Day One at MYDEL

Today was my first day at Mengo Youth Development Link (MYDEL). I met with the director of the organization and his staff. Everyone was extremely welcoming and immediately made me feel happy to be there. We had a brief orientation and overview of their projects. I was surprised to see the size of the office and center considering how much they did for the community. However, they had created such a comfortable and positive environment that even though they were short in resources, the sense of community developed as a result of their efforts was overwhelming.
I instructed class in the center for about an hour in order to get better acquainted with the youth. The classroom where the students conduct most of their activities is not at all standard, even for a developing society. All of the students who come to MYDEL are orphaned or vulnerable and their families are unable to pay for them to go to school. Education is free in Uganda, but families still have to pay for supplies and their uniforms and those living in poverty are unable to afford it. Therefore, MYDEL provides instruction to the children in this community so that they are able to stay on track with their age group. However, due to a lack of resources, all of the students learn in one classroom. Even though they are divided by age group, they usually learn similar material simultaneously because there organization has a limited number of staff. While leading the reading and comprehension lesson, I faced a major challenge that I feel will impede my development efforts in many ways. Though most of the school-aged children speak English, it was difficult for them to understand me because of my accent.
I have also found challenges in day to day life because though English is the national language of Uganda, Luganda is more widely spoken. It is used in everyday life including general conversation, in stores, in offices, and the news is even read on tv in Luganda. I have learned a few words here and there, but I would be better able to communicate with and understand people if I knew more.
The older youth have been very helpful in translating for me, but many of the younger children are unable to fully express themselves in English and feel more comfortable speaking Luganda.
After orienting with the children and youth, I took an impromptu tour of downtown Kampala. I was on the search for mangos and peanuts, so my coworkers took me to the market.
Traveling through Kampala is quite an adventure. For one, there are no traffic lights, so traffic is fairly chaotic. Cars, trucks, motorbikes, and pedestrians weave in and out of traffic quite carelessly. Autos do not give pedestrians the right of way and they are left to fend for themselves. Crossing the street requires a great deal of effort, tact, and wit and it is quite frightening. I am very afraid of someone take off my foot as cars don’t brake for you if you’re crossing the streets (they just beep continuously as they increase their speed) and the motorbikes get extremely close to the sidewalks so even if you are walking with the flow of traffic on the sidewalk, you still risk being hit or clipped by the bike.
After visiting a few markets we went back to the office where the youth, were playing football and volleyball. They staff plays with the youth until dark and then takes them into the center, where they practice drama and dancing until well into the night. I left before the activities were completed and that was at close to 10pm. They staff stays up with the youth as late as possible so that they are kept occupied and do not become idle.
It is idleness which causes most of the ills in this community. People turn to drug use, promiscuity, and theft in order to fill their time since they are not in school or working. MYDEL staff works for over 16 hours a day to occupy the children and youth in the community so that they do not find time to participate in destructive behavior.
By the end of the day, I was surely tired, so I believe their plan is working.