Why Empower and Care?

EACO Uganda (Empower and Care Organization) began in our founder’s own backyard, with the simple intention to share new skills that would aid those in his community who were less fortunate. There is great potential and aspiration found within the people of Uganda, but they are bound by the absence of education, health and empowerment. 

 

It is evident that these issues could not be solved by surface-level solutions because they are part of a deep rooted need for systemic change. However, there is a strive and a shift of mentality that needs to take place within each individual in order to initiate the movement of change of an entire village. From this emerged EACO Uganda’s vision to :

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Build communities that inspire each other for a better future.

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Established

2004

EACO Uganda began as a community based initiative in 2004, with the goal to provide effective skills for vulnerable men, women and children. It began with a collective group of neighbors but our founder realized that his contributions could not be restricted to locals when this insufficient way of living was found throughout all of Uganda. There was a demand from neighboring villages for EACO to extend their services. This began the extensive process of working with officials and a journey that led to EACO becoming a registered community based organization in 2006.

The Problem

Jobs

On less than $1 per day

Uganda remains amongst the least developed countries in the world. The majority of its population lives on less than $1 per day *. The amount it costs to buy a pack of gum in the United States is equivalent to the daily income of an entire household. Evidently, the basic needs for survival in Uganda is practically non-existent.

Photo By Annie Spratt  | * World Bank

Education

Struggles to provide quality education

Uganda’s school system has struggled to provide quality education for their younger generation. Only 1 in 4 children who begin primary school will make it to secondary school*. Less than half (40 percent) of these students are literate by the end of primary school*.

Photo By Annie Spratt  | * UNICEF

Sanitation

Basic and accessible, yet, are inaccessible and uncommon

Latrines/toilets and clean water sources are amenities in which many deem as basic and accessible, yet, are inaccessible and uncommon in many parts of Uganda.

Photo By Annie Spratt  | * EACO Uganda  /  * World Vision

Clean Water 

More than 24 million people lack access to basic drinking water services in Uganda.The shortest distance to a clean water source is 5.5 miles on average * and can get even further from there. The responsibility of finding a source and collecting this clean water requires an average of 15 hours a week *. This extensive time is essentially time wasted, this is time that could be utilized to work for money or for children to go to school.

Hygiene

The sanitation systems within Uganda used to provide people with clean water sources or latrines are not widely implemented. About 29 million people lack access to improved sanitation *. Over 4,500 children under 5 die a year from diarrheal diseases attributed to contaminated water, poor sanitation and unsafe hygiene practices*.

Health

Not fully equipped

The health care system within Uganda is not fully equipped to provide the essentials needed to overcome health issues such as HIV and Maternal Mortality, which has progressed into a consistent concern with little solution.

Photo By Annie Spratt  | * Avert  / * UNICEF

HIV

HIV is a prevalent and consistent concern within Uganda. The rate of HIV infection among adults (aged 15 to 49) is 5.7% *. Around 27% of adults living with HIV and 33% of children living with HIV are not on treatment *. It was found that people living with HIV experience stigma and discrimination.

Maternal Mortality

The deaths found among babies in Uganda while in the womb and soon after birth is quite high.  Approximately 81 babies will die each day before reaching their first month and about 96 stillbirths occur every day *. The absence of birth attendants in Uganda brings great risk in childbirth, with only 44 percent of mothers in the poorest households having access to a skilled attendant at birth *.

Justice

Children are left suffering

Despite the existing government statutes in Uganda, their legal systems and services are very limited and even the limited existing ones are disjointly working. The examples that prove the way in which the Justice system does not work, is oftentimes the rich use their wealth to drive away the people that are less well off, stripping away their land, their shelters, and food. Another instance involves the many times vulnerable groups of parents pass away and their children are left suffering with their properties taken away, resulting in homelessness.

Photo By Annie Spratt 

Our Solutions

EACO Uganda strives to empower under-served communities by supporting health, education and self-sufficiency. To address the needs of many communities, there was a  development of programs made to provide solutions for a range of pressing issues; these programs have helped more than 12,000 people.

Self-Sufficiency

EACO also provides training and individualized instruction in entrepreneurship, as well as, marketing techniques for small businesses and microfinance. In addition to, implements income-generating activities (IGAs). The program includes:

[ ] Small business initiatives
[ ] Revolving loan schemes
[ ] Business skills development
[ ] Establishment of seed banks and support groups for small-scale farmers
[ ] Organic and sustainable agricultural techniques
[ ] Income generating workshops and opportunities

Education

One of EACO’s goals is to provide primary education for all children as well as literacy for all adults and children. This is completed through the Education and Capacity Building program which includes:

[ ] Literacy for adults and children
[ ] Adult education
[ ] Primary education for all children
[ ] Leadership development
[ ] Community development and leadership training in the field of social welfare

Sanitation

EACO Uganda seeks to bring easily accessible sources of safe clean drinking water and sanitation through our Sanitation program which provides:

[ ] Access to water
[ ] Water conservation and security
[ ] Repair or construct boreholes so that they can give clean and safe water
[ ] Construct toilets at schools or community centers or homes to reduce the incidences of diseases

Health

EACO Uganda faces the prominent issue of HIV by educating people on the ways to avoid contracting such diseases.Additionally, we targets the issue of maternal mortality by providing primary health care services to a multitude of villages through the health program, which includes:

[ ] Health education and awareness of widespread communicable and non-communicable diseases
[ ] Promotion of breastfeeding
[ ] Providing birth Attendants and Community Organizers at the village level and Public Health supervisors and Nutritionist-Health Educators

Justice

EACO Uganda works with the legal systems within Uganda to provide a voice for the unheard. The Human Rights and Safety, Security, and Access to Justice program includes:

[ ] Develop functional community-based child protection systems
[ ] Legal aid services to Women and children
[ ] Coordinate advocacy for child protection interventions by the government
[ ] Fight for the rights of children by Stopping child sacrifice connected to traditional beliefs

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