MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008


 Mvule Trust rubbed the tears of school fees from my eyes.

Born in this remote village in Kaberamaido,

I am the only girl who might finish A-level.

My mum had us four girls and none of those are

educated except me, whom my mum managed
to pay in primary through fieldwork.

I am a student with problems. My father is a peasant farmer

and now he is very weak. My mother is HIV positive and had
an accident where she broke her limbs.

My father had to sell land to pay for me in secondary.

He sacrificed himself and put me in boarding because my legs
could swell when I walked long distances to school.

My brothers have been accorded the first priority to education

while we girls are often last to be helped and always considered
wastage to family wealth, due to this my older sisters are married.

My quest to one time become a valuable scientist compelled me

to write this letter. Many of my brothers have dropped out and I
see myself next in the line without help.

I am a Ugandan girl of twenty years old.

I sat for my O-level in 2005 but due to lack of financial support,
I couldn’t continue further and so I had to wait until my dad was
able to raise some little money to take me back to school.


After being chased from school, I would involve myself in casual
MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

labour to help the mother to look for fees. I could climb Rwenzori
Mountains which is a terrible work and yet, young as I am,
I experienced coldness that would reduce my life.
I really see it that most of the time is wasted which I
would be seriously concentrating on books.
I have hopes that if there is good support, I will excel.
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

Mvule Trust
Annual Report 
2008

Prepared by Katherine Manchester.

Design and layout by Allan Dentine Bulamu
 MVULE TRUST 2008 ANNUAL REPORT

Table of Contents
FAQs about Mvule Trust 6

Mapping Mvule 7

Mvule Trust over the years 8

2008 Executive Summary 9

Partnerships 10

Direct scholarships
Medical and health science students 14
Northern Uganda 16
Identifying need 17

Student support:
Monitoring visits 18
Leadership camp 18
Parents’ meetings 19

Graduating with hope 20

Finance 21

Looking ahead 22


MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

Useful terms and acronyms:

SS - Secondary School
This covers grades S1 (yr 8 in UK) through S6 (yr 13)

O-level - Ordinary Level

The certificate earned by a high school student upon successfully completing S4 (yr 11).
O-level completion is necessary for earning a certificate at a tertiary institution. O-level
examination results are broken down into four divisions, with Division 1 being the highest and
Division 4 the lowest.

A-level - Advanced Level

The certificate earned by a high school student upon successfully completing S6 (yr 13).
A-level completion is necessary for earning a diploma at a tertiary institution or going on to
university.

Tertiary
Mvule Trust uses this term to describe non-university educational institutions for
professions/fields such as forestry, nursing, medical laboratory technician or agriculturalist.

USE - Universal Secondary Education

Introduced in Uganda in February 2007. Not yet “universal,” USE currently applies only to
students in S1 and S2 in about 1,000 out of 3,500 schools. USE followed the implementation
of Universal Primary Education (UPE) in 1997.

Vocational
Training for practical fields such as catering, tailoring, bricklaying and carpentry.

VCT - Voluntary Counseling and Testing for HIV/AIDS


 FAQs ABOUT MVULE TRUST

FAQs about Mvule Trust

What is Mvule Trust?
It is a small NGO operating only in Uganda, running a scholarship and grant-giving
project. The Trust registered with the UK Charity Commission and the Uganda NGO
Board in 2005 and began operations in 2006. It is based in Kampala.

How does it work?

Mvule Trust was established by a $5 million grant from the Arcadia Trust (formely the
Lisbet Rausing Charitable Fund) for the purpose of supporting initiatives in education,
science and the environment. Mvule Trust works with numerous implementing agen-
cies, which receive grants to help carry out its scholarship activities.

Who benefits from it?

Mvule Trust aims to support bright but disadvantaged students who would otherwise
be unable to continue their education. Emphasis is placed on women in rural areas,
who are usually the most in need and least likely to benefit from a complete educa-
tion. From 2006 to the end of 2008, Mvule Trust has helped 606 adolescents and
young adults complete their courses by providing school fees for secondary, vocational
or technical institutions; scholastic and other basic materials; training in reproductive
and sexual health; and guidance and counseling. The aim for the entire grant is to
directly help 2158 young people. Mvule Trust has also provided grants to schools for
science laboratories, libraries, fuel-saving stoves and solar panels.

Below:
Beneficiaries at Kangai SS,
Dokolo district


MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

MAPPING MVULE
Total number of students: 1,963
Girls: 1,534 (78%)
Boys: 429 (22%)

Moyo Kaabong
Koboko
Yumbe
Kitgum

Adjumani
Nyadri

Kotido
Arua Pader
Gulu

Amuru Abim

Moroto
Nebbi
Oyam Lira

Amuria
Bulisa
Dokolo
Masindi Apac
Katakwi Nakapiripirit
Kaberamaido

Soroti

Nakasongola Kumi
Hoima

Palisa
Kaliro

Bundibugyo
Kabale

Iganga

Jinja

Mayuge
Kampala
Mukono

Kasese

Masaka
Bushenyi Lake Victoria

Rakai Kalangala
Isingiro
Kanungu Ntungamo

Kisoro
Kabala

Mvule districts of operation

 MVULE TRUST OVER THE YEARS

Mvule Trust over the years

2005 l Mvule Trust registers with
the UK Charity Board and
the Uganda NGO Board.
l Seven educational
organizations are identified
to help implement Mvule
Trust programs.

2006 l Scholarships are awarded

to 1303 new beneficiaries
(839 girls and 464 boys) for
secondary school and
vocational institutions in
underprivileged, rural districts
across the country.
l Mvule Trust awards grants
to Cornerstone Development
Uganda and Kichwamba
High School to build science
laboratories, as well as to
Volcanoes Eco-tourism for
the protection of the
chimpanzee population in
the Kyambura Gorge.

2007 l Uganda institutes Universal

Secondary Education (USE).
l Mvule Trust takes on another
487 students (333 girls in
secondary school, and 153
young women and one young
man for nursing and other
health courses); the total
number of beneficiaries
reaches 1828 (1365 girls
and 463 boys).
l Mvule Trust conducts five health
workshops for 398 girls from
35 schools, as well as for the
entire Nyabyeya Forestry
College.
l The Trust meets with parents
of beneficiaries in West Nile.
 l Mvule Trust visits 1040 students
at school for monitoring
MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

purposes, and distributes

scholastic materials.
l Mvule Trust gives a grant to
Cornerstone to install solar
panels; buy science lab
equipment; purchase
energy-saving stoves; and set
up a woodlot.
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

2008: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Development does not have a quick-fix, one-time solution. As the face of education changes
in Uganda, Mvule Trust keeps reassessing ways to best serve the needs of underprivileged
young people. Starting with secondary and vocational students and investment in school
infrastructure in 2006-07, Mvule has since expanded to address the shortage of medical
workers in Uganda, sponsoring over 200 students at nursing and clinical institutions.
Having learned from its partner implementers, Mvule Trust continues to take on more and
more students for “direct scholarships.” As beneficiaries enter the later stages of their
courses and begin to wonder about the future, Mvule, too, is looking at what possibilities lie
ahead.

In 2008, Mvule Trust made it possible for 219 students to sit for the national UCE exam
(O-level) and 203 for UACE (A-level). A further 872 are due to sit for UCE or UACE in 2009.
That in itself is a remarkable achievement. For these young adults, Mvule Trust’s sponsorship
has meant a happier, healthier future through delayed pregnancy and marriage. They have
made it through at least four years of secondary study, empowered with valuable life skills, a
means of income-generation and, for some, the possibility of further education. Many simply
need a second chance: at Lira Medical Laboratory School, Mvule Trust picked up 11 girls who
had excelled in the sciences at UCE – an area where most Ugandan youths struggle - but had
dropped out after S4 due to lack of school fees. Clearly, Mvule’s scholarships are needed more
than ever.

Most students in Uganda who scored well on the 2008 UCE exam are not from the
disadvantaged, rural districts where Mvule Trust operates. Nevertheless, Mvule candidates
passed well above the national average. Country-wide, half of all girls who sat UCE in 2008
either failed or scored in Division 4. Under Mvule, 29% scored in Division 4; 36% in Division 3;
28% in Division 2 and 7% in the top Division 1. None failed.

In addition to secondary school students, Mvule Trust enabled another 184 young Ugandans to
complete their courses of study: 104 certificates in vocational training, 29 diplomas in
nursing, two lab technicians, and 49 certificates in forestry.

Mvule Trust visited over 1500 students at 91 schools and held six parents’ meetings in
Eastern Uganda and West Nile region. The Trust and its implementers distributed scholastic
materials and other basic needs including notebooks, pens, pencils and sanitary pads.
In July, Mvule invited schools to send some of their brightest beneficiaries to a girls’
leadership and science camp at Cornerstone Academy. Continued sponsorship of a bed at the
Hope Ward, International Hospital Kampala, provided vital medical care to needy Ugandans.

Thanks to efficient budgeting and yearly under-spending, Mvule Trust will be able to support
many beneficiaries through A-level or tertiary education until midway through 2013.


When I lost the person who was paying my fees, I left school
and stayed at home and I got my first child. I want to have
a capacity of maintaining my children and the community around.
- Annet Amony, 21, Gulu. Mvule Trust took her on in 2006 for a course
in bricklaying and concrete practice, and then sponsored her return
to secondary school. This year, she is studying sciences at A-level.
 PARTNERSHIPS

Partnerships
Mvule Trust works with various partner organisations in order to reach nearly 2000
beneficiaries in 26 districts across Uganda.

Implementer 2006 2007 2008
FAWEU 857 1076 1105
WORLD VISION 294 330 275
ADRA 20 20 0
STF 57 62 33
UWESO 73 70 68
URDT 30 60 60
FORESTRY 50 50 49
DIRECT 1 6 77
MEDICAL 1 154 215
CORNERSTONE 0 0 81
Total 1383 1828 1963

Mvule Trust grants to partners:

Forum for African Women Educationalists – Uganda (FAWEU)

In 2008, Mule Trust-FAWEU supported 1105 beneficiaries, of whom 75% are female.
The students live in 11 extremely remote and disadvantaged districts in West Nile,
Western Uganda and Teso sub-region. The total value of the 2008 FAWEU grant was
Ug. Shs. 556,493,685 (U.S. $325,816).

A total of 339 students sat for final examinations in 2008: 167 for UCE and 172 for
UACE. Kabugho Alice, of Kyebambe Girls’ SS in Fort Portal, wrote: “We S6 candidates
have ended our term today and to me the term has been successful because I didn’t
get any problem where fees are concerned. I hope for the best [exam] result. Edu-
cate a woman and save the nation.”

Four percent of FAWEU students dropped out. Girls were almost twice as likely as boys
to drop out, citing primarily pregnancy (in 54% of cases), marriage (8%) and indisci-
pline or lack of interest (10%). FAWEU encourages recent dropouts to return to school:
this year, the organization sought out three child mothers and convinced them to
resume their classes. One of them, Alumgat Christine, gave birth in 2007, while in S2.
Since returning to school in 2008, she is always first or second in her class.
10
MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

World Vision

In 2008, Mvule Trust awarded a grant of Shs. 176,558,990 ($103,8371) to World Vision,
a Christian NGO seeking to address the many causes of poverty. This year, World
Vision in Uganda administered 277 secondary and vocational scholarships to students
in the rural districts of Kitgum (114 beneficiaries) and Bundibugyo (163 beneficiaries).
Over 28 million Ug. Shs. ($16,000) worth of scholastic materials, basic necessities and
vocational tools were distributed.
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

Uganda Women’s Efforts to Save the Orphans (UWESO)

UWESO is a Ugandan organization running educational programs for orphans and vulnerable
children. In 2008, Mvule’s grant of Shs. 53,818,416 ($31,510) to UWESO covered school fees
for 68 beneficiaries to study and board at Migyera UWESO Training Institute (MUTI) in Nakason-
gola; the cost of transportation for needy beneficiaries to travel back to their homes twice a
year; scholastic materials; mosquito nets; materials and a demonstration on how make men-
strual pads at home; and helped to fund a career guidance day at MUTI for over 300 students.

Uganda Rural Development Training (URDT) Girls’ School

Mvule Trust made its third annual contribution of Shs. 60 million ($35,129) to URDT to fully
support the education and boarding needs of 60 girls. This school in Kibaale district uses a
“two-generation” approach, emphasizing parent involvement and the integration of
academics with skills in leadership, commercial farming, entrepreneurship, arts and crafts
and life skills. The girls will graduate in 2009 and 2010.

Straight Talk Foundation (STF)

Mvule Trust works closely with STF, a Ugandan NGO specializing in health and development
communications: Mvule Trust and STF are sister NGOs, sharing the same premises in Kampala.
STF counselors are an integral part of ASRH training for all Mvule beneficiaries, as well as in
managing scholarships for needy students in the districts of Gulu and Kampala. In 2008, its
last year of operation, the STF-Mvule Trust scholarship scheme supported 33 students (19 girls
and 14 boys) in secondary and vocational schools, at a total cost of Shs. 23,816,790 ($13,944).

Overall, STF-Mvule benefited 61 students, whether through a one-time, semester scholar-

ship, or by paying in full for a vocational course or for secondary school. Said Bosco Ongom of
B.A.G. Technical School, “I will finish this year. I don’t have my mother and father; I am the
only one who acts like a parent to my young brothers and sisters. Thank you so much for my
fees.”

Sixteen STF beneficiaries in Gulu

completed their vocational training:
five in tailoring; two in motor
vehicle maintenance; four in
carpentry and joinery; and five in
bricklaying and concrete practice. 11
They all received start-up tools such
as sewing machines.
 Nyabyeya Forestry College (NFC)

Mvule Trust has significantly contributed to the growing number of female foresters in
Uganda. Fifty students - 45 of them girls – were taken on in 2006 at the government-
run Nyabyeya Forestry College. NFC is the only institution in the country offering a
technical qualification in forestry, and is a major training ground for employees of
Uganda’s National Forestry Authority (NFA). The college offers certificates and
diplomas in forestry, agro-forestry, biomass energy technology and beekeeping.

Sixty female NFC students graduated with certificates in 2008, half of whom are
Mvule Trust beneficiaries. “It is through the partnership with Mvule Trust that we have
been able to raise the number of girls to over 30%,” Mr. Wilson Kasolo, NFC principal,
said at the college’s 50th graduation ceremony. In 2009, Mvule Trust will pay for
27 certificate holders to continue studying for their diplomas, and another 10 to earn certificates.

Cornerstone Development

In 2008, Mvule Trust supported 81 students (60 girls and 21 boys) at Ekitangaala SS,
12 near the Cornerstone Ranch in Nakasongola district, with a grant of Shs. 70,375,000
($41,203). Cornerstone selects needy students from the local communities, whose
MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

inhabitants are mostly nomadic cattle keepers. Ekitangaala SS is the only secondary
school in the area, serving five primary schools.

“In these villages, the culture of reading is very poor,” said Mich, a graduate of Cor-
nerstone Boy’s Academy who has mentored the Ekitangaala students for three years.
“These children often see themselves in a small way; going to school helps them to
forget about that background and really achieve.”
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

Hope Ward

The Hope Ward of International Hospital Kampala (IHK) provides free treatment for needy
Ugandans with serious medical conditions. With a yearly grant of $15,000, Mvule Trust caters
for 365 “bed nights” at the Ward. In 2008, the grant went towards treating over 300 patients,
most of whom needed complicated surgery, or treatments for cancer or complications
related to HIV/AIDS.

Under a special provisory in 2008, IHK agreed to provide outpatient care for
Mvule Trust beneficiaries. The Trust referred two young girls and one boy
for treatment, for which the total cost was Shs. 947,500 ($555).
Below: the children’s section of the Hope Ward.

ADDITIONAL EFFORT: Child-headed families

On behalf of the actress Natalie Portman, Mvule Trust partners with AIDS Widows Orphans
Family Support (AWOFS) to coordinate the sponsorship of eight children orphaned by HIV/ 13
AIDS. Since returning to school in 2006, the children’s academic performances have improved
dramatically, from being among the last in their classes to making the top quartile.

In 2008, Mvule and AWOFS also took on the two eldest children for vocational training. Irene
Nakakawa writes, “I have enjoyed going to a big hotel for catering services, baking cakes
and preparing different dishes. I associate with different people and am learning English and
how to write.” Ddamulira Nicolas enrolled in a candle-making course and has started his own
small business: he sells candlesticks at Shs. 100 (US 6 cents) for the ordinary type, and at
Shs. 300 (US 18 cents) for ones that repel mosquitoes.
 DIRECT SCHOLARSHIPS

Direct Scholarships
Starting in 2007, Mvule Trust took on “direct scholarships,” working with
educational institutions themselves instead of going through a partner NGO.
In 2008, direct scholarships were awarded to 215 nurses, lab technicians and environ-
mental officers, as well as to 99 secondary and vocational students in northern
Uganda. In addition, university tuition contributions were made to several Mvule
Trust and GYC staff.

Direct scholarships involve more self-conducted programs, but are also very
cost-effective. Mvule Trust has developed strong relationships with the administra-
tions of local institutions. For instance, thanks to Mvule’s support to 21 girls at the
government-operated School of Hygiene in Mbale, the school has been able to under-
take much-needed renovations. The school has come a long way since 1979, when the
first woman was admitted. Says principal Onen Cliff Richard, “These girls are leaders,
they have really grown. Now you see them in the field in their gumboots, doing so
much for health in their communities.”

Medical and health science students

Health services in Uganda are critically inadequate. For the country to attain the
Millennium Development Goals, an estimated 26,700 more health workers are needed
for the current population. Moreover, 46% of Uganda’s doctors are concentrated in
the capital city, Kampala, while rural areas average only one doctor for every 100,000
people. (As reported by the daily newspaper New Vision, 26/01/09)

In November 2007, Mvule Trust began by recruiting 153 girls and one boy to attend
medical and health institutions across the country. In 2008, the Trust granted
bursaries to continuing students and identified another 61; this year, Mvule sponsored
a total of 162 nurses, 29 clinical lab officers, 21 environmental health officers, and
3 agriculturalists. Retention rates among students in technical schools are higher
than for students in secondary schools. Techical students are generally older, more
focused in their choice of profession, and optimistic about job opportunities. Studies
have shown that students educated in rural areas are more likely to become invested
in those communities, rather than moving to Kampala or contributing to the “brain
drain” of medical professionals leaving the country.

Tertiary students are usually more

committed than secondary because they have
gone through all kinds of problems. They
may be the first born in their families and
everyone is looking at them as the only
source of hope. And unlike vocational
14 training, which may be very useful but is
often under-looked, tertiary courses are
MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

regarded as professional.
- Josephine Abalo, Mvule Trust program
manager, pictured at left with benefi-
ciaries of Lira School of Nursing.
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

District Health Institutions No. of Students

2007 2008 Total in
recruits recruits 2008

Bushenyi Ishaka Adventist Hospital Training School 1 0 1

Gulu St. Mary’s Hospital Lacor 20 10 30

Gulu Clinical School 2 1 3

Jinja Jinja School of Nursing 5 3 8

Jinja Medical Laboratory Training School

Kabale Kabale Institute of Health Sciences 0 2 2

Kampala Mengo Hospital Laboratory School 0 2 2

St. Raphael of St. Francis Hospital 1 0 1
Nsambya Training School 2 0 2

Kasese Kagando School of Nursing 0 2 2

Kumi Ngora School of Nursing and Midwifery 20 1 21

Lira Lira School of Comprehensive Nursing 7 1 8

Lira Medical Laboratory Training School 11 13 24

Luwero Bukalasa Agriculture College 0 2 2

Mbale Mbale School of Hygiene 19 2 21

Mbale School of Clinical Officers 0 2 2

Moroto St. Kizito Hospital Matany, 21 0 21

School of Nursing

Pader Dr. Ambrosoli Memorial Hospital Kalongo 40 18 58

Soroti Soroti School of Comprehensive Nursing 5 1 6

Arapai Agricultural College 0 1 1

TOTAL 154 61 215

15
My mother passed away when I was in S4.
Ever since my father married again, I have stayed
with my grandmother in Palissa. This is my first
year at Ngora Nursing. I am learning nursing
theory and the relationship between nurses and
patients. Teachers teach us to respect patients,
which is so good because even if it was me to
fall sick, I still need to be respected. - Claudia
Akurut, 21
 Northern Uganda

Northern Uganda
Field coordinator Christine Lamwaka is a peer educator at Gulu Youth Center (GYC),
run by Straight Talk Foundation. She visits the STF and direct scholarship students in
Gulu at least four times per term to pay school fees, establish good rapport with the
schools, and provide counseling to the students.

“The girls often ask me about relationship problems and reproductive and sexual
health issues like menstruation,” Christine says. “The boys had a lot of indiscipline
cases at the beginning, especially the orphans living with relatives who mistreated
them. They call me or come to GYC to look for guidance.”

In 2008, Christine visited 83 students at 14 different schools in Gulu district. It is not

easy work: she travels by bicycle or boda-boda (a motorcycle “taxi”) to schools as far
as 70km from Gulu Town.

Christine (left) distributes new sewing

machines to tailoring graduates in Gulu.
This year, Christine completed her
B.A. in education at Gulu University
thanks to financial support from Mvule Trust.

Mvule’s on-the-ground activities

around Kigum are coordinated by
16 field officer Joyce Adong (right),
who also works as a peer educator
MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

at STF’s Kitgum Youth Center (KYC).

In 2008, Joyce oversaw a total of 78
students in the districts of Kitgum,
Pader and Lira: 45 in secondary; 16
nursing students; five child mothers
in tailoring; and one studying
drawing and sign painting.
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

Identifying need

In November 2008, Mvule Trust screened over 400 applicants from rural districts for nursing
and other medical science courses. One hundred and fifty applicants traveled to interview
personally with the Gulu and Kitgum field officers. Says Christine Lamwaka, “I asked them
questions like if they have both parents, if they live in a permanent or a grass-thatched hut,
and what are the sources of finance at home. Maybe a girl is just making money by selling
small items in the market. Even if she is not an orphan, her parent could be a primary
teacher, whose salary is not over 200,000 shillings a month. This way I can tell the needy
ones.” Fifty-three medical science candidates were interviewed from GYC, and 45 from KYC;
a total of 100 were successful.

Among the most vulnerable and needy of Mvule’s beneficiaries are the “child mothers” - girls
under 18 years of age who have given birth. A disproportionate number of child mothers live
in northern Uganda, where decades of violence and social unrest have disrupted the
traditional family unit and means of living.

Mvule Trust supports 17 child mothers in Gulu and Kitgum. Joyce and Christine identified
them when they came for VCT at the Straight Talk youth centres. As most of the child
mothers have not even completed primary school, Mvule Trust encourages them to go into
vocational training.

Below: Three needy beneficiaries from Kitgum attend the Modern Tailoring School.

17

Other beneficiaries are identified directly from the community.

Field coordinator Joyce Adong first met Irene Layet, 21, (right)
when she was going door-to-door selling homemade brooms.
The first child of a crippled father and arthritic mother, Irene was
the only one bringing in household income. Joyce recruited her
to learn tailoring in Kitgum.
 STUDENT SUPPORT

Student support

You could see from the way these girls expressed their words that they are looking for
a good life, meaning a life that can expose you to electricity, nice buildings, people from
different places. They believe that good life is brought by education.
- Jerolam Omach (pictured above), a counselor at STF who conducted part of
the ASRH workshop at the beneficiaries’ leadership camp in August.

Monitoring visits

In 2008, Mvule Trust partnered with STF to conduct verification trips to all focus
regions of Uganda, meeting with over 1500 students at 91 schools:

l East and Teso sub-region (Katakwi, Amuria, Kaberamaido, Moroto, Kumi,

Soroti, Mbale, Jinja): 22 schools
l West (Bundibugyo, Kasese, Kisoro, Kibaale, Masindi): 22 schools
l West Nile (Adjumani, Moyo, Yumbe, Nebbi, Arua): 28 schools
l North (Gulu, Kitgum, Pader, Lira) and Nakasongola: 19 schools

Leadership camp
18
Mvule Trust-STF held a five-day workshop for 120 beneficiaries from 11 districts to
MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

participate in a leadership and science camp. Mornings were dedicated to science

practicals, going over skills that students will need for their O-level examinations.
In the evenings, STF counselors challenged the girls to answer questions like “What
is gender?” and, “How do you show love without necessarily having sex?” The girls
also had a chance to share their personal problems, which included “lack of people
to guide me on how to understand my body,” and “being forced into love relationship
because of money.”
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

Parents’ Meetings

In 2008, a young girl in Adjumani asked Mvule Trust to “advise our parents on the value of girl
child education so they can stop harassing us to get married.” With just such a goal in mind,
Mvule and STF held three meetings in West Nile (Adjumani, Yumbe and Moyo districts) and
three in Eastern Uganda (Katakwi, Amuria and Kaberamaido districts), interacting with a total
of 326 parents and guardians.

Financial constraints are a major reason for parents discontinuing their children from school.
Surprisingly though, some parents expressed resentment about all the support their
children are getting, saying it made them unruly. Other educational NGOs, too, are finding
that some sponsored students are undisciplined. According to one head teacher, “Sponsored
students don’t feel the pinch, so they feel no responsibility to parents or teachers.” Unlike
many sponsors who provide beneficiaries with their every need, Mvule Trust gives only school
fees, plus some scholastic materials when possible. The Trust aims to aid families in difficult
circumstances, not undermine the roles of teachers, parents and community leaders. Benefi-
ciaries are strongly encouraged to find a way of earning their own pocket money during the
holidays.
My stepmum says, ‘You are just fattening from my home.
Why don’t you go to the market to find someone to marry?
– Harriet, 18, Lwala Girls SS in Kaberamaido

During parents’ meetings,

participants first split into
same-sex discussion groups
before coming together to
share ideas on problems and
solutions. Mvule Trust
provides all participants with
lunch, soda and biscuits, and
some small cash to pay for
their transport.
Left: Women’s discussion group
at Adjumani SS.

19
Left: Martha Akello, STF coun-
selor and Parent Talk writer,
speaks with parents at Usuk SS
in Katakwi district.
 GRADUATING WITH HOPE

Graduating with hope

As of the end of 2008, Mvule Trust’s sponsorship has helped 403 students to success-
fully complete their studies. Their new skills – vocational or academic - give them the
means to make an important transition: living above the dollar-a-day poverty line.

l Forestry graduates have very marketable skills. Many of the 11 Nyabyeya

diploma holders have found excellent jobs right out of school: two work at the United
Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation; two with STF’s Tree Talk; and one with the
Uganda Bureau of Statistics. One earned a first division in his exams and is currently
at Makerere University on a government scholarship.

l Akello Jenifer, under STF, studied catering in Gulu and was hired at Jojo’s
Palace as soon as she graduated. She earns 80,000 Shs. a month ($ 46) working in the
kitchen. “Every month I save 20,000 Shs. for the bank and I spend the rest.
In the future I want to open a small hotel,” she says. Milly Charity Ayat, another STF
beneficiary, was so bright that she finished her course a year early. She now earns
9,000 Shs. ($5) a day as a construction worker. Tailoring graduates can earn between
5,000 and 10,000 Shs. a day.

l Under World Vision, 60 vocational students in Bundibugyo graduated in 2007

and received start-up tools. Kabarwani Annet, one of 11 girls at Rosa Mystica Institute
of Business and Vocational Studies, was the first graduate to be employed. She cur-
rently works at the BX hotel. She says, “I am humbled by what God has done to me
and my family, from hopelessness to a breadwinner. I am now determined to open a
personal restaurant and I will be able to adequately support my six younger siblings.”

l The majority of Mvule Trust medical science students will complete in mid-
2010, but a few who were taken on midway through their course have already finished
and found jobs. Janet Acen, of Gulu, completed her course in enrolled comprehensive
nursing at Lacor Hospital and is staying there to practice. Okello Jackline Jennifer
finished at Gulu School of Clinical Officers and is now volunteering at GYC.

l Elisabeth Acen, 23, finished at Ngora School of Nursing and is volunteering

in the nearby town of Serere, Soroti district, as she awaits her examination results.
Elisabeth earns a stipend of 100,000 Shs. a month, plus free lodging at the health
center. “Every day I work with many patients for injections and transfusions; I am the
only one at the health center trained as a midwife,” she says. “With my papers for
qualified nurse, I can look for a good paying job in a hospital, earning 250,000 shillings
every month or even more.”

Below: Nyabyeya Forestry College (NFC) graduates and beneficiaries

at Lira School of Nursing in Northern Uganda.

20
MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

FINANCE
In June, Mvule Trust underwent a successful audit with Carr Stayner Sims and Co. A representative from the firm
accompanied Mvule Trust staff on surprise visits to the UWESO school and Nyabyeya Forestry College.

Mvule expenses by category Mvule grants to implementers

Income and expenditure statement for the year ending 31 December 2008

Note Actual Ushs. Actual US $

INCOME
Grants 10 1,588,752,927 963,794
Interest 11 721,732 422
Total Income 1,589,474,659 964,216
Less: Capital Expenditure 12 (2,600,000) (1,522)
Balance available for Recurrent Expenditure 1,586,874,659 962,694
RECURRENT EXPENDITURE
Program sub-grants – scholarships
Secondary 13 963,379,078 564,039
Vocational 13 134,767,500 78,904
Sub-total 1,098,146,578 642,943
Innovative
Science/Leadership development camp 28,781,500 16,851
Parents’ meetings/Annual camp 20,373,850 11,928
Project running costs 59,418,400 34,788
Support to beneficiaries 29,248,900 17,125
Hospital bed support for students 25,620,000 15,000
Sub-total 163,442,650 95,692
Administrative Costs
FAWEU operational overheads 29,911,208 17,513
Salaries – Head Office 40,566,356 23,751
Salaries – FAWEU 40,710,504 23,835
Directors’ salaries 89,036,150 50,000
Office rent 54,990,000 32,196
Office expenses 20,128,549 11,785
Advertising, trustees meeting 5,475,000 3,205 21
Motor vehicle running expenses 16,038,831 9,390
Audit fees 5,978,000 3,500
Overseas travel 8,278,240 4,847
Exchange loss (64,537,772) (37,785)
Sub-total 246,575,066 142,237
Total Expenditure 1,508,164,294 880,872
Surplus for the year before exchange difference 78,710,365 81,822
Exchange difference -- (41,868)
BALANCE AT 31 DECEMBER 2008
Legal
(TOand administrative information
RESTRICTED FUND) 8 78,710,365 39,954
 Name of charity:
Mvule Trust

Legal and administrative information

Name of governing document:
Charitable Trust Deed signed between the two founders and three trustees on 1 March 2005.

Name of trustees:
David Bowes Lyon (Chair),
Madeleine Plaut, Richard Dowden

Trustees appointed:
For knowledge of education, Africa and charitable sector.

Principal office of the charity:

25 Ross St. Cambridge, UK CB1 JBP, UK
4 Acacia Avenue, PO BOX 22366, Kampala, Uganda

Names and addresses of other relevant organizations or persons :

Auditors
Carr Stanyer Sims & Co.
Certified Public Accountants
PO BOX 6293, Kampala, Uganda
Tel: 256-0414-258458

Bankers
Stanbic Bank
Crested Towers\Corporate Branch
PO BOX 7131, Kampala, Uganda

Barclays Bank PLC

Pall Mall 2
Reg. No. 1026167
Tel: 44-0-207-707-5080 London, UK

Solicitors
Lex Uganda
8th floor Communications House
PO BOX 22490, Kampala, Uganda
Tel: 256-0414-232733

Taylor Wessing
Carmelite
50 Victoria Embankment
Blackfriars, London EC4Y 0DX, UK
Tel: 44-0-207-300-7000

Advisors
Arcadia
39 Sloane Street, London, UK
Tel: 44-0-207-838-7100

Charity Commission Number: 1111410 (22 September 2005)

22
Government of Uganda BGO Certificate of Registration: S.5914/6093 (28 October 2005)
MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

LOOKING AHEAD
Most beneficiaries will complete S4 in 2009, towards the end of Mvule Trust’s original operation period.
However, since 2006 the Trust has consistently spent less than its annual budget of $1 million;
expenditure over the last three years averages $ 743,572.67 annually. With an accumulated surplus,
Mvule will be able to stretch its original budget. For the 785 students finishing O-level in 2009, Mvule
intends to offer them the possibility of attending a tertiary institution or going on to studying sciences at
A-level; the latest would complete by midway through 2013.
 MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008
The Mvule Trust team
1. Cathy Watson Director
2. Josephine Abalo Program Manager
3. Katherine Manchester Program Officer
4. Mary Achom Data Officer
5. Fred Mwesigwa Driver

1 2

23
MVULE TRUST Annual Report 2008

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