Oyam Grandma uses Problem-solving skills to fight for Children’s rights

Albina Agang sits in the doorway of her two-roomed semi-permanent house in Akongatar “B” Village, Angweta Parish, Iceme Sub-county in Oyam District.
 
This remarkable 75-year-old grandma has lived through many challenges, but none as troubling as the growing violence against children in this rural community of northern Uganda.

In Lango, boys and girls are at equal risk of physical and emotional abuse as the sub-region is seemingly providing a fertile ground for violence against children.
 
Disturbingly, for many victims, violence comes at the hands of the people they trust – their parents or caregivers, teachers, peers and neighbours.
 
In Kole, for instance, data from the Child and Family Protection Unit (CFPU) at Kole Central Police Station, indicates that 22 children were defiled within three months – from September to November 2022. Of these, 11 cases were under investigation, while 11 cases had been taken to court.
 
The situation is the same in the neighbouring Lira City. In this principal trade centre of Lango Sub-region, at least 115 cases of child neglect were recorded at Lira Central Police Station from January to May, 2024.
 
Official data from the office of the District Police Commander (DPC) shows that around that period under review, one child was tortured, 17 children were deserted and 28 others were reported missing.
 
Not all is lost. As a respected elder and a member of the child protection committee in her community, grandma Agang decided to take matters into her own hands.
 
Slowly, but surely, this respected elder and a passionate advocate for children’s rights, began by mobilising her fellow community members, sharing her concerns and gathering their support.
 

However, she soon realised that simply raising awareness was not sufficient. They needed a more effective approach to address the root causes of violence against children.
 
That’s when the mother of nine children discovered the power of problem-solving skills.
 
She attended a 10-week parental and community engagement campaign which was recently launched in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Zanzibar.
 
This impactful education initiative was launched by Action for Life skills and Values in East Africa (ALiVE), an initiative of the Regional Education Learning Initiative Africa (RELI-Africa).
 
In Uganda, Oyam, a district in northern Uganda, was sampled, and the campaign took place in Akongatar ‘B’ (arural village) and Nursing Quarters Cell, an urban village in Oyam Town Council. FICH implemented the 10-week campaign in collaboration with Uwezo Uganda.
 
Interestingly, from the local workshop, Agang learned how to identify problems, analyse their causes, and develop creative solutions. Armed with these new skills, the grandma set out to tackle the issue of violence against children.
 
Accordingly, she embarked on gathering data. She conducted interviews with parents, children, and community leaders to understand the scope of the problem. She discovered that poverty, lack of education, and cultural norms were contributing factors to the violence. With this information, she began to brainstorm solutions.
 
“I have realised that one of the main reasons parents are abusing their children is due to stress and frustration caused by poverty. To address this, I have started encouraging women to form bolicap (Village Savings and Loan Associations). We are also encouraging parents to work together to grow crops and earn a steady income,” she says.
 
Bolicap is a group of people who save together and take small loans from those savings. The activities of the group run in cycles of one year, after which the accumulated savings and the loan profits are distributed back to members.

The purpose of the scheme is to provide simple savings and loan facilities in a community that does not have easy access to formal financial services.
 
Such initiatives do not only improve people’s economic situation but also provide a sense of community and support.
 
Additionally, Agang tackles the issue of lack of education. She partners with fellow members of the child protection committee to sensitise the community on positive parenting and child protection.
 
“Parents learn about the importance of nurturing and protecting their children, and children learn about their rights and how to report abuse,” says Agang, who has worked as a member of the child protection committee for the last 10 years.
 
To address the issue of harmful cultural norms that perpetuate violence against children, she wants to partner with cultural and religious leaders to organise community dialogues, where elders and community leaders discuss the importance of changing harmful traditions.
 
If this ambitious programme is successfully implemented, the Akongatar community may begin to shift its mindset, recognising that violence against children is never acceptable.
 
Superintendent of Police Patrick Jimmy Okema, the North Kyoga regional police spokesperson, acknowledges that community policing is one of the best approaches in managing crime. 
“And that is why when you see most of these operations we conduct, like within Lira City, are very successful because of the involvement of the local leadership and the community,” he says. 
“Therefore, we shall continue with this approach to see that we have a crime-free environment in the areas in which we operate.” 
 
Ends