In 2000 there was an expedition out to Uganda, involving many scouts from over the UK. 4 of the people going out to Uganda with our group went in 2000, and so they know what Uganda is like and a better idea of what they are facing. Below is a short report of the project work they did out there and how it has affected the people living in Uganda over the past 3 years.

The Uganda 2000 team, shown above, was a lot smaller than the team we have going out there this year, and so their project work was more restricted. It was also the first expedition to Uganda for the Uganda-UK Network and so the trip was more of a trial run. However, the team did manage to spend time with the locals and helped out with various tasks throughout their trip, as detailed below.

One of the major projects that the team was involved in was the funding of several boreholes to provide safe, drinkable water for the villages in Tororo. While this project was more of a donation of money than labour, the team still spent a lot of time and effort raising the money in the UK, through various fundraising events such as car washing and bag packing. When out in Uganda, the team paid professional builders to build the boreholes, although some of the team did assist in making clay bricks for the builders to use! The boreholes have had a big effect on the villagers that use them as they now have a safe water supply near their homes. This has stopped them having to walk for hours each day to find water, or worse, to drink from an unsafe supply which could cause diseases such as cholera. The 2000 team were also involved in building a piggery in Tororo to help protect the village's pigs. This meant that the villagers had a more reliable source of food that was less likely to be eaten by predators or die from disease due to the harsh living conditions.

The team also did some project work in Kampala, the capital city of Uganda. They helped to paint and clean up an orphanage for the city's children, as the orphanage was very dirty and unwelcoming. The team helped clean the floors and walls and so lower the risk of disease, and also brighten up the orphanage by painting it so that the children would have somewhere nicer to stay and so that the owners would take more care over the cleanliness of the orphanage now it was properly decorated. The team also did a 'giant litter sweep', cleaning up areas of Kampala where there were large build-ups of rubbish. They provided the residents with bin bags so that they could help keep their living space clean and so reduce the amount of rubbish on the street. The team also took part in a large 'Jamboree' in Kaazi, Kampala, teaching the scouts there various skills and mixing with them to strengthen the UK-Ugandan link.

The team also worked in Iganga, helping to plant trees in various areas to provide fuel and shelter for the townsfolk. These trees helped to lower the number of families unable to eat hot food due to a lack of firewood. They also provided timber for use in house building among other things. In one area, the trees even acted as a windbreak to stop the local school roof from blowing off! To learn more a bout he tree planting projects, both this year and in 2000, click here.

All in all, the Uganda 2000 trip was a very successful pilot trip for future expeditions out to Uganda as it provided a chance for scouts from the UK to get to know scouts from Uganda and established connections for both project work and personal ties between the two countries, which we hope to strengthen on our trip out later this year.