us. One woman hid in her shower but her talkative grandson gave her away.  On Tuesday, just after Felix and Derek had set out to conduct surveys, the neighbor alerted us that someone from Kazigo A had passed away.  At that point, we were to stop working until the burial.  For that reason, I don't have any further work-related updates.  We canceled Wednesday's village-wide sanitation sensitization to attend the burial -- also no villagers would have shown up!  On Wednesday afternoon we attended the funeral with our UVP neighbors from Kazigo B.  Titus, a UVP staff member, gave a condolence speech on behalf of UVP.  He was also able to inform everyone of our upcoming HIV testing day next week.

I, of course, have to relay the Kazigo A chicken update.  Two weeks ago I slaughtered our dinner.  Naomi told me I performed it the quickest of the three internationals, but Lindsey said it seemed like I was the most affected by the act.  It's true, I felt uncomfortable ending a being's life with my own hands, feeling its last breath.  But we all agreed that it was the tastiest chicken we had eaten by that point.  This past Wednesday, we had two chickens for dinner, as we hosted the folks from Kazigo B for an American Independence Day feast.  We ended up grossly underestimating their cooking times and didn't eat until 10:45 pm!  Surprisingly, Naomi, a native from a village in the Busoga region, had never slaughtered a chicken!  She took care of both chickens, but announced that she doesn't intend to do it ever again.

Of all of the children who visit us everyday, we have grown closest with a fourteen year old boy named Waiswa.  His father is no longer living, so he is wise beyond his years.  He seems to know everyone and acts in a most diplomatic manner, so we have nicknamed him "Mr. Mayor".  For example, he made Derek an extensive Lusoga-to-English guide, including such phrases as "I am going to the borehole" and "Big is beautiful."  He without a doubt speaks English the best of anyone his age and is clearly sharp in other realms.  One morning he sat with us at breakfast, after school had started.  When we asked him why he wasn't at school, he looked away, ashamed.  Every day he goes to school and every day is turned away for not wearing acceptable shoes.  We have decided that since Waiswa does so much for us, and since we know his future is bright, we will do what we can to find him a pair of black shoes so he can go back to school.

The team is now heading back to Kazigo A after our midsummer break in Sipi Falls.  There is a lot to be done in the second half of the internship, and we are feeling the pressure.  Luckily we all feel rejuvenated after being inundated by negative ions at Sipi's many sites of crashing water (thanks Theresa Gauvert of Namunkasu for that interesting tidbit)!

Sara Jenks is interning with UVP this summer in Kazigo A village.