Mellisa Cooke – a content Coordinator at Oxfam Ireland visited Uganda last year in November for two weeks to collect content from project participants in Karamoja and attend the Irish Civil Society Partnership (ICSP) gathering. Mellisa shares her experience.

This was my first trip both to Uganda and Africa. So, when you think of a fresh pair of eyes, mine were the freshest!   

During the second week, there was a meeting of all the countries under the Irish Civil Society Partnership (ICSP) grant funded by Irish Aid. This was an interesting week of sharing information and learning from others. However, it was the first week that I learned the most from. We went to Karamoja on a field visit. 

We were there to see how the project was being implemented at the end of the first year. While all the details of the project and the grant were fascinating, what stood out to me most was the Ugandan people. My colleagues and other people I met were helpful and had that healthy sense of humour and fun that we love to pride ourselves on here in Ireland. 

We flew to Karamoja, and I was so lucky to see the vast and breathtaking landscape. However, when we got off the plane the many challenging issues were obvious. Oxfam and the partner organisations aim to help people to lift themselves out of poverty, to give them training in skills like beekeeping and farming. They’re also sensitising communities to stop all forms of  violence against women as it is very high. 

Mellisa in Karamoja

Coming from Ireland, we talk about localisation and supporting local organisations working closely with people in Karamoja to respond to needs. It was great to see this concept in action in Uganda. All four of the local partners worked together to deliver training. They all work with many of the same people in Karamoja. This means that their work can make a real and lasting impact, because it will be focused over the course of this grant. When we visited the farmer-field school run by TUNADO, staff from Resource Rights Africa were there and so on. 

Another wake up call for me in my Irish naivety was how far away everything is! Kampala, where the Oxfam Uganda office is, is a nine-hour drive or two-hour flight to Karamoja. It would take just over eight hours to drive from the top of Ireland to the bottom of the country. It really hit home with me how important it is for Oxfam to work with local organisations who are located or have offices in Karamoja. 

We visited a puppet show run by Resource Rights Africa. We could hear the excited chatter and laughter of the children who were attending the puppet show before we even got out of the jeep. Even though I couldn’t understand what was being said, I could still get the gist from the audience’s reaction. 

“Coming from Ireland, we talk about localisation and supporting local organisations working closely with people in Karamoja to respond to needs. It was great to see this concept in action in Uganda. All four of the local partners worked together to deliver training. They all work with many of the same people in Karamoja. This means that their work can make a real and lasting impact, because it will be focused over the course of this grant. When we visited the farmer-field school run by TUNADO, staff from Resource Rights Africa were there and so on.”

Mellisa Cooke
Content Coordinator - Oxfam Ireland

The farmer-field school run by Caritas Moroto we visited was so interesting, as was the gender training delivered by National Association of Women's Organisations Uganda (NAWOU). We were even treated to a song of welcome here. A talking point for me was the hive making demonstration run by Uganda National Apiculture Development Organisation (TUNADO). Using local materials to make hives from scratch. It was amazing to see them being created. The Manyatta settlements in Moroto fascinated me, as did the boda bodas. How does anyone drive those things? Trying to cross a road in Kampala should be an Olympic sport! 

The highlight of my trip was seeing the work being done by Oxfam and partner organisations this project. It was only the end of the first year, as the grant runs from 2023 to 2027, but there was so much work already done. I’m excited to see the how the next four years of this grant progress. In other highlights, who could forget the amazing cultural show those who attended the ICSP meeting during the second week were treated to. We saw the skills of the dancers and learned about the diverse cultures across the country. 

Lastly, I do love the landscape and people of Uganda, but I will never make peace with the mosquitos and the number (and size) of bugs that came to join in when we would eat outside in the evening. Not even the prettiest sunset on Lake Victoria could distract me from that!