Greetings to you all,

I hope that you are well. As for me, I am very well because I have had quite a week. On the 19/04/1989 at 13:30hrs the world became a better place after the arrival of what I like to call the “LEGEND”. This week I celebrated 32 yrs of age, I was allowed to take off the day to celebrate me and reflect on life and prepare for the next phase of life. I was treated to my favorite meal and drink, then a few follow-up small parties of about 3-4 people who bought me cake and meals. It has been a good week for me. Unfortunately all this partying meant that my work would not be as usual but yes we got some work done including an interview with Rovence N. whose story we will release anytime now.

This week, I will share with you only 4 stories from Rovence N, Francoise L, Margaret N and Aidah K. 

 I will start with Rovence with whom we had a wonderful chat getting to know her and sharing her story with me and you for a later time. She has done really well for herself over the years and I can’t wait to share with you the tale of Rovence. This year she is doing okay, although the season is and has been bad for all restaurateurs because of the Ramadan. The food sales have dropped a bit lower than the usual sales from about 10 days ago. We will have to keep our fingers crossed for them because this is a challenge we can’t take away or eliminate so we have to wait it out.

The same story goes for Aidah K. but she has a temporary fix for the challenge by making white porridge and ground nut mix with plantain called “katogo”. Katogo (pronounced “cat-toe-go”) simply translates into mix or jumble for lack of a better word. They usually come with a base which is usually carbohydrates and some kind of sauce and also comes in different forms especially plantain and cassava then the sauce is beans, ground nuts, offals and sometimes meat. It’s an interesting dish that if the future allows, each one should try it when you make your way here. These two meals are some of the most consumed foods during the fasting season and Moslems use it to break their fast. The porridge is made out of corn flour, mixed and boiled with milk (sometimes without the milk). It is very filling and after more than 8 hrs without eating a thing, this is the kind of meal you might want. 

This is what Aidah has turned to when she closes her chips business at about 3pm every afternoon. She will then start preparing the meals synonymously and it will be ready in about 2-3hrs.

This must have been a mix food week because even my third visit Francoise L. also cooks another kind of mix of maize (actual maize seeds) cooked together with beans. I didn’t even realize this until I started typing this segment. Anyways Francoise is doing okay, she is living on the edge but she has managed to keep the business afloat for this while. Her challenge  was the weather and the rain to be specific because she sells by the road with no kind of shelter. Over the past few weeks she has been putting together some savings to help her buy a tarpaulin tent to shelter her business because the rain ruins everything when it falls. This is good progress for her because we have been working on creating some level of independence and sustainability among the Mamas. This is a good step in creating this Mama we have always wanted. Otherwise she is well, her niece who was diagnosed with TB is now doing well because she is getting treatment.

Margaret N. has been having a hard time dealing with the demise of her mother since February this year. She has been making long trips to her village and trying to ensure that her mother’s resting place is constructed and finished well. Finally she got that done and my meeting with her  was very good as she smiled more and she was happy. I am looking forward to working with her in the next few weeks or months to see how we can serve her. 

Finally the week has come to an end for me, my birthday week. I have two appointments remaining, one on Friday and the other on Saturday and I hope that is all. My body is tired and worked out but truly it has been a good week for me and I want to thank everyone who has made it special and memorable. I guess it is never late to be a part of these celebrations hahaha! 

Thank you again to all of you who support this organization and the work we do. You have made me age with pride and satisfaction, you have given us meaning. We want to wish you the best of wishes throughout this year with good health, peace and joy.

Stay Safe, Maintain Social Distance but Stay Sociable.

As always I remain,

Andrew Echel

Director of Programs, Uganda

ISEE Solutions Society