Writer: Marcella Karekye. PHOTO/FILE/COURTESY
On September 1, President Museveni and First Lady Janet Museveni were hosted at the annual Mother’s Union Buganda Conference in Luweero. The theme of this year’s conference was ‘Working diligently towards transformation and sustainable development of our nation’ signifying that the country’s transformation and sustainable development must be undertaken as a joint task by multiple stakeholders. The basic unit of all societies is the family.
The First Lady’s remarks at this event were from a position of knowledge and experience, and she used these to encourage the women and mothers in attendance in their invaluable role in the unit of family.
She reminded women of their pivotal role in holding their families together, ensuring positive influence on the children in their care; through guiding them in the ways of God while skilling them for the future. In her words, ‘‘in all homes, mothers have the privilege of setting the pace of peace and harmony, regardless of the circumstances that prevail.
Indeed, God intended that mothers should be the first relationship and influence a child's experiences right from birth since we are their first source of nourishment and comfort.”She also expressed that a woman/mother’s role at home must be passed on to younger generations through living by example and also intentional impartation or teaching. For this, she commended the Mothers’ Union for their tireless efforts in modelling the younger generation.
The role of mothers also extends to encouraging their children to attain an education and helping them stay in school. Education prepares children for the future and a productive life. The First Lady, who doubles as the minister of Education and Sports, has stressed on different occasions that education is a shared responsibility and it shouldn’t be left to teachers.Ms Museveni advised that the health and wellbeing of the children in their care, of which nourishment is a key component, is important. She pointed out that school-going children to be fed as they study for them to be able to reach their full potential.
Why eggs and milk
Just like Uganda, the nation, Ms Museveni has seen and experienced times of scarcity and times of plenty. As a senior leader of this country, carrying the heart of a mother, her recommendation to pack eggs and milk for a school-going child is because she knows that Uganda is not static and that the country is experiencing plenty.
Uganda, having transformed over the years means that parents can manage to secure these things for their children, which in the past may not have been the case. The latest government socio-economic transformation programme, the Parish Development Programme (PDM) alone, has spurred the growth of agricultural enterprises and increased food production. This means there is something to sell and make some money and also feed households.
Households can also buy from the markets what other households produce. I picked Luweero to use as a case study for the PDM project. The latest PDM status report for Luweero indicates that the Parish Revolving Fund totalling Shs21b has been disbursed across 101 PDM Saccos since the financial year starting 2021/22 e. The most prominent enterprises as a result include maize, coffee, piggery, banana, poultry, beans, dairy cattle, beef cattle, etc.
A snapshot of households engaged in these enterprises shows that 40,180 households are keeping poultry, 22,640 are practicing piggery, 20,638 are rearing goats and 10,650 keeping cattle.
Luweero’s PDM performance alone shows that many households are probably able to afford to pack something for their child without it being difficult and this is probably true for many parts of the country.
I would like to urge Ugandans to appreciate first that transformation is real, then measurable and finally, visible in demographic behavior.
The dictionary definition of transformation is a complete change in form or the form of something especially so that it is better. Indicators such as a significant reduction in infant mortality, and a higher life expectancy point to a transformation that can’t be ignored.
The writer, Marcella Karekye, is a special presidential assistant, communication.
