AGYA Conducts Outreach on Lingira Island

 By: Kenny Mulinde

With a population of about 600 people, Lingira is one of Uganda’s largest islands on Lake Victoria. The most dominant economic activity on the island is fishing. The people depend on fishing for sustenance and to generate revenue because farming is not very viable due to rocky, infertile soil. According to a Lingira health advocate, the rate of HIV/AIDS on the islands is a staggering 80%. That is, of every 10 people, 8 are HIV positive. Other diseases like malaria are also prevalent. There is only one school and one health facility on Lingira Island, and people from neighboring islands also come to these facilities to learn and get medical treatment. Youth and children make up about 60% of the island’s population.  Only 20% of the youth attend school; nearly 40 % spend the majority of their time fishing to support their families.

Lingira island is associated with high rates of illiteracy, wide spread poverty and limited social and economic resources due to inaccessibility and isolation.

VIDEO: Interview with AGYA Girls Director, Namutebi Happy

HAPPY from One Hand Clapping Pictures on Vimeo.

Reflections of a Volunteer Alumni: How AGYA Shaped & Prepared Me For My Job With Teach For America

By: Marianna Singwi-Ferrono

During the summer of 2009, I spent a month living, teaching, and volunteering at AGYA along with seven other students from the University of Southern California.  Founded by Nicolette Omoile in 2008-9, Rise of African Youth through Self-Empowerment (RAYSE) is the first USC recognized student-organization to send students to Africa. RAYSE is dedicated to educating, empowering, and enriching the lives of the women and youth in Uganda and eventually all of Africa. We envision RAYSE to be the umbrella organization of numerous student organizations interested in raising awareness about the African continent. In order to realize our vision, RAYSE volunteers with AGYA during our annual service-learning “Alternative Summer Break: Uganda” (ASB) student trip. During the first trip in 2009, RAYSE collectively taught computer literacy, world cultures, music/songwriting, film production, theater games, art and dance, volunteered at  Nabulagala Good Hope Primary School and learned basic Luganda.  

Now in 2011, eight USC students are preparing to leave for the 3rd annual RAYSE “Alternative Summer Break: Uganda”.  These creative young leaders will be teaching classes such as story-telling, film  and music production, entrepreneurship and dance.  This year, RAYSE was also invited to the Clinton Global Initiative University leadership conference and we will be spearheading a sustainable sex-education and health program at AGYA.  RAYSE has grown immensely alongside AGYA since Nicolette, RAYSE’s founder, and Divinity, AGYA’s co-founder, tossed around ideas about developing the first USC trip to Africa. RAYSE has now sent about twenty-five students to volunteer with AGYA and all eight 2010 participants became active, passionate members of RAYSE’s Executive board upon their return from their inspiring trip to Uganda.  As RAYSE’s current President, previous 2010 Co-President and 2009 Fundraising director, I am proud of the progress this pioneering student organization has made.

AGYA Debuts New Logo & Website

By: Carolyn Keene

Each semester the Brand Workshop; a student design firm at the Cal State University: Long Beach, takes on 4-5 different clients whom it works with to help them with their branding and graphic design goals. These goals could be anything from a logo redesign, to a fully developed packaging system. The workshop class is special in that it brings together graphic design students from all different classes to work together. We have a range of ages as well as a range of skills; from students with web proficiency, to those with a great eye for logo design. Under the direction of professor Sunook Park, all of these students are mentored and are able to combine their skills in small teams to turn out some amazing and fresh results for both small-scale and large-scale clients.

This semester I, Carolyn Keene (Graphic Design BFA), and my team of 4 others, Chrissy Song (Interior Design BFA, Graphic Design BA), J Diaz (Graphic Design BFA), Remo Colindres Jr. (Graphic Design BA), and Ro Oeurn (Graphic Design BFA) had the privilege of working with Divinity and AGYA.

Above: AGYA Co-Founders Divinity & Abraham with Professor Sunook Park and the CSULB students who worked on AGYA's project. 

Youth Voices: AGYA Co-Founder Matovu Abraham Attends Clinton Global Initiative University Conference in San Diego

AGYA Country Director and Co-Founder, Abraham Matovu, attended the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGIU) Meeting in San Diego, California during the weekend of April 1-3, 2011. 

Hosted at the University of California at San Diego by Former U.S. President, Bill Clinton, the conference highlighted 5 areas: education, energy & climate change, global health, peace & human rights, and poverty alleviation. President Clinton emphasized the importance young people to develop and implement innovative, sustainable solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges (http://www.cgiu.org/).

At the Conference, Abraham had the unique opportunity to network, share, and learn from global youth activists and college students from the United States and more than 90 other nations. Abraham attended sessions on grassroots community engagement and education: pathways and opportunities for adolescents. 

AGYA Executive Director Visits Ethiopia - Conducts Informal Needs Assessment With Urban Youth

From March 21-23, 2011, AGYA Co-Founder and Executive Director, Divinity Barkley Matovu, visited Ethiopia where she met with several youth living in Addis Ababa, the urban capital of Ethiopia. While there, Divinity was hosted by 28 year old Robel Alawi, a native of Harar, Ethiopia who works part-time as a travel guide for international visitors. Robel also works with an organization that provides basic care for orphans, street children, and homeless youth who live in abject poverty in Addis Ababa. 

Professional Musicians To Teach Recording Our Dreams Workshops in AGYA Studio

AGYA is excited to announce that acclaimed music producer David Mukalazi and established rap emcee Simon “Mon MC” Ssemwogere will be facilitating daily workshops at AGYA’s Recording Our Dreams Studio. These professional musicians, who bring a combined 25 years of experience in Uganda’s music industry, will be sharing their talent and skills with Ugandan youth.

Mukalazi has considered himself a musician since the age of 10 when he began playing the piano and guitar. By the time he was 18, Mukalazi was writing songs, had created his own live band, and was directing the African Children’s Choir. Mukalazi made the transition from live music to the studio in the mid 1990s. He is widely recognized as the first person to produce a rap record in Uganda in 1995 when Ugandan hip-hop was still in its infancy.

As a trailblazer in Uganda’s music industry, Mukalazi  (pictured here playing keyboard during a live performance) is credited for production work on more than 60 albums during the course of his career.

After years of working in the for-profit sector of the entertainment business, Mukalazi is ready to explore his passion which is helping young people develop their musical talents. Mukalazi is the perfect choice to lead the implementation of the Recording Our Dreams curriculum which is a 16 week intensive training course developed by AGYA Co-Founder Divinity Barkley Matovu.